Police want to expand video camera 'virtual patrols'

[Kadie]

Police want to expand video camera 'virtual patrols'

The Associated Press
Last Updated: July 19, 2004, 11:30:25 AM PDT


LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Police Department wants to expand video camera "virtual patrols," citing a 45 percent drop in crime at MacArthur Park near downtown where cameras were installed as part of a pilot project.

"Basically, what you can do is virtual policing," Assistant Chief George Gascon said. "You can monitor a significant number of areas without having to have an officer at each scene."

The cameras are an essential crime-fighting tool in an era of dwindling budgets, he said.

With the MacArthur Park successes, the Police Department wants to expand video camera surveillance in crime hot spots in other areas of the city, including the San Fernando Valley. The cameras cost up to $10,000 each.

more... http://www.modbee.com/state_wire/story/8869453p-9758793c.html