Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 13, 1990 TAG: 9005130097
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RON BROWN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Next month, 60 city police cruisers are expected to begin permanent use of in-car computers. Some city officers have been using the computers on a limited basis for the past year.
Small dash-mounted computer terminals will enable police officers to obtain information on suspects, automobiles and guns in a matter of seconds. Police can request the information via keyboards in their cars.
Police will also be able to communicate between squad cars without using radio transmissions.
While the system has been used for years in other parts of the country, the Roanoke Police Department is the first to have in-car computers in Western Virginia.
Roanoke Police Maj. Thomas M. Reid said the computers should enhance officer safety. Police have found that burglars and drug dealers on occasion have been monitoring their radio traffic.
"The computers eliminate them knowing where we are going next," Reid said.
Police may still have to use radios on occasion.
"We are not doing away with the arm the police officer has," Reid said. "We're just adding another arm."
The new computers, which are part of the city's $1 million enhanced 911 communications system, link patrol cars to national crime computers and motor vehicle offices throughout the country.
Patrol officers will be able to find out if a person is wanted, whether a driver's license is valid or if the car being driven is stolen.
The information is posted on a screen in the car and eliminates the need for officers to relay requests through dispatchers in the city communications system. Authorities estimate the new system will eliminate more than 125,000 messages handled yearly by dispatchers.
The system will also allow officers to write short reports on minor incidents via computer, thus reducing time spent on paper work.
"It should give them more time on the street," Reid said.
The system is getting mixed reviews from city police officers.
"People have certain fears and apprehensions as to what the system is going to do for them," Reid said. "Virtually everyone is using the system, some just faster than others."
Reid said some of the complaints will be eliminated as "bugs" are worked out of the system.
The process of working out the bugs started about three years ago, when representatives of the police department, fire department, emergency medical services, and other city officials started reconstructing city streets on a computer plan.
They had to make sure addresses in the computer system were valid and that residents' names were correct. They also had to designate which police, fire and rescue units would be responsible for each address.
The agencies then had to designate backup units for the responding units.
Now, the computers within seconds can recommend to dispatchers which unit should respond to each address. Police units can be dispatched by a touch of a key.
"The computer just goes on until it finds a piece of available equipment to respond," said Ronald L. Wade, city communications supervisor.
That feature proved its worth in the aftermath of Hurricane Hugo in September. During one hectic three-hour period, the computer's recommendation had sent every piece of city fire equipment into action.
Before the computer, dispatchers had to assign units based on a set of several thousand fact cards kept near their desks.
The computer plan, which took a year to put on paper, should expedite that process. Emergency 911 operators can forward messages to dispatchers within seconds. The dispatchers can forward calls to emergency units almost instantaneously.
Reid said that efficiency should spur improved police work.
"I'm always excited about new technology that will help police officers do a better job," he said. "The intention of the system is to make people more productive and happier in their jobs."
by CNB