Should Law Enforcers Use Geospatial Technology

Computerized communication within law enforcement has and will continue to improve law enforcement as the technology is implemented and utilized within these agencies. The utilization of such devices as mobile data terminals (MDT’s) has given the average patrol officer access to enormous amounts of information. Even in 1979, Computer and technology were said to “have the potential to aid in criminal justice activities through the rapid communication of accurate and complete information, and perhaps a more rational approach to decision-making” (Colton, 1979. P.19). Now in 2014, the computers and

Specialized cameras now allow crime techs to capture entire crime scenes on video for later reference. Therefore, GPS devices and forensic science have also been improved by technology and have enhanced law enforcement organizations’ ability to function.

data concerning parcels, building, streets, roads, and highways, and to store aerial photographs and other geographic information to be used by various departments and agencies (e.g., planning, utilities). In addition, such agencies often obtain tabular and geographic data from other sources such as census information, demographic information, and typological information and store them along with local geographic data. It is important to note that crime analysts do not collect or maintain the data housed in geographic data systems; rather, they only borrow and use these data in their analyses.

The data could be used to open up chances to find data without having to depend on which stories would make it to the front page of the newspaper, or the lead story on the evening news. It would allow citizens to search unrestricted material, to lure networks, and to understand different potentials for interrogative work of the police. Crime spotting allows us to do more than search for what we already have knowledge of. Citizens can use this data to develop improved information about what’s going on in their neighborhoods and to draw new assumptions of their own.

From the night watch in Boston, to the present day policing, law enforcement has behind in the world of technology. As time rolled through the political era, professional era, and community-oriented era, police patrols would use the rapidly advancing technology in their favor. "Those were desperate times for policemen in a hostile country with unpaved streets and uneven sidewalks, sometimes miles from the police station, with little prospects of assistance in case of need.... It took nerve to be a policeman in those days," this was reported by Chief Francis O 'Neill of the Chicago Police Department in 1903. With only having a printing press and a multiple-shot revolver over a hundred years ago, the advancement in technology today has helped improve the policing methods in patrol quite significantly. However, technology would eventually out-run the police.

Moving along, one of the biggest issues and trends facing law enforcement today and in the future is the use of technology. Today, police organizations have access to a wide range of technological tools, and they are continually advancing and improving. Some of these include records management systems, computer-aided dispatch, GPS technology, license plate readers, biometrics (facial recognition software, for example), crime mapping via geographical information systems, and less-than-lethal weapons (Tasers, beanbag rounds, tear gas,

Summary: Chapter 4: Geoprofilers assist officers with discovering the location of where a criminal resides or the locations they may be going to find their victims. Geoprofiler use two methods to investigate; geographic mapping and /or geographic profiling. Geographic mapping provides a visual map of places that have the highest rates of multiple crimes, drug selling or victimization. Geographic profiling is associated with determining the spatial movements of a serial offender. There are two theories for Geographic profiling; routine activity theory and rational choice theory, both were developed by Paul and Patricia Brantingham.

Among the most precious information in criminal inquiries is the location of suspects, and when it comes to location records captured by smartphones, court rulings have also been inconsistent. Privacy advocates

As covered in lecture, the e-text also stressed the importance of law enforcement operating with up-to-date with the technology. The e-text also discussed law enforcement at a state level. The North Dakota Public Alerts is a state agency as it serves to protect and aid the entire state of North Dakota, not just a specific jurisdiction of the state.

Without having a criminal justice system there would be no order. Being in the law enforcement field, if it's being a police officer, probation officer, or even a correctional officer it is essential that everyone communicates with everyone. By colloaborating with each other it ensures that everyone is on the same page when it comes to things. Working together this way helps to create the same justice that we have for our victims but in our communities as well. In order for the criminal justice system to function effectively all three components of the criminal justice system is an essential part.

The model is well equipped to deal with serious and organised crime operating on a national or international scale. It is a collaborative enterprise which is very useful in full-scale intelligence operations (Bell, 2013). As criminals advance with the advancements in technology, so too does law enforcement. The means to collect data then access it and share it almost instantaneously allows police officers to keep track of criminals and therefore, potentially, prevent serious crime far more efficiently than they could in the

The license plate reader, LPR is a mobile plate hunter that comprises of a camera(s) placed on the outside of a squad car that is then connected to a computer database inside the squad car. The plate hunter has the capacity to recognize the character on a number plate and rapidly relay the information to the database computer that would verify of the owner or the automobile has any record or if the vehicle has been reported stolen/missing. This ability is even possible when the squad car is moving at 75 mph and can check up to 3, 000 number plates within an hour. Any offending incidence is brought to the attention of the officers by a siren or alarm the computer makes; stolen or revoked license. (Hanlon 2007)

For example, big data system helps NYPD to identify if the 911 emergency call is real or a prank, if it’s true, how many officers are needed to respond, and what equipment is necessary to bring. DAS is the great product that applies big data technology into real life, especially useful for law-enforcement agencies that requires predictive analysis, the percentage of each incident happen in where and when. DAS using existing big databases and camera feeds to create a visualizing map of New York City. From my viewpoint, NYPD actually could prevent some unusually actives using DAS, camera feeds and other sensors. If someone is on NYPD watching list, they could use DAS to focus on that particular person, located him or her anytime by using 3,000 cameras positioned throughout Manhattan,

Historically, technological innovation has served as the substance for intense changes in the organization of police work and has presented both opportunities and challenges to police and other criminal justice practitioners, according to Janet Chan, a social scientist who has studied how information technology affects the way police do their jobs.1 Noting that .information is the stock-in- trade of policing,. Chan has identified three general imperatives driving law enforcement’s evening investment in information technology. Using information technology in policing has add that more efficiency to the police department. Comparing the old-fashioned way of patrolling the streets to combat crime to then use them of using technology to predict the crime area and patrolling in advance deters crimes from happening. There are many advantages associated with using information technology in policing. Comparative analysis shows that using information technology (IT) to combat crime has save lot of resources and time in the police department. There are a number of other advantages that can be associated with the use of information technology in the police department.

Nevertheless, Button, Sharples & Harper (2007) cited that at the time its full benefits could not be fully realized due to a number of reasons. To begin with, matching data to maps was unrealistic both in terms of time and efforts spend. In addition, technology at the time was either inferior or expensive. For example in the 1970s main frame computers were popular only with large organizations, which were financially strong (Button, Sharples & Harper 2007). Nevertheless, things begun to take a turn in 1980s, whereby prices begun to decline and hence desktops become essential in storing crime reports. More recently, the cost of both computer software and hardware has reduced substantially. In turn its application in, analyzing, investigating, and preventing, crime in its context is equally increasing. At Present crime mapping is possible due to the fact that it utilizes Geographic Information System (GIS). Crime records, which are stored in police desktops, should contain information about the location of the crime and other indication of the crime pattern. If that is the case, the GIS and mapping software will integrate this information with geographical coordinates to provide more detail report on the crime incidents (Goldstein & McEwen, 2009).