A new police camera hangs at William and Montgomery streets in Federal Hill. It?s one of 80 roving cameras and 220 fixed cameras throughout the city.
Police spokesman Matt Jablow said the reason is lots of car break-ins. The most recent data from the city?s (unofficial) crime mapping system shows that from March 12 to June 10, burglars broke into 36 cars within a quarter mile of that intersection.
During that time, criminals also stole 17 cars.
Kristen Mahoney, chief of technical services for the Baltimore City police department, said cameras help to reduce violent crime by 15 percent in the area one year after cameras are installed.
Stealing and breaking into cars don?t count as violent crime, however, it turns out.
This camera, emblazoned with “BELIEVE,” is there for something else. It?s monitored by detectives. Starting about six months ago, detectives began to use cameras to solve specific crimes, said Mahoney. Those cameras never stay in one place for long, maybe a week or two.
So Federal Hill residents hoping for a long-term deterrent may not see a drop in car break-ins. And those bothered by the monitoring won?t have to fret for long. Residents outside the camera?s range may see crime migrate to their neighborhood, as cameras push criminals to new corners or inside.
So what?s the point? Is the invasion of civil rights worth it?
Mahoney said the conviction rate for charges initiated as a result of the cameras is 60 percent.
That?s not bad. But it does not say anything about the charges never brought.
And who is to say the those convictions could not have been secured without cameras?
But the fact is the city uses cameras. And it does not plan to get rid of them. Perhaps a greater danger than the civil rights infringements is that we the people rely on cameras to solve crime instead of monitoring our own neighborhoods.
Jane Jacobs, the late author of the seminal “The Death and Life of Great American Cities” wrote that all safe, vibrant neighborhoods have lots of “eyes on the street.” Those eyes come from residents walking near their homes and watching activity on the street from their windows or businesses. And they act when necessary ? either calling their neighbors or police to warn them of suspicious activity or to report crime.
That means getting to know your neighbors enough to share telephone numbers. And caring about them enough to call if someone suspicious is hanging around their property.
Who knows, maybe they will help you some day. And we won?t need so many cameras.
