A good turn-out of Street Captains |
On Saturday, March 4th at Church of Our Saviour, VaHi safety captains
and other interested residents gathered for the annual Safety Captains’
meeting. In attendance were experts from the Atlanta Police Department (APD) to
explain how they are using cameras to fight crime. There was also a discussion led
by the VHCA Safety Committee about what residents and businesses can do within
our neighborhood to reduce crime.
Street Cameras
VHCA Vice President Kay Stephenson introduced the topic of
street cameras by noting that we have taken a big step in technology in the last
year. There are now 9 street cameras installed, including 3 purchased by VHCA
with financial support from Alex Wan. These cameras are the ones that show the
blue lights, and they run all the time.
The blue lights are a great deterrent, and the crooks try to avoid areas
where they are. There is also a plan to
have cameras and lighting all up and
down the Beltline.
Business and resident cameras
In addition to using the
police street cameras, the police Video Integration Center (VIC) can take
advantage of business cameras if
they are integrated into the system. (This has already happened at Lenox Mall.)
Therefore:
·
VHCA wants to do
a survey of all businesses in the
neighborhood to see who has cameras, and what type, to see if they are compatible
with the VIC. If not compatible with the
VIC, they would be eligible for our registry (see below).
·
We will also
reach out to residents to see if
they are willing to identify theirs—those would not be integrated because of privacy
and because home cameras have lower quality than police cameras. But they could
be a useful resource, and in some cases already have been.
·
Accordingly, VHCA
has started a registry (both
residential and business) of who already has cameras in the neighborhood. This
is a voluntary program: You are not obligated to turn video to police. But they may contact you using the registry if
there is an incident near your location.
Anyone interested in helping
with this project, or who has a camera, can get in touch with Kay or Eleanor or
email us at safety@vahi.org.
Street cameras and Tag Readers
Marlon Trone talks about Video Integration Center |
Next, Marlon Trone, of the Atlanta Police Foundation, explained how the
Foundation supports police. It’s a private-public relationship, like the
Piedmont Park Conservancy and City of Atlanta owned Piedmont Park. The Police
Foundation runs the Crime Stoppers Program and the Video Integration Center
(VIC), among other initiatives. One of
its initiatives is to evaluate police cameras before they are purchased, and
help determine how they are used.
The VIC has computer monitors
that pull up streaming video from street cameras. The purpose is to support
first responders and investigations. When there is a 911 call, the 4 closest street cameras are instantly activated.
2 can be rewound 5 minutes to help begin an investigation. The real-time ones
show what is happening right now—for example, a victim on the ground.
Also, tag readers are being
installed—there are about 200 right now. They ping if a suspect car passes
them, so police can head over there. These have been very successful.
There has been a 40%
reduction in crime where cameras and tag readers are installed. They are also a
deterrent, which is why they have blue lights and signs. Tag readers snap
pictures, transform them to data, and check to see if this owner is wanted.
Body Cameras
Officer Mercado and Sgt. Reyes discuss Body Cameras |
Next, Officer Joseph Mercado of the APD led a discussion and demo of police body cameras. Cameras have now
been rolled out in Zone 6. Body cams provide transparency and serve as a
behavior modifier for both ends. Police are able to see how they interact with
the public and learn how they could have interacted differently. Also when a
person realize they’re being recorded, it tends to improve the tone of that
person when talking to the police.
Zone 6 has had their cameras since
the beginning of January. By summer, all officers that answer 911 calls will
have body cameras. Officers wear them their entire shift and if they are working
off duty (like FBAC) they wear them then as well.
How the body cam video is used. If there is an incident, officers can later enter
information into the recording about the incident, which goes into a database
that can be part of a wider query later. The hope is to get better prosecution.
Video can show the judge that the person has done something multiple times. The
judge can see the actual video, not just a report, and this has more impact. By
state law all videos are kept for 6 months, indefinitely if a crime has been
committed. Footage cannot be deleted by the officer. Only an administrator can
delete. The recordings are also encrypted—they only work on supervisors’ docks.
So no one can download to their computer. There is an automatic audit trail of
who viewed a video and that audit trail can't be deleted.
A body cam records exactly
what the officer sees, so his perspective is what can be demonstrated. If the
officer is looking into headlight glare, then that’s what the camera sees, too.
