NCJ Number
45752
Date Published
1978
Length
20 pages
Annotation
THIS NEEDS ASSESSMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS STUDY IS AIMED AT DEVELOPING A COUNTYWIDE POLICE COMMUNICATIONS AND RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR A MUNICIPALITY WITH A POPULATION OF 39,000.
Abstract
AT THE TIME OF THIS STUDY (FEB. 1978), THE VARIOUS PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCIES OPERATING WITHIN THE AREA OF THE SURVEY USE A COMBINATION OF LOW AND HIGH VERY HIGH FREQUENCY (VHF) CHANNELS SUBJECT TO UNTIMELY INTERRUPTIONS CAUSED BY SKIP RECEPTION FROM NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS. THESE INTERRUPTIONS ARE CAPABLE OF COMPLETELY BLACKING OUT COMMUNICATIONS IN PROGRESS AND INTERFERING WITH THE TIME-CRITICAL ACTIONS OF THE PATROLMAN ON THE STREET AND THE DISPATCHER. IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN RADIO COMMUNICATION WITH VARIOUS LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SUPPORT AGENCIES, PATROL CARS ARE OUTFITTED WITH AS MANY AS FOUR RADIOS AND ANTENNAS. ONLY TWO LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS HAVE ACCESS TO THE STATEWIDE TELETYPE NETWORK, THE AUTOMATED STATEWIDE TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND RECORDS ACCESS (ASTRA), PROVIDING ACCESS TO KANSAS LAW ENFORCEMENT AND MOTOR VEHICLE FILES, NATIONAL CRIME INFORMATION CENTER FILES, AND SELECTED MISSOURI SYSTEMS. DEPARTMENTS LACKING AN ASTRA LINK MUST RELAY NEEDS AND RECEIVE REPLIES THROUGH ONE OF THE TWO DEPARTMENTS WITH ASTRA CONTACT. DISPATCHER LOGS AND WRITTEN FILES ARE MANUALLY FILED AND RETRIEVED, A CUMBERSOME PROCESS SUBJECT TO APPRECIABLE ERROR. IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO THE RECORDS OF A SUSPECT IS SERIOUSLY LACKING. PROBLEMS REGARDING DISPATCHER AVAILABILITY AND TRAINING AND PUBLIC ACCESS TO LINES OF EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION ARE ALSO BRIELY OUTLINED. THE REPORT RECOMMENDS THAT A CONSOLIDATED COMMUNICATIONS CENTER BE ESTABLISHED AT THE CENTER OF THE COUNTY IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF COVERAGE WITH MINIMUM OF EQUIPMENT. THE PRESENT MOBILE AND BASE VHF RADIO SYSTEMS SHOULD BE REPLACED WITH ULTRAHIGH FREQUENCY EQUIPMENT. IT IS ALSO RECOMMENDED THAT THE BASE SYSTEM DISPATCHER CONTROL CENTER BE EQUIPPED WITH TWO DISPATCHER CONSOLES; A CAPABILITY FOR EXPANSION TO THREE POSITIONS AND COMPUTER-AIDED DISPATCH SHOULD ALSO BE CONSIDERED. A DISPATCHER TRAINING PROGRAM IS OUTLINED IN AN APPENDIX. TO REMEDY INADEQUATE RECORDS STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL, THE COUNTY'S BURROUGHS B-800 COMPUTER COULD BE REPROGRAMMED TO PROVIDE INSTANT ACCESS TO FILES NEEDED FOR THE APPREHENSION OF SUSPECTS. THE FILING OF CHARGES, COURT APPEARANCES, AND RELATED ACTIVITY COULD ALSO BE FACILITATED BY USE OF THE COMPUTER. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF TELELINK TERMINALS AT THE VARIOUS LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES WOULD PROVIDE INSTANT FIELD ACCESS TO THE CENTRAL COUNTY FILE AND TO ASTRA SERVICES. AN OVERVIEW OF THE MASTER PLAN RECOMMENDATIONS AND DETAILS REGARDING THE PLAN'S CONSONANCE WITH THE KANSAS COMPREHENSIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT PLAN ARE INCLUDED. (KBL)