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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To not understand why CCTV doesn't put people off doing wrong?

36 replies

girlfriend44 · 07/04/2023 15:06

We all know there are cameras everywhere today filming us and that CCTV is used in court etc.
Why are so many people still doing wrong when they know a clear image of them will be caught and given to the police.

Are people thick?
Even if I wanted to commit a crime I wouldn't I know that I'd be filmed. You have got to expect it today. Your even tracked in your car on camera what journeys you take etc.

Wayne Couzens who murdered Sarah Everard was caught by cameras.
Everything he did, hiring the car, his movements, her getting into the car was tracked?
He must have known?
How did he hope,and others too get away with it?

God why would you choose a life in prison, instead of getting some therapy and help?

.

OP posts:
YukoandHiro · 07/04/2023 15:09

People are extremely thick, extremely desperate (poverty, stuck in life of crime) or psychopaths motivated by urges most of us can't possibly understand (Wayne couzens)

dottypotter · 07/04/2023 15:21

I would prefer to go and ask for help rather than give in to urges to kill someone and ruin their lives, their families lives and my own.

None of it ever seems worth it.

L3ThirtySeven · 07/04/2023 15:23

They don’t want to get away with it. They want to rape/torture/murder so much that they literally do not care about being caught.

SecretVictoria · 07/04/2023 15:25

The pictures aren’t always great. I remember a murder case from a couple of years ago; caught the suspect on CCTV but couldn’t determine anything from it (apart from a rough height).

Loads of people on my estate have Ring doorbells and CCTV. Still get their cars broken into, the offenders just cover their faces with hoods/scarves. One person who’d got their car broke into was quite annoyed at the cheek of them doing that 🤣.

Another house burglary up the road from here, had internal and external cameras. Burglars wore gloves and masks, we’re in the house for ages and carrying a large knife around. All they could determine from the CCTV was that they were men and had Liverpool accents.

Chowtime · 07/04/2023 15:27

L3ThirtySeven · 07/04/2023 15:23

They don’t want to get away with it. They want to rape/torture/murder so much that they literally do not care about being caught.

This. In the case of Wayne Couzens. They just HAVE to do it - regardless of the consequences.

for other people and less heiness crimes I think they just don't think about the cameras as it's more of an opportunist or spur of the moment crime.

I've noticed a lot more people pleading guilty though now, with the evidence staring them right in the face.

matis · 07/04/2023 15:30

Cctv cameras are often offline or not sending images.

OhMyCherriePie · 07/04/2023 15:32

I don’t think they care tbh not the same but there are often videos posted on my local fb from people’s ring door bells catching people stealing/ damaging property etc clearly they must see the door bell filming them but they don’t care

MargaretThursday · 07/04/2023 15:51

Are people thick?

Well, we had a minor crime at work. The sort where the police go "yep have a crime number, not much we can do."

It took place nearish a CCTV camera. Clearly labelled, very visible camera. Now if they'd just done the crime with their hoods up, all we could really have said was rough height, dark clothes, three people. The CCTV couldn't show better than that at that distance.
But clearly the CCTV camera rattled them a little. So they thought they'd put it out of action by spraying it with something. This meant they had to come up within a couple of yards of the camera to do it. Not only that, but they actually did it twice as they realised the spray ran straight off it. So we had a beautiful close up on their faces.

When the police chap viewing had finished laughing, he said he recognised them and would be going right round for a chat, and telling them if they were caught for anything else it would go on their list.

Apparently it also would make the crime worse as by bringing along the spray to "disable" the camera it became a planned crime, not an impulsive action.

So all in all, a very stupid thing to do.

JKTrolling · 07/04/2023 15:58

Because most criminals are not rational humans. If you’re happy enough to live your life knowing you killed someone I doubt you’re going to give a shit about bing on camera!

YukoandHiro · 07/04/2023 16:27

@dottypotter yes, because you are not a psychopath/sociopath. It's impossible to understand. But it's a medically diagnosable condition.

Coffeetree · 07/04/2023 16:39

I think people are getting the message that the cameras are mostly for show.

DojaPhat · 07/04/2023 16:57

Because it doesn't make a difference. If you're speeding or wrongly parked you'll get a picture of your car in 4k quality. If you're the subject of a mugging in a central/main train station you'll be lucky to get even the most grainy image of anything and that will be after months of hassle.

Blossomandbee · 07/04/2023 17:30

Criminals like Wayne Couzens often start off, like he did, with smaller crimes that go unpunished. This gives them the idea that they're untouchable and clever enough to get away with it and so move onto worse crimes. Plus he was also in a position of power with his job which clearly went to his head. People who commit crimes like his also don't think like normal human beings.
As for cctv and the like, the images my local police puts out on appeals for witnesses is usually such poor quality that the person is unrecognisable.
Our door camera caught very clearly the scumbags that stole our neighbours car and the police weren't remotely interested.

Original poster
girlfriend44 · 07/04/2023 17:39

Blossomandbee · 07/04/2023 17:30

Criminals like Wayne Couzens often start off, like he did, with smaller crimes that go unpunished. This gives them the idea that they're untouchable and clever enough to get away with it and so move onto worse crimes. Plus he was also in a position of power with his job which clearly went to his head. People who commit crimes like his also don't think like normal human beings.
As for cctv and the like, the images my local police puts out on appeals for witnesses is usually such poor quality that the person is unrecognisable.
Our door camera caught very clearly the scumbags that stole our neighbours car and the police weren't remotely interested.

