Justice and Public Safety

The automated voice messaging system meant to alert fire stations to incoming emergency calls is not working properly. A 911 dispatcher is now dedicated to calling stations to make sure fire staff don’t miss emergency calls.

The $300 million defamation claim accuses the news outlet of misrepresenting the technology's efficacy and inaccurately making data manipulation charges. ShotSpotter continues to face criticism as its technology spreads.

The law enforcement shooting death of Winston Boogie Smith Jr. stirred activists already calling for broad police reforms and sparked a fresh wave of protests near the Uptown Minneapolis site of his death.

The Goshen, Ind., Police Department will soon have its own virtual training simulator after being authorized to purchase an Apex Officer training simulator, making it the first department in the state to do so.

The Daviess County Sheriff’s Department has added new technology to help investigate crimes involving phones, computers and surveillance cameras, following a $51,300 grant from the state Office of Homeland Security.

The Bethel Police Department is seeking $125,500 to upgrade the department's current computer-aided dispatch and records management system software. Among other things, the system would allow for faster ticketing.

Las Vegas has entered into a partnership with Cox Communications to set up a “managed private network” in a public park. The system uses video surveillance, sensors and other technology to evaluate park activity.

Mayor Brent Centers said the city is seeking a state grant through the state Office of Criminal Justice to cover most of the costs of outfitting its 19 patrol officers with body cameras for the next five years.

The company, a major biometric identification vendor for law enforcement, hopes that by putting the technology in the hands of more agencies it will make the whole practice of fingerprint matching more useful.

The company reported that the top three foreign targets of Russian state actors were the U.S., Ukraine and Britain, and that the hackers saw their success rate on hacks climb from 21 to 32 percent year over year.

The controversial practice, used in secret to search for criminals for years, allows law enforcement to see a suspect’s search history. The seldom-disclosed practice was revealed Tuesday in unsealed court documents.

Hartford, Conn., police have begun using drones to track four-wheelers, dirt bikes and stolen cars, and assist with other situations like missing persons cases and crowd control for large events.

Various experts have suggested that states should spend opioid settlement dollars on data-focused technology. So far, states have been quiet on possible tech investments, citing other steps that must be taken first.

All sworn members of Hartford’s police department — from Police Chief Jason Thody on down the ranks to patrol officers — now are equipped with body cameras, ahead of a state-mandated deadline of next July.

Developed by individuals with experience fighting fires, Tablet Command on the iPad uses GPS to give firefighters the coveted ability to have a bird's-eye view of all relevant equipment in a given area.

Los Angeles County court officials discussed what they learned while launching hybrid court sessions during the pandemic, including outfitting courtrooms, comparing commercial and custom platforms and supporting participants.

Body cameras are now a common feature of law enforcement, including in suburban communities similar to Jefferson County, La., while four-fifths of large law enforcement agencies nationwide use the body camera technology.

Courts around the country got creative during the pandemic, moving clerks’ support onto Zoom, offering self-serve hearing scheduling on Doodle and taking judges and court sessions on the road, and the river.