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Some parks may get surveillance cameras to combat lewd acts; privacy issues raised CHRIS JONES/Tennessean | January 12 2006 Putting surveillance cameras in various city parks to combat people committing lewd acts is being considered by the Metro Board of Parks and Recreation, Metro officials said yesterday. Councilman Michael Craddock asked the board on Tuesday to place cameras in Cedar Hill, Hamilton Creek and Two Rivers parks, where several people have been arrested for indecent exposure and lewd conduct. The recommendation came from a resolution sponsored by Craddock that the Metro Council unanimously passed in December, he said. "The resolution that Metro Council passed grew out of a desire to see the city do something proactive about protecting our parks from individuals who seek to go to the parks and perform illegal sex acts," Craddock said. "I was real pleased with the response." An official of the Tennessee branch of the American Civil Liberties Union said the cameras could present some red flags considering the potential cost to the city and privacy issues, especially if the proposed cameras have audio capabilities. Metro police stopped plans last spring for an audio monitoring system that would have allowed officers to eavesdrop at random on conversations in public places, because of public opposition. "From our perspective, I'm not sure this is the best public policy route for us to take," said Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the Tennessee ACLU. "We all want our streets, parks and neighborhoods safe. I think we might be creating more of a false sense of security than real security, because you're not going to have cameras viewing every single area of a park." Park board officials said they were going to study the request over the next few months to see what the potential cost could be for the city and the type of technology to use. "There are a number of issues that have to be looked into," said Jackie Jones, spokeswoman for Metro Parks and Recreation. Metro police arrested nearly 100 people in an undercover park sting last year and in 2004 and charged them with lewd conduct. The city has spent thousands of dollars to increase park security and there are still recurring problems, Craddock said. "I witnessed a sting for a number of hours one day back in the summer and witnessed firsthand how many people were arrested and how prevalent the problem was," Craddock said. "The problem just keeps returning." |
