Latest news with #FlockSafety
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Temple credits new crime fighting tool in arrest of suspect wanted in several states
The Brief An arrest has been made in a multi-state investigation, as a 20-year-old man, wanted for several burglaries is caught. The arrest is thanks to new license plate reading technology and is proof the technology is going to be a game-changer in fighting crime. NORTH PHILADELPHIA - Temple University's security team is crediting a new crime-fighting tool with leading to an arrest of a suspect wanted in several states. How it works A small solar panel sits above a camera tethered to a pole at Temple University. It's one of nearly 1,500 security cameras eyeing the North Philly campus. Temple said these cameras, part of the Flock Safety system, have a long reach. Jennifer Griffin is the Temple University Chief of Police. She said, "If you flag a vehicle registration in the system, when it hits on the camera, the system sends multiple alerts to investigators, police dispatch and other people." Timeline Temple reports that's how its officers were able to collar 20-year-old Jahid Robinson on campus back in December. New Castle County, Delaware police had linked Robinson, of Delaware County, Pa., to a series of burglaries - where residents were home - in the Greenville section of Wilmington. Master Corporal Richard Chambers is with the New Castle County Police Department. He said, "He was going into people's occupied homes. He was going into houses taking property and car keys, going into driveways, ransacking cars, taking property." Wanted in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, New Castle police entered his plate into the Flock system and received a hit on a vehicle near the 1000 block of Diamond Street on campus. Temple police were alerted, and Robinson was arrested. Big picture view Temple called reporters to campus Friday to trumpet the arrest and highlight the success of this computer-powered security system whose cameras FOX 29 spotted in several locations. On hand, U.S. Representative Brendon Boyle is credited with winning Justice Department funding for Flock. Boyle said, "To come full circle and be here today to see the fruits of that labor actually lead to an arrest is incredibly exciting."
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Teen arrested after 'crime spree' in Cimarron Hills
(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.) — A 17-year-old has been arrested on multiple charges after a string of car thefts and break-ins in the Cimarron Hills area. According to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office (EPSO), deputies originally responded shortly before 5 a.m. on Saturday, May 24 after multiple 911 calls reported a group of suspects breaking in to cars in the 2300 block of Kein Place in Cimarron Hills. Callers also reported hearing gunshots, and one victim was allegedly threatened by the suspects during the attempted break-ins. When deputies arrived, they discovered an abandoned stolen car in the neighborhood. Through their investigation, deputies also identified 14 additional car break-ins and confirmed another vehicle had been stolen in the area. Surveillance footage showed that between four and six suspects were involved in the crime spree. The following day, around 12:12 a.m. on May 25, deputies were alerted by Flock Safety cameras that a stolen car was near the Citadel Mall, and the car was identified as the one stolen from Cimarron Hills the night before. EPSO said the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) and Colorado Springs Police Department assisted in locating the car at the Taco Star on Circle Drive. The stolen car had to be blocked in by law enforcement vehicles, and the driver and front-seat passenger both ran away on foot, leaving two passengers in the car. After a short foot chase, CSP troopers captured the driver, who allegedly had a gun on him at the time of his arrest. The 17-year-old driver was booked into the Zebulon Pike Youth Services Center on multiple charges, including motor vehicle theft, vehicular eluding, juvenile in possession of a firearm, and violation of a restraining order. The two teens left in the car were interviewed and subsequently released. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Forbes
7 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Shoppers Want To Feel Safer In Stores—And They Think Tech Can Help
