Limits on MD Police Surveillance Passed

Maryland police departments must document reasonable suspicion of criminal activity before using covert tactics to investigate political activists, under legislation approved Friday by both chambers of the General Assembly.

After months of controversy over Maryland State Police surveillance of peaceful protest groups, the Senate and House of Delegates unanimously approved separate bills. After slight differences between the two versions are resolved, the legislation is expected to be sent to Gov. Martin O'Malley. A spokeswoman said Friday that he would sign the bill.

Lawmakers crafted the bills in response to the state police program uncovered last summer when the American Civil Liberties Union sued for information about it. The bill, which would also prohibit law enforcement officers from collecting political files on activists not under criminal investigation, applies to all police departments and expands on O'Malley's initial proposal.

Read more here.

Consumer Electronics Affects Video Surveillance

Every January, Las Vegas hosts the Consumer Electronics Show, one of the biggest electronics shows in the world. Five years ago, vendors treated attendees to such innovations as megapixel cameras, next-generation DVD players that used the latest H.264 compression technology, large flat screen TVs and monitors, and new wireless technologies with much improved bandwidth for moving more data over the network. Fast forward to 2008 and look what vendors at the big physical security shows -- ISC West and ASIS -- are now showing: megapixel cameras, H.264 compression, wireless technologies with higher bandwidth and large flat-screen monitors.

In the '70s, it was the military and government that drove technology advancements. In the '80s and '90s, it was the business sector providing the push. Today, the enormous consumer electronics market is the driving force behind new technologies. The shift should not be surprising considering that Consumer Electronics Association reports that consumer electronics have grown into a $700 billion market worldwide. In the $10 billon video surveillance market, vendors are realizing it is smart to piggyback on innovations originally developed for consumers and repurposing them for physical security applications.

Read more to find out some of the consumer electronics trends that will play out in the physical security video surveillance arena in the coming year.

Pittsburg to Add More Surveillance Cameras

You may have not noticed them before, but surveillance cameras are set up in various spots around downtown Pittsburgh.

Now officials are saying that even more cameras may be added to help protect people and businesses. More and more cities are starting to use surveillance cameras to cut crime and are seeing amazing results.

District Attorney Stephen Zappala held a discussion with business owners and groups to talk about the use of surveillance cameras throughout the city's business districts and high crime neighborhoods.

Read more at KDKA.com

Georgia Bill Would Ban Hidden GPS Tracking Devices

Inside a completely ordinary SUV parked anywhere in Metro Atlanta, private investigator T.J. Ward and his team can track anyone at any time, without them knowing.

Instead of the old cat and mouse game, running red lights and swerving through traffic, he can just stick a little box with a 40-pound magnet to the bottom of a car in seconds. As a person drives, a computer program tracks them via satellite, and prints a list of their whereabouts -- even how fast they were going.

Ward's team has been hired by parents after a bitter child custody case, or a spouse. One man, who was married for 18 years, told us, "We used it for several weeks, just tracking where my wife's vehicle was, and just to confirm some suspicions I had."

His suspicions were right, and he's now divorced. He credits the GPS surveillance with saving him millions of dollars in alimony.

Read more at wsbtv.com

Everett (WA) Lawmaker Wants Teacher-Surveillance Restrictions

An Everett lawmaker wants to prevent public schools from conducting video surveillance on teachers without their knowledge.

Currently, students and teachers can be surreptitiously monitored by video if no sound is included in the taping. State law prohibits audio recording of private conversations without consent.

Rep. Mike Sells, D-Everett, has filed a bill restricting such videotaping in reaction to the use of hidden video-surveillance equipment by the Everett School District to investigate a teacher in 2007.

This measure would require that all certified and classified staff must be notified in writing before video surveillance. Also, schools would be required to post written notices outside of every room that may be monitored.

Read more at The Seattle Times.

Surveillance Video Frees 21 Year-Old

A young man who spent nearly a year in jail awaiting trial in a fatal shooting at the Federal Way Transit Center was set free Thursday because surveillance video shows he was not the shooter, his attorney says.

Read more at The Seattle Times.

Study Critical of San Fran Surveillance Cameras

San Francisco’s surveillance cameras in high-crime areas do not prevent violent crime, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California.

The long-awaited study by the UC Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society found the program is hurt by lack of training and oversight, a failure to integrate footage with other police efforts, poor quality cameras, and what may be a fundamental weakness of cameras as anti-crime devices.

Read more a KCBS.

County Seeks Help of Public in American Flag Bible Surveillance

Authorities are looking for help from the public in identifying a suspect from the incident that caused the Jackson County Courthouse to be evacuated Thursday.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office released video surveillance footage that shows a man praying over a U.S. flag and a Bible before midnight on Wednesday.

