D’Albor talks cameras, crime at Kiwanis meeting
Published 12:25 pm Friday, August 30, 2024
- Cameras, like the one placed near the Sliman Theater on Main Street, will be going up in 125 locations around New Iberia.
New Iberia Police Chief Todd D’Albor provided updates on several programs underway in New Iberia at the New Iberia Kiwanis Club’s meeting on Thursday.
The main topic of discussion was the new camera and surveillance system the NIPD is currently installing across the city. According to D’Albor, the cameras, which provide 24-hour coverage from locations across New Iberia, will give officers the ability to move from a reactionary style of policing into a more proactive role.
“These are artificial intelligence cameras that will be installed in 125 locations in the city,” Chief D’Albor explained. “We have about 53 locations up right now with another 62 to come. Those cameras allow us to see what could potentially be happening before it happens. We’ve gotten to the point, as an agency, where the reactive stuff isn’t cutting it. My detectives are solving major crimes at an 82% rate and the national average is about 47%. We’re good at what we do but we want to not be reactive to those things.”
The cameras will play into the NIPD’s attempt to get crime in New Iberia under control. According to D’Albor, over half of the violent crimes in the city are committed by juveniles, causing the detention facilities to become burdened by the sheer numbers they are seeing.
D’Albor said that he believes the upcoming Acadiana Crime Lab in the city and the development of the Acadiana Juvenile Detention District, which seeks to create a new juvenile detention facility in the Acadiana area, will both have a positive effect on the way crimes are solved and punished in New Iberia.
Several Kiwanis Club members present asked questions to Chief D’Albor, with many focused on what can be done to lessen the growing crime rates both locally and nationally. According to D’Albor, the issue comes down to a disregard for human life.
“As law enforcement, we can only do so much,” he said. “That’s where those mentors come into play. There are some younger people who don’t regard human life and the question is how do we get to them and not let the cycle continue.”
