By Colin Daileda From Mashable

Police body cameras are hotly debated.

This year, their use have led to indictments of officers in two fatal shootings which may not seem much considering that officers have shot and killed at least 550 people in 2015, according to a recent study by the Washington Post.

However, those two cases constitute half the number of total murder and manslaughter indictments of police this year: four.

And without those videos, it’s likely neither indictment would have happened.

The first indictment came about after Tulsa, Oklahoma Reserve Deputy Robert Bates shot and killed a black man named Eric Harris after Harris fled a police sting operation.

Bates, who was a volunteer at the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, said Harris had reached around his waistband before another officer brought him to the ground. Bates said Harris was struggling against the officer, so he pulled out what he thought was his stun gun, and instead fired a fatal bullet into Harris’ back.

The video shows something else.

(Editors’ note: Warning: The videos are graphic)

There’s no evidence, from the video, that Harris ever reached into the waistband of his shorts. And there’s hardly evidence of a struggle. In fact, Harris stops running shortly after he appears on the body camera footage. Bates, who doesn’t appear on camera, seems taken aback by the gunshot. “I shot him,” he said. “I’m sorry.”

But his apology didn’t help him avoid second-degree manslaughter charges. He did, however, enter a not guilty plea, and was allowed to go on vacation in The Bahamas.

The second indictment came Wednesday, when former University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing was charged with murder after his body camera video was released to the public.

Tensing’s story went like this: After he pulled Dubose over for driving a car without a front license plate, there was some kind of altercation, and Dubose drove off. The car dragged Tensing and he was forced to fire his weapon to save his life. Two other officers corroborated Tensing’s version of events.

Tensing’s body camera video proved that nearly all of his account was untrue.

The video shows he and Dubose having a brief conversation about why Dubose does not have his license with him. Then the video shakes and some sort of commotion happens. Tensing pulls out his gun and shoots Dubose point blank in the face. Dubose died in his car. The Hamilton County prosecutor called the killing “senseless” and “asinine.”

The impact of body camera footage on those individual cases is obvious. But the footage from both killings has also shifted discussions about police and their relationship with minority communities, especially black people.

Moments after Bates shot Harris, Harris could be heard shouting, “Oh sh*t man, he shot me! He shot me!”

A few minutes later, Harris can be heard telling the officers he is losing his breath. One of them responds: “F*ck your breath.”

Image: John Minchillo/Associated Press

For more on this story and videos go to: http://mashable.com/2015/07/30/body-cameras-officers-fatal-shootings/