Criminal Justice Technology in the News

Law Enforcement News

Speed Signs Will Text Pennsylvania Cops About Violations
Government Technology, (07/16/2019), Stephanie Sigafoos for the Allentown Morning Call
Police in Clarks Summit, Pa., recently began using SpeedSentry portable radar speed signs to monitor traffic. In addition to showing drivers how fast they are going, the signs take photos of cars going above a certain rate of speed and send text messages to local police warning them about dangerous driving.
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3D Mapping of Baldwin Schools, Another Step in Securing Campuses
WKRG New 5, (07/17/2019), Debbie Williams
The Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office in Alabama is using a 3D scanner normally used to recreate crime scenes to provide 3D maps of local schools. The final product will give law enforcement access to every feature of a school without actually visiting the campus.
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Birmingham Officer Cullen Stafford Turns 36 One Day After Being Shot 5 to 7 Times
Al.com, (07/17/2019), Carol Robinson
A Birmingham (Ala.) police officer’s ballistic-resistant vest stopped several shots during a running gun battle on a city street, contributing to his surviving numerous hits from a suspect’s gun. Officer Cullen Stafford remained hospitalized and facing multiple surgeries the day after the incident; the suspect died at the scene.
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Meet Miranda, the 1st Law-Enforcement Therapy Dog in Polk
The Ledger, (07/19/2019), Kathy Leigh Berkowitz
A 15-month-old yellow Labrador certified as a therapy dog joined the Winter Haven (Fla.) Police Department. Named Miranda and partnered with a Winter Haven officer, the dog will help calm trauma victims and make the interview process easier for both victims and officers. She is the first therapy dog in Polk County.
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Streetwise Clinician Helps Bring More Humane Approach to Police Calls in Berkshires
Berkshire Eagle, (07/20/2019), Amanda Drane
The Pittsfield (Mass.) Police Department partners with a local agency, the Brien Center, in a program that embeds a social worker with the department four days a week to assist with calls involving individuals experiencing a mental health crisis. This article features an in-depth profile of that program, one of 25-plus such programs in Massachusetts.
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Orange County Deputies Test Load-bearing Vests as Potential Replacement for Duty Belts
Orland Sentinel, (07/22/2019), Tess Sheets
A dozen volunteers from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Orlando, Fla., will take part in a pilot study that replaces traditional duty belts with load-bearing vests. The vests better distribute weight to increase comfort and reduce the risk of injury.
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Hamilton County Gets Ohio’s First System of Wrong-way Driver Detectors
Cincinnati Enquirer, (07/23/2019), Hannah K. Sparling
Ohio’s Hamilton County has implemented a wrong-way driver alert system on an 18-mile, 23-ramp stretch of Interstate 71 from Cincinnati to the Warren County line. The system alerts drivers they have entered an exit ramp and also alerts local law enforcement of the dangerous driving. Although wrong-way crashes are rare, they often are fatal.
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Victims of sexual assault in Portland can track status of their evidence kits online
The Oregonian, (07/23/2019), Maxine Bernstein
Since May 2019, victims of sexual assaults taking place in Portland, Ore., can check online to see whether evidence from their evidence kits has been submitted to a crime lab for testing, and if so, whether results have been sent to investigators. The online search tool does not provide test results. It is expected to become available statewide next year.
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Corrections News

Here’s How Virginia Beach Jail Is Putting an Emphasis on Rehabilitation
Southside Daily, (07/16/2019), Melanie Occhiuzzo
The Virginia Beach City Jail recently marked the three-year anniversary of its Inmate Reentry Program, which has an 85-percent success rate in reintegrating inmates into the local community. The program has graduated some 250 inmates in five years; they are considered to have succeeded if they do not re-offend within three years.
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The Unlikely Pairing of the Professor and the Lifer Yields Results for Pittsburgh Police
TribLive, (07/20/2019), Deb Erdley
This article looks at the impact made by a class called Inside Out, in which students hold weekly one-on-one discussions with inmate volunteers to get a real-world perspective on life inside a correctional institution. Developed by Pittsburgh’s Duquesne University, the class has become required training by the Pittsburgh Police Academy.
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