The footage is too grainy for law enforcement to identify the suspect, Jackson County Sheriff Lou Roberts said, and that’s where help from the public comes in to play.

Find the rest of the story at jcfloridian.com.

Surveillance Cameras Going HD to Catch Crooks

The same kind of high definition digital television that's being sold to you is also popping up in the world of private security. From the looks of things, crime fighting will never be the same.

Those fuzzy robbery suspect photos from surveillance sometimes distributed by police could soon become a thing of the past. Crystal clear facial images can be taken from video cameras some distance away, according to security experts. Security experts say the quality of security cameras is getting better, while the cost is coming down.

Some security camera firms such as SuperCircuits sell low-cost undercover cameras disguised as exit signs, tissue boxes and computer speakers for $100 or $200. Higher-end cameras franchised through security firms such as 3xLogic and Digatron are bringing high-definition digital pictures to your local service station and liquor store.

Read the rest of the story at 9news.com.

Guard Arrested Over Illegal Surveillance

A state corrections officer at Gouverneur Correctional Facility placed a surveillance camera in an ornamental birdhouse in his home's bathroom to view guests in the room, state police allege.

Teen Charged in Hit-and-Run Caught on Surveillance Tape

A 17-year-old Custer High School student has been charged in a hit-and-run that was caught on surveillance tape in Milwaukee.

Airimis Spinks is accused of being the driver of a GMC sport utility vehicle that hit Kevin Treskow as he was crossing Martin Luther King Drive on Nov. 18.

Surveilance Cameras Catch County Employee Stealing Gas

A Santa Fe County supervisor is in the middle of a month-long suspension without pay after a hidden camera recorded him gassing up his personal pickup truck from a county pump.

However the county is not calling the disappearance of hundreds of gallons of gasoline a theft despite undercover video showing Frank Jaramillo fueling not only his own truck but loading containers in the back of his county truck.

Employees fill up Santa Fe County vehicles at a county pump every day, but the number of gallons being used wasn't adding up.

British Developing Grenade-like Surveillance Camera

Britain's Defense Ministry is helping develop a grenade-like surveillance camera that would allow troops to "see high-value, high-quality images in realtime video," according to BBC News.

This so-called I-Ball technology grew out of the "competition of ideas" that Whitehall sponsored in 2007.

Restaurants Use Surveillance Systems to Improve Efficiency and Reduce Theft

The digital video surveillance system at Miami-based Lime Fresh Mexican Grill has proven to be a versatile tool. It has helped the three-unit restaurant company improve operations and loss prevention—crucial as the fast-casual upstart embarks on expansion this year.

Lime Fresh has been using the system since it opened in 2003. It costs about $7,200 to outfit each store with the system. Each restaurant has eight to 12 cameras placed in areas such as prep tables, cash registers, dining room, beer and wine storage, back door, parking lot and patio. The motion-sensor cameras upload images to a digital video server housed on site at each restaurant. Each server holds 45 to 60 days of footage and is connected to Lime Fresh's Web server. Managers can dial into a password-protected Web site to watch the images in real time or review stored footage.

Managers and executives use it daily to ensure customer service, employee productivity, and that units are clean and properly staffed. Lime Fresh has seen labor go down 1 percent to 11 percent to 12 percent since it opened, which the company partially attributes to the system.

The surveillance system has also been effective in catching employee theft. For example, COO John Tims credits the system for reducing the number of no sales, voids and refunds, although he can't quantify. Because the POS system is integrated with the video surveillance system, Tims can review the transactions and corresponding footage to determine whether a void was legitimate.

Fruit Stand Surveillance Nabs Thief

An enterprising farmer helped police nab a thief after he set up a surveillance camera at his Beamsville fruit stand.

Niagara Regional Police say the farmer installed the camera after he experienced ongoing cash shortages from the money box at his fruit stand.

Cameras Becoming More Common in Schools

Video surveillance cameras are becoming a common feature of student life - now even in middle and elementary schools - as local officials seek greater security for children and school property.

In district after district, the desire for additional security and the cost of replacing or maintaining property destroyed by vandalism have routinely overridden qualms about possible invasion of privacy.

In Lexington, the Clarke Middle School will be the latest to have a video security system installed next summer - becoming the third school in town to have one - but school officials have yet to draw up a written policy governing safeguards of civil liberties for those under camera surveillance.

"I would expect them to have a system in place to keep them private and for police use only," said Debora Hoard, copresident of the Parent Student Teacher Association at Lexington High School. "If there was an incident, then I would expect them to use them - but not the kind of daily monitoring that a Big Brother society would make me think of."

Lexington School Committee chairwoman Helen Lutton Cohen conceded there are no written rules in place that spell out who can see the surveillance tapes, how long they are kept, and what they are used for, to protect privacy.

