Camera-shy cops can relax: the exoneration of the officer who killed Zachary Hammond shows police have strong defenses against viral videos.

• Author: Sullum, Jacob
• Position: Columns - Column

FBI DIRECTOR James Comey says cops are reluctant to do their jobs because they worry that their actions will be captured on camera. Judging from the official response to the shooting of Zachary Hammond, they have little to fear.

Speaking at the University of Chicago Law School in October, Comey said police officers "in today's YouTube world" are afraid to get out of their cars, lest they face camera-wielding bystanders intent on recording them. He warned that good policing could "drift away from us in the age of viral videos" as cops refrain from confronting suspicious characters.

"I spoke to officers privately in one big-city precinct who described being surrounded by young people with mobile phone cameras held high, taunting them the moment they get out of their cars," Comey said. "I've been told about a senior police leader who urged his force to remember that their political leadership has no tolerance for a viral video."

You might wonder what exactly cops would do if they were sure they were not being recorded, or why they are so worried that practices Comey thinks are essential to public safety would be fodder for viral videos. But the truth is that cops rarely face serious consequences even when they star in videos that appall the average YouTube viewer.

To understand why, consider the exoneration of the police officer who shot and killed Hammond, an unarmed 19-year-old, in Seneca, South Carolina, on July 27. Three months later, 10th Circuit Solicitor Chrissy Adams said Lt. Mark Tiller was justified in using lethal force because Hammond was trying to run him over. But that is not what the dashcam video of the encounter seems to show.

Police planned to arrest Hammond's date, 23-year-old Tori Morton, whom an undercover cop had lured to a Hardee's parking lot by pretending to be a pot and cocaine buyer. Morton was sitting in the front passenger seat of Hammond's Honda Civic as Tiller approached the driver's side with his gun drawn, shouting, "Hands up! Put 'em up! Stop! Stop! Stop! I'm gonna shoot your fucking ass!"

Hammond, who was already backing up as Tiller approached the...