the spirit of the country that will be lost. the decision is ours. on this episode of "the united shades of america", we're talking about the police. >> woo. >> one person, everybody else is nervous. [ applause ] >> it's weird, i think it's a weird thing to say out loud, but i've never been arrested. i think it's a weird, humble thing, but if i say it out loud, i'm suddenly running for the gop nomination as a black guy. i've never been arrested, not like those other ones, yay, herman cain, yay! i've never had sweet potato pie. i've never heard a rap song.

it gets better and better! >> my name is w.kamau bell. as a comedian, i've found humor in the parts of america i don't understand, and now i'm challenging myself to dig deeper. i'm on a mission to reach out and experience the cultures that lead to this country, this is "the united shades of america." it seems like every time you turn on the news, you can see conflict between communities of color and the police. and this is causing many people to wonder, what has happened? well, i'll tell you, nothing has happened, other than technology making it easier to document what has been going on for centuries. it started when the first pure tan got off the mayflower, and he told the first indian to keep it going.

now communities of color are banding together to figure out ways to organize and let the cops know, we're not going to take it. because a white guy who kills nine people gets arrested like this. and a black guy who sells loose cigarettes gets arrested like this. so this week, i'm headed to one of the cities most often cited when the subject turns to crime and policing. camden, new jersey. but before i go there, i'm going to talk to the people in philadelphia about the way we're being policed and i could start with this guy or this guy or even this guy, but then you'd accuse me of being biased. so i think i'll start with these nice young women here. we're talking to people about policing in america. is to how do you two feel about the police? >> i think the police are usually there to protect you. >> they've always been there to support us. on weekend nights and stuff like that. >> if something bad happens you feel like you can call the police and they'll show up and take care of you. >> yeah. >> can i ask you another question? >> yes. >> what's that like? do you have black friends?

>> yeah. hey, sasha. >> do any of your black friends come to you and say i'm worried about the police? i'm afraid of the police? >> i understand as a white male i'll never be in the same shoes as an african-american who simply gets looked at a different way. and i understand that, that that is just so sad, it's a sad truth. >> trustwise, i think we would trust the cops because we grew up in a white suburban neighborhood, so i could see how people from an urban environment might think differently. >> oh, bring it in, bring it in. do you understand that is a big thing. white people have that conversation with other white people. the world changes. >> right. >> this is my black friend! oh, my god. i just said it. did you hear what the whole crowd did? it literally was a spike lee movie. >> this is great, oh, my god. >> can you confirm you're his black friend? >> yes.

>> i'm in, baby. >> he's turning redder than he is. >> yes. >> [ bleep ]. >> if things get bad you feel like you can call the cops? >> i do. if you go five blocks that way you're going to get a completely different perspective. >> i didn't have to walk anywhere. >> do you feel like when the [ bleep ] hits the fan you can call the cops? >> no, because they'll say get your hands out your pocket. i just called you for help. >> have you had experience with the police that were not awesome, that were not five-star yelp reviews? >> i don't have enough fingers, man. >> i call it a crisis where many communities, i would say communities of color especially feel like we're not being policed appropriately. >> the police should feel like your neighbor. they should feel like your family. i think they still have to go back to the basics. this is the community you protect and serve. >> yes, back to the basics.

i hear people talk about those basics, when cops rescued cats out of trees and told little bud to go home and do his homework, but those basics weren't in any neighborhood i grew up in, and i can't imagine that happening in any of the neighborhoods in the front line of this conflict today. but according to the national news, they're doing it exactly that way here in camden. they're trying a method called community policing, where police walk the beat and get to know the citizens personally, instead of showing up only when bad things happen. the camden police department thinks this can work. and they're getting so much good press that even president obama showed up to check it out. >> i've come here to camden to hold you up as a symbol of promise for the nation. [ applause ] >> do i think it can work? i have no idea. but i'm going to spend a week with the camden city police department and hopefully find out. >> every day you put on this

