Salt Lake City Police Chief, Chris Burbank said ““It is our hope the camera system will deter criminal activity within the park and assist the Police Department in the apprehension and prosecution of criminals. Additionally, our aim is to increase the comfort and safety level for all users of this public space…Other cities, such as Chicago and Washington, D.C., have experienced tremendous positive impact from strategic camera placement.”
Now, the SLCPD has issued a policy regarding surveillance, but it still leaves a sour taste in my mouth. Though the policy specifically states that people can not be actively watched based on race, sex, creed, etc., there is no real fail safe to ensure that this does not happen anyway.
I suppose my principal concern is that there is no citizen oversight of the ones overseeing the citizens – furthermore, I am concerned about the simple fact that the policy is clearly written to allow for more cameras in more public places down the road.
I acknowledge that crime is a serious concern at Pioneer Park, and I acknowledge that more needs to be done to make people feel the safe in their community. What concerns me is that passive, ever seeing eyes that are monitored by faceless officers tend to create law enforcement agents who care little for civil rights and more about asserting their power.
Drive by Pioneer Park at night and you won’t see the typical activity (drug dealing, prostitution etc) because of the cameras, but if you drive just down the road a bit (towards the Intermodal Hub) you will see the same dealers that were at or near the park, just moved further into the recesses.
Instead of focusing on the problems that led to the area being a crime haven, SLC police chose the cheap and easy way out, for publicity, but haven’t done anything to actually reduce the crime..