(Source: streetsblog.org)
Had the LAPD worked to keep these cameras functioning, it may have arrested several perpetrators by now
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) recently admitted that many of downtown LA's surveillance cameras don't work because it doesn't know how to work or maintain them correctly.
The surveillance cameras, which were put in place in order to assist the LAPD in solving crimes, were purchased by local business groups and installed over the last few years. The LAPD was then supposed to monitor the cameras and the activity captured.
However, the LAPD recently confessed that about three dozen downtown cameras were not maintained correctly, thus do not work. The police department was not trained on how to maintain the cameras, and it had a difficult time finding a vendor to take care of the cameras for the department.
Police officers who did try to monitor and maintain the cameras sometimes ended up breaking the devices because the system, which was placed in a closet-sized room, overheated.
As a result, many of the surveillance cameras have sat quietly, unable to capture any necessary footage. Some are even covered in bird droppings. Citizens and local business groups that have donated the cameras have expressed their disappointment in the LAPD.
"It is heartbreaking to see a network of cameras gifted to the LAPD sitting idle while perpetrators of violence get away with murder on our most dangerous streets," said Estela Lopez, executive director of the Central City East Assn., which gave 10 cameras to the LAPD in 2006 for $200,000. "Just when the demand on the missions and shelters is going up, we need to use every tool we can to keep violence from ripping this community apart."
The LAPD has recognized and admitted to its lack of maintenance of some of the 300 surveillance cameras placed around the city.
"We need to embrace technology, but it's important that when the department promises something to the public that they follow through," said Alan Skobin, Police Commissioner. "The department has fallen short in meeting expectations in maintenance and repair provisions."
While the LAPD has fixed some of the cameras, such as those in MacArthur Park, it recognizes that it should have taken better care of these devices over the years to aid in crime solving. For instance, a series of stabbings, such as one that killed a 53-year-old man, occurred in skid row where cameras had been placed. But the cameras have been inoperable, and the LAPD said it didn't have money to fix all of the cameras. No arrests have been made in regards to any of the stabbings.
Source: The Los Angeles Times
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