Pittsburg officials consider installing cameras along Highway 4 after shootings

PITTSBURG, Calif. (KGO) -- Shootings are a problem throughout the East Bay, so the Pittsburg City Council will vote Monday whether to install cameras on city owned or private property along Highway 4 to help keep the community safe.

Pittsburg officials hope the cameras will help stop shootings on Highway 4.

Pittsburg already has dozens of cameras throughout the city, so city leaders believe adding them on Highway 4 only makes sense.

The East Bay freeway has seen a half dozen shootings since June and city leaders want to put a stop to them.

Shanique Johnson was shot and killed in a car Wednesday. It was the third fatal shooting on Highway 4 in the past 11 months, with six shootings in all.

Pittsburg resident Jenita Davis was stuck on the freeway when it happened. "They had veered everybody to get off the freeway, but we were stuck on there for a great while. I had no idea, I knew somebody was dead, but we didn't know it was a senseless shooting," Davis said.

Witnesses said the car was shot repeatedly by someone in a white Mercedes, which was a vague description.

However, officials are hoping cameras, will help police collect more information on such shootings. "If somebody says, 'oh we saw a car,' that doesn't tell us much. 'We saw a white car,' that doesn't tell us much, but the bottom line is if we have a camera that gives us a visualization of what happened, we can see the car, we can see the action," Pittsburg Mayor Ben Johnson said.

Pittsburg residents ABC7 News talked to said that makes perfect sense to them. "It should. You know get license plates, facial features and things of that type, I'm for it 100 percent," Pittsburg resident Harold Moore said.

The plan is to put two cameras on city property along the freeway, the same type of cameras that Pittsburg has throughout the city, which are about 80 in total. They provide 360 degree views and can zoom up to a city block.

The cost to taxpayers is $100,000.

"They need more cameras everywhere, just so they can catch these people because it's Just ridiculous, this is out of control," Pittsburg resident Alicia Moore said.

The council votes on the issue Monday.