Alexandria (VA) Police get squad car laptops
Alexandria Police officers will soon become the first in Northern Virginia to prepare police reports on laptop computers in their vehicles, the culmination of a four-year process to create a technology infrastructure for the department. In the first phase of implementation, officers will be able to prepare incident reports online. Officers will also be able to run license plate checks, communicate by silent dispatch, view online maps of the city, and view diagrams of city intersections while preparing accident reports.
Source: “Taking A Bite Out Of Police Red Tape; Alexandria Putting Laptops in Cruisers” by Patricia Davis; The Washington Post, February 1, 2001, Pg. VA01
Washington County (MN) use of wireless ticketing system
The Washington County (Minnesota) Sheriff's Office and other local police departments are using a wireless electronic ticketing system to speed up the issuing of traffic violations and reduce handwriting errors. Tickets are issued using handheld computers, with a copy to the driver and instant transmission to the courthouse. The project began in 1995 and was tested in a few communities over subsequent years. Beginning in November 2000, the system was implemented by police in Oakdale, Stillwater, Newport and St. Paul Park.
Source: “Computers trim paper trail by transmitting ticket to court; System expanding in Washington County” by Jim Adams; Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN) January 20, 2001, Pg. B1
Guilford County (NC) use of digital mug shots
The Guilford County (North Carolina) Sheriff's Department maintains a database of 200,000 photos that it shares with the Greensboro Police Department when mug shots need to be compiled for viewing by crime victims or witnesses. The digital lineup is much more efficient than bringing people in off the street, and allows officers to quickly assemble groups of photos by physical characteristics. Digital mug shots can even be altered to show suspects with different hairstyles and older features.
Source: “Computers Make Lineups Much Easier” by Kristen Everett; News & Record (Greensboro, NC) January 24, 2001, Pg. A1
Seattle (WA) Police to get CDPD network
The Seattle (Washington) Police Department receives about 800,000 telephone calls a year, and the Seattle Fire Department receives about 70,000 calls. Seattle officials are planning a new cellular digital packet data wireless network for the departments, and have purchased user-friendly software to help officers receive information over the CDPD network.
Source: "City to Use New System for Police and Fire Calls;” The Seattle (WA) Post-Intelligencer, January 24, 2001, Pg. E2
Alaska's use of DNA database
Last year, Alaska became the eleventh state qualified to file DNA profiles in the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), which includes the FBI's National DNA Index System and 35 state systems. CODIS currently includes nearly 500,000 DNA profiles of convicted criminals and 21,000 profiles from unknown individuals gathered at crime scenes. The Alaska State Crime Lab has submitted 380 profiles of convicted felons and 13 unidentified profiles into CODIS. Alaska's criminal history database now includes a note indicating if someone owes a DNA sample, which can be collected at a traffic stop.
Source: “Detecting DNA; National computer file, more precise DNA tests promise trouble for Alaska's violent criminals” by Sheila Toomey; Anchorage (AK) Daily News, February 4, 2001, Pg. A1
Cold hits from California's DNA database
The California Department of Justice (DOJ) DNA Laboratory in Berkeley— which currently maintains almost 200,00 DNA samples from convicts— recently made five "cold hits" in one day that identified different suspects for five unrelated sexual assault cases, including a murder-rape. The hits occurred when 21,000 newly developed DNA profiles of convicted felons were compared for the first time to crime scene evidence from unsolved cases. A press release with more details on this activity is at: http://caag.state.ca.us/press/2001/01-012.htm
Source: “DNA databank puts state in new crime-fighting era; One Day's Work: Samples point to suspects in five sexual assaults” by Timm Herdt; Ventura County (CA) Star, February 7, 2001, Pg. A1
