400 Mount Vernon residents to get free cameras to help city deter, investigate crime
Doorbell cameras are increasingly playing a role in crime prevention and investigations, so Mount Vernon officials hope free surveillance cameras for residents will help the city's public safety efforts.
Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard and other officials on Tuesday, March 18, announced the Residential Camera Initiative, which will provide 400 free surveillance cameras to city residents who agree to provide footage to police when requested.
Applications are available immediately at www.cmvny.com/residentialcamera.
The mayor called the cameras an "extra layer of protection" that will make Mount Vernon "safer, stronger and more secure."
'These cameras will serve as both a deterrent and a vital tool in solving crimes, helping law enforcement respond more effectively while fostering a stronger partnership between the city and its residents," she said.
Mount Vernon is following the lead of other cities around the country that have distributed free cameras, including Columbus and Akron, in Ohio.
The initiative is the first part of a broader $1.5 million public safety camera program that will also create the AWARE room, a real-time crime response center, and provide Mount Vernon businesses with cameras that will be linked to the AWARE room.
The 400 residential cameras are expected to cost $61,000, which would be covered by federal American Rescue Plan funds. Residents who receive the cameras would be responsible to cover installation and maintenance costs and commit to keeping the cameras operational for at least two years.
Applicants do not have to be homeowners but renters must submit proof that their landlords approve the installation of the cameras.
The camera program is intended to reduce property crime, but also to help law enforcement in their investigations and prosecutions if the cameras capture crimes or activity related to crimes elsewhere.
"Witnesses are very good but we don't always witness something," Deputy Police Chief Gregory Addison said. Video runs 24/7 and will allow us to reconstruct what occurred based upon where the camera is located."
Patterson-Howard said the hope was that the prevalence of cameras would deter a wide range of criminal activity beyond home break-ins and the theft of packages from porches, including reckless driving, vandalism, car thefts and thefts from cars, illegal dumping, drug transactions and loitering.
Mount Vernon police will not have automatic access to the video footage. But residents who are selected to receive the cameras must agree to provide footage if police request it. They must also agree not to post footage on the internet or provide it to anyone but police for seven days. They would also
Mary Kingsley, of the Mount Vernon group Neighbors That Care, applauded the distribution of the cameras.
"Anything that increases police interaction with the community and prevents crime is a good thing," she said.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mount Vernon NY to give free cameras to residents to deter crime
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