CENTER FOR CRIMINAL JUSTICE TECHNOLOGY
RESEARCH WEEKLY NEWS: Covering Law Enforcement, Corrections
& Courts across the United States
| Vol. 3 #22 September 6, 1999 |
#1 Port St. Lucie (FL) Police to get new computer system
#2 Hudson (OH) Police prepare for Y2K
#3 Wisconsin grants for technology upgrades
#4 Mundelein (IL) Police to get squad car laptops
#5 Ventura County (CA) Court puts kiosks in shopping malls
#6 Fulton County (GA) uses CJIS to select jurors
#7 Colorado tests GPS tracking of parolees
#8 Digital
booking at Madison County (IL) jail
LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Port St. Lucie (Florida) Police recently announced the purchase of a new $700,000 dispatch and records system that will include squad car laptops. The city had been spending $75,000 a year to use the records system of St. Lucie County, and spent four months evaluating systems before purchasing from HTE, Inc., a Florida firm that has done business with local law enforcement.
[Source: "City Police to Acquire Computers" by Paul T. Rosynsky; Port St. Lucie (FL) News, August 31, 1999, Pg. B1]
Item #2 HUDSON (OH) POLICE PREPARE FOR Y2K
Hudson, Ohio, Police chief Jim Brown testified on law enforcement Y2K preparedness before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on the Y2K Problem , and his remarks are on the department's home page . Brown believes preparing for Y2K helps departments think about communications and systems backup plans for other emergencies.
Item #3 WISCONSIN GRANTS FOR TECHNOLOGY UPGRADES
The Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance was recently awarded a U.S. Department of Justice National Criminal History Improvement Program grant of $730,000 to upgrade automated fingerprint identification systems across the state and improve the state's sexual offender registry. The Department of Corrections will receive $200,000 for the sexual offender registry, and 25 local police departments will receive fingerprint scanning equipment, as part of an effort to improve the accuracy of the state's arrest records.
[Source: "Federal funds to improve state checks on criminals" by Jane Eisinger; Capital Times (Madison, WI) August 27, 1999, Pg. 4A]
Item #4 MUNDELEIN (IL) POLICE TO GET SQUAD CAR LAPTOPS
Police in Mundelein, Illinois will upgrade computers in the department's nine squad cars by the end of the year. Officers spent a few months testing the computers to make sure they were compatible with the department's dispatch system. The $100,000 purchase was recently approved by the Mundelein Village Board, and will enable officers to write reports while in their cruisers.
[Source: "Patrol Cars to Get Computerized Data Systems" by Glen A. Sisk; Chicago Tribune (Lake edition) September 1, 1999, Pg. 3]
COURT TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Item #5 VENTURA COUNTY (CA) COURT PUTS KIOSKS IN SHOPPING MALLS
The Ventura County (California) Superior Court has placed four automated kiosks in local shopping malls to make it easier for the public to pay traffic fines and get basic information on the court system. The Automated Court Clerks have handled about 2% of the 100,000 traffic tickets issued in an average year, and plans are for payment to be made possible over the Internet in the near future.
[Source: "Kiosks Keeping People Out of Court" by Don Holland; Daily News of Los Angeles, August 30, 1999, Pg. TO1]
Item #6 FULTON COUNTY (GA) USES CJIS TO SELECT JURORS
In order to improve citizen participation in the jury process, Fulton County, Georgia recently began selecting juror pools from driver's license records in the county's new Criminal Justice Information System. The county formerly used voter registration records to select jurors, but has more registered drivers than registered voters.
[Source: "Fulton County Notes: Dipping Into Drivers Enlarges Juror Pool;" Atlanta (GA) Journal-Constitution, September 2, 1999, Pg. JD11]
CORRECTIONS TECHNOLOGY
NEWS
Item # 7 COLORADO TESTS GPS TRACKING OF PAROLEES
The Colorado Department of Corrections Adult Parole Division will soon begin testing Global Positioning System equipment developed by Continental Divide Robotics Inc., a company based in Denver, to track movements of parolees. The test will place ankle bracelets on 60 parolees, mostly sex offenders. The system will record all parolee movements during the test period, and authorities will be notified if a parolee goes to restricted locations. The test will cost $11.11 per parolee per day.
[Source: "Company Uses Global Positioning System to Monitor Parolees; Signal Sends Location of Ex-Con to Computer" by Dick Foster; Denver (CO) Rocky Mountain News, August 29, 1999, Pg. 12A]
Item #8 DIGITAL BOOKING AT MADISON COUNTY (IL) JAIL
The Madison County (IL) Sheriff's Office recently purchased $100,000 in fingerprinting and scanning equipment, using state grant funds, in order to speed up the jail booking process. Digital mug shots and automated fingerprinting allow rapid processing at the time of booking, and also enable the department to check prints against the Illinois State Police records database to verify the identity of an inmate.
[Source: "Updated Technology Makes Bookings Easier for Sheriff" by Heather Ratcliffe; St. Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1999, Pg. 1]
Center for Criminal Justice Technology Research Weekly News is
compiled by Jeffrey Michaels jeffreym@mitretek.org