The Palo Alto Police Department has launched a new Neighborhood Security Camera Program, which allows Palo Alto residents and businesses to voluntarily notify the police of the presence of privately-owned security cameras on their property.
Registration is quick, easy, and free, and can be done by completing an online form at www.cityofpaloalto.org/PAPDNeighborhoodCameras.
“This new program will allow our personnel to quickly and efficiently contact camera owners in the aftermath of a crime,” said Chief Andrew Binder of the Palo Alto Police Department. “Security camera footage from your cameras may provide the clues we need to solve the crime and make an arrest.”
When a crime has been committed, the Neighborhood Security Camera Program gives officers an easy way to determine if there may be nearby security cameras that could have captured evidence of criminal activity. Officers would then contact camera owners to ask if the cameras recorded anything that could be useful in the investigation.
After speaking with the officer and learning the relevant time period for the crime, the camera owner can elect to review the footage themselves and submit any relevant parts to the police, submit all of their footage during the appropriate time period to the police without reviewing it, or simply disregard the request altogether. It is up to the camera owner how much, if at all, they would like to help. Choosing to sign up with this program does not allow officers to remotely access any privately-owned security cameras. Police will still continue our longstanding practice of knocking on doors of neighbors adjacent to an area where a crime was committed to see if they heard or saw anything suspicious.
For more information about the Neighborhood Security Camera Program, including a list of frequently asked questions, visit www.cityofpaloalto.org/PAPDNeighborhoodCameras. There is also an online form to ask any additional questions about the program.
