To the editor:
Latest update from the Cape Coral police department is that the cameras will no longer be used until better regulations are forthcoming. The state has mandated that they will not use the cameras and they must come down within 30 days. I did not see or hear a similar statement about the Cape Coral cameras coming down, just that they won’t be used.
Nothing mentioned about disabling the cameras. So let’s get some clarity about what is actually happening with the Flock cameras in Cape Coral. By not being clear about what is happening to the cameras I feel we may be getting another “Cape Job” where being vague hides the truth.
Can the city and/or Cape police unequivocally state that the cameras will come down? Will the city go on record that the camera system will not be replaced by another company that performs the same kind of surveillance like Axon? That no kind of general surveillance system will be used on the public in their day-to-day activities? No hardware will be installed anywhere to perform a surveillance of the public?
Just because the city claims they will not be using the data, does not mean data has stopped being collected. As long as they are up and aimed, they are collecting data which can be sold to marketing companies and other interested parties. The system needs to be 100% dismantled.
For future reference, a “Cape Job” is a misdirection of where the viewer should look as the flashing of a cape is a distraction from the magic act actually taking place. Something that seems to happen a lot in Cape Coral.
J. Caplin
Cape Coral