Gothamist: How the NYPD Videotapes You

Cops have rights too

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 22:49:44 -0500

One of the main reasons the NYPD videotapes is to argue lawsuits. The camera isn't perfect, but it is a lot better than only having the recollections of somebody looking at a big payday on OUR taxes.

nitPicker

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 09:13:15 -0500

There isn't actually a specific right to privacy in the constitution. It has been protected by supreme court decisions, but that is through other amendments implying a right to privacy. just sayin'. I think the most troublesome thing in this story is the "scoping out the chicks" part. I mean, if you're in a protest, you're asking to be seen, if you're minding your own business you don't really expect to be watched, but do people need to expect to be tracked from a distance on camera by people with badges just for being cute?

the constitution's ghost

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 23:57:33 -0500

Nobody seems to give a damn about the Constitution anymore. American principles are important for a reason. Many people have died to give us our Constitutional rights. To take these rights for granted is truly shameful.

anomalous

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 19:46:11 -0500

Yes, Rob, it is perfectly legal to take photos in the subway. Has been for years. Don't use flash, as it may distract the conductor, and don't use a tripod as you'll get in the way of people using the subway.

BoBo

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 18:25:16 -0500

Face it, if you're not doing anything wrong to begin with, who cares. You're just a nameless face in the crowd of millions. I could care less as I have nothing to hide.

Rob

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 18:20:14 -0500

The subway is a public area right? So I can happily snap away photos in there?

whatever

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 17:56:05 -0500

Hmm... Helicopter surveillance? A few months ago, there was a police helicopter that was hovering very near to the very tall Towers apt. complext in Bay Ridge around 1am. What was strange was that this cop helicopter (the noise got our attention) hovered in the same exact spot for at least 35 minutes! Now those two Towers are by far the highest residential buildings in Bay Ridge. As a result, many of the tenants don't bother to close their blinds or the verticals on their balcony doors which would block any view of the inside. It didn't make sense at the time, but now I'm wondering if the cop helicopter was guilty of perpetrating a bit of voyeurism. Guess this is just one of the perks of working for the NYPD.

hedgehog

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 17:50:34 -0500

Let's turn the cameras on the cops. It's the only way we'll ever get behavior that lives up to the tag line on the doors of cop cars "Courtesy Professionalism Respect."

Snoopy

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:40:55 -0500

If Osama had boobs, they would have found him by now with BlimpCam™

IvyLeagueGrunt

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:26:46 -0500

"military targeting scope" oh please, as though either the US Military or the NYPD would waste ammunition on these people. Anyway - Thats DEFINATELY not a targeting scope overlay, as there is no targeting data present. No MGRS, no laser range finder, not even an altimeter. This, my friends, is what we call sensational journalism. Give me a break!

Seen

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:13:58 -0500

Well, at least these officers seem to be more interested in scoping out chicks than they do in making a serious effort at surveillance.

drew

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:10:40 -0500

There are no laws protecting personal privacy in a public space. This means anyone may point a camera at anything in a public space, including at you, so why shouldn't the police be able to do so. It's called freedom, and apparently it cuts both ways. This doesn't mean I like the police wasting my tax dollars this way.

Guy

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:10:39 -0500

Yeah, well how come they can use crazy telephoto lenses that can photograph a girl in a bikini in central park from a mile away, yet the rest of us can't take a picture with a tripod in the city without the fear of getting arrested? The cops pissed and moaned about the encroachment on their privacy too when the nypd started to use photo-surveillance on contract protests a year or two back. Or how about the time when the nytimes reported on a couple getting intimate on the roof of a high rise at night while police in a helicopter used infrared video equipment to record what they were doing? It's a double standard with very little checks or balances. I've already accepted the fact that this city is a goddamn police state.

"oppressed"

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 15:52:57 -0500

How can you possibly expect privacy when you're standing out in the open? Using infrared to look into a building is one thing. Crowd surveillance is another. Yet another chance to dare the liberals to actually make good and move to Europe. Smile! You're on CCTV!

REALITY CHECK

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 15:46:37 -0500

Imagine what would happen if this space-age surveillance and hardline police resources were put to use against actual terrorists, rather than bike-riding college kids.