“Everybody is seeing the value in these cameras and what it’s doing for law enforcement, criminal apprehension, criminal detection and prevention of crime occurring in the communities,” Herzog said. “We have our borders all secured pretty much, we have a couple holes we found we want to fill.”
The township has a two-year $189,200 contract with Flock Group, Inc. for 32 fixed license plate reading devices — $2,500 per camera — and two portable cameras that may be moved to hot crime spots. The crime stopping devices read rear license plates and alert police when a suspect vehicle enters or leaves the township.
Dispatch and patrol officers receive real-time alerts when wanted felons, stolen vehicles, amber alert license plates and other vehicles are in or exited the township. Herzog said the cameras have aided in a total of 65 crimes including arrests for two shootings, 15 thefts, 14 stolen vehicles, 11 wanted persons, eight hit skips and other crimes involving drugs, guns, missing persons, vandalism and catalytic converter heists.
Middletown has had the cameras since October — they culled grants for some of the cost — and Police Chief David Birk said they have made 36 apprehensions, “it’s a great system I wish we had it around 20 years ago.”
Herzog said without the cameras they couldn’t have solved some of these crimes, “absolutely not, that was the key piece that gave us the evidence to follow further up.”
Herzog said Fairfield, Fairfield Twp., Forest Park, Mason, Middletown, Sharonville and Springdale all have cameras “so it’s really saturating the area.” They can’t install the remaining five devises without Ohio Department of Transportation approval, so it’s been a little frustrating they don’t have coverage right at Interstate 75 yet. They started asking for approval after they contracted with Flock last August.
“We’re coming up on a year and the state, the bureaucracy — it’s a pole, put it up,” Herzog said.
ODOT Press Secretary Matt Bruning told the Journal-News the technology is “something fairly new” so the system to apply for a permit didn’t “go live” until April and there are 49 applications in the pipeline currently. Flock is the entity that officially submits the requests and the state received West Chester’s June 1.
He said it takes at least 30 days for the Department of Public Safety to vet the application, to ensure the entity applying is actually a law enforcement agency, and no other cameras are already installed in that location. He said the DPS approved the township’s application June 9. Now ODOT does its review, but he doesn’t have an exact date for approval.
“What we’re looking at is just is it safe infrastructure, is it outside the clear zone, is in a spot where people aren’t going to hit it, is it a hazard to motorists,” Bruning said. “That’s our role.”
Herzog said he hopes Liberty Twp. — which has a contract with the Butler County Sheriff’s Office for police protection — will soon install the cameras to fill in a hole in the net. Sheriff’s Capt. Rick Bucheit told the Journal-News they presented the idea to the township trustees before the new administrator came onboard, so they will be making another pitch soon, “to see how many and if they are interested in purchasing.”
“There’s no commitment they’re going to buy any at all, it is a relatively new concept locally, but it’s kind of taking off and there’s a lot of good stuff happening with the Flock camera system,” Bucheit said.
Trustee Tom Farrell told the Journal-News he’s always willing to consider new technology.
“I do support any technology that can help the sheriff’s department service our residents better,” Farrell said. “But I also have to be fiscally responsible, so we have to find that middle of the road that makes the most sense.”
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