Police in the Myrtle Beach area are adding to their arsenal to fight crime, spending millions of dollars to do it.
It’s called a Real Time Crime Center, a use of centralized technology, such as cameras and license plate readers, that aid officers in solving crimes and finding suspects.
Myrtle Beach has been using this latest weapon in crime fighting for nearly 10 years, adding cameras throughout the city that provide more than 1,600 views available to officers and analysts, with more planned.
It is one of 150 police agencies across the country that have added one, according to one report . Now, North Myrtle Beach will also add an RTCC with the goal of it being operational by the end of this year.
It is an expensive investment, costing cities millions of dollars to implement and maintain the technology.
Local departments say it’s worth it to help its officers and to keep residents safe, but experts have questioned the success of using cameras, especially when it comes to preventing violent crimes and privacy concerns.