LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – The Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office is giving News 10 a peak behind the curtain of the real time crime center that is changing law enforcement.
LPSO spent six years developing a system that allows them to monitor cameras throughout Acadiana in real time. In the center, deputies are able to monitor the cameras during peak times of the day and assist deputies in the field when calls come in of various crimes.
Having access to the entire Acadiana region makes it easier to locate vehicles, suspects on the run and even monitor schools. Col. Carlos Stout says the planning process was time consuming, but since the center began it’s use in January of 2022, the office has never looked back. “There’s not a day that goes by that our agents are not assisting our deputies and other deputies throughout the other parishes, the state, and our federal partners. We’ve recovered about $6 million in vehicles and properties in one year, and 47 stolen vehicles.”
The crime center has also played a role in decreasing the time it takes to locate missing individuals. “We’ve been able to locate 12 missing persons, whether it was amber alert or silver alert. And we were able to locate two small children that were abducted, one from Florida and one from Texas,” says Col. Stout.
The real time element is even revolutionizing the way the sheriff’s office monitors their deputies as they arrive on scene using their body cameras. “It gives us the opportunity to look at our deputies and evaluate their performance on the job. Determine how they are treating the public, determine if what they are doing is up to protocol and standards of our administration.”
Col. Stout hopes to bring more officers into the Real Time Crime Center to ensure eyes are on the cameras 24/7.
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