NLECTC Law Enforcement & Corrections Technology News Summary

Thursday, March 1, 2007

"Camera's Eye New Weapon in Crime Fight"
Philadelphia Inquirer (02/26/07); Fernandez, Bob

A group of about 65 industrial companies in Port Richmond, a one-square-mile neighborhood in Philadelphia, have spent $120,000 to purchase and install high-tech cameras that can detect suspicious activity, photograph faces and licenses plate from three blocks away, and eventually send real-time video straight to a police cruiser. The cameras are the latest effort to eliminate the crime and trash dumping that has plagued the Port Richmond area, driving away potential customers and employees. Port Richmond companies have already spent about $1.6 million over the past decade to replace signs, convert an empty lot into a park, widen corners for tractor-trailers, repair sidewalks, install security fences, and pay for a private company to remove trash. So far the company has removed 20,000 dumped tires from sidewalks, curbs, and yards in the area. Drug dealers and prostitutes populate the area, last year an employee was shot five blocks from his plant, and numerous muggings have happened to others.
http://www.philly.com/mld
/inquirer/business/16784071.htm

"City Sees Early Success in GPS Program"
San Bernardino County Sun (CA) (02/26/07); Nelson, Joe

In March 2006, the city of San Bernardino, Calif., partnered with the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to use ankle bracelets with global positioning system (GPS) technology to monitor high-risk gang parolees. Since that time, nearly 40 gang members equipped with the bracelets returned to jail for breaking their release terms, according to authorities. An average of three parolees per month are being rearrested, says Ernie Bastarache, a San Bernardino parole agent who oversees the program and monitors the parolees. The ankle bracelets constitute one part of the city's 18-point anti-crime initiative released last year by Mayor Pat Morris. He also wants to collaborate with officials beyond the city to reduce instances of violent crime. Meanwhile, Brad Mitzelfelt, the 1st District supervisor for San Bernardino County, says he has proposed expanding the GPS tracking program for gangs across the county. "Just based on our experience with sexual predators, we know it's been an effective tool," said Mitzelfelt's representative David Zook. San Bernardino police officials are still working on issues about sharing information with the Redlands Police Department. Officials note that each GPS bracelet costs about $2,000 and the cost for daily monitoring via GPS costs about $8; in addition, agents who monitor parolees need to be adequately trained and paid. http://www.sbsun.com
/news/ci_5306130


"Panel Calls for Funding to Speed DNA Processing"
Inside Bay Area (CA) (02/26/07); Bailey, Brandon

In California, the state has concluded that the state's crime labs are encountering significant delays in DNA processing, and that the state crime lab in Richmond needs emergency funding to hire more technicians. The lab now has a backlog of 150,000 samples from convicted felons as mandated by a 2004 law requiring that the state's DNA database be greatly broadened. The lab also processes crime scene findings for cities and counties. In Santa Clara County, the crime lab says it processes most DNA samples within 60 days or less, and that especially urgent cases can be completed within two or three days. Officials in Oakland say its lab, operated by the city's police department, analyzed just a third of the samples from rape probes in the city in 2005. "Most laboratories are not adequately staffed to provide timely information on investigative level cases," according to Thomas Nasser, director of Orange County's crime lab and president of a statewide organization for crime lab chiefs. The commission, which has been assessing several criminal justice issues for the California Legislature, also wants the new Attorney General Jerry Brown to search for solutions at the state and local levels. Meanwhile, the state Department of Justice has failed to keep pace in creating a statewide database designed to compare DNA samples with those already in the state database. In 2009, meanwhile, state law will require that DNA samples be taken from anyone who is arrested or charged with a felony offense. http://www.insidebayarea.com
/dailyreview/localnews/ci_5306860

"Surveillance Cameras' Latest Job: Interpret the Threats They See"
Boston Globe (02/26/07)

