NCJ Number
219515
Journal
Governing Volume: 20 Issue: 10 Dated: July 2007 Pages: 38-40,42,44,45
Date Published
July 2007
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This article describes the new camera surveillance technology implemented by the Phoenix Police Department to better enforce public safety and the fine balance between surveillance and privacy rights.
Abstract
Phoenix is the first big city north of the Mexican border in Arizona and is a transshipment area that sees a lot of trafficking in drugs, money, and people. In addition, there is the huge Indian reservation of the Tohono O’odham, a rural area that straddles the border. Because of these factors, surveillance cameras are needed and used to assist police officers and reduce and prevent crime. The ability to set up cameras quickly in areas where criminals are likely to strike next is also useful. Unlike old microwave cameras which are often black and white, fixed in one place, and with the low quality of a VHS tape, Phoenix police can rotate the new cameras 360 degrees and have enough bandwidth to get nearly real-time video. They also have the ability to do “smart searching” of the video, without having to watch the whole thing from start to finish. There are ways to search by motion. And, although it works wirelessly, mesh technology doesn’t have the vulnerabilities of wireless hotspots where typical computer users set up their laptops. The mesh technology carries images and data to the Internet via nodes set up around an area. The mesh infrastructure creates “umbrellas” of coverage and data hops from one “umbrella” to another. The police department’s philosophy is to use the cameras to target “the worst of the worst.” With all the potential benefits in the use of surveillance cameras, privacy-rights organizations believe the cameras are intrusive and subject to abuse. Phoenix has addressed this issue by putting in place a process for getting approval before embarking on investigation-specific electronic surveillance. Where there is an expectation of privacy, a request goes up the chain of command to the legal department for permission to use surveillance cameras.