by Tonya Brown

Fri, December 26, 2025 at 6:21 AM

Updated Fri, December 26, 2025 at 6:22 AM

FILE - Pictured: Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office Real Time Intelligence Center, Jan. 9, 2023 –An interlocal agreement between the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office and City of Asheville is proposing installing cameras at various city-owned properties in order to "deter criminal activity and to enhance response in key locations downtown," Asheville Vice Mayor Sandra Kilgore recently told the Council of Independent Business Owners. The agreement will go before the Asheville City Council for approval on Jan. 24, 2023. (Photo credit: WLOS Staff)

FLORENCE COUNTY, S.C. (WPDE) — The Florence Police Department’s real time crime center is providing officers with critical details before they even get to a scene, according to Interim Chief Stephen Starling.

"Agents that work these crime centers, they’re able to start gathering information themselves directly for the call immediately. So then they can give that information directly to their officers, by the radio, and relay the real time information," Starling said.

It’s estimated that more than 300 law enforcement agencies across the country have real time crime centers. Agents receive live data inputs and gather intelligence from that data.

That data comes from various sources, including drones, helicopter footage, body cameras and license plate readers.

"We’re able to send the drones and get to these calls, start pulling up our cameras that say our local gas stations or wherever. And then our crime center analysts can immediately now give them the information they’re viewing in live time to the officers," he said.

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Starling said in recent years - the real time crime center helped them identify and track downJeffery Kelly.

He’s accused of invading a family’s property and exposing himself in front of two children.

"In this case with Mr. Kelly, we were able to, obviously utilize our resources here to track down identities and identify who we believe he was in areas where he may be. So we weren’t solely focusing on trying to find anybody that maybe looked like him. But instead we were able to identify him as a suspect, get his actual picture, and say, this is who we’re looking for," he said.

He said the crime center also helped in the quick capture of two men charged in connection with having a high powered weapon and drugs at a Florence apartment complex.

Police said the new system is helping to close the books on a number of cases.

"We’re seeing a lot more closure rates, and just the ability to chase down these leads much quicker than in the old days," he said.

Agents at the real time crime center also track and monitor social media to help with investigations.