Every CTA Rail Station Outfitted with Surveillance Cameras

If you have some underlying fear about "Big Brother" always watching you, you may want to reconsider ever going into any one of the hundreds of rail stations in Chicago. That is because Chicago leaders recently sent word to both CTA riders and criminals that each and every one of the 143 rail stations in the city are now equipped with multiple security cameras.

The cameras can't and won't stop criminals in the act, unfortunately, due to the fact that they do not provide live feeds to the Chicago Police Department or the CTA control center. It is hoped that these cameras will serve as a deterrent to criminals and also help police catch criminals brave enough to strike under the watchful eyes of the camera after they have committed the crime.

These new cameras, along with increased police patrols of the transit system, will also give transit riders an added sense of security, according to Mayor Rahm Emanuael, CTA President Forrest Claypool and Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy at the CTA Clinton station serving the Green and Pink Lines.

Footage from some of the newly deployed cameras on the platform station at Clinton and Lake Streets was recently used to arrest a suspect who attacked a woman and stole her purse in an elevator a block away from the station. The same criminal was also previously caught on surveillance using a stolen credit card. The camera evidence also connected him to a car burglary two weeks earlier near CTA headquarters.

A total of 1,735 cameras were recently installed at 78 stations that previously had no cameras whatsoever. The work, which began in June and was scheduled for completion by year's end, wrapped up six weeks ahead of schedule according to officials. A total of 65 stations already had cameras.

The project, which was federally funded, brings the grand total number of cameras to nearly 3,000, all of which are high-resolution security cameras. The number of cameras at each location varies depending on station layout and other factors according to officials. "We feel like this is about as close a saturation as you can get," Claypool stated.

The new cameras have already contributed to nearly 47 arrests of suspects who robbed or attacked passengers on the CTA system, as well as other crimes against people near CTA property in the last five months. The string of crimes includes three slayings near CTA property as well. Over 700 of the new 5000 Series rail cars that the CTA is putting into service are also outfitted with cameras. Those on-board cameras will eventually provide real-time video to police and the CTA according to officials.

Source: Chicago Tribune - CTA says its rail stations now all have surveillance cameras

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Chicago Plans on Expanding Security Camera Network

Chicago is already home to more than 10,000 private security cameras that, if combined, account for the most extensive and integrated camera network in the entire country according to Mayor Rahm Emanuel. However, as if 10,000 cameras weren't enough, Emanuel has just agreed to expand the network even further.

In a recent report from the Chicago Sun-Times it was reported that Emanuel approved three new loop sites for surveillance. The three loops are the Chicago Board of Trade, the Federal Reserve and AT&T's switching center. These new cameras will supposedly be paid for with a $650,000 federal grant from the Department of Homeland Security.

According to Emanuel, "It's necessary. They're key buildings. They were not a part of the network. The fiber had already been laid. I don't know if I'd use the word weird or strange. But, if you've laid the fiber and you have key pieces of critical national security ... that don't have the cameras..."

The American Civil Liberties Union, also known as the ACLU, released a report back in February that criticized Chicago's extensive use of surveillance cameras and described the citizens of the city as "the most-watched citizens in the country." The ACLU suggested that Chicago should focus on hiring more officers to address crime, rather than buying new cameras, which the city has implemented quite steadily over the past decade.

"Chicago's camera network invades the freedom to be anonymous in public places, a key aspect of the fundamental American right to be left alone," the ACLU stated. "Each of us then will wonder whether the government is watching and recording us when we walk into a psychiatrist's office, a reproductive health care center, a political meeting, a theater performance or a book store."

Jody Weis, former Chicago Police Superintendent, is a big supporter of the cameras saying that they help deter crime and are cost effective for a police department that has been forced to work more understaffed than usual. These cameras also help police collect solid evidence that can be extremely helpful in court.

In a statement from Weis found in Chicago Magazine back in 2009, "Rather than having the guys do surveillance on the street, they are sitting back and watching it on the cameras. They've got the cars identified, they know who to go after, and they can arrest the people."

I see where the ACLU is coming from but that argument brings up another one, if people aren't doing anything illegal, then why does it matter what the camera sees?

Source: Huffpost Chicago - Chicago Expands Surveillance Camera Network

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Use of Security Cameras More Prevalent in Small Towns

We all know that a lot of businesses use security cameras to protect their store, products etc... and you generally would assume that security camera systems are more prominent in big cities. Big cities are home to a lot more people, have more expensive stores, more stores in general and a wealthier customer base. However, if you assume that bigger cities have more security cameras you'd be wrong because, as it turns out, video surveillance is used more in small towns than big cities.

One such area is Saginaw, Michigan. Saginaw has a population of only 55,238 residents and installed 17 security cameras at a water park/skate park and plans on adding more by June in other parts of the city according to Mayor Greg Branch. "Crime for us is trending downward, but we still have a lot more crime than we want," he says. Adding more security cameras is also a lot cheaper than hiring more police officers. "Every city is facing budget pressures," he added. "We can't put more police on the street." A federal grant in the sum of $300,000 will pay for the new cameras.

