For the second time in less than two years, Columbia police are proposing to install cameras in the city to assist law enforcement.
And once again the proposal is met with resistance from local residents.
More than two dozen residents attended the first two public meetings on Wednesday about the proposal to install Flock Safety cameras at traffic signals. In total, eight informational meetings about the proposed camera system were planned throughout the community on Wednesday and Thursday.
The cameras would read license plates and alert police if there was a stolen car or the vehicle of a person with an arrest warrant on the city’s streets.
City officials have stressed that these Flock Safety cameras do not have facial recognition capabilities.
About 18 months ago, the Columbia Police Department proposed installing Fusus technology, which would have given police access to businesses’ security cameras. That proposal was rejected by the Columbia City Council on privacy grounds.
On Wednesday, Anthony Willroth, lead organizer of the group Hold COMO Accountable, expressed concern about the police department’s renewed reliance on camera technology for law enforcement.
“It is worrying that another camera system is being proposed even though the city council decided against it 18 months ago,” said Willroth.
Willroth also expressed concerns about how long the Columbia Police Department plans to keep the camera data.
“The ACLU has stated that 30 days is far too long for data retention,” he said, referring to the American Civil Liberties Union. “New Hampshire has a three-minute data retention and is cited by the ACLU as more acceptable state law. Thirty days is by far the longest data retention period I’ve heard of from these tech companies.”
Police Chief Jill Schlude, who attended the community meetings, told residents that the 30-day data retention period is essential to solving crimes.
“If we only had three to 10 minutes of footage, that wouldn’t be nearly enough time for an investigator to review the footage and narrow down the information,” Schlude said. “This is an investigative tool, and with a shorter retention period, a larger percentage of more crimes will remain unsolved.”
Other residents who attended the meetings expressed their support for the proposal.
Lisa Meyer, who represents the Second District on the City Council, tended to support the technology.
“I’m still determining my position as I’m still gathering information, but the emails I’ve received from residents of the Second Precinct have been very helpful,” Meyer said, arguing that the technology helps police cover a larger portion of the city. “The force multiplier that the camera system has is very important. The data needs to show that the cameras prevent increased crime rates.”
Boone County Attorney Roger Johnson pointed out that the University of Missouri already uses similar camera technology for parking enforcement and that the cameras have proven to be non-invasive.
“The photos provided by the university only show the car and the license plate,” Johnson said.
Residents who wish to comment on the Flock Safety camera system proposal can also submit comments online. The measure must be approved by the City Council before the cameras can be installed.
