Councilwoman Traci Park Calls for Plan to Implement Real-Time Crime Centers Following Surge in Los Angeles Property Crime

LOS ANGELES, CA – Responding to a troubling increase in property crime and retail theft, Councilwoman Traci Park, in a motion introduced on Wednesday, asked the Los Angeles Police to report on how it plans to implement Real Time Crime Centers at all of Los Angeles’ 21 police divisions.

Real-Time Crime Centers leverage advanced video technology, like Automated  License Plate Readers and CCTV, to help law enforcement to prevent and interrupt crimes as they occur. LAPD is currently piloting the program in Hollywood, Downtown Los Angeles and Van Nuys divisions.

“The Westside has been acutely impacted by property crime and retail theft, leaving residents and businesses devastated,” said Councilwoman Traci Park. “We have to be smart and embrace any technology that protects our community by preventing and deterring crime.”

Councilwoman Park introduced Wednesday’s motion following more than 50 car burglaries in just one weekend in Council District 11 and a spate of commercial robberies across the Westside.

Real time crime centers have proved particularly effective in other cities, big and small. In Beverly Hills, which launched its Real Time Watch Center in 2022, automated license plate readers helped authorities capture an individual suspected of murdering three unhoused individuals and a Los Angeles County government employee in December 2023.

Concurrent to today’s action, the Los Angeles City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Tuesday approved $15 million in state funding to secure ALPRs and create an integrated video technology platform that will help LAPD implement this program.