BELLE MEADE, Tenn. (WKRN) – Belle Meade has 22 license plate reader cameras (LPR), creating a crime network that monitors every route in and out of the city.
But starting Monday, Jan. 15, the Belle Meade Police Department is going one step further, offering new, state-of-the-art technology that will allow officers to shoot, tag and track suspects across the city and beyond.
The department has purchased a new system called StarChase that gives police an effective and safe way to catch criminals.
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Eight Belle Meade police cars will be armed with darts, each equipped with a tracking device, according to Police Chief Charles “Chuck” Williams.
“Safety is our top priority,” Williams said. “We are a very safe community.”
Thanks to the city's extensive LPR network, officers often come across vehicles that are reported stolen. But once they turn on their emergency equipment, the suspects usually flee, putting police, citizens and even the suspects in danger. according to Williams.
“As soon as the blue lights come on, these suspects will take off and they have no regard for the public,” the chief said.
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Now an officer has the ability to pull up behind a suspect and use a guidance laser to fire the aiming arrow from the front of the police car at the suspect's vehicle.
“It actually shoots compressed air. It heats up, heats up the glue,” Williams explained as he showed News 2 the equipment.
Thanks to the glue and magnets inside the dart, it sticks to the car. Then, once the arrow is securely attached to the vehicle, authorities can safely back away, allowing the suspect to drive away, believing they have gotten away.
In fact, thanks to the GPS on the arrow, the police can follow the suspect's trail.
According to Williams, the arrow travels just under 30 miles per hour and rarely causes damage to the vehicle it hits.
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Williams described a typical scenario for the new crime-fighting technology: “Suppose we get an LPR attack on a stolen vehicle. Our officers will go to the scene, locate the suspect and shoot him before ever activating emergency equipment. This way we’re not trying to push this thing 100 miles an hour, but we’re doing it in a safe way so we can get this tracking device on them before they even realize what’s going on.”
The system features a mobile device that allows an officer to fire the arrow even when not in the police car. This comes in handy when an officer approaches a suspect's window and the suspect drives away while the officer is outside the police car.
“It’s just another tool. We're all about technology. We want to stay ahead of the curve,” Williams told News 2. “The criminals are always thinking of new ways and so we have to stay ahead of them, so this is just another tool that we're going to have in our department .”
The program costs $73,500. However, there is good news for Belle Meade taxpayers: the program is covered by a state crime grant from the Office of Criminal Justice Programs.
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