Surveillance cameras are increasingly becoming a part of public life, and they are becoming smarter, too. The dawn of the "intelligent video" era is on the horizon, as security companies and researchers are creating algorithm-based camera systems capable of intelligently interpreting the scenes they are monitoring. For example, some cameras under development could eventually uncover suspicious behavior just by analyzing the way a person walks. Other cameras would be capable of determining a person's height or identifying unattended bags in airports. Casinos already use cameras that can detect known gamblers who cheat, and a camera network in Baltimore is capable of taking pictures of vandals and people who engage in illegal dumping, even interacting with them via a recorded message. As camera systems become more intelligent, ideally this would mean that fewer people would be needed to monitor video surveillance screens. Intelligent surveillance cameras can be programmed to look for things that are out of the ordinary--for example, a camera system monitoring a store parking lot can be programmed to focus on people loitering in the parking lot instead of those who enter the store directly.
http://www.boston.com/business
/technology/articles/2007/02/26/su
rveillance_cameras_latest_job_interp
ret_the_threats_they_see/

"With Full-Body X-ray, a Closer Look at Air Travelers"
Christian Science Monitor (02/26/07); Bowers, Faye

A new security device introduced on Friday at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is meant to enable officials to locate weapons, including plastic explosives on passengers, that metal detectors and additional security measures could overlook. The full-body X-ray consists of a scanner around the size of a vending machine, and contains a backscatter than can see through clothing. The device's installation at the Phoenix airport is a test to find out how well it functions, and to determine how passengers respond to its employment. The backscatter will not be used on everyone who comes through the terminal. A passenger would have to trip alarms on the regular metal detector, or be randomly chosen for additional screening. Even then, passengers would have two choices: The new X-ray machine, or a pat-down, which has caused traveler complaints concerning invasiveness. Most of the people who were scanned by the new device at Phoenix were willing to do so. The device costs $100,000 per machine and its pilot project is set to run for as long as 90 days.
http://www.csmonitor.com/
2007/0226/p02s02-ussc.html

"Police Departments Turning to YouTube to Catch Suspects"
Associated Press (02/24/07)

A few police departments have used the video-sharing Web site YouTube.com as a law enforcement tool, erecting videos of suspects and getting assistance from the public in naming them. Though some experts claim the idea is promising, they stress it is too early to determine whether it will last since technology is always evolving. They are concerned as well that it could produce tips that do not lead to anything and could create privacy issues. Law enforcement officials, however, laud YouTube's results: In December, police in Hamilton, Ontario, put up a 72-second surveillance video to find a suspect in a deadly stabbing outside a concert. Messages were dispatched by police on Web sites used often by such fans, informing them of the clip. The video got about 35,000 hits, and police had enough data within a couple of weeks for an arrest. Certain experts note it makes sense for police departments to link with the public through the Internet, particularly among younger users more likely to visit sites such as YouTube. Electronic Privacy Information Center executive director Marc Rotenberg noted that from a legal standpoint, police would be allowed to show surveillance video on the Internet unless they were unjustly accusing or defaming somebody.
http://business.bostonherald.com
/technologyNews/view.bg?articleid=184751

"Residents Warming Up to Idea of Security Cameras"
Columbus Dispatch (OH) (02/25/07) P. 4C; Ferenchik, Mark

The communities of German Village and Merion Village near Columbus, Ohio, are voicing support for security camera systems. Bob Leighty, president of the Merion Village Association, says cameras would be beneficial and he intends to discuss security cameras soon with Andrew Ginther, a recently elected Columbus Councilman, who heads the council's safety committee. However, Leighty added that he still prefers the existing Community Crime Patrol and police department's bicycle patrol unit as deterrents. Barb Seckler, deputy safety director for Columbus, says the city lacks the money for cameras. However, some private groups in Columbus are installing them, including the Columbus Compact Corp.; the firm intends to install cameras on buildings near a new shopping and development complex. The city of Baltimore already has 350 surveillance cameras in high-crime areas and the Inner Harbor area. Matt Jablow with the Baltimore police says since the cameras were erected two years ago, violent crime in areas with cameras has fallen by 15 percent. The overall cost for the cameras was $10.5 million, but Jablow says they are a cost-effective way to reduce and record crimes. Jablow says approximately a third of the money for the cameras came from federal homeland security funds, while the remainder came from the general fund of Baltimore and money confiscated from drug dealers.
http://www.dispatch.com
/news-story.php?story=dis
patch/2007/02/25/20070225-C4-00.html

