SAN DIEGO — Smart Streetlights, the contentious network of street lights equipped with sensor nodes that have video and audio recording capabilities, could return to San Diego.
The City's Public Safety Committee heard arguments for and against the technology Friday afternoon and voted to give the City's Privacy Advisory Board a chance to review the $12 million contract offered to the City of San Diego by the company behind the streetlight cameras.
Ubicquia Inc.’s Smart Streetlights and Flock Safety’s Automated License Plate Recognition would have a 5-year agreement and contract with the City of San Diego. The companies and San Diego Police Department officials say the cameras will keep San Diegans safer. Critics of the idea and agreement say the cameras infringe on citizens’ privacy.
One woman spoke during public comment, saying, "Ubiquitous – like the name – and to be seemingly everywhere at once, just like a spy camera streetlight on everyone's neighborhood corner. Unmonitored, private security cameras are one thing, but to have government actively engage and monitor society is a totalitarian tiptoe, to say the least."
Most public comments at the San Diego Public Safety Committee meeting were against the crime-fighting technology.
Homayra Yusufi with the Transparent and Responsible Use of Surveillance Technology San Diego Coalition or TRUST SD said they’ve been working for three years to keep the cameras and license plate readers out of San Diego.
"We are concerned that we're spending $12 million as a city on technology that will be used for the benefit of private tech companies rather than San Diegans. There are huge loopholes that don't protect our privacy rights and put us in harm’s way.”
San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit said the city and SDPD need the 500 crime-solving cameras, and they’ll work to protect citizens’ privacy.
"We're very strict about our use policy and who is authorized to use it for that means of who can use it and who it can be shared with. We were able to solve cases that we would not have solved today. We also proved that in a case where we thought someone murdered someone, it was actually self-defense, so these cameras can go both ways."
Councilmember Marni Von Wilpert said she’s happy to hear that the companies and SDPD have procedures to protect privacy.
"The police department, Ubicquia and Flock will have audits regularly to review who has access to this data. Was it a need-to-know basis? Was a criminal complaint lodged before the camera footage was pulled?"
Mayor Gloria mentioned the technology at his monthly press conference, and said the technology’s vetting and installation process was thorough and vetted for months with public meetings.
"These are two important investigative tools that were shut down back in September of 2020 before I took office while the city council has worked on putting rules in place that govern the use of surveillance technologies."
Councilmember Marni Von Wilpert said the contract is transparent and is available on the city’s website for public access. The idea will be heard by the Privacy Advisory Board on October 26 for recommendations before it heads to a full City Council vote.
WATCH RELATED: San Diego City Council authorizes use of 'Smart Streetlights'