NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — At their Tuesday meeting, Metro Council passed a bill about the Metro Nashville Police Department's ability to access a community camera safety network.
The bill has been a source of debate and a hot-button topic during public comment periods at previous Metro Council meetings. At Tuesday's vote, 28 councilmembers voted in favor of the resolution while seven voted no. One councilmember abstained.
Previously, Metro Council narrowly voted down a measure that would have established a contract between the Metro Nashville Police Department and Fusus.
Several community members spoke about the bill during the public comment portion of Tuesday's meeting; every community member who spoke about the community safety camera network bill spoke in opposition of the bill. Some community members called the guardrails insufficient, with others citing concerns about oversight with respect to collected data.
"While it is true that our communities want safety policies, solutions and transparent reporting, it is imperative for any and all of the solutions to be directed by the community and for the community — the working class, Black, brown and immigrant community members who know the harms of mass surveillance and policing firsthand," government relations manager for Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition Votes, Luis Mata, said. "...Imagine a Nashville that relies less on surveillance and more on each other."
Hours into the meeting, Metro Councilmembers debated the bill, including Metro Councilmember Terrry Vo.
"I wish that we would really focus on our most vulnerable individuals who would be affected by this and think about what happens to them," Vo said.
Councilmember Bob Nash rose in support of the bill, arguing the donors within the community camera safety network would take photographs of suspects.
"These photographs aren't going to solve every crime, either, but they are a piece of the network that make us better at it," Nash said.