uniform, you bridge the gap between law enforcement and the civilian population. >> sergeant ralph thornton is one of the people responsible for carrying out this community policing agenda. he's also one of those black people that you can't exactly tell how old he is. 25? 45? 120? >> i like to tell my cops, when you go to work, that particular area is your castle. you're the knight of that area. when enemies are at your gate, you protect it. >> the thing that comes up for me is i feel like some police feel like it is their area, but they own the area, know what i'm saying? i'm not the knight, i'm the king. >> i use the word castle. but our officers are only as good as the rapport they have with the people in the area. >> brushing aside the fact that his analogy means that we go back to medieval times, i think the only way for me to learn how

they do it here is to see it up close. >> officer jeffries. >> very good officer, you're in good hands. >> i appreciate that. i don't often hear this when one cop hands me over to another cop. just so you know, officer jeffries, this is my first time ever in a police car. >> oh, yeah? >> in any capacity. >> good, good. >> i'm going where no other civilian black man has ever gone before, to the front seat of a police car. mama, i made it. >> it has a reputation of being a rough area. this is the district you patrol? >> this is the district i patrol. this street right here is very heavily trafficked for drug activity. >> this seems like a pretty, i would say frothy area, there's, it's clearly a city that is having some urban blight, and there are a lot of buildings that are empty, people used to live in there and do business there and those businesses have left. what surprises you most about the job? >> to hear what camden once was, this is where you wanted to go. you wanted to go to vacation in camden.

>> yep, camden was once a vacation and shopping destination for tourists and locals alike. in the 1950s, industry was booming. jobs were aplenty. and camden also got culture. it was the home of walt whitman and where lafayette hubbard said, i think i'll call it scientology. but late in the 1960s, economic conditions caused many businesses to leave. and what often happens in these situations, it leads to poverty, poverty leads to drugs, and in 2012, camden was given the most dubious of titles, the most dangerous city in the u.s. congra congrats? and most likely, everyone in the city has been touched by crime. you know what those crosses represent? >> 2012 was the worst year for camden. this is all the homicides and

murders that were committed in camden. there is a cross for every victim that it occurred to. >> a lot of crosses. >> it was a very, very violent year. >> officer jeffries is going to take me to the most notorious corner in the city. this is clearly a very active corner. how safe do you feel walking around camden? >> there's some places that depending on the call, late at night when the visibility's bad, i wouldn't necessarily want to walk by myself. >> and one of us just got the finger. >> yeah. >> how does it feel knowing that just happened? >> not everyone's going to be happy with you. just like everything else in life, not everybody's going to be happy with what you're doing. >> could be he's not a fan of my comedy. i'm not going to put it all on you. >> maybe, maybe. >> honestly, officer jeffries seems a little stiff to me. i'm going to help him with this community policing thing. >> so can you talk to us for a few minutes? >> yes. >> you can leave whenever you want to.

officer jeffries, by the way. >> how you doing? >> do you live in camden? >> yes, i do, all my life. >> have you seen the city change in your lifetime? >> it's getting a little better. got a lot of work to do. >> how much work do they have to do? >> get these people off the corner. people park on the side of my house using drugs all the time. i called the police last week. >> did they respond quickly enough? >> no, they did not. >> that's his people. >> did you talk to him? >> y'all didn't respond fast enough. >> was this at night? >> broad daylight, and i let them know. the loitering and drug use, and when i came back, the people were still there. >> why do you think that happens? >> it all depends on the time of day, however many officers are present, the priority of the call, that could have went out at the same time as a higher priority call. >> i'm sure you understand she doesn't know what the priority is. nobody told her there's a gunshot over here, so we can't make it to you right away.

>> you all can make it better. all you have to do is be on top of everybody. >> you don't have to get a relationship with people, but speaking to them, everything's okay, you know? instead of saying shut up, i'm in control. >> i hear you. >> it's not their job to punish you. >> i agree with him. we always want to use, if it came down to the amount of force, but that's needed, nothing more. >> the media often does a serious disservice to communities of color by acting as if citizens in these neighborhoods don't want to be policed. but it's just the opposite. we want cops in our neighborhood, we just want the good ones.

