ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE LAW ENFORCEMENT IT REVOLUTION? Law enforcement agencies that are laggards in Information Technology (IT) will soon, if not already, be considered mismanaged. Whether you are in an operational position, or you are a police officer who aspires to a higher rank, you must be aware of how IT can help you perform your job and hel

This edited book explores the history, development and use of technology in the policing of society, showing that technology plays a key, if not pivotal role in the work of law enforcement. The authors analyse several examples of technology in common use today, which include both officers' equipment and technology used by crime scene investigation teams. They discuss the supportive role that technology plays in the investigation process as well as the concerns that may arise from a reliance upon technological advances. The book offers the reader a unique look at the scholarly and professional experience, with chapters written by academic researchers, as well as a number practitioners from the field of policing. It is essential reading for all those interested in a constantly changing and evolving field with implications for both theory and practice.

Part 1 - Introduction to theory and basics : Ch. 1 Introduction to police technology -- Ch. 2 Computer Basics -- Ch. 3 Wireless Communications -- Ch. 4 Networks -- Ch. 5 Geographic Information System [GIS] -- Ch. 6 A brief history of Police Technology -- Part 2 - Strategic Information Systems and Technologies: Ch. 7 Communications Dispatch Centers -- Ch. 8 Agency Systems -- Ch. 9 External Systems -- Ch. 10 The Internet and Law Enforcement -- Ch. 11 Information Exchange -- Ch. 12 Crime analysis -- Part 3 - Tactical Information Systems : Ch. 13 Technology in Investigations -- Ch. 14 Wiretaps -- Ch. 15 Tracking and surveillance -- Ch.16 Hi-Tech Crime -- Ch. 17 Major Incident and Response -- Ch. 18 Technology in the Street -- Part 4 - Technology in Police management : Ch. 19 Personnel and Training -- Ch. 20 Implementing and Managing Technology -- Ch. 21 Emerging and Future Technologies.

"This report describes the results of the Law Enforcement Futuring Workshop, which was held at RAND's Washington Office in Arlington, Virginia, from July 22 to 25, 2014. The objective of this workshop was to identify high-priority technology needs for law enforcement based on consideration of current and future trends in society, technology, and law enforcement over a ten- to 20-year time period. During the workshop, participants developed sets of future scenarios, constructed pathways from the present to alternative futures, and considered how law enforcement use of technology might affect these pathways. They then identified technology needs (including training and changes in policies or practice) that, if addressed, could enable pathways to desirable futures or prevent or mitigate the effects of pathways to undesirable futures. On the final days of the workshop, the technology needs were prioritized using a Delphi method. The output of this workshop described in the report included ten future scenarios and 30 technology needs. The technology needs fell into three general categories--technology-related knowledge and practice, information sharing and use, and technology research and development--and were placed into three priority tiers"--Back cover.

Winner, 2018 Law & Legal Studies PROSE Award The consequences of big data and algorithm-driven policing and its impact on law enforcement In a high-tech command center in downtown Los Angeles, a digital map lights up with 911 calls, television monitors track breaking news stories, surveillance cameras sweep the streets, and rows of networked computers link analysts and police officers to a wealth of law enforcement intelligence. This is just a glimpse into a future where software predicts future crimes, algorithms generate virtual “most-wanted” lists, and databanks collect personal and biometric information. The Rise of Big Data Policing introduces the cutting-edge technology that is changing how the police do their jobs and shows why it is more important than ever that citizens understand the far-reaching consequences of big data surveillance as a law enforcement tool. Andrew Guthrie Ferguson reveals how these new technologies —viewed as race-neutral and objective—have been eagerly adopted by police departments hoping to distance themselves from claims of racial bias and unconstitutional practices. After a series of high-profile police shootings and federal investigations into systemic police misconduct, and in an era of law enforcement budget cutbacks, data-driven policing has been billed as a way to “turn the page” on racial bias. But behind the data are real people, and difficult questions remain about racial discrimination and the potential to distort constitutional protections. In this first book on big data policing, Ferguson offers an examination of how new technologies will alter the who, where, when and how we police. These new technologies also offer data-driven methods to improve police accountability and to remedy the underlying socio-economic risk factors that encourage crime. The Rise of Big Data Policing is a must read for anyone concerned with how technology will revolutionize law enforcement and its potential threat to the security, privacy, and constitutional rights of citizens. Read an excerpt and interview with Andrew Guthrie Ferguson in The Economist.

