Surveillance cameras useful, but not foolproof
By DIANA SROKA - dsroka@nwherald.com
It’s been more than six weeks since vandals spray-painted drawings of male genitalia, an anarchy symbol and a swastika at Richmond-Burton High School, and police have not made any arrests.
Richmond Police Chief John Fryksdale said the surveillance cameras that captured the incident were under review, and he was hopeful that they would lead to suspects.
“We’re still working on enhancing tapes,” Fryksdale said. “I know we’ve used them for other situations and it was quite helpful.”
Although police haven’t nabbed the supposed high school pranksters who defaced the school, authorities said surveillance cameras – which sometimes cost thousands of dollars – are worth the money and usually do help to catch criminals.
Last year Johnsburg Junior High School added $6,300 of surveillance cameras to an existing 16-camera system, putting almost every inch of the school within a lens’ purview. Cameras have become common in schools and businesses, including smaller establishments such as convenience stores and gas stations.
“It’s an extremely good investigative tool for police,” said Crystal Lake Police Deputy Chief Dennis Harris. “It gives us more information than we would have otherwise.”
Sometimes cases involving surveillance cameras are more clear-cut, like an incident in fall of 2007 in Crystal Lake: Camera footage helped Crystal Lake Police nab a man who allegedly robbed two Crystal Lake banks by threatening to activate an explosive device. The suspect, Keith H. Hull, who then lived in the 500 block of Darlington Lane in Crystal Lake, was recognized by residents after police released footage to the public.
But other cases aren’t as easy. Many times video footage doesn’t reveal a clear picture, and it can be tough to build a description of the suspect. When that happens, local departments turn to federal and state agencies for help with image enhancement.
“Enhancement tools we have access to take and grab elements from a number of different frames,” Harris said. “It’s not uncommon for us to enhance the video to give us the image we’re looking for.”
Other times the scene of a crime might not have a camera at all, but surveillance systems have become so common that if business doesn’t have a system, a neighboring one might.
Roy Lucke, director of Northwestern University’s Center for Public Safety, cited a case in Libertyville where police used footage from a gas station to solve a homicide that occurred across the street.
“It has become part of a tool to always ask, ‘Do you have cameras?’ “ Lucke said.
When video footage isn’t clear enough to provide precise details, it can be used to confirm broad evidence from witnesses. Lucke said sometimes witnesses unintentionally confuse details because their mind is traumatized by what they saw, but officers can clarify their statements by cross-examining them against video.
“If you find a suspect vehicle, you can say ‘Yea, it pretty much looks like the one on the tape,’ “ Lucke said.
