NYPD calls on citizens for amateur video evidence

[Starbucks Anarchist]

Source: Yahoo

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New Yorkers can soon take a bite out of city crime by uploading video or photo evidence directly to the New York Police Department, in a move welcomed on Thursday by civil rights groups.

"We're putting that technology in place to enable us to do that," said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, adding that the service will be available soon.

"It's a fact of life," Kelly said. "Everybody has a camera in their telephones. When people can record an event taking place that helps us during an investigation, it's helpful."

Soon citizen sleuths can transmit evidence of criminal activity directly to the police and 911, including evidence of police misconduct, such as the recent video of a police officer shoving a bicyclist to the ground in Times Square.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080731/us_nm/newyork_crime_video_dc

[The Sushi Bandit]

1. I'll Send them some Fucking Videos!!!!

[provis99]

2. they're sent to the police so the cops can alter them

Why would anyone send a copy to the police, of police misconduct? They will simply use it to intimidate the person who filmed the misconduct, and the cops will alter their copy to make themselves look good. Once there are two copies that say different things, the stupid public will always take the police copy as real, and the real copy as fake. And if the copy can't be altered well enough by the police, the cops will study it to put a slant on their own actions.

Just another attempt of the crooks at NYPD to further oppress the people. Rather than send a copy of a police brutality tape to the police, people should send copies to the local news media.

[DS1]

5. Nah. I see it as part of the digital age

England has so many cameras you can't even stumble home at night without being recorded.

[Raineyb]

3. I find it interesting that the NYPD would as for citizen video...

When it's usually citizen video that catches the NYPD in blatant lies about incidents.

The latest one that comes to mind is the case where the police officer claimed that a bicyclist assaulted him when in fact the police officer body checked the bicyclist as mentioned in the OP.

I suspect the video of police misconduct will magically disappear.

Regards

[izquierdista]

4. Maybe they are that stupid

To think that people would upload a video to them and then delete it. They most likely don't understand this "file sharing" concept.

[Raineyb]

6. Well, I wouldn't accuse the NYPD for being too smart for their own good.

LOL

Just today on Democracy Now I heard that they've gone after I-Witness Video claiming that the city has lost their tapes and need the tapes from I-Witness to defend themselves against charges stemming from their behavior during the 2004 Republican Convention. Yeah right!

What a bunch of morons!

Those tapes more likely than not will show police misconduct! (Which is why a few hundred cases have been thrown out in criminal court although those arrested are suing. We're talking about a police department that arrested people for following orders!) Complete cretins!

And they wonder why people have no respect for the local constabulary.

Regards