Hmmmm- How to wield? Well to me it's mostly common sense. With some exceptions, honesty is a very good policy. Saying "Yeah, I may have going a little fast" will get better results than denying the obvious. How obvious matters- if your vid shows you passing everything in sight, you're screwed. But if you're getting passed as much as you're passing, that won't look so bad even if it's not a legal speed. The worst no-no's like cutting people off, doing anything patently unsafe like running red lights, racing or passing on a double-yellow line, well those will cut you deeply. Stealth install? That's an enigma. The cam has to see, preferrably in the area your wipers cover, so it's going to be visible to someone looking for it. How deeply they look you can't control. Sometines a remoted lens hidden in a factory housing can be done, but the lens is always going to be visible to someone who is looking for it. A cam which looks like a cam can only be made more discreet by the install technique, it's not totally stealth but better. Lots of problems doing a full-stealth approach like cam overheating, getting to the SD card, hiding cables, etc. And with some cars there's just nothing to hide it in. I will still see it if I look because I know what to look for, but many or most people will not see a well-done full stealth install. Another issue here is that it's illegal to suppress or alter relevant evidence, doubly so if asked about it by a government official. If they don't ask it's up to your conscience whether to speak up or not. If they do get your vids, they can and might want to see more than just the incident being investigated, like a few minutes beforehand up to the time they ask for the vids or end the investigation. In that they will see what you've done throughout, and if it's bad you've cut yourself again. You can turn your cam off and on at will, keeping it off if you think it's more a threat than an asset, but you'll certainly be asked why you do that if things go sour. They will know you're hiding somethijng even if they don't know what. Someone else may have video of that anyway so it's not perfectly safe to trust that your having it off will keep anything hidden. And when your cam is off, witnesses can collude and lie against you, or maybe they will not have seen everything, but your safety against that went away when you left the cam off. Get another band-aid. Best case scenario is that you submit only what you want seen to your Attorney without anyone else being aware of it, then follow their advice being honest with them. Never hide anything from your own Attorney; they need to know everything to best help you.
You can also use your cam only while parking, but dashcams offer limited protection there, it may not have what you need in view. Better than nothing and certainly worth doing. Not many cams have a good 'parking mode' so selection of the right cam and technique matters a lot for this usage. It still leaves you unprotected while driving, which to me makes little sense when that protection is at hand
Before I got into this, I drove much the same as now but a little faster. Nothing outrageous, not as fast as the fastest 25% of the other cars and definitely not like I was racing anyone, just a little bit over the limit regularly. Which almost everyone who lives here does. Now I'm rarely over the limit and then not by much. I've become more acutely aware of my own driving and I know what my "sword" can do to me so I'm more careful handling it. Nobody is a perfect driver, but I can show a history of me being one of the most careful and legal drivers out there, and that gives my "sword" a very keen edge which will shred any lies or misconceptions about me and the incident to pieces, handing me a 100% nearly instant win. My mulriple cams simply offer a chance to reinforce that. If you come up behind me, tailgate me, pass unsafely, then clip me when you pull back in or 'brake check' me afterward I'll have a full visible history of all that. My swords won't touch me but they will kill you because I'm wielding my swords in the way they were meant to be used. My "swords" have made me a better driver while protecting from those who aren't. I'm totally happy with that result, for I've truly lost nothing but I've gained a lot. You should try this approach instead of trying to "play the system" because your way will cut you someday, but my way never will.
Phil
