Newark Police Department to Combat Crime at No Taxpayer Expense

  • Dec 13, 2011

The Newark Police Department and SecureWatch 24, a leading security company in New York City with a network operations center located in Moonachie, N.J., are partnering in an unprecedented relationship to combat local crime by allowing the police access to SW24 customer video recordings. 

The agreement allows the Newark Police to access local SW24 customer video records upon request in order to aid criminal investigations. Local SW24 customers will agree in advance to allow such access. There are currently several dozen SW24 customers in the Newark area with more than 300 cameras in various locations—a valuable strategic resource to the police department's efforts to reduce crime. SW24 is already obtaining permissions from its customers as part of this effort.  SW24 maintains a video management network of over 22,000 cameras throughout New York City and New Jersey.

"As far as we know this agreement between a public law enforcement entity and a private security company is unprecedented in New Jersey—it shows how forward thinking the Newark Police Department is," said Desmond Smyth, SW24 president.  "Our local customers will agree to make their videos available to the police—thereby giving the police access to over 300 cameras without the need for taxpayers to pay a nickel.  Our network of cameras is a "force multiplier" for the 2,000 men and women of the Newark Police Department."

SW24 has a long history of assisting local New Jersey law enforcement to apprehend criminal suspects, Smyth said. Since last December, SW24 says it has helped in the prosecution of 11 suspected rapists, murders and other serious criminals. The Hudson County prosecutor and SW24 recently worked together several months ago to arrest a suspected rapist. 

SW24 said it worked closely with Peter Lutz, MIS/I.T. director at the Newark Police Department on the collaboration. Representatives of Mayor Cory Booker's office were also included in the discussions that resulted in a recently signed Memo of Understanding (MOU) between the police and the security company.  In the future, a video terminal may be installed by SW24 in the city's Rapid Transit Operations Center so trained personnel can do real-time video surveillance— but only with prior customer permission. The agreement comes at a time when a controversial ordinance requiring video cameras in certain types of Newark bars and restaurants recently took effect. The Newark Police department is fast becoming one of the most technologically advanced departments in the country and reliance on video surveillance should be a key aspect of future investigations, SW24 added. 

"Most of the senior management of SW24 is retired New York City Police officers, and David De Lucca, our representative in New Jersey who worked with the Director's people at the department to put this agreement together, is also a retired New Jersey police officer. So we understand the needs of the police in putting together solid evidence against a suspect. We're not Big Brother, but we are "One Cop to Another," said Smyth.

Featured

  • From Surveillance to Intelligence

    Years ago, it would have been significantly more expensive to run an analytic like that — requiring a custom-built solution with burdensome infrastructure demands — but modern edge devices have made it accessible to everyone. It also saves time, which is a critical factor if a missing child is involved. Video compression technology has played a critical role as well. Over the years, significant advancements have been made in video coding standards — including H.263, MPEG formats, and H.264—alongside compression optimization technologies developed by IP video manufacturers to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality. The open-source AV1 codec developed by the Alliance for Open Media—a consortium including Google, Netflix, Microsoft, Amazon and others — is already the preferred decoder for cloud-based applications, and is quickly becoming the standard for video compression of all types. Read Now

  • Cost: Reactive vs. Proactive Security

    Security breaches often happen despite the availability of tools to prevent them. To combat this problem, the industry is shifting from reactive correction to proactive protection. This article will examine why so many security leaders have realized they must “lead before the breach” – not after. Read Now

  • Achieving Clear Audio

    In today’s ever-changing world of security and risk management, effective communication via an intercom and door entry communication system is a critical communication tool to keep a facility’s staff, visitors and vendors safe. Read Now

  • Beyond Apps: Access Control for Today’s Residents

    The modern resident lives in an app-saturated world. From banking to grocery delivery, fitness tracking to ridesharing, nearly every service demands another download. But when it comes to accessing the place you live, most people do not want to clutter their phone with yet another app, especially if its only purpose is to open a door. Read Now

  • Survey: 48 Percent of Worshippers Feel Less Safe Attending In-Person Services

    Almost half (48%) of those who attend religious services say they feel less safe attending in-person due to rising acts of violence at places of worship. In fact, 39% report these safety concerns have led them to change how often they attend in-person services, according to new research from Verkada conducted online by The Harris Poll among 1,123 U.S. adults who attend a religious service or event at least once a month. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • AC Nio

    AC Nio

    Aiphone, a leading international manufacturer of intercom, access control, and emergency communication products, has introduced the AC Nio, its access control management software, an important addition to its new line of access control solutions.

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”