Law Enforcement Intelligence

On 09-22-06, Los Angeles Police Department Officers from the West Division made a traffic stop of a vehicle which was occupied by (3) male Asian gang members. During the stop, a camera and video display monitor was located which recorded the movements of the Officers from the rear of the car. Officers found a camera hidden in the license plate frame and the images captured was forwarded to the screen found in the middle of the dashboard. To access this monitor, the driver has to press the brake pedal (1) time and turn on a switch (not marked) at the bottom of the dashboard, near the steering wheel. This should be a safety concern, had the occupants wanted to engage the police officers during their approach to the vehicle, their movements would have been recorded and their positions of advantage would have been compromised. Several vehicles are now equipped with this feature and it is also available in an after market purchase. the monitor is only supposed to come on while the vehicle is in reverse however this feature can be overridden. This Info is put out via TCSO Intelligence.