Regulation In Video Surveillance

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GUIDELINES FOR
PUBLIC VIDEO SURVEILLANCE

A Guide to ProtectinG communities
And PreservinG civil liberties

GUIDELINES FOR
PUBLIC VIDEO SURVEILLANCE
A GUIDE tO PROtECtING COmmUNItIES
AND PRESERVING CIVIL LIBERtIES

A REPORt OF thE CONStItUtION PROjECt‘S
LIBERty AND SECURIty COmmIttEE

Copyright © 2007 by the ConstitutionProject. All rights reserved. No part may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
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tABLE OF CONtENtS
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .xiGuidelines for Public Video Surveillance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
I. Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
II. Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
A. Developments in and Use of VideoSurveillance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
B. Constitutional Rights and Values at Stake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
C. Existing Law and Regulatory Proposals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
III. Guidelines for Public Video Surveillance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 14
A. Core Principles Governing the Creation and Design of Public Video Surveillance Systems . . 15
B. Publicly Accountable Procedures for Establishing Public Video Surveillance Systems . . . . . 21
C. Principles and Rules for Use of Public Video Surveillance Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
IV. Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Endnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Model Legislation for Establishing Public Video Surveillance Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Guidelines for Public Video Surveillance

PREFACE
The Constitution Project is a bipartisan, nonprofitorganization that seeks consensus
on controversial legal and political issues through scholarship and advocacy. In the days
following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, the Constitution
Project launched its Liberty and Security Initiative. Guided by an ideologically diverse
committee of prominent Americans, the Initiative addresses a wide range of issues,
includingthe tension between rapidly changing technology used to enhance security and
constitutional values relating to personal liberty and privacy. The Initiative is committed to
developing and advancing proposals to protect civil liberties even as our country works to
make Americans safe.
While much attention has been paid to efforts on the federal level to enhance our safety in
the aftermath of...