In 2007, Charlottesville Police Chief Tim Longo wanted to put 30 security cameras on the Downtown Mall, raising concerns from civil libertarians about government surveillance and from City Council about cost. Seven years later, leads in the search for missing UVA student Hannah Graham have come from private surveillance cameras, and Longo had an I-told-you-so moment at a September 17 press conference.
“How long have I been saying that video surveillance is huge in the retrospective investigation of crime?” queried an at-times visibly frustrated Longo. “Thank God for the merchants. Thank God for the people who have taken it upon themselves to equip their own property, and look how beneficial it’s been in this case.”
Sal’s Caffe Italia on the Mall has one of the cameras that picked up Graham as she headed east in the early morning hours of September 13. Jennifer Finazzo-Schneider, whose family owns Sal’s, said she supported Longo, and last year decided it was time for the restaurant to install its own camera. “They’re very inexpensive now,” she said. “We have a lot of young girls who work here. Safety should be the number-one concern.”
They initially checked the video September 16 and noticed nothing, but once Graham’s timeline became more complete, “We slowed it down, and there she was,” she said.
Finazzo-Schneider holds no truck with civil libertarians worried about privacy. “Once you step outside your home, you’re in the public view and people should get over it,” she said. She’d like to see cameras on the Mall, side streets, and Water and Market streets—although she stresses that the Downtown Mall is much safer than when her family opened Sal’s in 1985.
Surveillance cameras could give people a false sense of security, she acknowledged. “But in this case, it could have made a difference four days ago,” she said. “There are clues now. Maybe we can find and trace who did this. With Morgan Harrington, she stepped outside JPJ Arena and vanished.”
Still, others remain concerned about government-installed cameras in public places, calling it a slippery slope. “Studies show surveillance cameras don’t necessarily deter crime,” said Jeramie Scott with the Electronic Privacy Information Center in Washington, DC.
He cautioned that if cameras are installed, police should be transparent about how long recorded information is retained, how it would be shared, and what technology is being used, such as license plate readers or facial recognition. The public should be aware and be able to voice concerns before cameras are installed, Scott said, and there should be clear guidelines for their use.
Surveillance cameras in public can easily be used for the mass surveillance of those exercising their First Amendment rights, such as during protests, he said. And as for those who say safety is more important than privacy concerns, responded Scott, “I’d rather be safe and protect our privacy and civil liberties.”
The Downtown Business Association of Charlottesville called for cameras on the Mall in 2010. When asked about whether the group would bring the issue before City Council again, executive director Bob Stroh was adamant that it wasn’t the time. “We’re not touching this issue until we find Hannah,” he said. “That is not a topic for discussion.”
Vice Mayor Dede Smith said City Council has discussed the issue in the past and asked for additional information. “It’s not an easy question at all,” she said. “There are a lot of public concerns historically about surveillance cameras and how they might be misused. That’s why we need a calm discussion and not a reactionary one.”
And until Graham is found, she agreed such discussions probably are premature. “We’re all very concerned. It’s very upsetting.”