There are no filters, by design. It’s a critical part of fairness to show
exactly what the officer was seeing. Officers have guidelines on when to turn
the body cam on. In addition, the Police
Foundation is currently working with the manufacturer to possibly create a
trigger—for example, turning on blue light could automatically start the
camera. When an officer activates a body cam, it automatically includes the
prior 30 seconds in the recording.
Body cams cost $399 each.
Docking them after a shift automatically downloads and charges the battery.
Safety Committee initiatives for
safety captains to pass on
Next, VHCA Safety Chair Eleanor Barrineau led a discussion on
Safety Committee Initiatives that safety captains can pass on to their streets:
1. Lighting. We want to be sure that bikers, pedestrians and people getting in and out of cars are safe. So we are looking to improve lighting in dark areas. On your own street, encourage people to keep porch lights on, and to have driveway lights. We recommend dusk-to-dawn light bulbs (Home Depot has them—they look like regular light bulbs and screw into a regular light fixture, but they automatically come on at dusk and off at dawn).
1. Lighting. We want to be sure that bikers, pedestrians and people getting in and out of cars are safe. So we are looking to improve lighting in dark areas. On your own street, encourage people to keep porch lights on, and to have driveway lights. We recommend dusk-to-dawn light bulbs (Home Depot has them—they look like regular light bulbs and screw into a regular light fixture, but they automatically come on at dusk and off at dawn).
We want people to feel safe
walking from the Beltline to our business district and walking around the
neighborhood. If you see a dark spot that needs attention, talk to the
homeowner or let us know via safety@vahi.org. Walk your street and report street lights out (GA
power for wooden poles, City for metal poles).
2. Graffiti. If you see any, send to graffiti@vahi.org. Include a picture if possible. Dept of Corrections crews work on those under the supervision of an APD officer. These crews can remove debris as well, such as sometimes appears on Maiden Lane.
3. Event impact. Elmwood captain Jo Ann Zyla said that we want to let neighbors know when events are coming up that affect traffic and parking. Accordingly, the vahi.org calendar at the bottom right of the home page has been expanded to include many different events that could affect traffic and parking. You might even want to participate, knowing an event is going on. NPU-F is assisting our effort by sending security contact information for the largest events, and also sending event organizers information about preferred special parking arrangements on nearby streets.
2. Graffiti. If you see any, send to graffiti@vahi.org. Include a picture if possible. Dept of Corrections crews work on those under the supervision of an APD officer. These crews can remove debris as well, such as sometimes appears on Maiden Lane.
3. Event impact. Elmwood captain Jo Ann Zyla said that we want to let neighbors know when events are coming up that affect traffic and parking. Accordingly, the vahi.org calendar at the bottom right of the home page has been expanded to include many different events that could affect traffic and parking. You might even want to participate, knowing an event is going on. NPU-F is assisting our effort by sending security contact information for the largest events, and also sending event organizers information about preferred special parking arrangements on nearby streets.
Officer Evans, Beat 601 |
4. Homeowner cameras. Email safety@vahi.org to let them know
you have a camera. The Safety Committee can then include these on a registry
that police can use. So Street Captains, please let your neighbors know about
that.
5. Directed Patrol. Can call Zone 6 (404-371-5002) to request a Directed Patrol if you have an ongoing issue, such as excessively heavy trucks cutting through from Monroe to the old Kroger using Park Drive. (Kay and Eleanor would appreciate knowing also if you have reported a major ongoing issue.)
5. Directed Patrol. Can call Zone 6 (404-371-5002) to request a Directed Patrol if you have an ongoing issue, such as excessively heavy trucks cutting through from Monroe to the old Kroger using Park Drive. (Kay and Eleanor would appreciate knowing also if you have reported a major ongoing issue.)
6. When to call 911 and when to call 311. For any crime, call 911. 311
is very effective for things about which you don’t need immediate police
action, such as potholes, leaks in street, street services. You can get a
ticket number and their follow-up seems to be good.
Finally, our thanks to the police/police
foundation representatives who helped make the meeting a success: Michael
Faughnan, Sgt. Julio Reyes, Marlon Trone, Officer Joseph Mercado and Officer
Evans.
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