Someone posted this press release on Phillyblog yesterday.

McClure Calls On Curtis Jones to Release all Information About PCDC's Faulty Surveillance Camera System - 3/26/2007

McClure Calls on Curtis Jones to Release all Information About PCDC's Faulty Surveillance Camera System

Jones spends PCDC money for campaign calls about cameras before he stepped
down from PCDC - now the cameras have been revealed to be a sham.

PHILADELPHIA: Today, Matt McClure, a candidate for the Democratic nomination
in the 4th Councilmanic District, called on his primary opponent, Curtis
Jones, Jr., to disclose all details about the contract awarded to Ronin
Security to provide video surveillance at 54th and Berks Streets by the
Philadelphia Commercial Development Corporation (PCDC) while Jones was its
head. On Friday, Channel 6 Action News reported that the cameras did not
work and the system is only checked once every two weeks to see if it was
functioning properly.

McClure said, "It is unacceptable that the cameras don't work, but it is
especially outrageous that no one is even monitoring these cameras to
attempt to prevent crimes from occurring. These non-functioning cameras
lull people into a false sense of security when they should instead be
making people more secure."

Last fall, while still head of the PCDC, Jones announced that five cameras
would be installed along 54th Street. Using PCDC money, automated calls
were placed to members of the 4th District, where Jones is running,
proclaiming the success of this program and prominently mentioning his name
repeatedly.

A $700,000 grant from the Justice Department funded these cameras at the
request of Jones' mentor Congressman Fattah. On Friday, Channel 6 Action
News reported that most of the cameras did not work - despite Jones' on-air
statement that they were working at that very moment.

"Curtis Jones was responsible for bringing these cameras into the community
and they don't work. Meanwhile crime in the Fourth District has continued
unabated. Now he needs to immediately disclose all contract terms with
Ronin Security and explain why he awarded the contract to them when it is
clear they can't handle it," continued McClure. "Is this another case of
no-bid pay to play corruption hurting our communities?"

Left unanswered are many questions as to why the Justice Department believed
this was a worthwhile project, why the Police Department did not receive the
funding, why a quasi-public development agency has the right to videotape
private citizens, why PCDC chose to privatize the monitoring instead of
using city uniformed officers, why PCDC was making automated calls of a
political nature, and how Ronin Security was selected for this contract.

In contrast, the City of Philadelphia is in the midst of installing over
1,000 video surveillance cameras that will be constantly monitored by the
Police Department at a much lower cost per camera. The same $700,000 grant
could have instead funded several full-time police officers to patrol the
Winnfield beat, or allowed for close to fifty cameras through the city's
program.

"We need real change if we are going to build a safer, better community,"
closed McClure. "Clearly Curtis Jones is just another insider who spends
too much time denying responsibility and creating political stunts instead
of actually improving neighborhoods. We need change and we need it now."

McClure, a 4th generation Philadelphian, began his professional career
working for the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, DC before returning
to Philadelphia to work for then-Mayor Ed Rendell. He is currently an
attorney at Ballard Spahr. He and his wife Kelly and their two children
live in East Falls.