Toledo Police prepare to revamp camera system city-wide

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - The Toledo Police Department is preparing to revamp its camera program. Its technology is more than a decade old and badly in need of repair.

Those repairs and additional cameras could be on the way soon. You might know this camera program as the “skycop.” It’s in bad shape. You might recall in February of last year the I-Team told you that more than half of the cameras were not operating as they should. A big fix is on the way.

You’ve probably seen Toledo’s eye in the sky, especially when it’s connected to one of those blue flashing lights. The whole program is expected to get an over one million dollar upgrade bringing the number of cameras to 60.

“Especially with how far technology has come since 10 years ago. We can really use these technologies to serve the public better,” said Lt. Paul Davis of the Toledo Police Department.

Those 60 fixed cameras will be placed citywide. You might notice them, you might not. Camera placement is based on crime data.

“It’s going to be in our hot spot areas that are based on crime data, downtown and some of our major intersections,” said Lt. Davis.

The data will be monitored live in the department’s Real Time Crime Center. That’s monitored Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. It’s then monitored on the midnight shift schedule by an officer for four days on duty with two days off. Helping to locate license plates, help investigators put a case together, or maybe even head off a major problem.

“They can zoom in on things. If they happen to notice a crowd is gathering or some altercation happening they can real-time zoom in they can let dispatch know or the crews in the street know,” said Lt. Davis.

Toledo city council needs to sign off on that money. That may happen as early as next week. Those dollars will be coming from the recovery money that the federal government sent the city.

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