Technology has always played an important role in the performance of police tasks. In recent years, that role has not only expanded, but has also been renewed. On one hand, technology plays a role in supporting policing (closed-circuit television, scanning equipment, technical methods of detection, etc.). On the other hand, new technology offers opportunities to commit crime, particularly in the sphere of information technology which requires constant adjustments of the police in their investigation methods. The use of technology raises many interesting questions. There are important privacy issues. There are also consequences of investing in technology. Additionally, are police investigations keeping sufficiently up-to-date with technological developments, including advances in computer technology as well as strong developments in the sphere of natural science? This book - originally a volume of the Journal of Police Studies - examines the concerns and necessity for technology in poli

This study reports on strategic planning activities supporting the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) in the area of information technology, collecting and analyzing data on law enforcement needs and identifying potential solutions through technology assessment studies, extensive outreach and liaison activities, and subject matter expert panels.

This third edition, arriving nearly 12 years after the previous one, is not only timely but overdue. This text offers a welcome and appropriate mixture of knowledge or information about specific types of technology along with empirical studies of certain technology used in various subcomponents of the criminal justice system. This text consists of 12 chapters, with eight completely new and four substantially revised and updated. The text is arranged into two parts: law enforcement technology and public safety technology. Major topics include: technology infrastructure: what it is and how it’s changing; current overview of law enforcement technology; body-worn cameras: the new normal; avoiding the technological panacea of the body-worn camera; examining perceptions of technology-enabled crimes; digital forensics; technological advancements in keeping victims safe; the evolution of offender electronic monitoring: from radio signals to satellite technology; technoprisons: technology and prisons; inside the Darknet: techno-crime and criminal opportunity; securing cyberspace in the 21st century; and assessing the deployment of automated license place recognition technology and strategies to improve public safety. Numerous illustrations and tables highlight the chapter contents. Students, educators, and practitioners will find this new edition most useful as it provides practical knowledge about different technology advances and projections on many levels. This third edition has developed into an excellent resource that allows both neophyte and expert to learn state-of-the-art information.

Beginning with a hypothetical case in which an officer begins his shift, this article discusses some of the new devices in the law enforcement field. One large U.S. metropolitan police agency is experimenting with UAVs and another with facial recognition technology through cameras mounted for frequent incidents of violent crime. Research in areas relevant to law enforcement (e.g., weapons, communications, computers, brain wave sensors, density scanners, vision enhancement, augmented reality, and biometrics) continues to develop rapidly. For agencies, the challenge lies in adapting the technology into workable field equipment and anthropomorphic devices -- those that enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement officers. Illus.

With the rise of surveillance technology in the last decade, police departments now have an array of sophisticated tools for tracking, monitoring, even predicting crime patterns. In particular crime mapping, a technique used by the police to monitor crime by the neighborhoods in their geographic regions, has become a regular and relied-upon feature of policing. Many claim that these technological developments played a role in the crime drop of the 1990s, and yet no study of these techniques and their relationship to everyday police work has been made available. Noted scholar Peter K. Manning spent six years observing three American police departments and two British constabularies in order to determine what effects these kinds of analytic tools have had on modern police management and practices. While modern technology allows the police to combat crime in sophisticated, detail-oriented ways, Manning discovers that police strategies and tactics have not been altogether transformed as perhaps would be expected. In The Technology of Policing, Manning untangles the varying kinds of complex crime-control rhetoric that underlie much of today’s police department discussion and management, and provides valuable insight into which are the most effective—and which may be harmful—in successfully tracking criminal behavior. The Technology of Policing offers a new understanding of the changing world of police departments and information technology’s significant and undeniable influence on crime management.