Research Paper on Predictive Policing: Using Tech & Data to Proactively Curb Crime

Introduction

Ability to prevent crime before it occurs is the ultimate goal of all security agencies. The increased need for preventing crime has led to the rise of predictive policing strategies. The predictive policing strategy is a way in which advanced technology and data analysis are used to take proactive measures to curb crime. The predictive policing strategies include hotspots, data mining, crime mapping, geospatial prediction, social network analysis, and the use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) surveillance (Lessing & Willis,2019). In this paper, we consider the use of closed-circuit television as a contemporary police strategy.

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Public surveillance systems are a network of cameras and components of monitoring, recording, and transmitting video images (Kovarsky, 2019). The first recorded use of CCTV to control the deployment of police officers was during the royal wedding in 1947 (Savidge, 2019). The CCTV use was an expression of desire by the police to find a technological solution to their problems in the 1970s (Kovarsky, 2019).In the 1980s the CCTV were fitted with VCR and multiplexers between the cameras and monitors, the multiplexer allowed for multiple cameras to be seen on one monitor. The VCR improved the CCTV since the videos could be recorded and used as evidence of a crime. In the early 2000s, the CCTV was digitalized and the VCR replaced by the DVR which made the CCTV simple. The videos were now able to be stored on a hard drive, and depending on the size, the videos could be stored for days or months. With the digital format, the videos could be downloaded to a DVD or a USB if it needed to be saved or given to the authorities. A user could also look for a video with a time search feature. The CCTV has undergone gradual improvements to provide finer details and the cameras to monitor larger areas.

All law enforcement agencies are warranted to operate within the set laws of the state. The police are allowed by law to use public surveillance systems as a strategy to curb crime. However, the law is clear the limitations to people's privacy and restrictions as to what extent the police can use the surveillance systems. In the United States' constitution, the Fourth Amendment guarantees that the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures (Kovarsky,2019). The amendment stipulates the circumstances that lead to a search, and thus, the police also require a warrant. The United Nations supreme court gives proper guidelines on privacy terms concerning technology and the current legal treatment of seven primary surveillance tools which are GPS automobile tracking, cellular phones, video surveillance cameras, drones, body-worn cameras license plate readers and biometric identification technologies (Savidge, 2019). The law is also evident on the use of facial detectors since their use can result in misidentification and therefore resulting in public safety risks. The Fourteenth Amendment of the American constitution states equal protection and civil rights to all the American citizens. Law enforcers are consequently obliged to consider equal protection rights and avoid the impact of inequalities in the criminal justice system in the course of using facial recognition technology.

Use of CCTV has immensely influenced police practices. There has been a gradual change in the behavior of the police since the onset of the use of CCTVs. Police officers have been prosecuted due to unlawful arrest or assault based on CCTV evidence. The police, therefore, are more cautious while handling situations in the street due to the knowledge that they are being watched and their activities being scrutinized (Kovarsky, 2019). The police are currently keen to behave as per the guidelines of their profession. The CCTVs affect the police's thinking since the cameras are set to identify people who are committing a crime or the possibility of crime happening. Furthermore, it records the police actions too. The CCTV has also played a significant role in the police response to some crime events. The police can locate criminals in a building using the cameras and be able to respond on time hence making them more efficient in the act of stopping the occurrence of crime. The police have become more responsible, effective, and efficient with the help of the CCTV cameras.

The use of CCTVs is a general concern for everyone. It is an ethical issue in regards to privacy and data protection for only the stipulated authority to gain access to the CCTV footages. The appropriately trained staff should only access the CCTV cameras and footage to avoid leaking of videos to the general public. The general public has strong opinions concerning the protection of sensitive images and the record of their daily activities (Savidge, 2019). Responsible business owners can only access the videos in the presence of security officials. This practice not only ensures that data is protected but also encourages the public to see the CCTVs as a very vital security tool; valuable is well regulated and trustworthy. The community is in support of the use of CCTV cameras since they have played a key role in promoting security levels and curbing crime in society. The CCTV system is also a cost-effective form of security because once it is installed; its maintenance is easy and requires no or little repairs. Therefore it becomes the best security measure to be taken by the people in the society.

Purpose drives technology. Similarly, the evolution of CCTV use as a predictive policing strategy is inevitable. In the future three or five years, the system would have significantly evolved to match the needs of society. The CCTVs will be developed to be more sophisticated gadgets with wider area coverage of the cameras, clear pictures with high resolution, and the ability to also record speech(Kovarsky, 2019). The CCTVs will be protected from unauthorized access to ensure the data is not tampered with. The cameras will also be designed in a manner which it will be difficult for an individual to locate its location in a particular building to be able to control crimes that may be committed by people who are aware of the camera locations and coverage area. The camera can also be fitted with sensors that will create an alarm in case of danger hence being able to alert the people in a building. Detectors can also be part of the CCTV composition to detect guns or bombs that may have gained illegal entrance into the building. From such developments, there is a great development in the security system through the use of closed-circuit television surveillance as a policing strategy.

Conclusion

In conclusion, public surveillance systems play a significant role in security as it serves as a predictive policing strategy. The CCTVs have also played a role in taming the character of the police and warranting them to take action only as per the rules set in their profession. Crime has immensely been reduced due to the security consciousness taken by potential victims. This is an excellent strategy to curb crime and is very effective for all law enforcement agencies.

References

Lessing, B., & Willis, G. D. (2019). Legitimacy in criminal governance: Managing a drug empire from behind bars. The American Political Science Review, 113(2), 584-606. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0003055418000928

Kovarsky, L. (2019). The American execution queue. Stanford Law Review, 71(5), 1163-1228. https://review.law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2019/05/Kovarsky-71-Stan.-L.-Rev.-1163-2019.pdf

Savidge, T. (2019). The Concentration of Power in a Single Hand: Administrative Centralization and State and Local Drug Enforcement Policy in the United States, 1995-2016. Journal of Private Enterprise, 34(2), 65-80. http://journal.apee.org/index.php/ajax/GDMgetFile/2019_Journal_of_Private_Enterprise_Vol_34_No_2_Summer_PARTE4.pdf