IACA News

12/23/2009 - Here's a good article on crime analysis by Jamie Roush of the Jacksonville (FL) Sheriff's Office. In it, she discusses some key considerations for conducting effective crime analysis. Read the entire article here:
http://www.lawofficer.com/news-and-articles/articles/lom/0512/crime_analysis_2.html

12/17/2009 - Here is a good blog posting about getting organized - from a crime analyst's perspective! This discusses David Allen's approach to organization as described in his book "Getting Things Done".

To read the post, visit http://thecrimemap.crimereports.com/2009/12/17/the-crime-analysts-gtd/

12/3/2009 - New program sparks drop in crime

SAINT JOHN - Using the power of computers to look for trends in criminal activity has allowed the Saint John Police Force to achieve double-digit drops in car thefts and break and enters this year.
A report on a new program called intelligence-led policing, a crime reduction business model, was presented to the Saint John Board of Police Commissioners Wednesday night. Car thefts for 2009 are projected to be down 15.5 per cent over last year and break and enters by 27.4 per cent, both 10-year lows, said Deputy Chief Darrell Scribner.
"We are so pleased that at this point in time this is what our report card looks like," he said.
While stealing cars and break and enters were the only two areas targeted by the new program, there was an unexpected benefit in another crime category, arsons, which are down 31 per cent.
"The fact that the cars aren't stolen means they are not burned, so arsons are down," Scribner said.
Police departments collect huge amounts of data and now they have found ways to use it to help prevent crime, instead of just reacting when crime occurs.
"My job is to add meaning to data," said James Stewart, a crime analyst with the police department.
One of the tools he uses is crime mapping and a computer program that takes into account that once a property is broken into, the probability of another crime in the area rises. Stewart showed the commissioners a map he created last summer during a rash of robberies of bars and convenience stores that took place over a couple of weeks.
"We looked at all the data, we looked at all the patterns," he said. "We actually went out and looked at the targets that were hit."
That allowed him to come up with a pattern for how the victims were chosen, so he filed a report predicting where the next crime would be.
"We were able to predict the day, the time and the location of the last robbery and we made a prediction of where we believed the offender lived and we were right," he said.
The kind of analysis he uses is also helpful for reducing traffic accidents. By tracking accidents according to time of day and location, the police department can now send officers out to patrol the trouble spots and reduce the number of incidents.
Another prediction Scribner made as a result of the new focus on data and sharing of information throughout the police department is that domestic crimes will drop this year.
Earlier this fall the officer in charge of the family protection section of the department viewed a list of people about to be arrested as part of the drug bust called Operation Portland, and noted many of them were the same people his section dealt with on a regular basis, Scribner said.
"So we ran this operation, which was a drug operation, and we are going to reduce our crimes of family violence over this year, which is something we don't normally do," Scribner said. "It's a collateral plus, plus, plus."
Police were able to reduce the number of car thefts by observing that the vast majority happen to people who leave their keys in their cars and don't lock their doors. They may not leave the key in the ignition but an extra set is somewhere in the car so that criminals who roam around and go through open cars find them.
Police promoted the lock-it and pocket-it program in Saint John this year, encouraging people to take their keys and this has resulted in a drop in car thefts.
The break and enters were reduced by looking at the patterns of where they were occurring and sharing with people the need to get extra security because of the fact that once a break in occurs another is likely.
Police Chief Bill Reid also gave credit to the fact that the methadone drug treatment program was made more widely available in the city, allowing more people to get off the addiction roller coaster that leads them to commit crimes to pay for drugs.

Source: http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/city/article/877175

11/10/2009 - The International Association of Crime Analysts (IACA) and the Arizona Association of Crime Analysts (AACA) teamed up to present the 2009 IACA & AACA Joint Training Conference at the beautiful DoubleTree Scottsdale Resort. Thanks to all for a spectacular conference!

9/10/2009 - The IACA mourns the loss of one of our own - Crime Analyst Gary Kuntz from the Spokane (WA) Police Department passed away on 9/7/09. Among many achievements in his career, Gary was the first winner of IACA best publication award for 2002. Gary was an influence and mentor to many in the field and he will be sorely missed.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/spokesman/obituary.aspx?n=gary-kuntz&pid=132566847

9/8/2009 - TAMPA — A Deltona man has been arrested on accusations that he sexually abused a 12-year-old Clearwater girl while her family was visiting Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground over Memorial Day weekend.

Jean C. Garcia, 29, went by the name "Junior" when he first met the young girl at the pool on May 24 at the resort, 4510 Fort Wilderness Trail, according to a statement the victim gave deputies. He is not an employee there, a Disney spokeswoman said.

The girl said she waved to Garcia at the pool and started to speak to him.

Before long, he was holding her with his hands on her hips. Then, the pair went behind some bushes to kiss out of sight of others, according to a statement filed by the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

Throughout the day, the girl said she and Garcia continued to kiss.

