Countywide

A new program launched by the Fairfax County Police Department hopes to take advantage of the increasing popularity of Ring doorbells and other at-home security systems.

Connect Fairfax County, announced by the department at the end of January, will allow law enforcement to leverage surveillance cameras to hopefully speed up investigations.


Countywide

Undocumented immigrants in Fairfax County and elsewhere in Virginia could face threats on two fronts in the new year, with both national and state elected leaders proposing policies targeting that population.

As incoming president Donald Trump plans mass deportations, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin unveiled a budget proposal this week that would require local governments to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and withhold funding from those with cooperation-limiting policies, including Fairfax County.


Countywide

Thanks to a grant of nearly $1 million, Fairfax County’s emergency response stands to capitalize on recent gains in artificial intelligence.

The county’s Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC) is partnering with George Mason University’s Center for Resilient and Sustainable Communities (C-RASC) for a project that will embrace AI solutions to tackle challenges faced by emergency communications systems across the region.


Countywide

Fairfax County Public Schools is set to allocate an additional $3.4 million to safety and security upgrades, drawing from surplus revenue identified in its mid-year budget review.

The funding includes $1.5 million from a class-action settlement with Juul, as well as higher-than-expected sales tax revenue and tuition payments from the City of Fairfax.


News

Fairfax City is stepping up surveillance of its historic downtown and two public parks with the help of private security guards.

Starting today (Monday), uniformed but unarmed guards will patrol the Old Town commercial district, Stafford Drive Park (3300 Stafford Drive) and Draper Drive Park (9797 Beech Drive) as part of an eight-week security pilot program developed by the City of Fairfax Police Department.


Countywide

Approximately 100 Fairfax County Police Department personnel will be on hand in D.C. to provide public safety support services on Inauguration Day.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a memorandum of understanding today (Tuesday) with the D.C. government and U.S. Attorney for the District, authorizing county staff to participate in Presidential Inaugural Task Force from Jan. 17-21.


Countywide

A congressional committee is urging Fairfax County to rethink its approach to the use of drones — specifically those manufactured in China.

In a letter sent to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors last month, top members of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party raised national and economic security concerns related to the county’s use of drones made by DJI Technologies.


Countywide

Fairfax County’s 9-1-1 team is lending a hand to the ongoing emergency response to Hurricane Helene, which devastated the southeastern U.S., including parts of Virginia, in late September.

Four dispatchers with the county’s Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC) deployed to North Carolina this morning (Monday) after getting a call for aid from their counterparts in that state, who have been working nonstop since the storm blew through the Carolinas on Sept. 27.


Countywide

Fairfax County is among several localities across the country leaning on a new partner for 911 calls: artificial intelligence.

An AI-powered system will provide the Fairfax County Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC) with support for handling non-emergency calls, Scott Brillman, the agency’s director, told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (Oct. 1).


Countywide

Fairfax County police have determined that a threat on social media involving a potential shooting at Glasgow Middle School was unfounded, the latest in a growing trend that has families, schools and law enforcement nationwide on edge.

Glasgow administrators first alerted parents via text around 8:45 a.m. that a social media threat was being shared around the school, prompting them to call the police and other agencies for an investigation.


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