Big cities like Chicago, New York and Washington have cameras installed in high crime areas, and a lot of businesses have them installed inside and outside their buildings. A security camera in Tucson caught footage of the shooting which killed six individuals and severely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Dan Kobil, a constitutional law professor at Columbus, Ohio's Capital University Law School, says that the courts have ruled that people have no expectation of privacy in public settings. Kobil added that as technology becomes more precise and allows for the quality of images to improve, courts will likely revisit the issue. Kobil stated, "Although cameras are an important tool for law enforcement, I'm disturbed by it... as someone who values my privacy.

Other small towns that are hopping on the camera train include:

Lafayette, Indiana, with a population of 65,704, has around 15 cameras and is considering adding at least 30 more. According to Police Chief Don Roush, the cameras helped solve a 2008 homicide.

Williamsport, Pennsylvania has a population of 29,304 and is seeking bids for a security camera system. Gabriel Campana, Mayor of Williamsport, says that he wants them in the residential areas "where we've had challenges. My No. 1 concern is public safety.

Salisbury, Maryland, with a population of 28,327, has police which are advising downtown property owners who want cameras to get them. There is a lot of support in the area and cameras could be in place as early as this summer.

Vineland, New Jersey has a population of 59,198 and also 23 video surveillance cameras as well as 7 cameras used to identify the license plates of vehicles involved in crimes. These cameras were bought with a state grant in the amount of $200,000. Mayor Robert Romano says, "People had the perception that downtown wasn't safe, and perception becomes reality if you don't keep it in check. This makes people feel safer."

I feel like we will be seeing a lot more small cities installing security camera systems as the price of cameras drops and installation becomes easier. Add that with the fact that almost any city can get cameras through government grants and the possibilities are limitless.

Source: USA Today - Video surveillance used more by small towns

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Chicago Mayor Wants Security Cameras In Local Bars

Most people have probably noticed the security cameras hanging all around Chicago, Illinois. Typically the cameras are aimed at government buildings, train platforms or intersections and there are even special police cameras with microphones that can detect gunshots within a two block radius. But it seems that Mayor Richard Daley has some new ideas about where some security cameras should be focused.

Daley's new plan is to require bars or nightclubs open until 4 a.m. to install security cameras with the ability to identify individuals entering and leaving the building. But these are not the only establishments under Daley's eye. Eventually Daley would have businesses like convenience stores and other places open longer than 12 hours a day to do the same. This proposed idea from Daley adds more to the security measures put in place after the September 11th attacks.

Although the addition of security cameras in places like these may seem like a good idea to some, the fact that they are being added, especially being required by the government, is troubling to some civil liberties advocates. A member of the Illinois American Civil Liberties Union, Ed Yohnka stated "There is no reason to mandate all of those cameras unless you one day see them being linked up to the city's 911 system. We have, perhaps, reached that moment of critical mass when people want to have a dialogue about how much of this is appropriate."

Chicago isn't alone in the proliferation of security cameras at private businesses. Milwaukee is also considering making stores that have called police three or more times in one year install security cameras. In Maryland the Baltimore County Council required large malls to install cameras in their parking lots after an individual was murdered in a parking garage just last year. According to Baltimore County Councilman Kevin Kamenetz, "We require shopping centers to put railings on stairs and install sprinkler systems for public safety. This is a proper next step."

"The safer we make the city, the better it is for everybody," says Chicago Alderman Ray Suarez. Suarez was the first person to suggest the mandatory installation of cameras in some businesses. "If you're not doing anything wrong, what do you have to worry about?" The local businessmen that will be required to put in the cameras are not too fond of the idea of mandatory camera installations.

Nick Novich, who owns three bars in Chicago, is worried about the cost. "every added expense puts a small business in greater jeopardy of going out of business." Daley believes that the cameras will help to decrease crime rates. To that, Novich stated "that's what we pay taxes for." President of the Illinois Restaurant Association Colleen McShane believes that the mandatory addition of security cameras is an unfair burden on small businesses. "This is once again more government intrusion," McShane says.

Julia Shell, spokeswoman for Ala Carte Entertainment, says that "It's far more cost effective to have them than to not have them." Ala Carte Entertainment has security cameras in all 30 Chicago clubs, restaurants and bars owned by the company which they believe makes patrons feel safer.

By this spring, Chicago will have Red Light Cameras at 30 intersections around the city. The cameras are designed specifically to catch people who run red lights. Over 2,000 cameras around the city are linked to an emergency command center. These cameras, however, are partially paid for by federal homeland security funds. The newer "smart" cameras are able to alert police whenever there is gunfire, whenever somebody leaves a package or lingers outside of public buildings. This system is based on the same one being used in London in an attempt to capture suspected terrorists after last summer's subway bombings.

According to Rajiv Shah, an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago, Chicago is installing the "smart" cameras more aggressively than any other U.S. city. Shah studies the policy implications of surveillance technology. According to Shah, recording what people do in public "is just getting easier and cheaper to do. Just think of your camera cell phone."

There are pros and cons to both sides of the argument. Yes these cameras could lower crime and even help to catch criminals. On the other hand, the cost imposed on some small businesses could be devastating to them, not to mention the fact that the government could try to use the cameras as more than just a security measure. Regardless, we still have some time before anything is put into action so I guess we will just have to wait and see how it all unfolds.