Safe Neighbourhoods and Policing Initiative

No.  Despite acknowledging and voluntarily submitting your information, there is no expectation that states you are required to hand over surveillance footage to law enforcement.  

The purpose of the S. N. A. P Initiative is to build a database of camera locations within our city.  Adding a security camera feature to your property is a good tool to use as a means of protecting your residence; it is also an effective measure in preventing and deterring crime. 

Whenever police investigate a criminal activity or take a report of same, they may attempt to canvass the area and speak with neighbours and businesses to check if they may have heard, seen, or were aware of anything out of the ordinary. This approach can be one that is relatively time-consuming and in situations where time may be the critical element to getting a successful resolution, not the most effective approach.  Armed with the information where security cameras are located, police can better focus their investigation. 

By authorizing police to contact you to check a camera for potential recordings of crimes in progress, citizens of Brandon are helping make our communities safer for everyone.

The S. N. A. P. initiative is not asking anyone to do the part of an officer, it is simply a program designed to enhance relationships between the community and police in hopes of building safer neighbourhoods in the city.  In previous years, programs like this have been used; however, this is more of a technical extension and advancement of those prior community outreach attempts.

The S.N.A.P. database is kept strictly confidential. Only police will have access to it. When a crime occurs, police can locate the scene on the mapping database and immediately gain insight into which residences in the neighbouring areas may have security video that could be of assistance.

The S.N.A.P. program is strictly voluntary. As such, if you wish to remove your information or cameras from the database at any point in time after initial registration, you are able to without recourse or questions.  Regardless of the camera registration, should a crime occur in your neighbourhood, police may visit your residence while conducting cursory canvass checks where you may be asked about the specific incident and if you have cameras available. At any time, there is no obligation to assist police.

It is a simple process. The registration form is very user-friendly and easily completed in only a few minutes.

The hope is always that you will not have to be contacted; however, if an incident occurs in your neighbourhood and police believe your security cameras may have some crucial information or relevant recordings on it, you may be contacted.

Police will not physically remove any personal property or equipment from your residence. Members who attend will provide you with a storage device and ask that any relevant footage be extracted onto the device at your convenience and provide it to them.

Police always encourage the public to call in suspicious activity or criminal acts whether witnessed via surveillance camera or not. This initiative does not change that aspect in any fashion. 

With the advancement in technology innovation and acceptable costs associated to implementing security cameras, more residents are choosing to protect their homes and properties. As such, crime prevention techniques are far more prolific than in years past. For example, high profile cases involving missing children and their images being seen on security cameras make compelling cases for their use in the public safety environment.  Canvassing is a time-consuming and tedious aspect of policing, and this initiative will only be as successful as the data which is volunteered and entered. 

That’s why we want your help.