Bailey Quintrell is the Chief Strategy Officer at Flock Safety, a technology platform keeping cities, businesses and neighborhoods safe. getty In my role, I have found that our business often acts as the intermediary between law enforcement/security, whose goals are entirely focused on the safety of their residents and customers, and business leaders, who also want to ensure a positive customer experience and drive revenue. While these goals can be achieved in concert, a new national survey shows how some methods of allaying shopper safety concerns are much more effective than others. A recent Flock Safety survey on consumer shopping behavior found that around one-third of respondents saw shoplifting and organized retail crime as a serious issue. This perception of danger has impacted shopping behavior and consumer experience while also signaling the need for better security technology to prevent crime. In fact, almost half of survey respondents are likely to support the use of technology to combat shoplifting and organized retail crime. And as organized retail crime rings become more sophisticated, retailers will increasingly need to rely on technology to keep up with shoplifters and other offenders. Technology isn't just helpful in gaining evidence; it can also serve as a crime prevention tool. For example, license plate reader (LPR) technology can be used to build a virtual security perimeter around a retail store by sending real-time alerts whenever a potential threat enters a premises. Such threats include those with active warrants or past offenders with a history of stealing and/or causing damage. And by using AI, networked technology—for example, a connected ecosystem of LPR and video cameras—can identify and surface trends across multiple stores or vehicles that have been spotted near several reported thefts. Consumers already understand the value of this tech—just over half of survey respondents say that LPR technology prevents organized retail crime and shoplifting, while helping customers feel safe when shopping. Rising retail crime has made many consumers feel unsafe to the point where they're starting to bypass in-person shopping altogether. When considering concerns about shoplifting and organized crime, the majority of survey respondents preferred online shopping over in-person shopping. This sentiment is especially strong among respondents who have directly witnessed organized crime, further highlighting the need for security technology that also serves to make people feel safe and thwart potential offenders. One method that may do more harm than good in the eyes of retail business leaders is locking up merchandise. While it may seem effective in stopping shoplifting, the reality is that locked merchandise can hamper a consumer's shopping experience by causing them to wait for long periods to access their merchandise. In fact, 50% of survey respondents waited more than five minutes to access the goods they wanted. Making customers wait for long periods can also cause them to buy less than what they previously planned to purchase, as survey results show that respondents who didn't buy everything they wanted were more likely to wait longer than those who successfully made all their purchases. On the other hand, most survey respondents believe that video cameras are effective at preventing retail crime—and even just the awareness of video camera use also increased the perception of their effectiveness. This is huge for retailers hoping to improve the shopping experience and make consumers feel more comfortable shopping in their stores. With this in mind, security technologies such as LPR technology and security cameras can be good investments for retailers looking to strengthen their security to dissuade retail crime and stop shoplifting—without hurting their shopping experience for retail customers. To maximize the effectiveness of LPR and video cameras, the placement of the technology is key. For LPR technology, installing devices at ingress and egress points—such as parking lot entrances or loading docks—offers the best opportunity to record the vehicle information linked to criminal activity. Businesses should be conscious of deploying technology aligned to their specific security challenges. For example, placing too many cameras without clear sight lines to security personnel, or installing LPRs in areas with low traffic, will limit the technology's effectiveness. Businesses should conduct a thorough risk assessment, alongside a technology expert, to determine a focused deployment plan. Finally, effective use of security technology isn't just about placement—it's also about integration and response. Businesses that integrate their cameras to a centralized system, ensure real-time alerting, and keep their technology up to date see far better outcomes. Proactive maintenance, combined with clear policies around responding to alerts and analyzing crime trend data, ensures technology serves as a true force multiplier for retail safety. As retail crime offenders become more sophisticated and advanced in their techniques and methods, retailers can use security technology to combat retail crime without negatively affecting their customers' shopping experience. Forbes Business Development Council is an invitation-only community for sales and biz dev executives. Do I qualify?
