Marquis Tompkins Jr., 24, was shot and killed on the 500 block of Toner Street in early February, police previously said. The incident occurred near the Dunbar Community Center.
Toner Street runs perpendicular to the Dunbar Center. Andre Maxberry, Tompkins grandmother, said she was told by a detective that surveillance footage at the Dunbar Center captured a suspect on camera. But the quality of the footage was so poor that detectives couldn’t identify them.
Lexington police said earlier this month they still don’t have any updates on the investigation. They previously said they didn’t have any suspect information.
“They could’ve had a better lead if they had high-definition cameras there because one of the guys – which they haven’t made any arrests yet, but one of the guys was in the gym,” Maxberry said.
Tompkins and his girlfriend were also seen on surveillance footage, Maxberry said.
“I feel like if they’re going to open up rec centers for our children, they should have some type of high-definition cameras there so if anything does happen, they could possibly get a lead from those cameras,” Maxberry said.
Police declined to comment on the quality of the cameras at the Dunbar Community Center, citing an open investigation. The city’s Parks & Recreation Department, which oversees the Dunbar Community Center, also declined to comment, passing the matter on to the police department.
Four Pelco day/night color cameras were installed outside of the Dunbar Community Center in 2013, according to installation records obtained by the Herald-Leader through the Kentucky Open Records Act. The project, which was carried out by Pomeroy, cost about $3,877.
The Divisional Safety Committee recommended the cameras at the time to prevent vandalism to vehicles, records show.
Maintenance has been performed on the security system repeatedly, including replacing a camera in 2016 after it was struck by lightning, according to records. The most recent maintenance was conducted last year.
Lexington has recently embraced more reliance on cameras and surveillance technology to investigate crimes. The city began using Flock license-plate reading cameras to track vehicles that have been involved in crimes and locate suspects. Lexington has also begun using a system that records footage from city-owned traffic cameras and other surveillance cameras.
The recording system is used with theLexington Police Department’s real-time intelligence center to help solve crimes. The center uses live traffic cameras, Flock license plate readers and other cameras to aid investigations.
Mayor Linda Gorton included $150,000 in her latest city budget for a software called Fusus, which would combine all the investigative tools used by the real-time intelligence center into one blank canvas, making it easier for investigators to do their job, according to Gorton and the police department.
“This intelligence software will allow us to combine our existing technology assets, including alerts from Flock license plate readers and video from traffic cameras, while also allowing the voluntary addition of private security cameras from partnering businesses, even residential cameras,” Gorton said.
The city is also expanding its Flock license plate reader program to 100 cameras.
Maxberry expressed concerns about how parks and recreation employees aren’t required to be CPR certified. She said only one person at the Dunbar Center at the time of the shooting was certified in CPR, but she believes every parks and recreation employee should be CPR certified. Tompkins was declared dead on scene after the shooting, according to police.
Community centers overseen by parks and recreation have to have at least one CPR certified employee present during regular hours, according to Susan Straub, a spokesperson for the city.
Aquatics facilities and extended school programs require that all employees are CPR certified, Straub said. Supervisors with parks and recreation’s athletics also have to be certified.
All parks and recreation staff members are offered CPR certification courses as schedules permit, according to Straub.
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