Public Safety Technology in the News

Port of Los Angeles Fights Crime With Mobile Video
www.CIO.com, (01/25/2010), Stephanie Overby
The nation’s busiest cargo port is expanding its surveillance capability with mobile video. The software allows transmission of live video between the Port of Los Angeles’ control centers and harbor police officers in the field. The port encompasses 7,500 acres over 43 miles of waterfront and processes 3,000 vessels each year. The mobile video capability will be in addition to an existing surveillance system of 500 cameras. The port tested Reality Mobile’s Reality Vision software in summer 2009. The software enables transmission via cell phone and has GPS capabilities for tracking police cars, boats and personnel in real time. The software will be included as a requirement in an RFP for an overall $4.2 million integrated command console system.
www.cio.com/article/522914/Port_of_Los_Angeles_Fights_Crime_With_Mobile_Video

Metro Launches Terror Drill at Union Station
The Washington Post, (02/02/2010), Ann Scott Tyson
Washington, D.C.’s Union Station was the scene of an antiterrorism exercise as part of a series of drills to improve security on the area’s Metro transit system. The exercise occurred during rush hour on Feb. 2 and involved about 50 Metro Transit Police officers, including the agency’s antiterrorism unit, dogs and bomb technicians. Riders were warned of the exercise in advance, but were not told which Metro station would be involved. Much larger exercises are planned that will involve hundreds of officers from across the metropolitan area. Tactical exercises are planned for Feb. 12, 13 and 24 that will simulate a bombing on a Metrobus, an explosion in a Metro tunnel and shooters at a Metro station. In December 2009, Metro created a 20-member antiterrorism unit, which has been making unannounced security sweeps of rail stations and tunnels. The unit is funded by at three-year, $9.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The grant is being used to pay ! for specialized training and equipment.
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/02/AR2010020200794.html?hpid=moreheadlines

New Rule Allows Use of Partial DNA Matches
The New York Times (01/24/2010), Jeremy Peters
New York has decided to allow law enforcement to use DNA from a crime scene that does not exactly match DNA found in a database to try and track down suspects. A state rule approved in December 2009 allows the DNA to be used if it closely resembles that of someone on file in the database. Family members share genetic traits. A partial DNA match allows investigators to narrow their searches to relatives of people whose DNA is already in the state database. New York’s DNA database contains more than 343,000 genetic profiles of people convicted of serious crimes. The New York rule is expected to take effect in the spring. Public privacy advocates are concerned the practice could lead to the investigation of many innocent people. State police forensic labs analyze DNA evidence and encounter 10 to 15 partial matches each year indicating that the DNA sample could belong to the relative of somebody on file. California and Denver also allow the sharing of information on partial m! atches.
www.nytimes.com/2010/01/25/nyregion/25dna.html?scp=15&sq=law%20enforcement&st=cse

Cincinnati Police Proposing New Personal Cameras
WCPO.com, (01/25/2010), Scott Wegener
Cincinnati police are considering providing officers with miniature cameras, called Taser Cams, as an additional crime-fighting tool. The city is in the midst of a pilot-project to evaluate the system. The cameras are worn on the head and are connected to a digital recorder and communications system stored in a shirt pocket or on an officer’s belt. The camera sees everything an officer sees. Each device costs about $1,500.
www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Cincinnati-Police-Proposing-New-Personal-Cameras/-koo8uicPEqjLQwLj31LaA.cspx

Sheriff's Office Gets Technology Grant
Daily World, (01/29/2010), Judy Bastien
The St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office will use a federal grant to improve information sharing among criminal justice agencies. The parish will used the $487,585 grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance to buy software, mobile computers and air cards for patrol units to help collect and share of information. The sheriff’s office will install a data system to allow officers to submit incident reports from remote locations, access the database to assist investigations, generate monthly Uniformed Crime Reports and improve intelligence-gathering. Officers will be able to file reports from patrol cars using laptops.
www.dailyworld.com/article/20100129/NEWS01/1290307

Study: Driver Cell Phone Bans Don’t Reduce Crashes
The Examiner, (01/29/2010), Markham Heid
laws banning handheld cell phone use while driving have not lowered the number of auto accidents, according to a new study. The study by the Highway Loss Data Institute examined insurance claim records in the District of Columbia, New York, Connecticut and California because those jurisdictions have had hands-free cell phone laws in place the longest. Institute representative Russ Rader said surprisingly, the study found that there was no change in crash trends during the time before the ban compared to after the ban. The District of Columbia banned handheld cell phones while driving in 2004. Hands-free devices are allowed. A recent American Automobile Association study found that hands-free cell phone use was not safer than talking on a handheld device. An AAA Mid-Atlantic statement issued in response to the new study said that the real danger is distracted driving, which is not confined to cell phone users.
www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/Study_-Driver-cell-phone-bans-don_t-reduce-crashes-82988542.html

Use of Twitter, Facebook Rising Among Gang Members
The Associated Press via The Washington Post, (02/02/2010), Thomas Watkins
Gangs are making greater use of social networking sites such as MySpace, Twitter and Facebook, which can help police in their investigations. Gang members sometimes post information that helps investigators identify gang associates and learn more about their organization. People involved in criminal activity use the networking sites to make threats and boast about crimes, which can be monitored by law enforcement. In a case in California, “tweets” on Twitter alerted police to three other gang members who were subsequently arrested on drug charges. Capt. Walt Myer, director of the Riverside County (Calif.) regional gang task force, said like the general public, when any kind of new technology comes along, gangs may try to use it.
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/02/AR2010020200499.html

Overcrowding in Prisons Likely to Get Worse, Officials Say
Charleston Daily Mail, (01/26/2010), Sara Gavin
Expanding work release programs and streamlining West Virginia’s parole system as well as new prison construction are among proposals being considered by officials as ways to reduce overcrowding in the state’s prisons. Prisons around the state have beds for 5,000 inmates, but West Virginia currently has 6,300 inmates in its correctional system. Regional jails are helping house inmates, but that is not a long-term solution. Current predictions show that the state’s prison population could reach 8,500 by the end of 2012. A bill proposed by Gov. Joe Manchin would provide early parole eligibility for nonviolent offenders who complete an advanced rehabilitation treatment program.
www.dailymail.com/News/201001250635

state Cops Issuing Electronic Citations
Pike County Press, (01/28/2010)
Pennsylvania State Police are the latest law enforcement officers to use computer technology to issue electronic traffic citations. Police Commissioner Frank Pawlowski said the system reduces by half the 15 minutes usually required to issue a citation and enhances officer safety by cutting the time an officer has to stand along roadways. The electronic citation system is part of the Pennsylvania State Police TraCS project. When an officer enters driver’s license and registration information into a patrol vehicle’s computer, state and national databases are automatically checked to determine whether the driver has outstanding warrants or if the vehicle has been reported stolen. Also, the system sends the citation automatically to the traffic court.
pikecountypress.com/wordpress/2010/01/28/state-cops-issuing-electronic-citations/

Study Shows Link Between Crime and Traffic Violations
WMBF.com, (01/28/2010)
South Carolina law enforcement agencies recently spent time learning about Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS). DDACTS is supported by a partnership between the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Bureau of Justice Assistance and the National Institute of Justice. DDACTS allows agencies to make a link between traffic violations and crime. Agencies track crime and collisions to identify locations with high rates of both, then target the area. Officials note that crimes often involve the use of motor vehicles.
www.wmbfnews.com/Global/story.asp?S=11896680