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Yahoo
Can ICE use RI's license plate cameras? Department policies don't allow it
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — There are at least 179 cameras in Rhode Island that take photos of every car that goes by. 'They're just taking a photo of the license plate and the vehicle,' Warwick Police Chief Colonel Bradford Connor explained. The city has had Flock Safety cameras installed for roughly two years. Since then, Connor said they've been used not only to catch criminals, but also to find missing people, like a young Warwick girl last year. 'We used Flock cameras to locate her down south,' he said. 'Fortunately, she was able to be brought back up here safely to her family.' RELATED: Warwick's police chief to retire in June A 12 News review found that 24 police departments in Rhode Island share license plate data with each other. Among the 10 departments with publicly available policies, all prohibit the data from being used for immigration enforcement. Connor said the only federal agency they share information with is the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and they only share their data with departments that agree to adhere to Warwick's policies. 'It specifically states that the information gleaned from the Flock system cannot be used for immigration enforcement,' he said. 'It also can't be shared with other agencies for that purpose.' But Steven Brown, executive director of the ACLU of Rhode Island, warns it can be difficult to control how information is used once it's shared with other police departments, especially those outside of Rhode Island. 'The problem is that the system is only as good as its weakest link,' he noted. Brown said he's concerned that information could eventually put immigrants' privacy at risk as ICE ramps up deportation efforts under the Trump administration. 'We're not just talking about undocumented immigrants. We're talking about people who are lawfully here, some of them have been whisked off the street,' Brown said. 'It's really a very different and dangerous situation that immigrants are finding themselves in these days.' Attorney: ICE files charges days after judge orders New Bedford man's release ICE did not respond to a request for comment. According to a Flock Safety spokesperson, the company said agencies using the cameras have 'complete discretion over what use cases they choose to use the license plate reader data for, and who they choose to share the data with.' The company added that the data is encrypted to prevent unauthorized access, and all information is 'by default hard deleted and irretrievable at 30 days.' But former Bristol County Sheriff Tom Hodgson, a staunch supporter of the Trump administration, argues the information should be shared with ICE. 'It's an outrageous idea and dereliction of duty that you wouldn't share every resource to protect the innocent people of your community from criminals,' Hodgson said. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Georgia man who killed wife and child sentenced for murder. Here's what the judge said
A Georgia man will soon be behind bars for causing the death of his family. Diamonte Haithcoats, 24, of Stone Mountain was convicted by jury trials on multiple charges for the deaths of his pregnant girlfriend, Shaniyah Rodriguez, 20, and their infant daughter, Milliani Rodriguez, according to a news release from the Dekalb County District Attorney's Office. On Feb. 2, 2023, a resident at a condo complex in Clarkston reportedly heard gunshots and went out to investigate. He found Shaniyah Rodriguez lying on the ground unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the head and called 911. The witness reported seeing a dark-colored SUV drive away from the area. Police reviewed Flock Safety cameras in the area that captured footage of what appeared to be a dark blue Hyundai Palisade leaving the complex. Days after the shooting, police found the Palisade and confirmed it had been stolen. Data from Rodriguez's phone showed it had paired through Bluetooth to a device labeled "Palisade" just minutes before the 911 call. Detectives turned the victim's phone on near the recovered SUV and it automatically connected. Data for Haithcoats' phone showed it left the complex immediately after Rodriguez's shooting. When interviewed by police, he reportedly tried to downplay the extent of his relationship with Rodriguez and would not admit to living with her nor being the father of her child. Investigators learned that, in the days before her death, Rodriguez confided in a friend that she and Haithcoats's relationship had started to deteriorate and that she feared for her safety while in a relationship with him. Paramedics rushed Rodriguez to Grady Memorial Hospital where doctors performed an emergency caesarian to deliver her baby. Shaniyah Rodriguez died two days after the shooting. Her daughter, Milliani Rodriguez, died four months later on June 19, 2023. Haithcoats was found guilty of malice murder, two counts of felony murder, aggravated assault – family violence, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Immediately following the guilty verdicts, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Yolanda Parker-Smith, who presided over the trial, sentenced Haithcoats to two life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus five years. Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for Gannett/USA Today. Find him on X and Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@ This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Stone Mountain, GA man convicted of shooting pregnant girlfriend
