Security cameras in La Cañada Flintridge help authorities target stolen vehicles

LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE, Calif. (KABC) -- Blink and you may miss it. New street-mounted security cameras are being deployed by law enforcement in La Cañada Flintridge, and authorities say it has already helped deputies track down wanted criminals.

The security cameras mounted on poles in the city read license plates targeting stolen vehicles moving through the area.

The latest technology in law enforcement comes from Flock Safety company. Sgt. William Fillpot says it's already helped the L.A. County Sheriff's Department arrest a murder suspect.

Deputies were alerted to a stolen vehicle with several people inside, and the murder suspect was identified from the group after an investigation, Fillpot said.

Deputies can monitor Flock cameras from their patrol cars, and if a stolen vehicle is targeted, the exact location of the vehicle is pinpointed.

Fillpot says he has been alerted to several stolen vehicles and the technology has been able to identify a burglary suspect and a kidnapping-robbery suspect.

The city mounted the security cameras last summer as part of a pilot program, and the city is keeping them due to their effectiveness.

So far, the city has mounted about 40 of the cameras, and it is considering adding more.

The city isn't saying how many more or when it is adding extra cameras, but officials say given it's making the city safer, they have to look into the possibility of putting more of them on the streets.

The Flock Safety cameras are not nearly as easy to spot as traffic cameras.

Assistant city manager Carl Alameda says the cameras aren't hidden, but if you drove by one you wouldn't notice it unless you were specifically looking for it.

Along with tracking license plates, the Flock Security cameras can also capture video.

Advocates for privacy have argued such cameras could be considered an invasion of privacy.

However, law enforcement using such cameras nationwide argue it is within their legal right to use them as an extension of actual police patrols on the streets, adding the cameras serve to keep the public safer and should be encouraged as a technology that aids in furthering law and order.