Sikeston sets up cameras near schools, housing authority properties

Standard Democrat

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Sikeston's new remote camera surveillance system is up and running.

"It's just another tool in our toolbox that helps make our community safer," said Drew Juden, director of the Department of Public Safety.

The city has 21 cameras, most of which can be panned 360 degrees and zoom in or out.

"We can get facial recognition to some degree, we can get license plates," Juden said. "It just depends on the proximity of what we are trying to watch to the camera."

Because funding for some of the cameras was provided through a school grant and by the Sikeston Housing Authority, cameras are placed in and around the schools and around Housing Authority properties. Juden said the schools and Housing Authority will have the ability to access the views for their own cameras while DPS dispatchers can access any of the cameras.

"It's almost like putting an officer in that particular area permanently," Juden said.

The images the cameras record are stored on a hard drive. Currently, the department can review images going back several weeks.

"We've already captured some crimes in progress on the camera," Juden said. "There's no better evidence than video evidence. It's hard to refute."