Honolulu Installed Security Cams Without Council OK
The Honolulu Police Department was pretty confident the Honolulu City Council would approve its request to install 34 new surveillance cameras to help with security during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in November.
So confident, in fact, that it didn’t even wait for Council to give the official green light Wednesday. About half of the cameras had already been installed by the time the meeting started.
That’s according to Honolulu Department of Information Technology Director Gordon Bruce, whose team is handling the technical aspects of the plan. He said about 50 percent of the new cameras are installed, but none will be operational until 12 a.m. on Nov. 7.
The cameras will be turned off on Nov. 14 and repurposed for traffic monitoring.
One concerned citizen told the Council that it should take the pre-approval installation as an insult, but the members didn’t seem to mind. Even Council member Nestor Garcia, who cast the only vote in opposition to , said its language allowed advance preparations even before passage.
Garcia said he “gave the administration an out.”
Asked by Safety, Economic Development and Government Affairs Committee Chair Tulsi Gabbard what would happen to the cameras if the resolution failed, Bruce said they’d be turned into traffic cameras. But in that scenario, the city would likely lose the hundreds of thousands of dollars in national security grants that helped pay the $1.5 million price tag for the equipment and its installation.
Department of Transportation Services Director Wayne Yoshioka said the city eventually hopes to have camera coverage of about 400 signaled intersections across the island. Right now, there are cameras at about 200 of those spots.
Regardless of when the actual installations takes place, the plan for their use hasn’t changed from the last time the Council debated the issue. The HPD will be able to use the cameras to keep and eye on citizens and visiting protesters as part of an effort to protect world leaders. Police will be able to record video footage, though not audio, to use in criminal prosecutions. The cameras cannot be used to watch private property.
A smattering of citizens and the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii expressed their opposition. They said the cameras will fundamentally change the way people act in public 鈥 they’ll be looking over their shoulders. Garcia agreed, and said he hopes the city doesn’t infringe on people’s First Amendment rights.
The rest of his Council colleagues all voted in favor of the resolution. Gabbard said the eyes of the world will be on Honolulu, and keeping people safe is a priority. She said the Council has addressed First Amendment concerns.
Read our previous coverage of the surveillance camera proposal:
- ‘Big Brother’? Honolulu Police Want to Double Surveillance for APEC
- Honolulu Police Load Up on Taser Ammo, Pepper Spray, Bean Bags for APEC
- Video Monitoring in Honolulu 鈥 鈥淪afety鈥 at What Price?
- Looking To Balance APEC Safety, First Amendment
