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A4 U.S. NEWS
Saturday 12 September 2020
Baltimore Police releases report on aerial surveillance test

By REGINA GARCIA CANO evaluating whether the pro-
Associated Press gram leads to arrests and
The Baltimore Police De- case closures, earns pub-
partment revealed Friday lic support and ultimately
that an aerial surveillance has a deterrent effect. The
system being tested across analysis was released a
the city since May has giv- day after the department
en officers information in and the American Civil Lib-
81 criminal cases, includ- erties Union argued before
ing 19 homicides, but ac- a panel of federal appeals
knowledged it does not judges in an appeal from a
have enough data yet to district court decision de-
determine the program's nying a request from the
effectiveness. Of the cases organization to temporarily
backed by aerial imag- block the pilot program.
ery, 21% have been closed The ACLU, on behalf of
with an arrest compared a grassroots organization
to 16% of similar incidents and area activists, sued
that were not captured the department and Harri-
by the wide-angle cam- son in April to stop the test
eras mounted on airplanes from kicking off. The argu-
sweeping Baltimore. The ments at Thursday's hearing
figures, which are provi- centered on whether the
sional, are contained in a In this Monday, Feb. 11, 2019 file photo, Michael Harrison, acting commissioner of the Baltimore program violates people's
report covering the first half Police Department, speaks at an introductory news conference in Baltimore. Associated Press reasonable expectation of
of the six-month pilot pro- privacy regarding move-
gram. "This report provides ages can then be stitched with street-level cameras, hours and 96 of them were ment, and results in indis-
an extensive review of the together to create a con- license plate readers and in flight coverage. Aerial criminate searches without
program's progress, while tinuous visual record to as- gunfire sound detectors. images were analyzed for a warrant.
fulfilling our commitment sist police investigate only Ohio-based Persistent Sur- 81 of the cases, of which The program was an-
to transparency in sharing homicides, nonfatal shoot- veillance Systems is op- 17 — or 21% — were "pro- nounced in December, just
data on where the pro- ings, armed robberies and erating the surveillance visionally closed" with an as the city was wrapping up
gram is at its halfway mark," carjackings. technology and analyzing arrest. another violent year. Balti-
Baltimore Police Commis- Police have said the reso- the images for police. The The report also states that more ended 2019 with 348
sioner Michael Harrison lution of the images is not project is being funded of the 697 cases for which homicides, the fifth year in
said in a statement. "We sharp enough to identify with about $3.7 million from aerial surveillance was not a row with more than 300
will continue to be guided a person's face, ethnic- the nonprofit of Texas bil- analyzed, 113 — or 16% — killings. As of Friday, the
by our research partners ity, gender and clothing lionaires Laura and John were "provisionally closed" city has recorded 231 ho-
on the effectiveness of the or a vehicle's color, make, Arnold. The report shows with an arrest. micides and 509 non-fatal
program." model and license plate. the city saw a combination Through mid-August, the shootings in 2020. Both fig-
Throughout the test, the Instead, people and ve- of 778 homicides, shoot- most time the aircraft flew ures are down compared
cameras are taking pho- hicles appear on the imag- ings, armed robberies and above the city during a with the same period last
tos of at a rate of one per ery as dots, which can then carjackings between May week was nearly 120 hours. year, when the city had tal-
second as the airplanes be identified when the 1 and July 31. Of those, Third-party researchers, in- lied 242 homicides and 566
fly above the city. The im- visual record is paired up 181 happened during flight cluding RAND Corp., are non-fatal shootings.q

Parking deck collapse in Atlanta leaves six workers injured

bris with saws. Video from Cook Construction Co., The cause for the collapse
news outlets showed the which is building the struc- is unclear, Wasulko said,
worker, who Riley said had ture. adding that engineers
leg injuries, being strapped The six workers were em- were inspecting the struc-
into a basket next to the ployed by a subcontractor, tural integrity of the rest of
collapsed section. Wasulko said. the parking deck.
Firefighters then commu- "We are committed to the Riley voiced concerns that
nicated with a crane op- safety of every employee more of the structure could
erator using a construction and trade partner working collapse and fall onto In-
worker's radio, Riley said, as at our job sites," Wasulko terstate 75/85, a busy free-
the worker was lowered to said in a statement. way through the heart of
the street. The worker never A firefighter also was tak- the city. Parts of adjoining
lost consciousness, he add- en to a hospital, with likely streets and a ramp to the
ed. "That was an awesome heat exhaustion, Riley said. freeway were closed as a
Damage is seen to a parking deck under construction after it job," Riley said. The collapse involved part precaution. City inspectors
partially collapsed, injuring several workers, on Friday, Sept. 11, Other construction work- of a prefabricated parking also planned to examine
2020, in Atlanta.
Associated Press ers were injured but man- deck under construction in the structure, he said. The
aged to walk away from Atlanta's Midtown section, U.S. Occupational Safety
By JEFF AMY on Friday, injuring six work- the collapse, Riley told re- officials from Atlanta Fire and Health Administration
ATLANTA (AP) — A section ers. Atlanta Fire Rescue porters at the scene. Four Rescue said in a statement. also was sending inspectors
of concrete on a parking Deputy Chief Glen Riley workers were taken to hos- A column on the 11th floor to evaluate whether any
deck under construction in said firefighters cut out one pitals, said Jason Wasulko, gave way, causing debris federal workplace safety
Atlanta partially collapsed worker trapped under de- a spokesman for Batson- to fall onto the 10th floor. rules were violated. q