LOS ANGELES – City leaders and law enforcement officials gathered Thursday to announce the launch of a program to install 100 license plate reading cameras in the San Fernando Valley. Authorities believe the cameras will help police track down criminals.
Officials said that some neighborhoods north of Rinaldi Street in Porter Ranch have some of the highest crime rates in the city, which is why several cameras have already been installed in the area.
“Last year, the Devonshire District reported that homes north of this very street experienced a 103% jump in home burglaries,” District 12 Councilman Jon Lee said at the event.
Dozens more automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, will be installed at major intersections throughout the northwest San Fernando Valley by the end of the year, including Porter Ranch, Chatsworth, Northridge, Granada Hills, West Hills and North Hills.
Councilman Lee allocated $500,000 for the project, and law enforcement officials said it could not come at a better time. The Los Angeles Police Department is understaffed, with an estimated 9,000 sworn officers, the lowest number of officers in more than two decades.