Will the Compton City Council take action and repair their surveillance camera system? A recent 2UrbanGirls article titled Letter to the Editor: Compton Citywide Camera Project along with the discovery of Compton resident Samantha Bustos’ body being found in the industrial side of town, has revived residents concerns about the condition of the city’s multi million dollar surveillance system.
At last nights’s council meeting I requested an audit of our citywide camera system. Not one of you responded to my comments and asked our city manager for this report.
Following my comments you all heard from some very distraught parents who have lost children to violence. Many references were made about the recent loss of Samantha Bustos, whose body was found on Victoria. There is no doubt in my mind that detectives are going to attempt to determine what kind of a vehicle was involved in this young girls demise. Then they are going to be looking a footage from cameras placed on Wilmington and Victoria to see if any of these cameras captured any pictures of that ‘suspect’ vehicle. But again, I ask the question: WERE THOSE CAMERAS WORKING? Cameras would not have prevented Samantha’s demise, but they sure as Hell will help to tell us who was responsible for her demise, IF THEY WERE WORKING.
Robert Ray, concerned resident
Tax payers have paid millions of dollars for this camera system. And, we paid that money for a reason. In the memory of Samantha Bustos, let’s make sure ALL of these cameras are working.
P S – When I was a volunteer with LASD Compton Station, I spent many hours monitoring this camera system. I know it’s qualities and capabilities. It is a fantastic system and worth every dollar spent on it. Cameras are not only supposed to be a deterrent to crime, but also a tool to help solve crime. The primary goal of you, our City Council, is for the safety of the Citizens of Compton. Please, do your job.