How to Guide: Using Surveillance to Help Deter Vandalism in Your Neighborhood

A month ago I read an article about gangs and their relationship to vandalism and property damage. Some people theorize that gangs are comprised of vandals and that part of their initiation into the gang is to create as much vandalism as possible, usually by spray painting the gang “tag” on private property.

Every year property damage done by gangs who commit vandalism is in the billions of dollars. And it isn’t just to private property either. Nothing conveys a worse message than driving into a new city and seeing spray painted walls, fences and buildings with gang logos on them.

Last week we had an incident in our neighborhood where a gang spray painted their “tag” on a dozen homes and cars parked in the driveway. When we went to file a complaint with the police department they politely informed us that unless we had video surveillance or any evidence that we can offer as proof of who did it, there wasn’t much they could do.

Unfortunately gangs know this and so do their property damage and vandalism pretty much unmolested because they do their dirty work in the early morning hours when they’re less likely to be seen.

So we had an emergency ‘neighborhood watch’ meeting and decided to collect enough money to install some high-quality security cameras. We had to get permission from the city to mount them on poles that are considered city property, but they were more than willing to allow it. Several homeowners decided that they wanted to have their own security cameras which was fine with the group. The more the merrier.

The only way that these bad dudes get caught is with video surveillance cameras. Law enforcement authorities are quick to tell you that adding video surveillance footage of a crime being committed, such as home burglary or vandalism, greatly improves chances of the bad guys getting caught by as much as 50%.

There is a security camera that actually looks like a landscape stone, is motion activated and operates up to one full year on a single battery charge. It can record 20 continuous hours of video action. It has remote wireless controls and a lithium-ion battery that is rechargeable. Since it only records when there’s activity in front of the lens, it can literally record for weeks. It is water-resistant so it is meant for outdoor use.

Another night vision camera is also motion activated. It, too, is waterproof and meant to be outdoors. It has a viewing angle of 66 degrees and records to a DVR receiver that can be over 300 feet away from the camera.

Want to catch the bad guys doing damage to your home, your car or your neighborhood? A video security camera is about the only way answer. Plus if you do catch somebody on video it provides excellent evidence for prosecution.

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