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i have a thing, that natural fear of police that i think black people have instilled in them, same way i have a natural fear of mountain lions, you know what i mean? it's just that i don't have to call a mountain lion if i'm in trouble. i do have to call a cop, but it's weird, yeah, there's a bad thing happening at my house, could you send a wild mountain lion over to my house to see if it can help? i know it sounds crazy. that's how i feel about calling the cops. i'm in camden, new jersey, hanging out with cops to see if a comedian can solve the country's police brutality problem or something like that. and i'm here to talk to camden police chief scott thompson,

who's been in charge since 2008, and is the man responsible for implementing all the new changes in the force. >> where are we? it feels like i'm in the bat cave. >> this is the central nervous system for operation. it's our real time tactical operation intelligence center. the ideology is to prevent crime from happening in the first place. >> it must be for watching the officers, too. if you can see everybody in camden, you can see your police force. is that one of the purposes, too? >> that's one of the biggest problems we have right now is the issue of trust and legitimacy. >> i know as a black man in america i'm perceived as a future criminal. it feels that police have to help change that perception. >> the burden is on us. not to sit back and keep doing what we're doing and expect the public to change it on its own. we all have biases, and there

are implicit biases that end up shaping our action. it's recognizing it, learning how to deal with it and processing it in a way to ensure he cequity is being exuded. >> i think it's totally awesome that you are dealing with perception that cops have in this country, you're not pretending it doesn't exist. >> we're starting to see a lot of bad behavior of police officers. the video out of north carolina sickened me. it's our responsibility to fix. it starts with us fixing our own. that is not something you learn in a classroom. the only way the citizens are going to trust an officer, they have to have human contact with an officer, and it can't be only when that person calls 911 and says i have a problem. >> and that's the key to community policing, which is something that isn't new to camden. up until recently, if you wanted to join the camden police force then you actually had to live in camden.

but in 2011, the mayor decimated the police force because of a lack of state funding, and not surprisingly, crimes spiked exponentially. then the city filed a waiver to let people join the police force whether they lived in camden or not. which may not sound like a big deal, but the question is, can you engage in community policing if you aren't actually a member of the community? to find out, i'm meeting up with kelly francis, chairman of the camden chapter of the naacp. according to my black people guide book, he's going to have a lot to say. the cops in many camden lost connection with the communities. >> one of the biggest problems is most of the police officers are not part of the community that they serve. they don't live there. they come in as an army of occupation. >> and why do you think it's so important to have police officers who are from the community? >> first of all, you get to know the residents. you know who's who.

you know the difference between a drug dealer and an honest person. i know the difference. i've been here 65 years. guys who don't live in the community don't know that. they work their shifts or whatever, and they go back to their communities for their 16 hours, but i'm not getting anything in return from them. >> they're not owning a home here, renting a home, buying groceries. >> they're not sharing our tax burden. they're our burden, they're taking our tax dollars but not returning anything. that's not community policing, that's show. >> you say to have true community policing you need to be from the community. >> exactly. that's what i grew up with. the cops were our neighbors. we went to school with their children, we went to churches with them. they were our mentors, role models. >> not just a police officer. >> yeah, absolutely. today the only thing we see is a blue uniform.

>> that absolutely makes sense. knowing your local officers is key to feel being like you can trust your local officers, feeling like you can talk to them, seeing them smile. right now if a cop smiles at me, i'm like, ah-oh, something really bad's about to go down. [ sirens ] ♪ can say that. go ahead, embrace those beautiful moments. flonase changes everything.

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i don't care that it's not all cops, it's too many cops

that have done bad things. [ applause ] i get it, not all cops, but some jobs, you have to hold that job up to a higher standard. it's enough cops. you have to have like a 100% success rate, if one person screws it up, it messes up the whole thing. some jobs you hold to a higher standard like police, priests, schoolteachers, baristas. don't screw up my swimsuit areas don't screw up my kids and don't screw up my mocha. that will ruin my day. if i'm going to understand this community policing thing i'm going to have to pound the pavement with officers that are actually from camden. these officers, both from camden, have invited me to walk the beat with them. today we're going to do an a little walking the beat?

