CJITI WEEKLY NEWS: Covering
Law Enforcement, Corrections & Courts across the United States
| Vol. 2 #46 March 1, 1999 |
#1 Gaston County (NC) Police get new computer systems
#2 Portland (OR) Police get grant to link computers with ATF
#3 Two more Maine law enforcement agencies are Y2K-compliant
#4 Lexington (NE) police use of suspect I.D. software
#5 High-tech Mississippi Federal courtroom
#6 Illinois Department of Corrections inmate-tracking database
#7 Macedonia (OH) city jail gets videoconferencing link
#8 L.A. County (CA) gets grant for pollution-reducing jail videoconferencing
LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Gaston County (NC) Police have $6 million worth of new computer systems ready to come online in July 1999, including a new 911 system, geographic information system, and squad car laptops. One goal is to respond to 911 calls within nine minutes, and dispatchers should be able to use the new mapping system and upgraded communications to send the closest vehicle to a call. The new computer systems will also allow officers to write reports in their squad cars and create crime maps and analysis.
[Source: "When Minutes Count Mapping Enables Faster Response" by Jeff Diamant; Charlotte (NC) Observer, February 21, 1999, Pg. 1L and "Laptops Let Police Do Office Work on the Fly" by Jeff Diamant; Charlotte Observer, February 21, 1999, Pg. 1L]
Item #2 PORTLAND (OR) POLICE GET GRANT TO LINK COMPUTERS WITH ATF
Police in Portland, Oregon will use their share of a recent Youth Crime Gun Interdiction Initiative grant to connect its computers with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms . The $11.2 million Federal grant, to be shared by 10 cities, was designed to help police trace the source of confiscated weapons, and Portland police will be able to electronically send the make, model and serial numbers of seized weapons to get a quick trace report from the ATF.
For more information on the Youth Crime Gun Interdiction Initiative go to: http://www.atf.treas.gov/core/firearms/ycgii/ycgii.htm
[Source: "Portland Will Get Funds to Track Guns in Crimes" by Maxine Bernstein; The Oregonian (Portland, OR) February 23, 1999, Pg. B01]
Item #3 TWO MORE MAINE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES ARE Y2K-COMPLIANT
The Waldo County (ME) Sheriff's Department plans to spend $7,000 to make all 12 of its computers Y2K-compliant by mid-1999, upgrading all its hardware and any obsolete software. The Belfast Police Department recently spent $39,000 to replace its mainframe and eight networked computers.
Item #4 LEXINGTON (NE) POLICE USE OF SUSPECT I.D. SOFTWARE
Police in Lexington, Nebraska were able to use a suspect identification software package to put together an accurate composite sketch that quickly lead to the arrest of an armed robbery suspect. Lexington was among the communities sent Faces software--which includes a database of over 4,000 facial characteristics--by the America's Most Wanted television series.
[Source: "Software Puts a Face on Crime" by the Associated Press; Omaha (NE) World-Herald (Sunrise edition) February 22, 1999, Pg. 14]
COURT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Item #5 HIGH-TECH MISSISSIPPI FEDERAL COURTROOM
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi has a high-tech courtroom that includes computer monitors for each juror, as well as other evidence-presentation and videoconferencing equipment. The courtroom in Aberdeen, Mississippi is one of 12 across the country funded through the Judicial Conference of the United States .
[Source: "Mississippi Courtroom Vaults into Computer Age" by Marty Russell, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal; New Orleans Times Picayune, February 21, 1999, Pg. A12]
Top of Page
CORRECTIONS TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Item #6 ILLINOIS DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS INMATE-TRACKING DATABASE
The Illinois Department of Corrections is using a Sybase database to create detailed tracking records on its 40,000 inmates, including gang affiliations and photos that are used when moving prisoners and assigning jobs. Each of the state's 26 correctional facilities also has its own subsystem that allows records to be updated locally, increasing the timeliness and accuracy of the information.
Item # 7 MACEDONIA (OH) CITY
JAIL GETS VIDEOCONFERENCING LINK
Macedonia (OH) police have spent $6,000 for a videoconferencing system to link its jail with the Cuyahoga Falls Municipal Court. The department estimates the system will save over 600 hours of staff time that had been spent transporting inmates for arraignments, and after including the cost savings on vehicle wear and tear the video link should pay for itself within a year.
[Source: "Video System in Macedonia is Crucial Link; Police Say it Will Save Department's Time, Funds" by John Horton; Beacon Journal (Akron, OH) February 21, 1999, Pg. E1]
Item #8 L.A. COUNTY (CA)
GETS GRANT FOR POLLUTION-REDUCING JAIL VIDEOCONFERENCING
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors was recently offered a $747,284 grant from the South Coast Air Quality Management District to increase usage of the county's jail videoconferencing system. By decreasing the need for attorneys and probation officers to travel to meet inmates where they are held, the program reduces a substantial amount of auto emissions.
[Source: "More in Jail to See Lawyers By Video Visit; System Cuts Travel, Pollution" by Erin Gebroe; Daily News of Los Angeles, February 17, 1999, Pg. SC1]
CJITI Weekly News is compiled by Jeffrey Michaels jeffreym@mitretek.org