Video-sharing platform utilized by JPD’s Real Time Command Center supports proactive policing, deters crime

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - We’ve given you a look inside the Jackson Police Department’s Real Time Command Center, but the investigative tool is more advanced than we initially reported.

JPD currently has access to more than 600 cameras in over 200 different locations across the Capital City. All of them are wired to just one video-sharing platform that feeds directly to the RTCC.

”It is a way to give the community a platform to be able to share video with the police department,” Tarrien Williams said.

Williams works as a Strategic Technology/RTCC Consultant for Pileum Corporation. He said the FUSUS platform is a win-win for everyone because it helps police solve crimes faster, allows business owners to feel safer, and comes at no cost to the city.

It’s already proven effective, giving JPD a look at the aftermath of the shooting that took place just hours before the governor’s State of the State address.

“We were able to grab video instantly because we’re on the platform and have it to the police department within 15 minutes,” he said.

The innovative technology is part of an initiative called the “Blue Light Program,” which gets its name from the flashing blue lights that are on the cameras. Williams said the lights alone are shown to reduce crime by 44%.

“We want the criminals to understand that this area is being monitored,” he said. “If you do something here, we’re going to catch you.”

But the FUSUS system does a whole lot more than just capture video. Through artificial intelligence, police can pull up footage of people wearing a specific outfit in a matter of seconds.

“If someone has blue pants on and a red shirt, we can search that - as long as it comes within any camera that we have on the platform - and they can identify suspects instantly,” Williams said.

The platform also has the capability to run license plate recognition, putting officers in a proactive mode rather than reactive.

“If they know that a car is stolen when it comes into the city limits, they can proactively try to prevent any crime that the suspect is trying to go forward with,” he said.

With enough cameras, authorities could eventually assess a crime scene before they even get there.

For those with privacy concerns, Williams said anyone who purchases a camera has the ability to choose what police are able to see.

“We have no overwrites into your system to be able to look at video,” he said. “This is only shareable video that you allow the RTCC to have access to.”

JPD currently has three people working its command center from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., leaving an eight hour void. It’s the department’s hope to have people staffed there 24/7 in the near future.

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