>> right under the sun, yes. >> let's do it. what is the purpose of walking the beat? >> for police presence. a lot of people that live in the city, they don't want to see officers just riding in their cars. they want a more personal experience. >> being from camden, does that help you patrol and be police officers? >> yes, it makes them feel more comfortable, because they're not like, you don't understand my situation. i'm like, wait a minute, i'm from here, i was raised here, i know exactly what you're talking about. and it makes them feel a little more at ease because they think maybe she does get it. she knows what i've been through and gone through. >> they can't b.s. you in the same way. >> yes. >> they try. >> how are you guys? >> hey, man. >> are you the comedian? >> i am the -- >> i just told him that. >> looks like the police aren't the only ones with street cred. walking the beat is hard work. because not only does it last for an entire eight-hour shift

but also because officers cabria and ty have to convince this neighborhood one person at a time that police aren't jerks. >> i'm sorry, i like babies. he's a boy? how old is he? what's your name? >> valerie? >> don't be shy. it's okay. have a nice day, okay? >> you too. >> bye. >> i love kids. >> is that part of it? just talking to people, just being a person? >> mm-hm. because then they're not afraid of you when they see you. >> and it doesn't just put a police officer in their face when something bad happens. >> yes. >> a lot of people in our community are afraid of the cops, and a lot of people i don't know, maybe feel like you're judged because you're people of color wearing the uniform. >> you get mixed reaction, especially with everything going on in the media. they only see your uniform. they don't see you as a human.

they expect you not to understand. and they don't realize that under this uniform, you're still a person. you still have feelings, has nothing to do with color. has nothing to do with gender. it just has to do with there are certain things that we have to do as officers. a lot of people understand that, they become a little irate, i understand you're just doing your job. things go smoothly after that. >> is that yours right there? >> yep. >> every time i pass there. i'm like, is that a person? and i have to double back around. >> that was a santa claus. >> my name's kamau. >> you'll be seeing you and your man. >> you're sniffing. i don't have no food. >> i don't know if this handshaking approach is the solution, but if all the bad things that could happen in an encounter with the police, i'll take awkward small talk any day. >> kamau.

>> your mother live on fifth street or grant street? >> yeah. my aunt. you was at the incident for my daughter. >> yes. yes. >> and he's still in jail. >> that's good. >> that is good. >> i remember that. i remember her and then i remembered you when you guys came. >> and he showed up for the incident? >> for my daughter. a guy got fresh with her. >> got fresh with her. did he do a good job handling it? >> yes, he did. >> i'm glad he's still in jail, though. >> how long have you lived in camden? >> all my life. >> are things looking up? >> north camden's getting better as days go by. >> thanks for talking to me. >> bye-bye. >> this was interesting, but honestly, it might take a few hundred years of this kind of interaction before communities of color trust the police. but it does seem like a good start. but we all know right now in america we need way more than a good start. with my moderate to severe ulcerative colitis, the possibility of a flare was almost always on my mind. thinking about what to avoid,

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back on the beat in camden, i'm heading out on patrol again. this time, i'm with officer matt dedamimico. >> did you always want to be a cop? >> i did. camden was hiring, and i looked at it as a place to really learn and make a difference. >> i see you looking out the window, what are you doing?

>> whenever i'm on patrol, and i always have a window down. i always have an ear on the streets. my fellow officers have instilled it in my head, that will save your life, always watch your six. >> and your six is what's behind you? >> yeah. >> i've seen the "bourne identity." i know what you're talking about. i'm kind of half a police officer. i've absorbed a lot through matt damon. what are you going to do now? >> we're going to check out a house known for cds activity. >> what is cds? >> drugs, controlled dangerous substance. >> 868. >> 868. >> can you show me an abandoned check, marion and cain. backup assistance, please. >> backup, this can't be good. >> so, yeah, this is the location. actually, the front door is

open. last time i was here, it was boarded up. so -- >> you think somebody maybe took the boards off the door? >> yeah, that's the way it appears, it used to be you were only able to get in through the rear. stay there, don't move. >> have a seat for me real quick, ma'am? i just got to talk to you. you were inside the property, right? >> oh, yeah, yeah. >> you know you can't be on the property? >> all right, there's three people in there, sarge. >> let me see your hands! let me see your hands now! >> come outside! >> everybody else inside, come out now! if you don't, i will release a dog, and he will bite you! >> come outside with your hands where i can see them. put it down, have a seat.

