NCJ Number
215888
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 73 Issue: 9 Dated: September 2006 Pages: 20-24
Date Published
September 2006
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article describes the features and uses of the New York Police Department's Real Time Crime Center (RTCC), which was launched in July 2005.
Abstract
The RTCC has three key elements: data warehouse, data analysis, and data wall. The data warehouse brings information together from various sources. It then uses a reconciliation engine to assemble the information in context for the user. The data analysis feature involves the use of software that analyzes information and applies law enforcement intelligence based on complaints, summons, and domestic violence incidents. Queries can be run against MapInfo Corporation's satellite imaging software, which allows department personnel to quickly display information on a map, making it easy to identify patterns and trends. Satellite imaging and mapping technology enable a real-time picture of police resources deployed throughout the city. The "data wall" is a room with a two-story video wall composed of 18 connected Mitsubishi TV screen panels and 25 desks, manned by just over 40 detectives and crime analysts. Arrest and complaint documentation and information generated by 911 calls and other day-to-day processes provide data that feed and update the data sources the RTCC detectives query. When an officer in the field calls in details of a new crime, RTCC experts use analytical software to examine data housed in the data mart to mine the department's collective information sources, looking for clues that will solve the crime or reveal broader patterns of criminal activity. The RTCC was recently expanded to include robberies, rapes, missing persons, and other serious crimes beyond homicides and shootings. As the RTCC moves into its second phase, new projects are underway, including creating a recidivist database.