The Sunflower Community Action group says it met recently with Mayor Carl Brewer in a renewed push for video cameras in Wichita police cars in the 2008 budget.
The council last year failed to approve the money for a pilot project that would have installed cameras in a limited number of squad cars, but the recent case of a woman who says she was brutalized during a traffic stop has provided another example of the kind of he-said, she-said situation in which a camera might have made a difference.
Sunflower might have hurt its effectiveness, though, by storming the city manager’s office Friday to demand answers on a parks issue. City spokesman Van Williams decried what he called a "publicity stunt" for TV cameras and told The Eagle editorial board that such ambush tactics make city leaders "less eager" to work with the group.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
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13 Comments
I think the last time the Sunflower group was caught on camera, it showed them trespassing on private property and harassing an innocent citizen.
Putting cameras on cars that are in high crime areas or patrol ‘remote’ locations is a good idea, until they can figure out how to appropriate more money.
There are cameras on most school buses. Perhaps they should look and see how that works and what equipment they buy.
Sunflower Community Action group is pretty much nuts, in my opinion, but that shouldn’t stop the city from installing cameras in the cop cars.
The cameras would protect good cops, and bust the bad ones. Win/win.
I like Republican’s idea of putting them in high-crime areas first, and then working towards the rest as more money is allotted.
Cameras can also be a revenue stream if used to photograph speeders, red light runners and enforce speed limits in construction zones …. can pay for themselves in a short time ….
… have been proven successful in several major cities …..
… speaking of construction zones — Illinois has one of the stiffest penalties for accidents involving road workers in a construction zone, an automatic prison sentence and a huge fine for the first offense …. they’ve started using radar cams to enforce construction zone speed limits — good size revenue stream !!!
Worth the investment !!!
Illinois Construction Zone Summary:
-first time work zone speeders, including those caught on camera, will be hit with a fine of $375, with $125 of that sum going to pay off-duty State Troopers to provide added enforcement in construction or maintenance zones. Two-time offenders are subject to a $1,000 fine, including a $250 surcharge to hire Troopers, and the loss of their license for 90 days.
“Hit a worker, $10,000 fine, 14 years in jail”.
http://www.dot.state.il.us/press/r033005.html
And, I will point out as a former resident of Illinois, a prison term is a prison term and you will serve not less than 50% of it in prison- and that is only if you behave perfectly in prison. They do not have parole in Illinois anymore.
If they use cameras to catch speeders, I’m doomed for sure.”I can’t drive 55″!
Once again, sunflower group demonstrates their lack of consideration for anyone but themselves. Storming into an office is crass, out of control and nothing but childish disruption.
They resort to low level immature tactics which get coverage..but don’t promote any of their causes.
Sunflower group needs to grow up and demonstrate a little maturity. Their trashing of a private residence as well as leaving their trash at the state capitol are proof of their inability to work in a reasonable and mature manner.
Doesnt it speak volumes that we want cameras in the cop cars to PROTECT US from the cops?
I don’t begrudge Sunflower’s desire to organize citizen action to better our community – they just need to learn the rules about marching/protesting on public property – that is, unless they knew they were planning to break the law, and were prepared to be arrested – in which case they should be prepared to take their medicine.
The fact is protesting at the mangers house worked
The fact is Tom Paine that terrorizing Jurors works too. It doesn’t make it legal.
What “speaks volumes” is that all these drunks, road ragers, meth abusers and crackheads will be called on their false claims against Police officers.
What about the times when it isn’t false?
The cameras work both ways.
Hint: Come up with $1.5 mil plus the maintenance funds for car cameras, and WPD will be happy to have them. But money is scarce and that’s not their top priority if they get some new funding. More personnel and modern equipment lead the list. Like radios made in THIS century.
Sunflower protesting at the city manager’s house only got them arrested. The city worked for years to clean up that property–Sunflower waited until the city finally got the legal authority from the courts to do it, then jumped in front of the parade to claim credit. Usual “activist” BS.