EVALUATION OF A PHASE 1 IMPLEMENTATION OF AN AUTOMATIC VEHICLE MONITORING (AVM) SYSTEM IN ST LOUIS (MO) (FROM POLICE COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY, 1978, BY KENT W COLTON - SEE NCJ-51065)

• NCJ Number: 51077
• Author(s): R C LARSON; K W COLTON; G C LARSON
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 25 pages
• Grant Number(s): 75-NI-99-0014
• Sponsoring Agency: US Dept of Justice; US Dept of Justice NIJ Pub
• Corporate Author: Lexington Books
• Publication Format: Document
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THIS CASE STUDY DESCRIBES THE BEGINNING PHASE OF THE FIRST FULL-SCALE EFFORT TO IMPLEMENT AUTOMATIC VEHICLE MONITORING (AVM) IN A MAJOR URBAN POLICE DEPARTMENT. THE PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED AND CORRECTIONS MADE ARE REVIEWED.

Abstract

THE HISTORY, DESIGN, AND OPERATION OF AN AVM SYSTEM INSTALLED IN ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, IN 1975 ARE GIVEN IN DETAIL, TOGETHER WITH THE RESULTS OF AN INTENSIVE 18-MONTH EVALUATION. THE TECHNOLOGICAL ANALYSIS COVERS SYSTEM ACCURACY, SOURCES OF ERROR, AND EQUIPMENT RELIABILITY. CORRECTIONS TO BE MADE IN PHASE 2 ARE DESCRIBED. THE OPERATIONS ANALYSIS CONTAINS DATA ON RESPONSE TIME, FACTORS AFFECTING RESPONSE TIME, OVERALL RESPONSE SYSTEM CONSIDERATIONS, AND CROSS-BEAT DISPATCHES. THE ATTITUDINAL IMPACT ANALYSIS FOUND THAT PROBLEMS WITH ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY HAD CONSIDERABLY REDUCED OFFICE APPROVAL OF THE SYSTEM. MANY OF THE FEATURES, SUCH AS THE 'OFFICER IN TROUBLE' ALARM WERE DISTRUSTED BECAUSE FALSE ALARMS WERE SO COMMON. WAYS TO RESTORE USER CONFIDENCE ARE DISCUSSED. CORRECTIONS WHICH MUST BE MADE AND PLANS FOR CITYWIDE IMPLICATION ARE BRIEFLY SUMMARIZED. TABLES PRESENT EVALUATION DATA. NOTES AND REFERENCES ARE APPENDED.