The Value of Video

Like it or not, no one can dispute that the use of cameras and interest in video content has exploded recently. While people flock to entertaining viral videos on the Internet, we have embraced it as a valuable tool to accomplish our public safety mission. Consider the role of video in three cases we highlighted recently.

• A Michigan man was arrested for targeting elderly women for distraction thefts. He was identified in a video image from Publix, where he stalked his victim before following her home.
• A suspect from Boynton, who stole close to $100,000 worth of jewelry from a mall store, was caught on camera as he was running from the scene, just prior to his arrest.
• Video from Victoria Secret captured two suspects from Miami who routinely traveled the east coast of the U.S., hitting various mall retail stores.

These crimes are typical Boca Raton cases. Suspects from other areas come into town, hit a local victim and then scurry back home. It's great to have private video from many of these events, but in the future, we intend to intelligently deploy a public video network throughout the City to complement existing private camera systems.

Video technology cannot stand alone. We are currently in the process of developing a project which would effectively fuse various technological resources (radios, text, GIS mapping, video, etc.) into an advanced public safety information management system. Criminals will continue to innovate. We will continue to make an effort to stay ahead.