FBI Director Blames Rise in Crime Rates on 'Viral Video Effect'
Over the past months, an alleged rise in violent crimes is battering some cities in the U.S..and FBI Director James Comey believes it is due to a "viral video effect" that has been haunting the police and thus resulted to an alarming rise in crime rates around the country.
According to The New York Times, Comey said on Wednesday that the so-called "viral video effect could well be at the heart" of the spike in violent crimes in many cities. He added that he has no statistical proof regarding the issue, but he has talked to many police officers and he confirmed that many of them had fears of being the star of videos where the police are represented the wrong way.
Back in October, Comey first started debates on whether officials are purposefully staying away from confronting criminals due to a "Ferguson effect" -- a name derived from the story of an unarmed black man in Ferguson, who was shot by a police officer in 2014. Videos of the said shooting received rage from all over the country, and according to Comey, the "Ferguson effect" is the reason for a decline in aggressive policing.
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CNET reported that Comey's most recent statements came after he discovered that more than 40 cities saw a rise in crime rates during the first quarter of the year. The FBI did not issue a statement on Comey's remarks, but government officials believe that Comey's words lack evidence and he is just trying to initiate talks regarding an unproven report.
In March, Brennan Center for Justice experts seemed to re-butt Comey's remarks as it unveiled studies that suggest the increase of murders since last year only occurred largely in three cities namely Baltimore, Washington and Chicago.
The Huffington Post asked Comey regarding the main driving factor that resulted to the spike in homicides in certain cities. The FBI chief clarified that he is unsure if there are individual factors in the cities or if there is something much broader that affects the homicide jump.
As Comey continues to imply that the "viral video effect" is the reason for rising violent offenses, many law enforcement leaders are against his idea. For them, it is an insult that Comey suggests law enforcers are underperforming due to fear of appearing in a video.