Being a policeman though he would know about CCTV so I'm not sure about the he didn't think he would get caught mantra.
They even got the reg of the hire car he hired on film.

Probably more like as people have said. His urge was too strong and he didn't care.

OP posts:
Apocalypticdays · 07/04/2023 17:43

Well the boy racers on dirt bikes causing havoc in my neighbourhood wear balaclavas and the police (if there were any) aren't allowed to chase them so basically they can do whatever the fuck they like with no consequences, other than possible death of course, or more likely causing a death.

Sparklesocks · 07/04/2023 17:49

Some people wear hoods/masks etc so they’re not easily identifiable even if caught on camera. When my neighbour got broken into to they caught the guys on the ring camera but both had balaclavas on so didn’t really give them any clues on their identity. They wore gloves too so no fingerprints.

Sometimes I think people are arrogant - they might have gotten away with smaller crimes previously so believe they’re untouchable, or like others have suggested they take the risk even if they know the full weight of it because the thrill/result is worth taking that chance.

And CCTV isn’t always reliable - images can be grainy, there might not be audio or it’s not clear even if there is, camera can be facing the wrong way, no current tape or live feed connected etc. Some people even use decoy cameras. The criminals might know all this and think it’s worth a try in case it all aligns in their favour.

Also it depends on the crime, unfortunately. The police don’t always have the resources to investigate especially if it’s considered ‘minor’ in the big scheme of things so CCTV might be overlooked. Sarah Everard’s case received widespread media attention and concern from the public. Lots of people go missing who don’t get anywhere near the same level of attention or interest, which the perpetrators might be counting on.

Crimeismymiddlename · 07/04/2023 17:59

They cover faces and know that even if it is clear it is them that committed the crime no one will do anything to them.
People also forget how many cameras are about, it’s not clear now what is, and what is not a cctv.

dottypotter · 07/04/2023 17:59

Sparklesocks · 07/04/2023 17:49

Some people wear hoods/masks etc so they’re not easily identifiable even if caught on camera. When my neighbour got broken into to they caught the guys on the ring camera but both had balaclavas on so didn’t really give them any clues on their identity. They wore gloves too so no fingerprints.

Sometimes I think people are arrogant - they might have gotten away with smaller crimes previously so believe they’re untouchable, or like others have suggested they take the risk even if they know the full weight of it because the thrill/result is worth taking that chance.

And CCTV isn’t always reliable - images can be grainy, there might not be audio or it’s not clear even if there is, camera can be facing the wrong way, no current tape or live feed connected etc. Some people even use decoy cameras. The criminals might know all this and think it’s worth a try in case it all aligns in their favour.

Also it depends on the crime, unfortunately. The police don’t always have the resources to investigate especially if it’s considered ‘minor’ in the big scheme of things so CCTV might be overlooked. Sarah Everard’s case received widespread media attention and concern from the public. Lots of people go missing who don’t get anywhere near the same level of attention or interest, which the perpetrators might be counting on.

You would think today the cctv would be excellent and also with audio sound.

Nevertheless it does help in solving crimes and people do get caught. Some images of people in our local paper recently have been very clear. It is in the daytime though admittedly.

Mendholeai · 07/04/2023 18:06

Cctv is good for cars not so much for human. Grainy black and white pictures often aren’t helpful.
much more helpful are phone records.

It’s like the Wild West out there at the moment, burglaries not investigated, rapes not prosecuted etc. I am guessing that is probably why. People gambling with their futures for short term gain.

Neededanewuserhandle · 07/04/2023 18:11

The illegal street racers recreating The Fast and the Furious around here don't give a fuck and the perpetrators know that.

Neededanewuserhandle · 07/04/2023 18:12

Sorry that should read Police don't give a fuck. (They genuinely don't)

SnowOnTheBeach1 · 07/04/2023 18:22

Most of the time you can't pick out anything further than the colour of their jacket, most CCTV is so grainy and low quality that its not really worth anything.

1offnamechange · 07/04/2023 18:26

having watched a lot of cctv for my job

a lot of the time it's not pointing in the direction, cameras don't work, don't cover a key area, footage has been deleted before can be stored, or is of very poor quality.

Also cctv alone doesn't magically come with a ID tag - unless someone watches it who happens to know the person doing the crime then its not of much use to identify someone. So it's helpful if you have a suspicion of who did the crime, but not if you hope to identify the person solely from the cctv.

I believe Wayne Couzens was caught due to the car number plate being traced to him, and then was identifiable as the person on the cctv, rather than being recognised BY the CCTV.

Imridiculous · 07/04/2023 18:32

clearly the CCTV camera rattled them a little. So they thought they'd put it out of action by spraying it with something. This meant they had to come up within a couple of yards of the camera to do it

We had an incident where the person came right up to the camera to rip it off. A full close up of their face was visible. Why they thought the image of them doing this would be destroyed with the camera is beyond me.

category12 · 07/04/2023 18:38

girlfriend44 · 07/04/2023 17:39

Being a policeman though he would know about CCTV so I'm not sure about the he didn't think he would get caught mantra.
They even got the reg of the hire car he hired on film.

Probably more like as people have said. His urge was too strong and he didn't care.

Show quote history

He'd also got away with tons of dodgy to criminal behaviour before, like the indecent exposure and his reputation as "the rapist".

I think it's likely he thought he was untouchable/invincible and would get away with whatever he did.