Huntington Beach’s new security system vs. its old is ‘night and day,’ says police chief

The Huntington Beach City Council on Monday unanimously approved a new video surveillance system for City Hall and the Police Department and jail that is expected to enhance security for visitors and employees.

The $431,400 CelPlan system, which includes 158 cameras — more than the current number, according to Police Chief Robert Handy — will allow officers to view different live-camera feeds. The old system left officers having to watch video after the fact.

Handy said the San Bernardino shootings in December, which left 14 people dead and 22 seriously injured, prompted his department and the city to look toward updating security measures. A consultant said that one of the biggest needs was a surveillance system that allows viewers to see action as it’s happening.

Join the conversation on Facebook >>

“This new system versus the old system is night and day,” said Handy in an interview. “It’s basically the difference between a smart phone and flip phone.”

CelPlan surveillance is also used downtown to monitor streets and parking areas. Operating under one system is expected to reduce staff training time and minimize costs, according to a city staff report.

The system is also used in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Richmond, Va., Milwaukee, Wis., and Las Vegas, the staff report said.

Funding for the new system comes from the city budget as well as Proposition 69, passed by voters in 2004 to help with the collection of crime evidence, and AB 109, the bill passed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2011 to offset the costs to local law agencies of realignment — the attempt to reduce the state prison population by shifting inmates to county jails.

Handy said the new system, which the city will begin installing “immediately” and have up and running within the next month, will also make it easier to pull video for use as evidence in court.

He said video surveillance systems in general have helped police prove and disprove allegations against staff, including inmate complaints that they were hurt by officers while in custody.

The cameras can also help prevent in-custody suicides, document the return and handling of inmates’ property, alert officers to medical emergencies and reveal attempts to smuggle drugs into jail, Handy said.

“I think it enhances the safety of our employees and the security of the City Hall complex,” the chief said. “I think it’s a very positive move. I realize it’s a big expense, but we have a duty to protect our employees and they have to be able to have a secure environment to work in.”

--

Brittany Woolsey, brittany.woolsey@latimes.com

Twitter: @BrittanyWoolsey

ALSO

Harbour View students are happy to get shorn for charity

7-year term handed down in attack on H.B. police officer

Event was just ducky, raising $125,000