Eastlake won't be joining the list of cities asking homeowners to voluntarily register their security cameras with police.
Supporters of the idea believe it makes it quicker for police to track down surveillance video after a crime is committed by giving them a list of cameras and contact information for their owners.
But Eastlake's police chief doubts the benefits would outweigh the costs. He says his department doesn't have enough people to handle a registry.
Chief Larry Reik says not only would someone have to take the information from homeowners who are willing to be part of a registry, but that the list would have to be updated every time someone moved or changed phone numbers in order to be effective.
"We definitely don't have any fat to trim," Reik says. "So we're just trying to make the best with what we have and I think for the few times this may come into benefit, the time going into it would outweigh the benefit."
The idea for a registry in Eastlake was pitched by a neighborhood watch organizer.
Reik says if the group or any other wants to put together a registry of cameras police would use it.
