I couldn’t help but repost this blog I read. I love the fact that a drug dealer’s money went to something useful.  Also, it helps that I’m from Missouri and can probably guess what drug it was that was making this money. You never here about where the money from a $2M drug bust actually goes…

Convicted drug dealers in Macomb County are indirectly paying for new security cameras that have been installed in downtown Mount Clemens to help police patrolling the city and provide for a safer community.

The $70,000 cost of purchasing and installing three new surveillance cameras is coming from the Macomb County Sheriff’s drug forfeiture account, which is at $1 million county officials said at a news briefing on Wednesday.

“It’s their way of giving back to the community,” Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel said, half jokingly.

Dispatchers in the sheriff’s office are able to monitor downtown activity on one large monitor that contains four panels of camera footage. A zoom lens function allows them to zero in on the action and provides a clear enough image to read a license plate.

The cameras were erected in strategic locations including the Roskopp parking lot behind the Emerald Theatre, at Main Street and Macomb Place, and the parking lot behind Buffalo Wild Wings. Four more are planned by November.

Macomb County Sheriff Anthony Wickersham said the cameras film 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That way, if something breaks out that escapes a dispatcher’s view, the footage can be reviewed at a later time.

“From a law enforcement perspective, we’re pretty much watching the downtown area from the dispatch center,” Wickersham said.

Mount Clemens Mayor Barb Dempsey said downtown business owners welcomed the additional layer of security because people coming into town will feel better knowing someone is watching out for them. The move will also free up deputies to work the city’s neighborhoods, she added.

“We are the entertainment capital of the east side,” Dempsey said. “We want people to come down at all hours of the day or evening and enjoy what we have to offer. We want them to feel comfortable and with this technology, they will feel comfortable.”

The surveillance cameras have the ability to rotate 360 degrees and can provide high resolution images, said Russell Kudela, operations center director for the Macomb County Roads Department.

Hackel, the former county sheriff, said he saw the potential for additional video surveillance after becoming the county executive at the start of the year when he visited the roads department and observed the department’s traffic signal camera system.

About 100 major intersections in Macomb County have cameras tied into the department’s dispatch center that help dictate the timing of the traffic lights. Those cameras can also be accessed by the sheriff’s office.

“You’ll be absolutely amazed at the technology,” Hackel said. “We’re trying to light up the city to make people feel safe. If you’re planning on committing a crime, now is not the time in Mount Clemens.”