Tampa Police rolled out their newest tactics today to help keep the peace at the upcoming Republican National Convention. Steve Newborn reports they have learned a few lessons from previous cities that hosted conventions that weren't so peaceful.
Tampa police showed off their new uniforms, a fleet of two hundred bicycles and - most importantly - a demonstration of how their training can keep violence from escalating. But the most important lesson they learned, according to Police Chief Jane Castor, is how police in the last GOP convention host city, St. Paul, were prepared. There, city police and other security officials weren't even on the same radio frequency.
CASTOR: Our communication is much, much better. We are on real-time communication with every officer in the downtown area. And so we will be able to monitor crowd and traffic through the camera system there downtown with our officers. And then also, we've got the two-way communication with all of the citizens and business owners in the downtown area.
That means people living and working around the convention will be able to tell officers if they spot any trouble brewing.