The Indianapolis Burglary DNA Project
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department plans to collect DNA evidence in burglary cases in the hope that serial criminals can be caught, some before they progress to violent crimes. The local crime lab will be expanded to accommodate the additional workload, with $378,000 in city funds budgeted for the project.
Dianna Penner, "Police to collect DNA in burglary cases; Officials hope test project will stop 'serial' burglars," The Indianapolis (Ind.) Star, 22 Aug. 2007: 1
DNA Cold Hit Solves 1975 Murder in Syracuse, N.Y.
A DNA cold hit has linked the man convicted of a series of rapes and murders from 1977 to 1978 in Columbus, Ga. to the rape and strangulation of a woman in Syracuse, N.Y. in 1975. Cold case detectives from Syracuse were notified that DNA evidence they submitted to CODIS got a hit from the Georgia Department of Corrections.
Tim Chitwood, "DNA ties Stocking Strangler to 1975 New York slaying," Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer, 23 Aug. 2007
License Plate Scanner Nabs Stolen Car in New York
A Nassau County police officer on patrol identified a stolen car and made two arrests thanks to the digital license-plate reader mounted atop his cruiser. The reader, which scans 15 to 25 plates per second, alerted the officer when it scanned the plate or a stolen van traveling east on the Long Island Expressway.
Michael Frazier, "Digital license-plate reader spots stolen van," Newsday (Nassau and Suffolk County, N.Y.), 24 Aug. 2007: A16
Worcester Police Get Technology Grant
The Worcester Police Department has received $173,600 from the U.S. Department of Justice's Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program, part of which will be used to equip all marked police cruisers with wireless technology that will allow officers to access criminal records and motor vehicle databases using their cruiser laptop computers. Cruisers should be wired by the end of September, making officers in the field much more efficient.
Lisa D. Welsh, "New federal grant to help police work; Cruisers to get wireless technology," Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Mass.), 31 Aug. 2007: B4
South Carolina Aims for Electronic Ticketing
As part of a statewide initiative proposed by South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office - which patrols Hilton Head Island - plans to expand its electronic ticketing program. Officers will not only be able to issue tickets more accurately and efficiently, but the citations will also be downloaded at the end of each day to improve Municipal Court operations as well.
Tim Donnelly, "Sheriff's Office goes electronic for speedier speeding tickets on island," The Island Packet (Hilton Head Island, S.C.), 27 Aug. 2007
