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The City of Elkins recently accepted nearly $1 million in funding for "public safety technologies." These technologies will include upgraded body cameras and dash cameras for the police department as well as a city-wide camera surveillance system. I sat down recently with Police Chief Bennett and City Clerk Sutton Stokes to discuss the details of this system.
There has been a lot of confusion and misunderstanding of what the camera system is capable of and what it will be used for. Firstly, these are not traffic cameras. It is a violation of state law for law enforcement to charge a traffic crime by use of a camera. What is this system going to do then?
This system will be using license plate and facial recognition software to identify, track, and log in a database your every movement throughout the city. There is will be a camera at every major intersection to capture the time and direction of your travel and to recognize who is in your vehicle. There will be cameras at every entrance and exit point for the city. There will be cameras at every public property and point of interest throughout the city. This data will be stored long term and will create a long-term record of your travels in, out, and through the city, your known associates, your activities and your behavioral patterns.
Chief Bennett has publicly stated that this system will be used to combat trafficking and to aid with scenarios such as car accidents and Amber Alerts. When pressed for more details on what this system will be used for, Chief Bennet was very clear that there is no limit to what crimes he will use this system for, right down to such minor and petty crimes as forgetting to clean up after your dog at the city park. All citizens of this city are subject to the surveillance and monitoring this system will provide to law enforcement.
The statements given to the city by Chief Bennett indicate that "We are not planning to place any cameras in primarily residential neighborhoods" and that "There is no intention to try to capture activities on private property." Chief Bennet was clear in our meeting that will still be able to track when you come and go from your home if you have to go through major intersections to get there and that if they happen to have a camera near your home, they will use it to observe your activities. There is no need for a camera aimed directly at your home if there is no way for you to access your home without the use of a "major intersection."
Chief Bennett indicated that this data will be accessible by every city law enforcement officer without a warrant, and will be provided to any other law enforcement agency upon request without a warrant. It is the belief of the city and Chief Bennett that this is data that is collected legally and belongs to them to do with as they wish. When asked if this data would be provided upon request to prove innocence or provide an alibi, Chief Bennett indicated that only if your lawyer sought a subpoena would you be able to access this data. This is not "public safety," it is a weapon against the public.
The city and Chief Bennett do not believe that this system is violative of your rights. Mr. Stokes seemed very amused to indicate to me that we do not in fact have the "right" to privacy. Chief Bennett indicated that if you are on public roads then you are subject to being monitored. He further indicated that he believes this ability to track, trace, and monitor civilians without a warrant is firmly decided by the supreme court but would not elaborate or provide the precedent for this belief. When pressed that this could be seen as overstepping the bounds of appropriate policing, Chief Bennett smiled and retorted "Well, that is your opinion."
Whether or not this system will allow the city law enforcement to stop the drug and human trafficking throughout this city remains to be seen, but what is very clear is that we will all be subject to warrantless surveillance and monitoring as if we are all criminals.
Revenue collection, police harassment, or just good old-fashioned tyranny, this surveillance system will allow them all. Even if you trust the current police department and city council, this system will not go away even when they do. George Orwell himself would be envious.
Joshua Beauvais
Elkins