"Surveillance Cameras Saw Trouble, Police Stopped It"
Redlands Daily Facts (CA) (02/23/07)

A surveillance camera system in downtown Redlands, Calif., recently helped police prevent a potential assault. Police dispatchers were monitoring the cameras from the Police Department's Dispatch Center when they noticed a man in a crosswalk who was aggressively confronting pedestrians. Dispatchers continued monitoring the situation while dispatching officers to the scene who arrested the man for public intoxication. Police say that the pan-tilt-zoom cameras act as "force multipliers" and allow police to prevent a crime in progress or even prevent a crime from occurring. "I would much rather put someone in jail now for being drunk in public than arrest him later after a fight or an assault," said Police Chief Jim Bueermann. The four-camera surveillance system was funded via $75,000 in state and federal technology grants. http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com
/news/ci_5290188

"City Police Will Help Fund Camera System Downtown"
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (02/22/07); Bryan, Bill

The St. Louis Police Department has announced that it will provide $115,000 in funding for a new surveillance camera network that will be installed in the city's downtown area. The department already uses a portable surveillance camera system to monitor events like Mardi Gras and the World Series, but the new camera system will be installed permanently. Police officials visited Chicago, where a similar camera system has proved popular with Chicago police. The St. Louis camera network could be up and running by May. "The cameras will add another layer of security for downtown," said Assistant Chief Stephen Pollihan. "If it's beneficial like I think it will be, we'll expand the program into the neighborhoods."
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news
/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/A234
1CD7A57353608625728A00117A0A?Ope
nDocument

"The Police Lineup Is Becoming Suspect Practice"
Christian Science Monitor (02/06/07); Jonsson, Patrik

Several states recently targeted the side-by-side police lineup, a venerable tool used by police departments across the country to help victims and witnesses pick out crime suspects, for elimination. DNA testing recently exonerated some suspects picked out by eyewitnesses, who were wrongly convicted, and this fuels initiatives aimed at replacing side-by-side lineups with "blind sequential lineups," which calls for suspects to be shown to eyewitnesses one at a time. In addition, the blind sequential lineup system requires a "blind" lineup administrator--someone who knows nothing about the case--to handle the process. Supporters suggest that a blind administrator would eliminate unintentional influences, such as a knowledgeable administrator suggesting to the eyewitness "take another look at No. 5." Police departments in Boston and Minneapolis, for example, already use "blind" lineups to reduce eyewitness identification errors, which a University of Michigan study indicated accounted for 90 percent of all mistakes in rape convictions posted in 2004. Most police officials and prosecutors resist changes to the side-by-side lineup system, but lawmakers in Georgia, West Virginia, New Mexico, Texas, and Vermont have legislation pending that would mandate these changes. However, some state officials are concerned that changes to police lineups will result in further litigation from convicted suspects claiming eyewitnesses falsely identified them.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007
/0206/p01s02-usju.html