>> this house, which i don't even feel safe standing in, is apparently a well-known drug spot in camden. >> probably where they were. this is fresh. this is fresh heroin that has not been used yet. >> oh, wow. >> the front is completely blown out, or the side, i should say, is completely blown out. >> i don't feel comfortable where i'm standing. >> there's holes in the ceiling. >> this used to be somebody's house, somebody's home. somebody picked out that carpet. somebody was like, should we upgrade? this is the carpet we should get. there was discussions about this carpet going in here. >> christmas mornings, all that stuff. it took a dark turn. >> now it's this. >> and if you thought all this was happening in a deserted area of town you'd be wrong. >> you live here in the neighborhood? >> i've been here about ten years already.

>> did you see what went down, what we were part of? >> kind of, so many people going in and out of that house. it's a revolving door. there's 50 or 60 people every day coming in and out. my kids be out here -- a lot of kids be out here and they grow up looking at that and they're like, i'm interested in that, so let me go do that, and then we have another drug user. come on, we don't need that. that isn't cool. >> he's right, it isn't cool. and in parts of camden like this, this activity seems normal. and while i'm overwhelmed, this lady seems like she's taking a sunday drive in the park. >> hey, sweetie, how are you doing? >> good! >> ma'am, my name's kamau. we're shooting in camden, talking about policing in camden, hanging out with the police. and you seem to be friends with the police. do you live here in camden? >> yes, i do. >> how do you feel about living in camden? >> i love this city. >> you were smiling and talking,

it was almost as if you weren't even -- i knew you could see this was happening, but it was almost like -- >> it doesn't affect me. the key is, we have to get involved. now with this drug stuff, we have zombies walking through our streets, it's no excuse for that. and it has to be a proactive approach. if we choose not to get involved, then whatever happens we can't complain about. the minute we become involved and we're taking ownership of the situation and the problem. and when we have ownership of it, that means we can dictate how it happens and what happens. >> i don't know how she can handle this. she has pride in camden and believes it will get better. but for me at this point, i'm pretty much gutted. there's problems all over the country with police and how police are doing their thing and what police are doing, but we can't have that. it's just depressing. this is sad.

kids should be able to play basketball right there, but i wouldn't let my kids play basketball out here. the city has a lot of work to do. and i really hope this is the police force to do it. because they certainly need a police force that believes in the city and wants the city to do better. i got kids. i wouldn't, i can't imagine what it's like to live in the city. and i'm sure it's great and people have great things they do here and they love it and they have pride. a lot of people have pride, but to know that this is always right around the corner is overwhelming. i can't imagine. this is really emotional.

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how they're trained. >> one, two, three. >> here at the police academy, potential officers are put through rigorous physical training. >> one more, push it! push it! >> these recruits have a tough and complicated job ahead of them, and i really have to ask, why would you want to be a cop? first question, why did you pick camden? there's a place called medford lakes. that sounds like that would be a barney fife situation. but you picked camden. >> personally, for me, my parents are pastors in camden, new jersey, so i've been in that community for so long. i could have chosen to work in a suburban community which may have been safer as some people say. but that's not what i felt like my calling was. my calling and what i have passion for is the urban community. that's where i want to work. >> there's a lot of policing to do. >> a lot of action, a lot of diversity as well. >> i think that's great.

is there any part of it, the idea of being a police officer is, what's the word i'm looking for, scares the -- out of me. and we need well-trained, highly effective connected to the community police officers, but is there any part of it that scares you or you're worried about? >> the only thing i'm nervous about is the culture toward law enforcement now. a lot of people are scared of law enforcement. i am hoping if i can bring some integrity to the job, respect, respecting people's privacy and rights that can bring a new attitude toward law enforcement. >> the most important thing is to bring trust so we have a safer environment for the community and the officers. >> i'm glad you guys are looking forward to being cops and good luck out there on the streets of camden. as they used to say on "hill street blues," let's be careful