When she attended a s'mores roast that evening, Garcia showed up at the camp site and sat next to her — until she warned that her mother was on the way.

Then, she said, he left.

The next day, as the girl's foster family packed their belongings, the 12-year-old met the man at a laundry room, where she told deputies he removed her pants and underwear.

She told deputies they had oral sex and, though she said "no," Garcia attempted to penetrate her, but was unsuccessful.

About two weeks later, the girl, now 13, told her foster family that she was worried she was pregnant. The foster mother, who was preparing to adopt the victim, informed the girl's caseworker. Two pregnancy tests on the girl came back negative, according to the sheriff's report.

The family contacted the Clearwater Police Department, which notified the Orange County Sheriff's Office on June 10.

On Aug. 21, a crime analyst in the Sheriff's Office called Garcia, posing as the 13-year-old girl.

Garcia had given the girl a card with his phone number on it, the arrest report said. And though the girl had not seen Garcia since leaving the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground on May 25, she told deputies she had called him from a pay phone near her house.

According to the arrest report, the undercover caller told Garcia she would be returning to Fort Wilderness and asked if they wanted to meet again.

"He got excited and said he did," the report states. "He told her she was a cutie and he wanted to meet up again. … Junior said she had better not be setting him up with her family because he didn't want to get into trouble."

On Thursday, the same crime analyst called Garcia again to set up a meeting at Fort Wilderness. A surveillance squad followed Garcia as he drove from his home, 169 Fort Smith Blvd., No. 18, onto Disney World property just after 11 p.m.

Before he reached the campground, deputies stopped him, read him his rights and began to question him.

Garcia first said he was there to meet one of his "homeboys," according to the report.

But the report states that Garcia soon admitted he was there to meet a girl he believed to be 16. He said when he first met her, she told him she was 18 or 19.

Garcia said he only intended to talk to her. But the undercover conversation had recorded him saying he would bring a condom, according to the report. Garcia, the report says, "bowed his head and said that he understood."

Deputies say Garcia finally admitted to trying to meet the girl to have sex. He is charged with lewd or lascivious battery and sexual battery.

He is being held without bail at the Orange County Jail. State records show he has been arrested once before, in 2005, on charges of burglary and aggravated battery out of Volusia County.

Deputies did not release the name of the juvenile victim, as the names of victims of sexual offenses are kept confidential.

Rebecca Catalanello can be reached at rcatalanello@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3383.

Source: http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafety/crime/man-accused-of-sexually-abusing-clearwater-girl-12-at-disney-resort/1034283

7/30/2009 - Data Analysis - the New Frontier!

Middletown adds crime analyst
Mapping out 'hot spots' helps police
By Heather Yakin
Times Herald-Record
July 25, 2009 2:00 AM
MIDDLETOWN — Data analysis is the new frontier for law enforcement.

In March, the Middletown Police Department hired Cortney Faith as its new crime analyst, to turn the daily litany of calls, complaints and arrests into cogent maps and reports. Faith's work is used to direct police patrols on problem areas, and to keep the officers up to speed on the city's crime patterns, and possible connections between seemingly disparate incidents.

"It helps make sense of the numbers so you know how to properly focus your patrols," and it allows officers to see what's happening in the city at a glance, said police Chief Matthew Byrne. "The officers have to be focused in order to be effective."

Faith beings each day at her computer by downloading the previous day's incidents and culling the reports for the salient details. She compiles the data in Excel and Access spreadsheets and feeds them into a mapping program. That generates a geographic view, including locations of hot spots.

Her updates go into the department's computer intranet and are available immediately to all officers via the laptop computers in their cars. She and the community policing sergeant give a weekly presentation to update the officers on the latest information.

Faith's background in college wasn't social science or criminalistics; she studied geographic information systems. In her last year at California University in Pennsylvania, the professor running the GIS lab finagled to make the place a crime-mapping lab. Faith interned with the Brownsville, Pa., Police Department. She then worked for four years as a crime analyst for the police department in Jacksonville, Fla., a city of 807,000, according to U.S. Census data, which had 112 homicides in 2008. There, Faith analyzed sex crimes, narcotics and homicides.

After four years at Jacksonville, Faith, a Pennsylvania native, wanted to move closer to her family. She spotted Middletown's job listing on a crime analyst Web site. It was an opportunity to be closer to home, and stay in a job she loves.

"It's never boring," Faith says of the job. "You get some good stuff, you get a good piece of information — when you get something like that, it's exciting because you know there's going to be a payoff."

hyakin@th-record.com

Source:
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090725/COMM/907250325/-1/COMM

6/1/2009 - Sheriff’s Department honors deputies, analyst
Monday, June 1, 2009

Thousand Oaks crime analyst Amanda Carr and Thousand Oaks bike patrol team members Senior Deputy Michael Marco, Senior Deputy Ehren Nehira, Deputy Shannon McElveen and Deputy Tim Ragan were presented with “Star Scroll” proclamations of appreciation during a ceremony May 12 at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s headquarters in Monterey Park, Ventura County Sheriff’s officials said in a statement.