"Shooting Pain"
Washington Post (02/18/07) P. B2; Saletan, William

The future of law enforcement and warfare could revolve around new military technologies that inflict pain without causing bloodshed. The U.S. military recently invented one such technology: a nonlethal weapon that shoots a beam of "directed energy" that penetrates just 1/64th of an inch into the human body, inflaming nerve endings to inflict pain without harming the target. The pain beam technology, manufactured by Raytheon, "allows precise targeting of specific individuals," and the pain immediately ceases if the target flees or the beam is moved off the target. The Department of Defense saw the need for nonlethal weapons about a dozen years ago, noting that military forces were increasingly being used for peacekeeping missions and that enemies had begun melding with civilians. But traditional nonlethal weapons like rubber bullets, tear gas, and pepper spray all have disadvantages and drawbacks. Thus, the DoD called for researchers to develop weapons "to incapacitate personnel or materiel, while minimizing fatalities, permanent injury to personnel, and undesired damage to property and the environment." The energy beams, unlike projectiles, are not affected by factors like wind and gravity, and their effects are uniform from both near and far. Military leaders will soon hold a meeting in London to address the future of directed-energy weapons.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/0
2/16/AR2007021601706.html


"Driver's License Emerges as Crime-Fighting Tool, but Privacy Advocates Worry"
New York Times (02/17/07); Liptak, Adam

As part of an experiment last year, three facial-recognition specialists in Massachusetts ran a photo from the Web site of America's Most Wanted against the state's database of 9 million digital driver's license photographs. The mug shot closely resembled a driver's license photograph with a different name, and after alerting the authorities, the police were able to track down and arrest the suspect in New York City, where he was receiving welfare benefits under the alias on the driver's license. At least six other states are developing or have already acquired similar driver's license databases which, when combined with facial-recognition technology, can be used as a powerful law enforcement tool. Analysts use the technology to check about 5,000 new driver's license photographs every day using a computer algorithm to check about 8,000 facial points. The computer is unable to make a perfect match and an analysis needs to check the narrowed field after the computer is finished, and the majority of computer matches are rejected. Though DNA and fingerprint databases are better for placing a suspect at a crime scene, DNA samples and fingerprints are not collected from the public. The majority of adults do have driver's licenses, and even though current technology requires a good-quality photo, the potential to link an unknown suspect to a name through their driver's license is promising. Facial-recognition technology can be used to help prevent identity theft and to stop people from obtaining a second driver's license under a false name.
http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?
res=F60D17F83F5A0C748DDDAB0894DF404482

"Crime Fighting Potential for Computerised Lip-Reading"
University of East Anglia (02/21/07)

University of East Anglia researchers will begin a project next month that seeks to create a program that can read lips, possibly for use in law enforcement. Although nearly everyone has some ability to read lips, little is known as to the amount of visual information that is needed for the process. The Surrey University Center for Vision, Speech, and Signal Processing has created accurate face and lip trackers, and will collaborate on the project; so will the Home Office Scientific Development Branch, which plans to use the technology for fighting crime. "To be effective the systems must accurately track the head over a variety of poses, extract numbers, or features, that describe the lips and then learn what features correspond to what text," explains UEA project leader Dr. Richard Harvey. After collecting data for lip-reading, the goal will be to create a system that can turn video of lip motion into text. "This project will also investigate how to use the extensive information known about audio speech to recognize visual speech," says Richards. The number of trained lip readers is currently decreasing as the use of sign language is increasing.
http://comm.uea.ac.uk/press/
release.asp?id=727

"Sheriff's Office Participates in Automated Information Program"
Houston Business Journal (02/16/07)

The Harris County, Texas, Sheriff's Office is taking part in an automated data-sharing test program with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's US-VISIT program and the Department of Justice/FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division. The test program, which was initiated on Feb. 1, permits the sheriff's office access to criminal history data when an arrested individual's fingerprints are entered. The automated procedure also informs federal immigration authorities when fingerprints are the same as an immigration violator. Immigration authorities will then study related information about the individual and take the correct action. The government agencies started the test program in 2005 with the Boston Police Department and the Dallas County Sheriff's Office to try out technology improvements made to their various fingerprint databases.
http://www.bizjournals.com
/houston/stories/2007/02/12/d
aily82.html?surround=lfn

Police and military personnel who have authored books in addition to criminal justice online leadership sponsored the publication of this article.