out there. >> thank you, sir. >> don't call me sir. >> i guess the call comes from watching that liquid metal cop in "terminator two." but for others, policing's in their blood. i mean backup with officer ty bagby and his father, scott bagby, retired lieutenant. another black man of unidentifiable age. this is the shooting range? this is where you keep your skills tight? >> pretty much. >> the threat is officially stopped. >> in the news a lot of times people ask why didn't the cops shoot them in the leg and wound them so the person could still be alive, so tell me why it's center mass. >> hollywood. unfortunately, we're not all bruce willis and denzel washington. if we go to shoot for the arm or leg, if he moves, it might go in

the back and shoot baby susie, and we don't want that. >> you're police officers, but you're also black dudes. i'm a black dude, so that means i'm declaring a black guy meeting right now. talk about the relationship between the black community and the police department. because right now nationally it seems like they're in a crisis. there's a perception that black people have something extra to worry about. >> a lot of incidents don't have to happen based on what i know and see and hear. a lot of these incidents don't have to occur if you do exactly what you're told to do. if you're told to take your hands out of your pockets, it's a safety issue, safety of the individual and the officer, even if you don't agree, follow it. even if you feel as though the officers are doing something wrong, there is an avenue later on for you to address that. >> it's hard for people to swallow, because it feels

like -- and i respect police officers, let me be clear, i don't think we should not have cops, but i understand when i see these people getting upset why they're upset. are there bad police officers? >> i would say absolutely. naturally, there's bad human beings. and sometimes people slip through the cracks, so to speak, and become police officers, and their true personality comes out after the fact, and it's unfortunate, but it does happen that way. >> i think, for me, it feels like the last thing any police officer wants to do is admit that another cop is bad because they don't want to cross that thin, blue line. for us, i sometimes think if cops could go, yeah, that cop was not a good cop and we're glad we got him out of here, instead of saying it's always on citizens to understand why things went down. know what i'm saying? >> yes. >> for me, and especially talking to officers of color, i

think that's a thing we don't hear from them enough. >> you've asked us questions. that means we get to ask you questions. >> if you have questions of me, feel free to ask. >> what's your perception of the average police officer now that you've gotten to speak to a few of them? >> i'm still processing it. a lot of it is still fresh for me. everything i'm hearing from people is things i would want to hear from police officers. sometimes you're like, is this the thing? or is this because the cameras are here? the idea of community policing and the idea of police living in the community, it seems like a better way to go. it's better if i come across police officers more often who i get to know than if i see them only when the [ bleep ] hits the fan. >> it's all in the news now. the media is always reporting there's an epidemic of black people being assaulted and killed by police officers. no. it's kind of always been happening. there's an epidemic of people having cell phone cameras is what there is. [ applause ]

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whenever i see news stories about police using deadly force

in situations that i don't believe call for deadly force, i always think the same thing -- what the hell are police thinking? so the camden police have invited me to get into the head of a cop who's in the heat of the moment. this is a virtual reality center to see how officer w. kamau bell acts in this situation. >> the system is very interactive, as close to real life as you're going to get without actually being in danger. >> sir, put down the weapon, sir. >> appear on the hexagon. you can maneuver all the way around the platform. the cameras from the computer and monitors pick up your movements. >> sir, drop the weapon. >> and it allows 360-degree interaction. >> now this may look like a video game, but it's not. take it from me, the fact that it features real people in these

scenarios makes it very intense and a little too real. >> sir, i don't want to hurt you. do not go in that building, sir. don't touch that door handle, sir. sir, drop the weapon. sir. [ shots ] >> entry, four shots fired. got a male down. send me a 52. >> after every scenario, we do a debrief with the officers and let them know what they did right, what they did wrong. >> and you have to do that because this is out in the streets, this is life and death. >> yes. >> okay. how do you think he did? >> he did excellent. he went from sir drop the gun and didn't realize this guy's thinking about committing suicide and brought it back down. i don't want to take this guy's life. let me try and save it by talking him through this situation he's going through, but if need be, i'll have to take it to prevent him from taking anyone else's life. >> mm-hmm. >> all right, follow me up on to the stage. >> after sergeant thornton gives me a crash course on handling a weapon -- >> bring the weapon down and up.

pivot right. >> -- it's time to begin. have a mentioned i'd rather hug it out? >> movie theater. >> officer fontes is my backup as we check out a report of a report of several camouflaged males inside a movie theater, clearly modeled after the shooting in a movie theater in colorado. >> where's he at? where's he at? talk to us. >> where is he? where's he at? [ shots ] >> sir? sir? sir, let her go, sir. let her go, sir. you don't want to do this! you don't want to do this, sir! sir, calm down. talk about this, sir. [ shots ] >> stay in the game. stay in the game. >> please, help me! please help me, please!

