Before the fall 2009 semester began, a man broke into the Psi Upsilon fraternity house across from Watson Hall and walked off campus with a new television in a shopping cart.

But due to Syracuse University’s new video surveillance system near Watson, he didn’t get far. By the end of Summer Break, 106 surveillance cameras were installed on campus at the entrances and exits of every residence hall. The camera installation was the first phase of a 12- to 14-phase project.

‘The call came in to dispatch that someone thought there was a burglary going on,’ said Department of Public Safety Chief Tony Callisto. ‘There was a camera available in the area at Watson Hall. This camera was able to pan, tilt and zoom in ? and sure enough they saw a guy stealing a television right out the door.’

Emergency dispatchers notified officers over the air, and the burglar was taken into custody, Callisto said.

The second phase, installing cameras on grounds and walkways, has begun with South Campus, Callisto said. A total of nine cameras were installed Jan. 28, with three more to come. As of now, DPS has been authorized to install 192 cameras.

Not all of the additional funding for the next phase has been received, Callisto said. The cameras are being set up in areas with the highest crime rates with a maximized view for cost-efficiency, he said.

Although the second phase has just started, Callisto and Rex Giardine, the assistant director for capital projects at SU, said work on covering grounds and pathways already began during the first phase. The cameras were strategically placed to cover multiple doors as well as pathways.

‘If you step back a bit and put a camera on the side or on an adjacent building, you can not only watch those two doors but (also) the parking lot, the dumpster area and the sidewalks going by,’ Giardine said. ‘So we kind of strategized. We tried to find locations where a camera could cover multiple doors and some of the grounds, too.’

The engineering of phase one is still in progress, Callisto said. This includes integrating the existing door alarm systems with the camera surveillance. If a door with an alarm is propped open, the video surveillance will automatically zoom in on that location and alert dispatchers.

‘It’s mostly to let the system do the work so the staff’s time here is immediately focused on the problems,’ Giardine said.

It has already been put to use against the man who was charged with burglary and the stalking in DellPlain Hall in November. The day before he was arrested, he snuck in behind a student and the cameras caught a clear video picture of his face, Callisto said.

‘We’ve solved several crimes with the use of these cameras,’ Callisto said. ‘It’s doing exactly what it was intended to do.’

mmamisan@syr.edu

Published on January 31, 2010 at 12:00 pm