SURREY – The city of Surrey said it is exploring various crime fighting tools, including gunshot detection technology and the creation of a closed circuit television (CCTV) network.
Since the beginning of this year, there have been 32 shootings in the city. Surrey RCMP revealed the majority of these recent shootings are being caused by new players in the drug war.
Terry Waterhouse, Surrey’s director of public strategies, said Thursday the city is developing a CCTV registry. It would require private citizens and homeowners, who already have the cameras installed on their property, to voluntarily submit their information to the city. In the event of a crime in their area, people would be contacted for access to the camera’s footage.
He added a feasibility study is ongoing, looking at how the system works in other jurisdictions.
“We’re just at the point now…where we believe we’ll be able to implement it.”
Another tool being explored is technology that detects the sound of gunshots, quickly alerting police to the area where the shooting is believed to have happened. In a number of American cities, a similar system, called ShotSpotter, is being used as a crime-fighting tool.
- Man arrested after attempting to shoot pastor during livestream sermon
- Stormy Daniels testimony at Trump hush money trial sparks call for mistrial
- Strangulation often signals domestic violence will turn deadly. Montreal police stepping up enforcement
- Australian woman accused of poison mushroom murders pleads not guilty
When it was first installed in the Bronx in March 2015, Surrey RCMP reportedly expressed interest, telling the New York Daily News it would wait to see how effective this crime-fighting tool is.
Waterhouse told Global News on Thursday, “It’s not something that has moved along as far as the other one. It’s also very complex, but were looking at a whole host of technologies.”
Experts said this kind of technology might work, but there are other, more effective options.
“The best policing method is to target the individuals, follow them, observe their activities and wait until they’ve amassed sufficient evidence,” said SFU criminology professor Robert Gordon.
“That’s likely the best way of proceeding rather than trying technologies that may not be at all helpful.”
There’s no word yet on how long it will take before the CCTV registry or any other new system could be in place.
Comments