School Surveillance on a High School Budget

There were few if any surveillance cameras in the high school when Jason Jones graduated from Wyoming Area 17 years ago. Today, the district is in the final stage of installing 63 cameras hooked up to a complete surveillance system that Jones designed, one that filled the district’s need for monitoring without emptying taxpayers’ wallets.

It’s an accomplishment in which he takes great pride, especially since it was for his alma mater.

“I love this school and the fact that we couldn’t see some incidents bothered me,” Jones said when he pitched the new surveillance system to the school board in August. With the new system, there are more than twice as many cameras capturing images with better resolution, and the images can be reviewed 16 at a time on one computer screen or on wireless devices carried by district personnel. Jones and district administrators can even sign on to the system from outside the school and see what is going on inside, he said.

All the equipment was carefully chosen by Jones to provide the most bang for the buck. He recalled reviewing initial specifications and an early project estimate when he first joined the district almost two years ago. “My first thought was I could put a smart board in every classroom for that estimate,” Jones said. He said while surveillance systems can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, he knew he could come up with a plan that would protect the school for much less than that.

Woman Sues Landlord for Alleged Peeping

A Norristown woman has sued her landlord for allegedly using electronic surveillance devices to videotape her most intimate moments.

The woman, who resides at an apartment building in the 1400 block of Green Valley Road that is owned by accused peeper Thomas C. Daley, is seeking in excess of $100,000 in damages against Daley.

In the suit filed in Montgomery County Court on Thursday, the woman claimed she suffered psychological and emotional distress, embarrassment, humiliation, anxiety, depression and sleeplessness since Daley's alleged activities were uncovered by authorities earlier this week.

"This man gutted my client's sense of personal security and privacy through one of the most vile ways imaginable," alleged Norristown lawyer John I. McMahon Jr., who represents the woman.

McMahon alleged in the suit that between March 2007 and September 2008 Daley regularly captured and viewed video images of the woman, in various states of undress, on dozens of occasions. Daley, the suit alleged, installed numerous hidden cameras throughout the woman's apartment, including the bathroom, living room and bedroom.

"(Daley's) surreptitious installation of the electronic surveillance equipment was done with the sole objective and purpose of gratifying his sexual desires by viewing and examining plaintiff's naked body within the privacy of her own home, without her knowledge or consent," McMahon wrote in the lawsuit.

PI WORK IS HARDLY GLAMOROUS

The field of private investigation is one in which a great many people express an interest. Much of that interest, unfortunately, is based on what they see on television and in the movies, which seldom conforms to the reality of the job.
The typical private investigator doesn't lead a life as influential, exciting or dangerous as most of his fictional counterparts on the screen, be it large or small.
The job essentially has two main aspects when you start out - working undercover or on surveillance.
The undercover assignment usually involves a blue-collar job - working on a loading dock, in a factory, driving a truck or working in large warehouse to try to find drug use or theft. You're working two jobs - the "front" job and your undercover work.
You have to perform all the work that the others do and be good at it. If you don't do it well, you will stand out, others may start wondering how you were hired and your assignment could be compromised.
You're also working alongside people whom you get to know. You will find out about their families, friends, problems and habits, and you may find yourself becoming close with someone. You must guard against getting too friendly with anyone. The person might become part of the investigation and you will have to collect evidence on him or her and possibly testify against the person.
Surveillance is another way that investigators break into the field. Surveillance is one of the toughest assignments. When police or federal agents do it, they sometimes use several vehicles. As a private eye, you almost always use one vehicle.
And most surveillance starts early, say 5 a.m., because you need to be in the neighborhood and settled before to people are up so they don't notice a strange vehicle arrive and no one get out. The goal is for it to appear that no one is in the van. Yes, true surveillance is done in a van.
And you can't run your vehicle during surveillance. When it's hot in the summer, you better have some ways to keep cool without turning the vehicle on. Picture a hot August day, inside a van parked on a street with no shade and being in it all day. How about a winter day with 30-below wind chill? Can't turn on the heater! And a bathroom break? what is that? Restrooms are confined to the inside of your van.
If this sound like fun, then maybe you have some PI blood in you.

SURVEILLANCE VIDEO HELPS NAB TWO THIEVES

Police have arrested two men they believe might be responsible for several break-ins in Somerville.
The most recent break-in was caught on surveillance video .
The video shows one suspect smashing a glass door at the Global Market on Somerville Avenue at 5:15 a.m. Friday. The man then grabs the cash drawer, getting away with approximately $200.
A local woman spotted him and his driver and called police.
Charles McCarthy and Michael Rais, both of Somerville, were arraigned in Somerville District charged with breaking and entering in the night time with intent to commit a felony.