8 November 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — The City of Wichita City Council approved the acceptance of a grant Tuesday that will fund a Real-Time Crime Center at the Wichita Police Department.
The WPD says the Real-Time Crime Center will be a cutting-edge facility that will enable law enforcement officers to access real-time data and resources to respond to incidents more effectively, improve situational awareness, and enhance the city’s overall safety.
“That basically brings all of our technology capacity together in one location,” said the officer presenting the grants to the City Council.
Real-time data and resources that officers would have access to at the facility include:
CCTV
Live dispatched calls
License plate readers
Drone video coverage
Body camera footage and officer location
Live streamed social media platforms “to monitor any kind of threats that we might have”
Online security platforms and footage, such as Ring cameras
In addition to a variety of other online technology tools
The Real-Time Crime Center would work by employing varying technologies to gather information, which would then be analyzed and disseminated directly to officers in the field, or to detect it for case prosecution.
“For instance, a large disturbance may be coming out, we can use the cameras to see if, what the safest route for officers to come in at a certain direction,” said the officer. “We may have a crime that might occured on say, a crime area up and down Broadway Street. We have a lot of vulnerable populations, like the homeless population, they might not necessarily call 911. These are things we can respond to before dispatch has been notified.”
The WPD says they firmly believe that the community’s input and partnership are vital to the success of this initiative.
“We’re committed to involving you, the community, every step of the way. Your feedback, ideas, and concerns will be a cornerstone of our planning and implementation process,” said the WPD.
For more information, watch the City Council meeting here.