There is no evidence that cameras deter violent crime, however, there is some evidence surfacing that CCTV combined with video analytics, motion detection, and email alerts is actually stopping vandalism in public parks.
According to the Baltimore Sun, 5 parks will be fitted with this equipment based on the success of a pilot program from Reistertown park.
The [...]
Entries from May 27th, 2009
Are public parks the best place for CCTV technologies?
May 27th, 2009 · No Comments · Public Surveillance Leading Practice
Vulnerable Edmonton cabbie sues over false sexual assault allegations
May 26th, 2009 · No Comments · Private Surveillance Leading Practice
A smart Edmonton cabbie installed a CCTV audio/video system in his cab in case anything went wrong.
Meet four drunk ladies. These ladies wanted to break the law and smoke in the cab. When they couldn't get their way, they left the vehicle without paying and told their friends the cabbie tried to sexually assault [...]
Tags: Privately owned CCTV
United Kingdom: public surveillance cameras ineffective
May 19th, 2009 · No Comments · Public Surveillance Failure
Where do CCTV cameras have the biggest impact? According to a 2009 report that answer may be towards cutting vehicle crime in parking lots.
Brandon Welsh and David Farrington, pioneers in surveillance research, through the Campbell Collaboration published an analysis of 44 CCTV effectiveness reports reports The Guardian.
The use of closed-circuit television in city and town [...]
Tags: Publically Owned CCTV
Los Angeles MTA security guards caught giving the smack-down to commuters
May 18th, 2009 · No Comments · No Verdict
In another round of "CCTV cameras make the world safer", the question that keeps coming up is safer from who?!
The LA Times is reporting today about repeated assualts by the guards which have prompted about 11 investigations.
"They are not meant to be acting as police officers," said Sheriff's Cmdr. Dan Finkelstein, who oversees [...]
Tags: City Employees Caught On Cam·Publically Owned CCTV·Self Indicting
Gun shot detectors: Pushing murder into the next town?
May 13th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Public Policy Failure, Public Surveillance Failure
This is a story of three neighboring communities with higher than average crime rates: East Orange, Newark, and Irvington. All three communities are located in New Jersey.
It started in 2007 when East Orange declared that their embrace of CCTV and gunshot detectors lowered crime rates and murders from 2003 to 2006. During that very [...]
Tags: Another Politician Claims Success·Gun Shot Detectors·Publically Owned CCTV
Case study: the City of Dallas – a false positive?
May 7th, 2009 · No Comments · No Verdict
Two years ago, the city of Dallas started installing public CCTV cameras. Today the total camera count is 96. Two weeks ago, Mayor Pro Tem Elba Garcia stated, "Cameras have helped reduce crime in such a dramatic manner that we are victims of our own success".
This pro-camera statement is not out of the norm for politicians. [...]
Tags: Another Politician Claims Success·False Positive·Publically Owned CCTV
Austin PD caught running red lights
May 6th, 2009 · No Comments · No Verdict
When cities are a victim of their own success, Red Light Cameras (RLCs) are the flawed method to fix intersection problems.
Having been caught red handed the Austin PD Chief defends his officers even though protocol for running red lights requires having lights and sirens on.
To provide a legal loophole "whitelist" of vehicles that can run lights, senate Bill 398 is [...]
Tags: City Employees Caught On Cam·Red Light Cameras·Self Indicting
Bring back CCTV! What? Really?
May 5th, 2009 · No Comments · No Verdict
The townspeople of Monmouth in the United Kingdom are shouting on the cover of the Monmouthshire Beacon to re-instate their pricey police monitored CCTV cameras. A total of 1,344 citizens have signed a petition saying they want them back.
According to the South Wales Argus the cost to operate six cameras a year is £12,000 [...]
Tags: Publically Owned CCTV
Red Light Cameras are fundamentally flawed
May 3rd, 2009 · 4 Comments · Public Surveillance Failure
It's every city's dream: Punish the law breakers and sit back and collect revenue. Red Light Camera's (RLCs) are the lazy politicians dream who love to make "no-brainer" decisions.
Are installing RLCs and the expected outcome really that simple? No. If you think about it, red light congestion and subsequent "light running" [...]
CCTV footage as self-indicting evidence
May 2nd, 2009 · No Comments · No Verdict
Surveillance video is supposed to keep the population safer. At least that's the argument. Lately, however, camera footage is surfacing that shows that our civil servants aren't so.. well, um, civil.
When Evidence From Surveillance Cameras Leads to Charges Against Officers
Two Officers Accused of Raping an Intoxicated Woman They Escorted Home
Embedded video from CNN [...]
Tags: City Employees Caught On Cam·Privately owned CCTV·Publically Owned CCTV·Self Indicting
