Streator Mayor Tara Bedei spent time at the police station Monday afternoon reviewing the capability of the city’s surveillance cameras.
After the city’s fourth shooting since April, and the second since May 10 on the downtown block that includes North Bloomington and West Hickory streets, questions have been raised about the what the city can do to deter future violence.
The city has a number of surveillance cameras in City Park and downtown, Bedei said. She also said some of the cameras have had maintenance issues, in which the city has had to call in a company to work on them, including some in the last few weeks.
The city didn’t divulge specifically where the cameras are placed, but Bedei said police have moved some of them around strategically to different locations in an effort to either deter crime or capture footage of areas where crime is most likely to occur.
Bedei said improving the city’s surveillance system is just one item on her list of ideas she plans to share at Wednesday’s City Council meeting to help deter future violence during the council’s comments portion of the meeting.
Streator Police Chief John Franklin said the city is interested in acquiring license plate reading cameras. Neighboring communities, including Ottawa, have purchased these cameras and placed them at the high-traffic, entry points into the city. The cameras are utilized to detect wanted vehicles moving in and out of the city based on reading the vehicle’s license plate number.
“That would be a big help to us to get those,” Bedei said, noting she’s had conversations with the police chief prior to the shootings about acquiring them.
Franklin said surveillance has been a useful tool in helping police make arrests and develop suspects. Franklin said surveillance utilized during the officer shooting in January at the former Sherman School helped police with that investigation.
After Sunday morning’s shooting, police acquired video that showed people fleeing into a home, in which police obtained a search warrant. There have been no arrests made in Sunday’s shooting. Two arrests were made following a May 10 fatal shooting.
The city’s surveillance was a topic of discussion at the June 13 Committee of the Whole meeting, specifically in regard to vandalism reports in the City Park. During the meeting, Deputy Chief Robert Wood said cameras in the park have led to previous citations and arrests, but it comes down to where the cameras are positioned and what they capture. Some of the cameras in City Park are able to rotate in place.
“Having state-of-the-art technology is key,” Franklin said. “It’s a necessary tool for police today.”
The City Council meets at 7 p.m. Wednesday at City Hall, 204 S. Bloomington St.
