New York City Unveils 'Real Time Crime Center'
A new state-of-the-art information hub went online as of 8 a.m. July 18 to assist NYPD detectives during the most critical point of the investigation—as crimes are still unfolding. The $11 million high-tech Real Time Crime Center offers instant access to various law enforcement databases ranging from the broad (crime patterns) to the personal (suspect nicknames).
Source: Daryl Khan, “City adds high-tech center to crime-fighting,” Newsday (New York), 15 July 2005: A12
Archangel Used to Deploy LAPD Following London Bombings
Following the July 7 subway bombings in London, the LAPD quickly beefed up patrols at critical sites, based on the Operation Archangel system designed to minimize the damage of terrorist attacks by helping local police agencies mobilize quickly after a first strike. Archangel, a web-based system, is a partnership between the City and County of Los Angeles, the California Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Source: Josh Kleinbaum, “System Prioritizes Potential Targets; Operation Archangel Deploys Cops,” The Daily News of Los Angeles, 8 July 2005: N15
Delaware Posts Outstanding Warrants Online
The names and offenses of more than 50,000 individuals wanted in Delaware were posted on July 15 by the Delaware Criminal Justice Information System (DELJIS) as the state revved up its new "Wanted Person Review." The list is to be updated daily at http://www.state.de.us/deljis under DELJIS News.
Source: Robin Brown, “Del. posts 'Wanted Persons Review' on Internet; from speeding tickets to homicide, more than 50,000 names and offenses listed,” The News Journal (Wilmington, Del.), 16 July 2005: 1B
DNA Cold Hit Solves 1990 Chicago Murders
A DNA cold hit from the FBI Laboratory's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) has linked an Illinois parolee to two Chicago murders and the rape of a 12-year-old girl in September 1990. The suspect was convicted in 1992 in the slaying of a 29-year-old woman and served half of a 25-year sentence before being paroled in December 2004, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Source: Jeff Coen, “Ex-con charged in 1990 slayings; DNA from girl's rape that day is linked to man, authorities say,” The Chicago Tribune, 3 July 2005: C3
Narragansett, R.I. Police Prepare to Upgrade Radio Communications
The Narragansett, R.I. Police Department has modernized its dispatch center with $300,000 in top-end computer and radio equipment in anticipation of the town's first-in-the-state switch from analog to digital radio communication. The department probably will not make the switch to digital communications until September, after final preparation and testing work is completed.
Source: Arthur Gregg Sulzberger, “Police gearing up for the new age of communication,” The Providence (R.I.) Journal, 12 July 2005: C1
Stevens Point, Wis. Police Gets Grant for Software
The Stevens Point, Wis. Police Department plans to test crime mapping and records management software in squad cars toward the end of July, thanks to a $56,000 grant and new wireless antennas set up around the city. The program can plot the places that a category of crime like burglaries, thefts or assaults have happened on a city map to help officers see patterns and trouble spots, and offers instant access to clues like partial license plate numbers and photos of suspects.
Source: Andrew Dowd, “Police department goes high-tech; Officers to get Internet access to criminal records,” The Stevens Point (Wis.) Journal, 5 July 2005: 3A
Miami-Dade's $8.9 Million Technology Upgrade
The Miami-Dade Police Department has distributed 1,100 laptops to road officers and sergeants throughout the county as part of an $8.9 million countywide technology upgrade. Officers plug their laptops into ports mounted in the center console of their cars in order to run vehicle tags, do background checks and review information about calls dispatched over the county’s private 800 MHz radio network
Source: Elaine Ayo, “Police go high-tech with laptops; Part of an $8.9 million upgrade in computer technology, police officers can now do research from their patrol cars at the touch of a button,” The Miami (Fla.) Herald, 17 July 2005: B3
Arizona's Response to London Bombings
Following the July 7 London bombings, counterterrorism specialists with the Arizona Counter Terrorism Information Center (AcTIC) contacted officers at every police department in the state and gave them a briefing on how the situation would affect Arizona. The Department of Homeland Security paid for the $5.3 million AcTIC complex, run by the Arizona Office of Homeland Security, and Arizona taxpayers pick up the salaries for AcTIC employees.
Source: J.J. Hensley, “Phoenix Center a Hub for Coordinating Terrorism Data,” The Arizona Republic, 9 July 2005: 1B
