The police department in Richmond, Calif., a city near San Francisco and Oakland, is urging local leaders to deploy surveillance cameras in high crime areas.
The Oakland Tribune reports that after a recent presentation by Richmond Police Chief Chris Magnus, the city council has put out a call for surveillance companies to submit bids for wiring crime hot spots and areas where illegal dumping frequently occurs.
“We know crime is repeatedly committed in various areas around Richmond,” Magnus told the newspaper. “If we had cameras in those areas, we could have collected information that may have led to arrests and convictions. It’s another set of eyes.”
The cost of the surveillance program will not be known until the council decides on the type of CCTV equipment and the police department works out camera-monitoring policies, Magnus says. The intent is to deploy cameras in areas known for homicides and drug dealing. They also would monitor some public parks and isolated streets near a county landfill and in south Richmond where illegal dumping commonly occurs.
City staff is expected to put out a request for proposals within 30 days and prepare a report for the City Council in about 90 days, the newspaper reports.
