Fullerton, CA adds surveillance cameras

Update: Sept 26, 2008 June 10, 2008 On June 6, 2008 I first noticed the new cameras. Seven cameras on 20 foot poles went up all at once. On top of the pole is a semi-smoked dome with a pan/tilt camera inside. I'm a big fan of civil liberties and privacy (see Harassed for taking a photo, Harassed for being on a public sidewalk) so I wanted to find out more about these cameras. There's a Google Map section at the end that shows all the locations and likely coverage areas. The New Cameras #1 Watches the parking lot and bar area on the west side of Harbor & Wilshire. #2 Watches the bar area behind Branagans, Zings, and Back Alley Bar #3 Watches the intersection of Harbor & Commonwealth, many people cross the street there to get from downtown to SoCo. #4 Watches the south end of SoCo at the Continental Room #5 Watches the bus depot and Slide Bar #6 Watches the public park where the Thursday Market is, nighttime activity here is very low. #7 Watches the entrance to the main parking lot. #8   Watches the parking garage near the train station. Other Cameras Harbor & Chapman Red light cameras, plus eight more dome cameras the same model as the new ones. The dome cameras appear to be set up to watch traffic, but they're pan/tilt and can look in any direction. Harbor & Orangethorpe Four cameras of the same model. Also appear to be set up to watch traffic. Traffic Cameras At many intersections there are four cameras, one facing each direction. They're fixed cameras and are most likely used for live monitoring of traffic. They can't pan around, and are fixed looking primarily at the road. Private Cameras Parking Lot A few cameras are set up to watch the private parking lots. The primary purpose is probably to prosecute crime after it has occurred, such as a robber leaving via a car. Bars Most of the downtown bars have a camera set up to watch the patio and entrances. They tend to look at a very small area, and are likely used so that the manager inside can see how busy the line is, etc. Entrances Some of the buildings and apartments have entrance cameras, probably so that a central location can view people coming and going. Official Discussion October 23, 2007 Minutes "Capt. Spalding pointed out that P.D. currently has nine cameras in various locations in the downtown area, and provided a listing of those locations." I'm not sure where those cameras are, and I've looked for them... There are a few watching the police station, and a few watching traffic at Harbor & Chapman, but that still leaves several cameras in unknown locations. "...One of P.D.'s projects includes EVOC (Enterprise Virtual Operations Center), which involves Anaheim and Department of Homeland Security funding. EVOC is basically a web portal accessible by public safety agencies, or anyone else granted access, that provides access to public safety information in the event of a major emergency, such as an earthquake or Homeland Security event. The web portal would provide a variety of information that an EOC (emergency operations center) would need access to, including the feed from the surveillance cameras." I find the thought of the government coming in and taking over surveillance of the city a disturbing thought. Where are the checks on their power? If there's an "emergency" can someone just come in and get all the footage without a warrant? How is the information protected? Is this a public web site? So many questions... Focus on Fullerton, June 2008 "The City’s Engineering and Police departments and the Fullerton Redevelopment Agency have jointly prepared a project in which nine Public Safety Video Cameras have been installed in the Downtown. The nine cameras operate 24 hours a day, providing real time video feed (without audio) to the Police Department and other emergency responders. When an incident occurs in an area covered by the cameras, Police Dispatchers have the ability to better direct Officers to the location, as well as provide additional information that will be of value to responding personnel. The video is fed to servers at City Hall, where the images are stored for up to 10 days. However, Police personnel can save a particular event on different media for longer periods of time for later use in court in the event a crime has been committed. The cameras are not constantly monitored, but designated personnel in the Police Department have access to monitor activity. The Public Safety Camera system is not intended to be a secret closed system, and business interiors are not accessible to the cameras. Camera locations are identified with appropriate signage as one of the goals of the system is to act as a deterrent to crime. Camera locations include the 100 block of W. Wilshire Avenue, the intersections of Harbor Boulevard and Wilshire and Harbor and Commonwealth Avenue, the north and south parking lots at 100 W. Amerige Avenue, the 100 block of east and west Santa Fe Avenue, the south alley in the 100 block of W. Commonwealth, and the Transportation Center Parking Structure in the 100 block of S. Pomona Avenue. The project was funded by the Redevelopment Agency. Installation of the cameras was completed by the firm Dynalectric of Los Alamitos, at a cost of $502,900. Further information about the Public Safety Video Camera system may be obtained by calling Capt. Geoff Spalding of the Fullerton Police Department at 738-6841. anaheim_evoc_presentation.wmv 42 minute presentation about how the Anaheim Enterprise Virtual Operations Center (EVOC) works. The amount of information that a lot of city personnel have now is pretty scary. Everything from security cameras to property outlines to building blueprints are available at a whim. The video is really interesting. Everything from Fullerton gets fed into this system. Map (image is a thumbnail, the full map is: KMZ Google Earth or Google Maps The map is grouped by three definitions: Private: Camera is owned and operated by a private party. The primary purpose of the camera is to observe private property, such as the parking lot and ATM area at a bank. The footage is likely not archived and is only used in the event of a crime. Government-Traffic: Camera is government operated, but the primary purpose is to monitor traffic flow. The camera likely does not permanently record, is not used to issue tickets, and is unlikely to be used in court other than if there was an accident in the intersection. Government-Police: Camera is run by the police department. The primary purpose is to monitor people whether they are committing a crime or not. Red Light cameras are included, since their primary purpose is law enforcement. A camera observing downtown is included because the primary purpose is to watch a public area. The coverage areas are approximations I made based on camera location, obstructions, and likely quality of camera. Correspondence ChiefPat@fullertonpd.org Hello, I live in Fullerton and I have some concerns about the new surveillance cameras that went up recently. If you could, please take the time to help me understand some of the policies that will apply: 1) How many video cameras are operated by the police department? 2) Are the cameras monitored 24/7, or are they only archived for review after something happens? 3) How long are the recordings normally kept? 4) Who has access to view the live and archived video? Thank you, Council@ci.fullerton.ca.us Hello, I live in Fullerton and I have some concerns about the new surveillance cameras that went up recently. If you could, please take the time to help me understand some of the policies that will apply: 1) Was there any public discussion, such as a city council meeting, where these new cameras were discussed? 2) How much money was spent on the cameras, and whose budget did it come out of? 3) Who has access to view the live and archived video? Thank you, June 10, 2008 A fellow concerned citizen contacted me with some great technical info. The system cost about $500,000. The cameras are Pelco Spectra IV SE, SD435-PG-E1 35x's: 35x zoom 0.55-.00055lux range (can see in well in pretty much any lighting) full 360 degree movement, including directly down Cost about $2500 retail for the camera, dome, and pan/tilt pelco.com has a great image showing the zoom and night vision capabilities. Basically, it can easily read a license plate from across a parking lot, and it can do it at night. Click on "Advanced Optic Performance" From the Police Department: "These camera feeds are not routinely monitored, however they record at all times." "Recordings may be used for a variety of purposes including criminal investigations, monitoring of downtown activity, and release to the public ..." "The recordings will be maintained ... for a period of no less than ten days. The system shall be configured to automatically purge and write over any Daily Recordings more than 10 days old." Public and media requests for video images captured by these cameras will be made available only to the extent required by law. ... Video footage that is evidence in an ongoing police investigation will not be disclosed to the public." Fullerton City Council grants new cameras for train station area: Files Pelco_Spectra_IV_SE_Series_Dome_Systems_spec.pdf - Specs on the camers themselves SD435.doc - Document from the city about the camera model Agenda item 6 of Dec 3 2007 meeting.pdf - City document about the proposal Public Safety Camera.pdf - From the Police Department about the system

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