Just listened to the last two episodes of This American Life, about a school in Chicago where there have been 29 kids shot over the last year.[1]
On seeing this, immediately wondered if you could combine drones with gunshot detection systems.[2]
The drone could hone in on gunshots and follow any vehicle in a drive by in real time without a dangerous car chase.[3]
By implication, the drone "nightmare" scenario probably kicks in in full when we all put license plates on roofs.
On the upside, no more drive-bys. We stop raising whole classes of kids with PTSD.
On the downside, the returns are probably greater for police who use drones to monitor traffic offenses. So we're probably immediately fined $700 for any rolling stop. Worse case, drones network with traffic signals to turn lights red right before we pass through.[4]
I'm conflicted. I know there's a famous quote about people who trade privacy for security, and how they're all Nazis. But I'm really on board with helping those kids.
I know that before Miranda and some similar cases, there was an epidemic of rubber hose interrogations in police station backrooms. I know there's still a lot of improvement to be made, but some simple changes in the courtroom made sweeping changes to the ways law enforcement interacted with suspects. Maybe some legal scholar can come up with a few guidelines that help the police to use these sorts of technologies to do some good, while still restricting their ability to abuse them.
If we want to help those kids, we must address the fundamental reasons those kids were shot. Drones detecting gun shots is a technological bandaid with the side effect of empowering the State even more.
People don't want to address the fundamental problems because they're hard and ugly and uncomfortable. It's much easier to dream about technology solving all our ills, when a lot of our problems are an effect of immorality.
False dilemma -- we can address the root causes and also add measures to prevent violence when those causes are not addressed effectively. The OP's point is sound and if you start the argument against universal surveillance by claiming it will not reduce crimes such as these you will not be taken seriously. The question is not if crime will be reduced but at what cost is it worth it. The cameras are coming and the bottom line is we need to decide who sits behind them: a select few, or everyone.
I live on the south side of Chicago. Whenever I pass through "trouble" intersections (near the El, etc), I see a myriad of tech perched atop towers--red light cameras, gun shot detectors, CCTV cameras, etc. Adding a small "hut" to contain UAVs is the logical next step. And it will do nothing to fix the root cause of the issues. Neither will hiring more cops to patrol distressed areas. The problem is cultural.
On seeing this, immediately wondered if you could combine drones with gunshot detection systems.[2]
The drone could hone in on gunshots and follow any vehicle in a drive by in real time without a dangerous car chase.[3]
By implication, the drone "nightmare" scenario probably kicks in in full when we all put license plates on roofs.
On the upside, no more drive-bys. We stop raising whole classes of kids with PTSD.
On the downside, the returns are probably greater for police who use drones to monitor traffic offenses. So we're probably immediately fined $700 for any rolling stop. Worse case, drones network with traffic signals to turn lights red right before we pass through.[4]
I'm conflicted. I know there's a famous quote about people who trade privacy for security, and how they're all Nazis. But I'm really on board with helping those kids.
I know that before Miranda and some similar cases, there was an epidemic of rubber hose interrogations in police station backrooms. I know there's still a lot of improvement to be made, but some simple changes in the courtroom made sweeping changes to the ways law enforcement interacted with suspects. Maybe some legal scholar can come up with a few guidelines that help the police to use these sorts of technologies to do some good, while still restricting their ability to abuse them.
1. http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/487/h...
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunfire_locator
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boomerang_(countermeasure)
3. Chase related crashes from just the last few months:
http://theadvocate.com/news/police/4714718-123/police-chase-...
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=...
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/local-news/police-4-cars-...
http://www.redeyechicago.com/news/breaking/chi-suspects-car-...
4. http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/red_light_cams_red_light_...