DANVILLE, Ill. (WAND) - Thirty Flock license plate reader cameras will soon be throughout the city of Danville.

Mayor Rickey Williams said they will work to catch criminals who commit serious crimes.

"Our violent crime trends are down over the last three years. However, there are still things that are happening in our community which are unacceptable. So we see this as kind of another tool to fight the bad things that still occur," he said. 

Their main goal for these cameras is to keep the city safe and change the narrative that Danville is a dangerous and violent place.

"You would think that it's the wild, wild west and you're going to get shot walking down the street. Well that's not the case. So number one, we want to help keep people safe, we want to get redemption when people's safety is violated, especially if someone is hurt or killed. Then number three, we want to help redeem the name of our city," said Williams.

With multiple communities having the cameras in surrounding areas, Williams said they can catch criminals who leave the area, too.

"If someone flees from here to let's say Champaign or Urbana and they have these cameras, it will pick them up and track them there as well. So it will help us to have kind of multi-jurisdictional connections that will help us solve some of these crimes," Williams said. 

The city hopes to have the readers installed before Christmas, but at the latest, they will be put up in the early spring.