Security Technology as a Crime Prevention Measure - Essay Example

Security Technology as a Crime Prevention Measure Security Technology as a Crime Prevention Measure Traditionally, law enforcement agencies have concerned themselves mainly with crime prevention and solving such as robbery, burglary and theft crimes that have a noticeable and instantaneous effect on the citizens and have an effect on the quality of life of the community. A huge number of these agencies are being stalled by outdated technologies though some agencies have upgraded their working and investigative systems in order to ensure the safety of their citizens. Police units such as the An Garda Siochana in Ireland and the Guardia Civil in Spain were early adopters of technology (Schultz 2008). First, there is the robotic camera used when its too risky to dispatch a law enforcement officer into an active scene of crime or in situations that require observation. Where there isn’t a clear line of view these officers can depend on a throw-able robotic camera. This gadget possesses an electric motor and a set of special wheels that allows it to move about, mount and survey on the will of the officer who is operating it at that moment wirelessly. In short, this device provides the officers with an important advantage in situations where they cant directly see a suspect. The robotic cameras can be employed in both outdoors and indoors (Markovic 2006). Secondly, there’s a gunshot detection system (GDS) employed by the Nassau County Police Department, based in Mineola, N.Y. that uses a system that depends on several carefully positioned electronic sensors fitted all over a locality to aid in pinpointing the precise source of gunfire. This is particularly helpful in areas where gun shots are fired often and witnesses are few or unwilling to talk. When the GDS senses shots fired, an alert is sent to the mobile units in police cars and 911 dispatch center. These data becomes available to the computers in patrol cars. The agencies use the data together with its own analytics and mapping tools to discover who resides in the localities where the shots were fired to discover if there are associations. The analytics tools may for instance be used to show if individuals on probation and parolees are living in a certain zone. Suspects have been arrested after being seen to flee from a scene where shots were recorded as fired from. Thirdly, Criminal Investigations Records Systems can be employed by these agencies to help in criminal investigations. They are used to pull out relevant information from unrelated records systems with the aim to match suspects to crimes in ways that would have otherwise never been known. Incomplete names, physical descriptions, monikers, and vehicle descriptions are but some of the data that these agencies extract using these systems from other participating records systems in identifying suspects (Jensen & Draffan 2004). High-speed pursuits can be risky for both law enforcement officers and the general public. To minimize the danger associated with these chases, a gadget StarChase has been employed. This is a system that shoots a GPS-embedded dart that sticks to an escaping car and enables these agencies to track the car’s movements without a frantic chases and at a safe distance, The darts, made from semi-rigid foam and other materials, are aimed by means of a laser and then shot with an air-compressor-powered method from the grille of an officer’s car. The dart appends itself to the suspects vehicle by means of proprietary glue and magnets. It can be fired so that it does not distract the officer for the period of the preliminary chase, which the officers can stop once the dart is attached. Basically these agencies employ adhesive GPS enabled darts to track suspect vehicles (Daly 2013). Agencies now use Diagramming Systems in diagnosis of collisions and crime scenes in quick efficient ways. Thanks to computer technology, collisions and crime scenes can be diagrammed in a couple of minutes, as compared to the hours it took a couple of years ago. These diagramming systems that make this possible are quite precise and simple in use, plus they fashion exceptionally professional-looking images to be used in courts or during further analysis. This diagramming technology is a state-of-the-art forensic multi-dimensional scanner that employs a built-in digital camera and high-speed laser to take pictures of and measure quickly a scene in the exact state in which the first law enforcer found it (Weiss 2012). Crime scenes do not always occur in convenient places but with Crime Lights, a number of flashlights, every one of them with its own preset wavelength intended to detect fibers, body fluids and hair at scenes in which crime has happened. These lights, like diagramming systems, allow rapid processing of a crime scene and more meticulously than was possible before. Crime scenes previously deemed inaccessible for great fluorescence examination are now reachable. Today’s crime scenes are portable thanks to these light sources. They make even the remotest of top floor of a city building or rural locations very accessible for examination and search (Weiss 2012). The in-car camera system has become a highly treasured tool to ensure and confirm a high degree of law enforcement professionalism. The ability to capture video footage of happenings concerning the public from a patrol car standpoint has shown usefulness in such issues such as criminal investigations and arrests, traffic stops, training and internal affairs. Since the instance the first in-car cameras were put in place to record traffic impaired driving sobriety tests, these cameras have recorded both intentional and unintentional footage that has shown their immense value. Good number video of footages have been used for convictions; many give a quick way in settling citizen complaints, absolve officers from accusations, and I addition serve as training videos for officers. The greatest use of the in-car camera system is serving as a silent witness: the recording is able to speak for law enforcement agents when they cannot speak for themselves (International Association of Chiefs of Police 1998). Biometrics systems with retinal scans and fingerprint identification heave been employed in airports, bus terminals and country borders as a part of a risk-based approach to security. Biometric identification allows these agencies to validate a person’s identity or at least who they say they are by using their unique set of identifiers - iris scans, fingerprints or a blend of the two. It enables agencies to restrict access to important facilities. Explosives Trace Detection (ETD) and Explosive Detection System (EDS) are both used for tracing explosives in the belongings of airline passengers and anyone who comes in through the borders of a country or for people who enter a building. Officers may swab a passenger’s hand or baggage then put the swab inside the ETD unit for analysis for the presence of potential explosive residue. Explosive Detection System (EDS) machine on the other hand work like the CT machines in hospitals. By means of a sophisticated analysis of every checked bag, these machines can capture fast an image of a bag and establish if the bag contains a trace of explosives (Department of Homeland Security 2014). From the discussions above, we see that law enforcement agencies can attain drastic enhancements in both security and efficiency through the adoption of new technologies that can effectively prevent crimes and rapidly solve crime. And with the prospects of unknown terrorist attacks in the future these agencies need to comply sooner rather than later. Bibliography Daly, Ger. (September 19, 2013). Embracing the police force of the future, Washington: CNN Department of Homeland Security. (12th February 2014). Technology Used for Passenger Screening, Baggage Screening and More. New York: Department of Homeland Security Helmick, D. O. (July 2003). Automated Red Light Cameras, New York: SAGE International Association of Chiefs of Police. (1998). Resolution: Cameras for Traffic Signal Enforcement. 105th Annual IACP Conference, Salt LakeCity, Utah, Jensen, derrick and Draffan, George (2004). Welcome to the machine: Science, surveillance, and the Culture of Control. Chelsea green Publishing Company. Lyon, David. (2001). Surveillance Studies: an overview. Cambridge Policy Press. Markovic, John et.al. (June 2006). Coming to Terms with Geographical Information Systems, The Police Chief 73: 60–73. Raymond E. Foster. (July 2004) Police Technology, London: Prentice hall Schultz, Paul D. (June 2008). The Future Is Here: Technology in Police Departments. The Police Chief 7LXXV, no 3, vol 6, Weiss, Todd R. (February 16, 2012). Cool cop tech: 5 new technologies helping police fight crime. London: McGraw Hill Read More