Polson Police seek community involvement in video footage

The Polson Police Department is asking its residents to register their surveillance cameras.

According to a news release from the department, it recently launched a voluntary surveillance camera registration program.

“Often our officers conduct neighborhood canvasses in an effort to identify all the involved individuals in an incident,” Chief Wade Nash wrote in a Facebook post. “This often includes locating and collecting video surveillance footage. Videos are terrific evidence that aids in building criminal cases.”

“We are the first tier in the criminal justice system and we place the utmost pride in presenting the prosecutors’ office with the best cases that we can. Video surveillance helps to strengthen our cases by aiding in the identification of individuals and perhaps even capturing the criminal act.”

The department is asking all businesses and citizens to register their surveillance system with it. There is no cost.

“By register we mean just let us know you have a camera at your address and how to get into contact with you,” Nash said. “We are not asking to “tap into” or “remotely use” your system.

Department officers won’t be able to monitor what the camera sees and it is not asking for passwords or direct access to your system.

“We are only asking to let us know you have a camera so if a crime occurs in or around your neighborhood, we make sure to speak with you in an effort to see if your cameras recorded anything useful to the investigation. We would like to continue strengthening our bond with the community we serve; together we can make a positive difference for Polson.“

According to the department, it will need the following information, contact name, phone number, email, address of business or residence and number of cameras.

Those with RING doorbells are also encouraged to register their devices.

For people interested in registering their devices, they can go online and complete the short form, come to City Hall at 106 1st Street East, Polson, call the department at 406-883-8211 and having an officer take the information over the phone or by calling 406-883-7301, to have an officer come speak with you in person.

The department said the information provided during registration goes into a secured area within the department and will only be accessed by law enforcement personnel.

It said surveillance footage will be used by the department when it is investigating a crime in your area you will be contacted by an officer. That officer will make arrangements, at a time convenient for the camera owner, to sit down with the person and review the footage. If the footage contains any video or images useful to the investigation the officer will ask for a copy for the case file.

Those whom register may withdraw from the program at any time.