PEWEE VALLEY, Ky. (WDRB) -- Just 12 hours after being installed in Oldham County earlier this month, Flock Safety cameras helped police arrest 25-year-old Jose Gutierrez-Sánchez, who's accused of killing Elijah Torres last Saturday in a fatal hit-and-run crash on KY 146 in Crestwood.
"We used some of the data that was captured from the Flock camera, matched that up with some other records and found a location nearby," Oldham County Police Maj. Scott Crigler said Thursday. "(We) checked that location and found the vehicle there."
Gutierrez-Sánchez now faces several charges including manslaughter.
The technology served its purpose right away. As cars zoom down the busy county road, police have a new tool.
"We did not think that we would have any kind of useful results that quickly," Crigler said. "We hadn't anticipated utilizing it for the situation like this."
While it intends to eventually add more, Oldham County approved four flock cameras for the department. July 13, 2023. (WDRB Photo)
Placed along streets or on police cars, the Flock cameras are essentially license plate readers that capture data for each vehicle that passes by. The information is then kept in an online database allowing officers to see a car's license plate number and state, along with its type and color and the date when the photo was taken.
The technology can identify unique features — like roof racks and stickers — and also lets police find out how often a vehicle has been seen over a specific timeframe.
Flock Safety, the company that makes the cameras, said they are motion-activated and capture a picture of every vehicle and license plate that passes through. Flock Safety automatically deletes data kept in cloud storage after 30 days unless it's part of an investigation or is bound by a shorter or longer retention period dictated in a state's law, according to Josh Thomas, Flock's vice president of external affairs
While it intends to eventually add more, Oldham County approved four flock cameras for the department, spending about $24,000 for all four on a two-year contract. Information gained through the Flock system can be shared with other law enforcement agencies that use it.
Down the road from Oldham County Police, La Grange's police department will also soon be installing flock cameras of its own. Like the county, the city approved four cameras on a two-year contract for roughly $24,000.
"We have seen time and time again that as soon as the cameras go up, law enforcement starts seeing crimes solve," said Holly Beilin, a spokeswoman for Flock Safety. "We are just thankful that our cameras were able to be there and help provide the evidence that led officers to the alleged suspect."
Beilin said Flock Safety is installing new cameras in Kentucky and Indiana every week
"We are always looking for more recourses that we can utilize to help keep the community safer, and this is just another one of those tools," Crigler said.
Related Stories:
- La Grange, Oldham County Police Departments roll out flock cameras in hopes to reduce crime
- Kentucky and Indiana police are collecting license plate data. Some have no policies for it.
- Elizabethtown Police installing surveillance cameras to read license plates
- Clarksville police seeing results with specialized safety cameras
- Jeffersonville Police installing 30 cameras around city to reduce crime
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