DETROIT, MI — The City Council unanimously approved an ordinance requiring gas stations to install and strategically place digital video surveillance cameras to improve security. Councilman Andre Spivey listed a number of incidents in which higher-quality or better-configured gas station cameras would have helped police capture suspects in serious crimes. He said the severe beating of a Roseville man near a Detroit gas station was one of those cases.

"The most recent story that’s gained national attention was Mr. Steven Utash at the gas station on Morang and Balfour," Spivey said. "They had cameras, but had they been placed strategically, where they ought to be, with (more) pixels, you’d have seen the actual faces of those who committed the crime."

Utash was beaten by an angry crowd after he got out of his vehicle to check on a 10-year-old boy who stepped into the road and was struck by his pickup truck, according to police. He remained in critical condition Tuesday, police said.

The boy, David Harris, was at home recovering. Police suspect a group of about 10 people took part in the attack. Four suspects have been arrested. One, 17-year-old Bruce Wimbush, Jr., was arraigned Tuesday on assault charges.

The ordinance was not directly in response to the Utash case. The council began considering it last year, Spivey said. But he listed the incident as an example of why the measure was needed. […]