>> sir. >> you know where he's at? >> i bet that black guy gets shot a lot. >> where's the shooter? >> where's he at? where's he at? >> come out, come out, come out, come out. you know where he's at? put the gun down. where's he at, where's he at. >> get down. police, get down. >> get down, get down! ma'am, get down. [ shots ] >> a34, 52, another male down. >> good job. >> you all right? >> time to find out how i did, and hopefully get a hug? >> if you felt that you could take this shot, then yes, you'd have been justified. >> okay. >> but you elected to try and talk him down. >> yeah. >> right? >> yes. >> it's not a wrong thing to do. >> i understand. >> that was your gut call. >> yeah. >> and as an officer, you make split-second decisions that

people have hours and days to criticize. but the only thing you have to realize is that every decision you make, you have to live with. >> yes. >> no one else. keep going? >> yes. >> at this point, off-duty cop comes out, shows you his badge, has his gun. >> yeah. >> good control. way not to get sucked up into the scenario, all right? >> yeah. >> whoa. you're coming in with your partner, officer fontes, you're clearing high-low, y'all are communicating. >> what are you doing? >> she gets shot. freeze. he shoots her twice. you and fontez take the shot and you get them. good job. you lived. this is technically a win, but it's not. you know, several people still die. and these are all things you have to live with. >> yeah. >> and you're going to monday morning quarterback yourself for the rest of your life.

>> apparently, i did well. they were clearly surprised that i hadn't just shot everybody, and we all know that most of policing isn't attempted murder-suicides and movie theater shootings. i wonder if they have a scenario for a black guy standing on the corner minding his own business, and if they do, how often does that guy die? >> should i have taken a shot? did i have the skills? did i do the right thing? >> yeah. obviously, it's not -- this isn't a real scenario, but -- and i'm sure the reality is way more intense than this, but i did -- it feels intense. any number of things can happen. >> all right. it's my last night here. and in another effort to bring the city together, there's a basketball game between a local team and the camden police. looks like community policing isn't helping their game any. [ laughter ] and of course, the police know that it's going to take more than some b-ball and walking the

beat to earn the trust and respect from the residents of camden. it's going to take time. and many examples of police publicly doing their jobs well without people feeling like they're going to far. it's going to take people feeling like that if they call the police when they need help, that the police will come and make a bad situation better, instead of the reverse. and this is bigger than camden. there's a national crisis happening in our country between communities of color and the police. now look, do i think community policing will solve all our law enforcement issues? no. but hopefully, it is a good start. time will tell. >> yeah, that guy looked at me, like what are you doing in the front seat? [ laughter ] it's a unique experience for me to be in a cop car and see the look on some people's faces as the cop car passes. i want to be like, i'm not actually a police officer! i'm just hanging out, like

there's a -- it's not that people look angry, but they look like, it's just they're noticing. >> yeah. >> it's like the way that i feel like i would notice if suddenly a bobcat walked down my street. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com when we first pitched this show, you should know the whole idea behind this show is it's a show where a black guy goes places either he shouldn't go or you wouldn't expect him to go. and we're like oh, where should we go? i was like, i don't know, maybe i should go talk to the ku klux klan. that was their reaction. [ laughter ] that was exactly -- hmm. then it got quiet for a long time. but i could tell it was that kind of quiet where this was like that might be good for ratings. but kamau might die. but that might be really good for ratings. [ laughter ] when i pitched the ku klux klan idea, i didn't think they'd actually let me do it. you know what i mean? i was just trying to be edgy and get the job. and i thought we'd negotiate down to like the rodeo. [ laughter ]