FORT WORTH, Texas — Residents in the Chisolm Ridge neighborhood in north Fort Worth say they feel safer than ever after installing automated license plate-reading technology.

One of those residents, Jack Bowen, is very involved in the efforts to prevent crime in his neighborhood. 

“I have what I call an online newspaper. I call it the Chisolm Ridge News," he said.  

The Chisolm Ridge News, a Facebook group where he shares important updates and the crime reports, is a way he has kept track of how crime began to decrease ever since Flock Safety cameras went up in Chisolm Ridge. 

“I wanna live in a clean neighborhood. I wanna live in a safe neighborhood," Bowen said. 

He was on board with the initiative ever since his HOA president proposed the 24/7 license plate-reading cameras.

“We kept seeing crime going up in our crime reports,” said Bowen, referring to the situation before the cameras.

The system is designed to quickly alert the Fort Worth Police Department about any stolen vehicles entering the area.

“We had a stolen vehicle come in and it immediately alerted the police automatically,” said Tony Perez, Chisolm Ridge HOA president.

As well as providing proof of criminal activity, along with other public safety opportunities.

“A wanted person, an Ambert Alert, a Silver Alert drives by any Flock Safety camera, in real time those cameras will send an alert to local law enforcement to go stop that vehicle,” said Josh Thomas, Flock Safety VP of marketing.

Though initially some residents of Chisolm Ridge did not like the idea, Perez says the results have quickly changed their minds.

“Every time we get a success story from our police officers we share that with the community and we end up seeing an increase of satisfaction in the investment we’ve made to protect our residents,” said Perez.

Fort Worth Police Sgt. Dalton Webb has experienced the technology’s effectiveness in action. He says the cameras are a great ally for law enforcement.

"If there’s anything that we need to pay attention to in regards like a stolen car or criminal suspect who is actively committing crimes in their area,” Webb said. 

Now, other neighborhoods in Fort Worth known to have high criminal activity are also installing the technology and seeing and seeing good results.

“We’ve noticed a 22% decrease in crime in those areas,” Webb said. 

For Bowen these are not just surveillance cameras in his neighborhood.

“Already there’s plenty of proof of people getting caught in this neighborhood because we have Flock Safety,” said Bowen.

He believes it’s the future: technology helping humans have a peace of mind.