SAN DIEGO — Mayor Todd Gloria and San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit urged the city council to renew the Smart Streetlight Program during a news conference at police headquarters Monday.
They also asked that automated license plate readers be re-instated as well.
The full council is scheduled to take a vote Tuesday at city hall.
"There have been a number of very important crimes solved, and just as importantly, a number of people exonerated because of Smart Streetlight cameras. These cameras help us catch suspects before they commit more crimes and give peace to victims and families of victims when the cases are solved and perpetrators are brought to justice," said Mayor Gloria.
Nicole Mansour, the niece of Tony Radda, who was shot and killed back in 2018, also spoke to reporters. She said the cameras helped bring her uncle's killers to justice.
"Fortunately, Smart Streetlights were able to capture the face of one of the perpetrators as he took his mask off blocks away from the crime scene," she said.
Mayor Gloria said this technology will help cut down on the number of unnecessary traffic stops when solving crimes. He said rather than relying on a generic witness description or no information at all, the cameras may give officers a better picture of exactly who they're looking for.
According to Chief Nisleit, when this program was in place previously, 100 victims of violent crimes have seen their cases solved because of these cameras.
Opponents of the Smart Streetlight program have voiced concerns about privacy. The Privacy Advisory Board, made up of members appointed by the council, raised concerns about it during a public safety committee meeting just a couple weeks ago.
"Their advice was heard by the city council's Public Safety Committee and they voted to advance the proposal," said Mayor Gloria.
"I will acknowledge the city has fallen down when it came to privacy in the past administrations [which is] part of why the lights were turned off. We have spent years, not weeks, not months, years when when it comes to perfecting a privacy ordinance to make sure we are fully transparent about how this technology works where it'll be located and how the data it collects will be used," he added.
WATCH RELATED: San Diego mayor and police chief urge council to renew Smart streetlight program