Allegheny County (PA) Police get DNA cold hit
The Allegheny County (Pennsylvania) Police Department recently received word of a DNA cold hit on an October 1998 murder in McKeesport. The Pennsylvania State Police laboratory in Greensburg matched crime scene evidence to the DNA sample of a state prison inmate serving 20- to 40-years for a 1999 assault conviction. It was the first arrest by Allegheny County police using the state DNA database, which currently includes nearly 23,000 samples.
Source: "Pa. Law Requiring DNA From Convicts is Solving Crimes" by Michael A. Fuoco; Pittsburgh (PA) Post-Gazette, January 5, 2003, Pg. A1
DNA cold hit I.D.s serial rapist in Kansas
The Wichita (Kansas) Police Department recently received word of a DNA cold hit linking a local truck driver already charged with the decapitation of a local woman to several area and in-state rapes, as well as at least two 1992 rape cases in Illinois. Wichita police discovered the connection after submitting his DNA to the FBI's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
Source: "DNA links Wichita man to series of unsolved rapes;" The Associated Press State & Local Wire, December 31, 2002
N.J. State Police pilot project
New Jersey State Police and the New Jersey Judiciary have completed a successful pilot project in which a group of troopers had direct access to municipal court traffic-related warrants from their cruisers, enabling them to identify more than 5,000 motorists with outstanding warrants. As a result, the program will be expanded to all State Police cruisers and will also be made available to 7,500 municipal squad cars statewide that are equipped with wireless computers. There are more than 12.5 million electronic traffic ticket records stored in the Judiciary's centralized Automated Traffic System, so wider access to the database should lead to more arrests for outstanding warrants. A press release on the project provides additional information.
Source: "Trenton: New Traffic-Ticket Computers" by Stacy Albin; The New York Times, December 19, 2002, Pg. B9
Woodbury County (IA) upgrades dispatch communications
The Woodbury County (Iowa) Sheriff’s Office is upgrading its dispatch center to improve emergency response. It is being outfitted with geographic information system (GIS) maps and a global positioning system (GPS) to track the exact location of police cars, which will allow dispatchers to send the closest unit to the emergency call. The system will also improve officer safety by tracking police vehicles at all times.
Source: "Technology lets dispatchers track police cars;" The Associated Press State & Local Wire, December 18, 2002
Hillsborough County (FL) gets homeland security grant
The Hillsborough County (Florida) Sheriff’s Office received a three-year, $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to increase statewide homeland security awareness and protection measures. The Department plans to add 10 deputies to serve on various community watch groups, including Neighborhood Watch, Business Watch, and Worship Watch, in order to raise citizen participation in the prevention of and response to terrorism.
Source: "Sheriff Expands Watch Programs with Homeland Security Grant," by Jose Patino Girona; The Tampa (FL) Tribune, December 15, 2002, Pg.1
Hawaii's Homeland Security Advisory System
Hawaii has issued a six level statewide homeland security system to alert its citizens to acts of terrorism and to initiate quick and efficient response procedures. Each level comes with recommendation pamphlets, created by the Hawaii Emergency Preparedness Executive Committee, in which citizens can prepare and react in accordance with the current security level. More information on Hawaii's Homeland Security Advisory System can be found on the Hawaii State Civil Defense Web site .
Source: "Security alert system for Hawaii introduced," by James Gonser; The Honolulu (HI) Advertiser, December 31, 2002, Pg. 1B
