Phoenix police explain use of surveillance truck at Capitol protests

PHOENIX — The Phoenix Police Department’s mobile surveillance truck and Strongwatch camera drew attention when spotted during gatherings at the Arizona Capitol on Sunday and Monday, when protesters rallied to reopen the state’s economy.

The camera — Strongwatch is the brand name — is mounted in the bed of a pick-up truck and is utilized to remotely monitor major events in the city.

The truck’s appearance Sunday caused City Councilman Sal DiCiccio to voice his frustration on Twitter:

Big Government Spy’s. Phoenix PD chills speech, freedom to assemble and speech. Truck is PD spying on those against the lock down of AZ citizens. And they use this against the left protesters as well. This is insane and I will have an ordinance ready to stop this nonsense pic.twitter.com/7jcj0F4x5F

— Sal DiCiccio (@Sal_DiCiccio) April 19, 2020

One day after DiCiccio public opposition of Phoenix’s surveillance tool, the Phoenix Police Department posted a video to Facebook, taking followers behind the scenes to explain the surveillance, its features, and when and why it is used.

“It allows for event management to shoot the video signal back to the command post where all the decision makers are,” Sgt. Jenna Pawlick said.

“If there’s anything going on in the area that they need to know about, they have the capability to see exactly what the folks on the ground are seeing,”

She added: “It’s to help better manage an event and keep people safe.”

Police say the tool is used only by the Threat Mitigation Unit and is intended to keep the public safe during large gatherings.

The camera does not have facial recognition, but it can be extended roughly 30 feet into the air giving a bird’s-eye view of an area.

The footage, if not used for an investigation, is automatically cleaned from the computer within 30 days.

Phoenix has used Strongwatch since 2012, and it has been used for every major event in the Valley, including the NCAA Final Four, the Super Bowl and public gatherings outside of the Capitol, according to a department representative.

Despite that, DiCiccio wants it gone.

“It’s just unacceptable to have the government monitoring our every movement,” DiCiccio told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Monday.

“It becomes an overreach of government.”

When asked what methods he would prefer to be utilized in order to keep the public safe during larger gatherings, DiCiccio said he wants policing to “Go back to the way it was.”

“We used to have police officers out there and we still do,” he said. “We don’t need a camera going out videotaping people protesting their government.”

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