www.news8austin.com

Updated: 2/11/2008 7:41:50 PM
By: Chelsea Hover

 The City of Killeen has seven digital cameras keeping a look out in their areas of high crime.

They're primarily targeting graffiti artists and illegal dumpers.

Last September, the city council agreed to dedicate $87,000 to clean up the city's graffiti problem. About $47,000 of that went to purchase the cameras.

They operate on motion detectors, snapping a series of photographs that can then be downloaded to a laptop.

Code enforcement officers sift through the pictures looking for code violators. They can zoom in and pick up a license plate number and cite the person.

Before the cameras, it was the property owner's responsibility to clean the graffiti or mess near their dumpster.

Since October, code enforcement officers said they've seen a drastic decrease in both crimes.

In the past five months, they've successfully prosecuted more than 100 cases in Municipal court.

The Killeen Police Department said they've launched a few criminal investigations based on the cameras pictures.

The fine for violating one of these city codes can range from $500-$2,000.