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SERVING DEKALB COUNTY SINCE 1879
AN UNBLINKING EYE Area police agencies consider body cameras for officers
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Townships set deadline to appeal assessments DeKalb County property tax appraisals released By JESSI HAISH jhaish@shawmedia.com
Photos by Danielle Guerra – dguerra@shawmedia.com
DeKalb County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Gary Dumdie talks Monday about the camera equipment and technology used in the county’s cars. The cars have two videos cameras with audio in them, one pointing forward to record oncoming traffic and road stops, and another directed at the back seat to record transports.
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By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Before the end of the year, four Northern Illinois University police officers will be equipped with body cameras, a trendy police tool that’s gained attention from agencies across the country. The popularity of police body cameras, devices about the size of a pager that can be clipped nearly anywhere on an officer, has increased in the wake of Ferguson, Missouri, police officer Darren Wilson fatally shooting 18-year-old unarmed black teen Michael Brown. The shooting and the racially-charged protests that came after it raised concerns over police tactics and interactions with the public. While they have used in-car cameras for years, police officials across DeKalb County said they also want to attach body cameras to their officers. But the added cost for the devices and a state law that limits what the cameras could record have created roadblocks for some de-
Would you want local police to wear cameras on their bodies? Vote online at Daily-Chronicle.com.
Dumdie reviews a nighttime roadside assistance video from May using Digital Eyewitness Media Manager software Monday at the DeKalb County Public Safety Building. Video from patrol cars is download by hooking the cars up to a loading station in the garage. The video files are then downloaded directly to servers where the video can be viewed but not edited. partments. NIU Police Chief Tom Phillips said he’s been in favor of the cameras since he heard about them about five years ago. On his force, there’s potential for 10 patrol officers to have them.
“It modifies the behavior of not only the officers,” Phillips said, “but the people we interact with.” Phillips said when the time came to replace two of the department’s patrol vehicles, he
researched an integrated camera system that connects the cameras inside patrol vehicles to a camera on the officer. When two Ford Police Interceptors replace two of the department’s Toyota Priuses in the next couple of months, they will be equipped with the new system. Later in the year, Phillips expects to put two more in place. Phillips said the price of the new system was comparable to what the in-car camera systems costs, which is about $5,000. In theory, the cameras will automatically turn on when an officer flips on the lights for a traffic stop. Before the cameras arrive, the department will need a policy dictating how officers can use the cameras. The policy will
SYCAMORE – The countdown begins today for property owners in 14 local townships to challenge their tax assessments. Assessed values for properties in Afton, Clinton, Franklin, Genoa, Malta, Mayfield, Milan, Paw Paw, Pierce, Shabbona, Somonauk, South Grove, Sycamore and Victor townships were published in the Daily Chronicle today, giving property owners 30 days to appeal the property values used to calculate individual property tax bills. The tax bills are calculated by multiplying an assessment, minus any exemptions, by the rates for the taxing districts that serve the property. “Many don’t realize they only have 30 days,” said Robin Brunschon, chief county assessment officer. “This is their window of opportunity.” Brunschon said the better communication people have with their township assessor, the better chance they will have of filing a successful appeal. She said it’s important to talk with the assessor about the appeal, and have evidence to back the claim, such as an appraisal from the past six months. Sycamore Township Assessor Kevin Schnetzler said to work on an appeal, it’s important to make sure all documents are ready before meeting with the assessor. These include any appraisals, comparable property information and a property record card, which should be checked to make sure all information is accurate. “I would say people should start [the appeal process] as soon as possible,” he said. “I’ve had people come in after deadline, and we can’t do anything for this year, but we can start looking at next year.” Schnetzler said if he does
Inside The listing of property tax assessments for 14 townships starts on Page D3 in today’s Daily Chronicle.
More information Contact the DeKalb County Office of Assessments, 110 E. Sycamore St., Sycamore, by calling 815895-7120 or via email at ccao@ dekalbcounty. org. Visit DeKalbCounty. org/Assessor.
See CAMERAS, page A8 See ASSESSMENTS, page A8
Airstrikes in Syria, Iraq are just the start By LOLITA C. BALDOR and BASSEM MROUE The Associated Press WASHINGTON – The onetwo-three punch of American and Arab airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq was just the beginning, President Barack Obama and other leaders declared Tuesday. They promised a sustained campaign showcasing a rare U.S.-Arab partnership aimed at Muslim extremists. At the same time, in fresh evidence of how the terrorist threat continues to expand and mutate, the U.S. on its own
struck a new al-Qaida cell that the Pentagon said was “nearing the execution phase” of a direct attack on the U.S. or Europe. “This is not America’s fight alone,” Obama said of the military campaign against the Islamic State John Kerry group. “We’re going to do what’s necessary to take the fight to this terrorist group, for the security of the country and the region and for the entire
world.” Obama said the U.S. was “proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder” with Arab partners, and he called the roll: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain and Qatar. Rear Adm. John Kirby, the Pentagon’s press secretary, said four of the five had participated in the strikes, with Qatar playing a supporting role. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Turkey, too, is joining the coalition against the Islamic State group and “will be very engaged on the front lines of this effort.” Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in New York for U.N. meetings, said he was considering expanding support of NATO operations against the Islamic State to include military involvement. In all, Kerry said, more than 50 nations are allied in the fight. It was a measure of the gravity of the threat and the complex politics of the problem that Syrian President Bashar Assad gave an indirect nod of approval to the airstrikes in his own country,
See AIRSTRIKES, page A7
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President Barack Obama in a statement Tuesday on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., said the participation of five Arab nations in airstrikes against militants in Syria “makes it clear to the world this is not America’s fight alone.” Afterward, he boarded Marine One for a short trip to Andrews Air Force Base, Md., then onto New York and the United Nations.
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