Atlanta City Council approves new cameras in city parks
ATLANTA - The Atlanta City Council has passed new legislation to install cameras in city parks and recreation facilities in an attempt to deter criminal activity.
Monday, the City Council passed the legislation requesting the Atlanta Police Department "evaluate the process of facilitating the installation of video surveillance cameras at City of Atlanta Parks and Recreation facilities."
In a release, the council noted that criminal activity had spread to Atlanta's parks and said the new cameras could improve police response times.
The legislation comes less than a month after the murder of 40-year-old Katherine Janness and her dog Bowie in Piedmont Park.
Janness, known to her friends as Katie, bartended at a nearby restaurant, friends and relatives have said. Her wife, Emma Clark, said she found Janness’ body with a phone tracking app she used after Janness didn’t respond to calls or texts.
After Janness's murder, many residents around the area voiced their concerns that the 187-acre park only has nine cameras and that officials said the cameras near where her body was found were not working at the time of her murder. One council member's chief of staff told FOX 5 the office has been inundated with correspondence regarding the safety and lighting of the park.
A $20,000 reward is being offered to anyone who provides information leading to an arrest.
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