A residents' group in East Barnet is appealing for help in a bid to set up mobile CCTV cameras in their village.
The Friends of East Barnet want to reduce the level of crime in their area by using the mobile cameras to catch out graffiti artists and vandals.
Andy Widger, a member of the residents' group, said: "We have probably raised about £1,000 through traders and residents but the problem we have got is that the police are not really sure about whether you can get a successful prosecution if the cameras are used in a public place. They have said it may infringe on people's civil liberties."
A spokesman for the government's Information Commissioner, however, said residents' groups would be perfectly entitled to use private cameras if they were of sufficient quality, the cameras were identifiable to the residents' group and that people caught on film could have access to it if requested. He added that police may be guarded over using evidence from such cameras due to the quality of the images.
The group have been told by Barnet Council that a permanent CCTV camera would cost £80,000 and would have to be monitored via a control room.
However, Mr Widger said: "What we were thinking of doing was to get a mobile camera so that if someone is getting repeatedly victimised we can set up a camera on a tripod in their window.
"If it is on private property then this is OK but we really want to stop the graffiti in the village."
November 7, 2001 18:55
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