In just its second board meeting, San Diego's new Privacy Advisory Board was tasked with deciding whether to recommend the use of controversial Smart Streetlights to the city council.
The tasks stands incomplete after the board voted to delay its recommendation, citing a need for more public input and expert opinion.
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The San Diego Police Department said the Smart Streetlight program produced effective crime-fighting results, but criticism over oversight and implementation of the program mounted at the program shuttered after a little more than a year.
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At a cost $3.5 million, SDPD said it could purchase and maintain 500 streetlights that record video of public areas 24/7. Cameras would be placed in every San Diego Council District in neighborhoods based on crime statistics. The video would be stored for 15 days in the Amazon Web Services Government Cloud. License plate photos would be stored for 30 days.
Only law enforcement with a reason and a right under state law would have access to stored files, which could be shared with other law enforcement agencies when necessary.
Ultimately the board wanted to hear more about the technology from experts and hear more concerns from the community.
"Ultimately, I hope they decide against it, but I think taking more time and taking more community input, I think it is the right thing to do given their position, given what the board is supposed to be doing," resident Salem MacIntosh said.
The Advisory board said it has until mid-June to give the city council its recommendation. SDPD spokesperson Lt. Adam Sharki declined to comment on the vote, saying the department wants to let the process run its proper course.
The privacy Advisory Board also selected a Committee to investigate the success of similar technology elsewhere and find other expert opinions. The city council said it's s planning to meet with as many community members as they can before June.
