Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — Authorities announced Tuesday they have installed 37 high definition cameras along the Las Vegas Strip in an effort to catch criminals and deter crime.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department purchased the cameras with a federal grant. They will monitor areas concealed from patrol cars and will be watched by police currently working desk jobs because of occupational injuries.
The cameras, which can tilt, pan and zoom, have been placed about two stories off the Strip. Police hope the prominent cameras will serve a deterrent and also allow them to monitor large crowds. They join eight previously installed police cameras on the Strip.
The cameras will monitor the tourist corridor from the “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign by the airport to the Circus Circus casino toward the north of the Strip.
The Strip has seen several high-profile incidents of violence this year, including a carjacking that left two people dead, a gun battle that ended in a fiery explosion and a stabbing between two hotels.
The ACLU of Nevada did not immediately returns calls and emails seeking comment.
Copyright 2013 Associated Press