CJITI WEEKLY NEWS: Covering
Law Enforcement, Corrections & Courts across the United States
| Vol. 3 #10 May 24, 1999 |
#1 Cromwell (CT) police add web address to sides of patrol car
#2 Nebraska police receive grant for laptops
#3 College Park (GA) police to purchase squad car laptops
#4 Tucson (AZ) police use grant to purchase web kiosks for public use
#5 Signal Hill (CA) police contract to use Long Beach police systems
#6 Kentucky criminal justice computer upgrades planned
#7 Iowa court Y2K repairs
#8 Maine
Department of Corrections Y2K repairs
LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Cromwell (CT) police have added their web page address -- www.cromwellpd.com -- to the sides of their supervisory patrol car, and plan to add the address to their remaining seven cruisers in the near future. Officials hope their site will offer an additional method of public outreach, and the department's page will evolve according to residents' needs.
[Source: "Police Department Has First Cruiser with E-Mail Address; Latest
in Marked Cars Invites Web Site Visit" by Eric Rich; Hartford (CT) Courant,
May 14, 1999]
Top of Page
Item #2 NEBRASKA POLICE RECEIVE GRANT FOR LAPTOPS
A team of Nebraska law enforcement agencies composed of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office and police in Omaha , Ralston and Elkhorn was recently awarded a COPS MORE grant of $2.6 million. The grant will pay for 240 squad car laptops for Omaha police, 60 for Douglas County, and 31 for Ralston, Elkhorn and the Omaha Fire Department. The grant proposal listed the laptops as being the equivalent of adding 162.8 officers to the departments.
[Source: "Funding for Computers Calculated as Officers" by Matt Kelley; Omaha (NE) World-Herald, May 16, 1999, Pg. 6A]
Item #3 COLLEGE PARK (GA) POLICE TO PURCHASE SQUAD CAR LAPTOPS
College Park (GA) Police have been authorized by the City Council to spend $145,313 in confiscated drug funds to purchase 20 new squad car laptops and other computer equipment to make the department Y2K-compliant. The new system will replace one the department purchased in 1971.
[Source: "South Fulton Roundup: College Park;" Atlanta (GA) Journal-Constitution, May 20, 1999, Pg. JK3]
Item #4 TUCSON (AZ) POLICE USE GRANT TO PURCHASE WEB KIOSKS FOR PUBLIC USE
The Tucson (AZ) Police Department has set up 10 touch-screen computer kiosks in city buildings across the city for those who want to access the department's home page but lack the computers to do so. The kiosks will offer free printing, and will allow residents to access crime statistics, most wanted lists, frequently asked questions, safety tips and other information. The kiosks were funded through a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice.
[Source: "Police data now offered at 10 kiosks" by Heather Romero; Arizona Daily Star, May 15, 1999]
Item #5 SIGNAL HILL (CA) POLICE CONTRACT TO USE LONG BEACH POLICE SYSTEMS
Police in Signal Hill, California have signed a five-year contract with the nearby Long Beach Police Department to share its dispatch and records management system for $48,500 per year plus $150,000 in initial set-up fees. Signal Hill Police will get squad car laptops through the contract which will be repaired and serviced by Long Beach Police.
[Source: "Signal Hill Highlights; Two Cities Will Share Crime Data" by Richard Howland; Press-Telegram (Long Beach, CA) May 19, 1999, Pg. E1]
Item #6 KENTUCKY CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMPUTER UPGRADES PLANNED
This editorial supports Kentucky criminal justice officials' plans to upgrade computer links between police, courts and corrections, particularly to better track parolees. The state plans an integrated system that will make felony and misdemeanor arrest records from across the state accessible to judges at sentencing, so repeat offenders can be identified more readily.
[Source: "Dangerous Disconnect Speed Up Installation of Computers to Track Parolees;" Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader, May 8, 1999, Pg. A12]
COURT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Item # 7 IOWA COURT Y2K REPAIRS
Iowa's Judicial Branch has spent $15.5 million over the last ten years to computerize its records, and now must spend $335,000 to repair Y2K programming glitches in the Iowa Court Information System which first went online in parts of the state in 1987. The Legislature has authorized about $20 million for Y2K repairs of state computers, and court officials expect to have a contingency plan written by September to prepare for possible power failures and other events that could occur because of Y2K or a natural disaster.
[Source: "Court system makes Y2K fixes; Iowa is spending more than $335,000 on repairs" by Lynn Hicks; Des Moines (IA) Register, May 17, 1999]
CORRECTIONS TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Item #8 MAINE DEPARTMENT
OF CORRECTIONS Y2K REPAIRS
The Maine Department of Corrections has spent about $200,000 on its Y2K repairs, including hiring a full-time employee to identify its equipment with embedded chips and to verify with vendors that all were Y2K-compliant. The department expects to have all its systems compliant by July, except for the heating systems at some prisons which may require an additional $60,000 in upgrades. The department is also helping county jails across the state with their Y2K planning and repairs.
[Source: "Public safety officials stomping Y2K bug; Police, fire officials expect few problems" by Renee Ordway; Bangor (ME) Daily News, May 17, 1999]
CJITI Weekly News is compiled by Jeffrey Michaels jeffreym@mitretek.org