Arnold Police will add three more cameras to the city’s Flock license plate-reading camera system.
City Council members voted unanimously on Oct. 19 to approve a five-year contract with Flock, a company based in Atlanta, Ga., to lease three more cameras. The city will pay a total of $45,450 for the lease agreement.
According to the agreement, the city will pay $9,000 each of those five years to lease the cameras, plus an initial $450 charge to install the three cameras, according to council documents.
Chief Brian Carroll said the city received a $20,000 grant from the Missouri Department of Public Safety to help pay for the lease, and Arnold will cover the remaining $25,450 over the five years.
Carroll said the new cameras are expected to be installed by December.
He would not say where the cameras would be installed in the city.
“The placement of the Flock cameras is done after careful consideration from our staff,” Carroll said. “We look at crime trends and patterns to determine the best possible location. We choose locations that will benefit both our residential areas and business districts.”
Carroll said the city already leases six Flock cameras, which were installed in December 2022, and pays $15,000 per year for them. He said the city has a two-year lease with Flock for those cameras.
In addition to the city’s Flock cameras, another 11 of the cameras owned by private entities, such as businesses and homeowner associations, are located around Arnold.
“The addition of Flock cameras has been a game changer for our Police Department,” Carroll said. “The real-time alerts allow our officers to stop certain vehicles prior to the occupants committing additional crimes. If a suspect is operating a stolen vehicle in our city, there is a good chance they are here to commit additional crimes.
“This added technology allows us to be more proactive in our enforcement efforts. Flock also assists our detectives and officers with investigations. We have been able to solve numerous crimes solely on the evidence obtained from Flock.”
The cameras are designed to read the license plates of passing vehicles and alert law enforcement agencies if there is a warrant attached to the vehicle’s registered owner or if the plate is attached to a vehicle that has been reported stolen.
Other grants
Arnold also received two grants the Police Department will use to buy Mobile Data Terminals (MDT) for up to nine police vehicles.
The city received a $24,150 Department of Public Safety grant and a $7,340 Local Law Enforcement block grant, Carroll said.
He said the $31,490 should be plenty to cover the cost of nine MDTs, which typically cost about $3,450 each.
“The MDT allows our officers to have access to real-time information,” Carroll said. “Everything officers need is right there at their fingertips. They are able to access various criminal justice databases, which aids in their investigations in the field. This also helps increase officer safety by obtaining information on suspects prior to contact in the field.
“MDTs are essential in keeping our officers on the street. Instead of responding to the station to write a report, they are able to complete their reports in the field which increases our response time to calls for service.”