City Prepares To Add More Cameras

City Of Camden Prepares To Bolster "Eye In The Sky" Camera System Additional Cameras Would Bring The Total Number Of Cameras To 221 Citywide

At the monthly council caucus last night, Mayor Dana L. Redd's administration introduced a resolution calling for the purchase of 90 new "Eye in the Sky" policing cameras. The resolution approved by City Council to be placed on the agenda for the regular monthly Council meeting scheduled for July 14, 2015

"The Eye in the Sky camera equipment has acted as a force multiplier, helping to leverage the increased number of officers already patrolling Camden's neighborhood and business corridors, " Mayor Redd said. "It's all about enhancing public safety efforts and improving the quality of life for our residents. Although we have made significant progress towards reducing crime in Camden, we still have much more ground to cover. This technology will certainly help us sustain that progress."

"If this technology can help reduce crime and keep our residents safe, I'm in full support," said City Council President Frank Moran. "Camden residents are feeling safer and children are playing freely in parks again. Technology plays a huge part in policing and these cameras are just another tool in combating crime."

"The Camden County Police Department has made extraordinary progress in Camden City thanks to their use of community policing and utilization of technology, " said Freeholder Director Louis Cappelli, Jr.  "the technology employed in the the City of Camden not only makes us more proactive and smarter, it has helped us reduce gun violence by almost 50 percent and homicides more than 50 percent since 2012."

"this is another example of leveraging technology to enhance our ability to better connect and protect our city," Camden County Police Chief John Scott Thomson said. "This initiative has been a priceless resource for our law enforcement agency in regard to reducing the number of victims of crime and making residents feel safer."

If approved at next week's Council meeting, the Resolution will authorize the expenditure of $2.3 million to acquire the new camera equipment by the City. The cameras will be used for public safety purposes and monitored by the Camden County Police Department. The expenditure will be fully funded via a Bond Eye in the Sky camera system to a total of 221 cameras citywide