The Naperville Police Department has been reaching out to other local governing agencies and organizations, seeking authority to access security cameras on an as-needed basis.
The Naperville Park Board is in the process of reviewing the department’s request to have access to its cameras. Board members on Thursday, Aug. 27, had a preliminary discussion on a potential memorandum of understanding between the district and city police department on the camera access.
“The MOU would allow city police to access real-time video footage when responding to emergency situations at park district facilities, such as an active shooter, bomb threat, fire alarm, armed intruder, burglary in process, fight in progress, or any other immediate threat to life, personal injury, property, or the safety of the building or its occupants,” Executive Director Brad Wilson said.
No action was taken at the recent meeting, and the MOU could return at an upcoming meeting for further deliberation and potential action.
Board members share privacy concerns
Amid a robust discussion of the Naperville Police Department’s request, several board members weighed in with concerns about the draft agreement.
John Risvold said he would not support the draft MOU as written, expressing constitutional-related rights, and said the existing terms are “pretty concerning to me.”
“I think a lot of the MOU language is vague and doesn’t really protect our privacy rights,” Risvold said. “I’m reminded of Benjamin Franklin, who said, ‘Anyone who’s willing to sacrifice liberty for temporary safety deserves neither.’ I don’t know why we’re intent on creating a surveillance state in this town.”
Risvold said his criticism is not in direct response to the Naperville Police Department itself, but rather broader security and privacy concerns that have arisen about cameras used to gather data.
Speaking to Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres, who attended the meeting, Risvold said, “I respect you, and the Naperville police. I think that it is an outstanding organization that is an exemplar to other police departments throughout the country.”
But Risvold said his desire is to have a tightened-up MOU that would safeguard the district into perpetuity as the agreement remains enforceable and in place.
Leslie Ruffing, who chairs the park board, said she, too, has concerns about the MOU in its current state. Current pledges from Arres, including an audit report on use of district cameras, were cited among her reservations with the potential arrangement.
“My biggest concern, really, is the onus on park district staff to review those logs — the audit logs — which is really the only way that we can identify if misuse or abuse happens,” Ruffing said. “As much as we all trust you (Arres), it is a huge concern right now, locally, nationally, because these cameras are being abused. We can’t pretend like it’s never happening.”
Other board members give a different take on request
During the wide-ranging discussion, several other board members had more positive comments about the potential arrangement.
Rich Janor said the MOU draft could be an example of the city and district working collaboratively.
“I favor this,” Janor said. “I think it’s a good example of intergovernmental cooperation.”
Chris Jacks said security cameras are a fact of life in today’s society, and noted people’s activities are documented and recorded in a range of different settings.
“If you’re talking about every potential Fourth Amendment violation out there … you’d have to get rid of all of these cameras everywhere, nationwide,” Jacks said. “You’d have to get rid of everybody’s Ring doorbell cameras and dash cam cameras and everything.”
District’s legal counsel has reviewed proposed MOU
Derke Price, legal counsel for the Naperville Park District, said he had a role in working with the Naperville Police Department in drafting the MOU that is under consideration.
“This is a request basis,” Price said. “The city doesn’t have access to our cameras now. This was setting up the guardrails and parameters for how they would get access in real time and, as they are accessing it, what guardrails or boundaries would be around the use of it. That was the purpose of the MOU.”
Price said the MOU is not intended to give Naperville police full-time access to the district’s security cameras.
“If there is something going on, and we need additional eyes, this is the tool to be used,” Price added. “That was the intent of the draft, and the parameters that are built into it.
At the recent meeting, Price also had several back-and-forth exchanges with Risvold about the use of the word “emergency” in the draft MOU and how it could be applied. As demonstrated by the COVID-19 pandemic, Price said the term is inherently broad.
“It is what the people in charge, that are trusted with the position, can determine,” Price said. “In this case, ‘emergency’ is what law enforcement — our chief and the chief of the city — figure out is an emergency. We can’t possibly list a grocery list of everything that will constitute an emergency.”
While cases such as a serious car crash or active shooter response are obvious emergency situations, Price said there are others that fall into the category of what he described as, “You won’t know it until it happens.”
Chief Arres explains why department is seeking MOU
Arres said the Naperville Police Department has also been seeking MOUs for the as-needed security camera access with Naperville School District 203, Indian Prairie School District 204, and North Central College.
To date, Arres said District 204’s board of education and North Central College officials have signed off on the department’s request. District 203 has yet to take up the request, and Arres said it will be deliberated at an as-yet undetermined time.
As for the district, Arres said city police have a long and positive working relationship with Naperville Park Police, particularly working in tandem during events that draw large crowds.
“We don’t surveil,” Arres said. “If there’s some criminal act that happens, in cooperation with your park district police, who we work extensively with, we would request video related to a criminal incident, if there was video related to a crash.”
If granted, Arres also indicated only a small, select number of sworn police staff would have access to the cameras, and would log when and why the access took place.
“We absolutely will not have your cameras up on a screen, monitoring them,” Arres said.
Additionally, Arres in his comments took aim at the small number of law enforcement across the U.S. who have abused camera access privileges.
“There’s nothing that a good cop hates more than a bad cop,” Arres said. “If one of my people were to abuse this system, they’re gone, and I will work with the state’s attorney’s office to make sure that they are criminally charged.”
Stock image of security camera
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