Snap Away NYPD – If You Can Find ‘Em, Then Arrest ‘Em!

MTA surveillance - is this a squashed penguin or a crime?

When the Canarsie Courier gets a media alert from the NYPD, we’re excited that there’s a video or photo attached of a suspect or bad guy who’s on the loose. Photos and videos give a lot of character and substance to a crime story. And if a photo is taken/captured at just the right angle, you’ve got an exclusive view of a coward caught in the act....well usually they haven't been caught...YET!

With all the talk of adding more cameras around the city, it’s no surprise that officials are looking to make the city "safer" and get a stellar image of those dirtbags committing the ultimate crime. Whether speed cameras are going off and catching the bad guy, generating thousands of dollars a day, or surveillance cameras are set up in the subway to deter sex crimes, we’re a city that likes to snap away!

On the flip side…have you ever SEEN these still images from the NYPD? Have you seen those blurry shots from a dark alleyway or sidewalk where a “man in his 20s wearing all black” is accused of attacking a young girl or walking around with a loaded handgun? I don’t know about you – but my eyesight is pretty good and I can’t even make out what these thugs look like. You’ve got pixelated shots of someone’s face and body, or the backs of their heads – and if there are TWO bad guys, you’ve got to distinguish who’s who and squint A LOT to make out any details. Quite possibly, the only people who will know what the suspects really look like are the victims and those who were in the immediate vicinity of the reported crime.

I have problems choosing which NYPD photos to publish in our paper since none of them are even clear enough to give the public an idea what the crooks look like! Snapshots of thugs wearing a doo rag…gray sweat pants…black cap…Well, that describes clothing that A LOT of people wear, so how the hell are we supposed to help the police catch anyone?

I’ll estimate that three out of 10 surveillance images are actually visible, usable and CLEAR! I understand something is better than nothing – and there are hundreds of scenarios where the NYPD disseminates images to the public which are recorded by private businesses and homeowners who can’t get the best quality that’s out there. 

But distributing a blurry image doesn’t help – especially knowing some media outlets, like the Canarsie Courier, will be reprinting or republishing the photos in black and white. And it's not going to help solve the crime if we can't see the damned people!

This leads to my next question: If the MTA plans on putting cameras on their trains, what kind of cameras are they going to be? Are they going to capture everyone? What about when a train is packed to the brim? If they’re looking to catch perverts on the train, they’re going to have get real close and have some type of zoom lense. Suspects – if they’re arrested and make it to court to defend their case – can say it wasn’t them and that, “That footage looks like it could be anyone!”

Let’s get real! If someone KNOWS there’s going to be cameras capturing their every move, they’re going to take extra measures to hide their face, or whatever else will give away their identity. Shouldn’t the MTA do this on the down-low so offenders won’t go out of their way to make their identity hard to distinguish? All they have to do is commit the crime right before they get off a train and “flee in an unknown direction” as officials like to say. Someone exposing themselves on a train might take a chance when commuter traffic is so busy that no one can make out the details of their characteristics.

The only thing surveillance can do is possibly help victims identify a suspected predator. But then, how do you catch the guy so he can get arrested? We have to hope and pray that wherever he went, someone recognized his clothing and other features and reported him to the authorities. How often do cops capture a guy whose image has been plastered all over the city? And are those awful stills they send out to the media responsible for helping with the arrest?

Of course, NYPD Commissioner Bill Braton said this useful “crime fighting tool” will provide more evidence to detectives and serve as a “deterrent to bad guys.” I don’t know how this assessment can be made when there’s so much to consider…How many cameras would you need per train? Per car? Which trains are going to be equipped with these cameras first? What angle will they capture – and how good will the quality of the photos be?

If the images resemble anything like what the NYPD already releases to the public – barely visible faces and distorted details that resemble a large portion of people walking the streets – good luck tracking anyone down. Put that in your camera and develop it!

Unpublished 10/2/14