The Winning Partnership:
Law Enforcement & Video Surveillance Systems

by Henry Enright

Public video surveillance systems are going mainstream. Across the country and around the globe, cities and municipalities have increasingly installed “Cop-in-a-Box” video surveillance cameras to assist law enforcement with their investigations should a crime occur in the vicinity of where the cameras are deployed, according to Chris Johnston, product manager, Bosch. “Wireless mesh” technology, the latest in wireless security systems that can be merged into an existing video surveillance setup, is usually chosen as it is now the most cost efficient.

Moreover, Johnston notes that in high-crime areas, “purpose-built poles” (painted police-department blue) are implemented with both cameras and a panic button, often equipped with two-way audio directly linked to local police. Hence, should a person be in imminent or actual danger, pushing the panic button sets in motion action by the police, who can now communicate verbally with the victim, and see video of what is occurring—in real-time.  A strobe light is activated, further assisting the responding patrol officer to locate the victim. 

Johnston noted law enforcement educates business entities on the importance of their surveillance systems, which often happen to be monitoring a public area (e.g., parking lot, sidewalk, etc.).  Recall the explosions that struck London’s transport system during the morning rush hour on July 7, 2005.  Subsequent video footage that captured the actual bombers on tape came from a private businessman’s surveillance system.

Law enforcement partners with community businesses to educate them on the importance of image quality, camera angles, storage of data, and preservation of their video footage.  By ensuring their video surveillance systems are performing well and capturing quality images, they are not only protecting their assets, they could also provide law enforcement with key evidence to determine what happened and by whom as they investigate a crime or act of terrorism.

Detective Sean Mulcahy of the New York Police Department’s Emergency Service Unit, stated that counter-terrorism units around the country have used both their own video surveillance systems, along with those of the private sector to jointly prevent, detect and deter acts of terrorism. 

“Counter-terrorism units have jointly partnered with both private sector and other federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to deter, counter and respond to acts of terrorists,” says Detective Mulcahy. “And video surveillance from systems operated by both the police and their private sector partners has proven to be invaluable.” Further, he added “The NYPD Shield program is a partnership with the private sector in Lower Manhattan that has been very successful for the NYPD.  The private sector videos are a link to counter-terrorism measures.”

“NYPD cameras capture what’s happening outside a building, along with corporate surveillance cameras that may have a lot more footage of the public space and outer perimeter of a building,” says Mulcahy.

For example, there were not many images of the Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad when he was committing the crime,” Mulcahy explains.  “However, in Pennsylvania, where he purchased fireworks, the store had perfect images of him.”  The city’s live-feed, anti-terror, anti-crime surveillance system that has its eyes on every corner of Lower Manhattan and Midtown, is now  trained on the city’s largest subway stops, too—and for the first time performing high-tech functions, such as alerting authorities when bags are left unattended, officials said in a September press conference.  About 500 of the cameras were turned on for the first time September 20, 2010 inside the Times Square, Penn Station and Grand Central subway stops, keeping an eye on stairwells, platforms and entrances to the tracks.  Another 500 are on the way and may also target Chambers Street.  “We can program the system to alert us when a bag is left unattended, when a car drives against the flow of traffic or when a person walks into a restricted area,” said NYPD Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, at a press conference touting the system.

Prevention vs. deterrence

Substantial debate exists in the physical security arena as to whether or not use of cameras and monitoring actually deters criminal acts.  Most security professionals believe they do, yet it could depend on the impression your surveillance setup has on the opportunistic bad guy; e.g., as a criminal walks into your facility (or store), he sees his face on a large monitor right at the entrance.  He may rethink committing his crime at this point.

Lastly, video surveillance can be an essential asset when added to a business continuity/disaster plan, notes Lt. Martinez of the Denver PD.  He recently stated that,  “. . . cameras can have other uses beyond crime prevention.  In the event of a disaster or terrorism attack, they also can help authorities coordinate evacuation routes and the dispensing of medicine.”  Dallas PD Deputy Chief Tom Lawrence noted to BearCom (a company that provides wireless security camera systems) that, “We can now provide our officers with critical, real-time information they can use to protect the public and themselves whenever an incident is detected.” 

Henry Enright is an expert in Fraud Management and Risk Assessment, with recent accomplishments in Training, Regulatory Compliance, Records Management and Investigations. Combining his strong legal research and project management skills, he delivers preemptive fraud and risk management services, along with Regulatory and Business Ethics Compliance expertise. He is currently conducting fraud prevention/detection awareness seminars to both private sector and government employees (including law enforcement). A wireless industry veteran, he has performed roles in Operations, Enterprise Risk Management, Legal, and recently consulted for a startup location-based services (satellite A-GPS technology) company as a Business Architect. For more information, contact henry.enright5@gmail.com or 201.960.0052