The ACLU of Illinois has long been concerned about use of surveillance cameras by Chicago law enforcement - particularly the use of cameras with increasingly sophisticated technology, including the ability to zoom in and track an individual's movements. Senior Staff Attorney Adam Schwartz spoke with the Chicago Sun-Times about the installation of new red-light cameras with a 360 degree panning technology:

Adam Schwartz, a senior attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, said the Chicago Police Department should only use the 360-degree panning technology when there’s “suspicion of criminal activity.”

That means police should not track individuals on the street unless they’re searching for a “particular suspect,” Schwartz said.

“There is a mission creep. These cameras that were put up for the purpose of traffic enforcement now have 360-capability, which is not part of traffic enforcement, but is for other purposes,” he said.

“Where we go says a lot about who we are. Whether we’re going to the union meeting, to see a criminal defense lawyer or to worship, we need safeguards to ensure that the government isn’t using these ever-expanding camera systems to monitor what people are doing.”

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The newly appointed Director of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), Bobbie Gregg, cites budget constraints, staff morale and continuity issues as significant challenges facing the department. Since 1991, the department has operated under a federal court consent decree designed to improve the care and services DCFS provides to children under its care. The terms of the consent decree, which is monitored by the ACLU of Illinois, established department operating standards, including caseload maximums for child abuse investigators. Benjamin Wolf, associate legal director of the ACLU of Illinois maintains that Gregg needs to immediately address the departments deteriorating level of operations:

“She needs to bring things back up to a minimally competent level,” Wolf said, “and I don’t think they’re there now.”

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