The recognition focused on the honorees’ involvement in helping break up a regional fraud ring that targeted senior citizens. The scam involved people who posed as healthcare professionals and conned elderly people into giving them large amounts of money, saying they would provide nursing care later, according to the statement.

Their role began in early July 2008, when Carr received a flier from Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials about the fraud ring, authorities said. Carr distributed the flier to patrol deputies. Several weeks later, a bike team member recognized an alleged local drug dealer who had been arrested as the suspect pictured in the flier about the fraud ring. He contacted L.A. sheriff’s officials. Another woman was later arrested in connection with the fraud ring.

Working with LA Sheriff’s investigators, bike team members executed search warrants and found nurse uniforms and wigs that the suspects used as part of the scheme, authorities said.

The suspects in the fraud case were ultimately convicted and sentenced to state prison, according to the statement.

Source: http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2009/jun/01/sheriff8217s-department-honors-deputies-analyst/

4/21/2009 - Marion crime analyst solves 2 Alachua County crimes

By Karen Voyles
Staff Writer


Published: Tuesday, April 21, 2009 at 11:10 a.m.


A crime analyst working for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office is getting credit for matching up a suspect in several Citrus County commercial burglaries as the same man being sought in two Alachua County restaurant burglaries.

Tunis Powell Thrasher, 54, who may have been living in Lake Panasoffkee or New Port Richey, was arrested in Citrus County over the weekend in connection with six commercial burglaries. Immediately after his arrest, deputies issued a bulletin to notify surrounding counties about Thrasher’s arrest in case they had similar incidents.

Marion County crime analyst Kathy Collins got the bulletin Monday morning and began looking through her files.

“I file everything, and I do remember a lot of things,” Collins said. “I also had a separate file on restaurant burglaries because we have had an increase in them recently.”

Collins also recalled that Alachua County and Ocala police had been working to solve some restaurant burglaries. She was struck by how similar some details were in the Alachua and Citrus county crimes.

“The vehicle descriptions seemed to match, and then I saw that the suspect descriptions matched,” Collins said.

Within hours Alachua County had dispatched deputies to interview Thrasher at the Citrus County Jail, and by Monday night the deputies said they had gotten a confession out of Thrasher for a pair of February robberies.

Thrasher has been charged with the mid-February break-ins at Chan's Chinese Restaurant at 9200 NW 39th Ave. and the Wing Zone at Newberry Crossing. Among the similarities noted in the Alachua County burglaries was that the alarm control panels in both places had been ripped from the walls.

Collins said Marion County deputies also had plans to interview Thrasher about some break-ins. Thrasher was being held at the Citrus County Jail on Tuesday.

Source: http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090421/ARTICLES/904219962/1105/NEWS&Title=Marion-crime-analyst-solves-2-Alachua-County-crimes&template=printart

4/1/2009 - Chino PD Analysts Recognized for Outstanding Work!

Police Chief Stan Stewart addressed the nearly 250 Department members, volunteers and family members at the State of the Department and Awards Ceremony. During the 35 minute speech, the Chief talked of the importance of leadership development and succession planning, the challenge to continue to connect with the community and increased proactive enforcement to significant crimes problems to continue to provide a safe environment for community and business members. A new Department challenge coin was also given to all employees that contained the Departments Core Values and Mission Statement.

In the second half of the meeting, nineteen individuals were recognized for their outstanding and exemplary performance, many receiving medals of service.

"This is a great day for the Chino Police Department," said Police Chief Stan Stewart after the event last Thursday. "I am proud of each and every member of the Department for their commitment to and development in leadership principles and it is also an honor to recognize those who go above and beyond their duties and distinguish themselves amongst their peers. I am truly honored to lead such a fine organization."

The awardees recognized are:

Officer Jesse Gutierrez received the Officer of the Year Award for his meritorious service to the Department. As a member of the traffic bureau, he has worked to improve the traffic conditions of the community through education, enforcement and a critical analysis of engineering. In addition to his work in the traffic bureau, Officer Gutierrez has been instrumental in the application, receipt and administration of traffic related grant funding. To date, he has received three grants and helped author others which resulted in two additional grant awards, all of which have been used for various means of traffic enforcement. Serving in a variety of leadership roles, Officer Gutierrez is a field training officer, a member of both the recruitment team and the crisis negotiation team and is described by others as possessing uncompromised integrity and as a role model to emulate.

Crime Analyst Christine Charley received the Employee of the Year Award for her on-going role in crime analysis and combating graffiti. Throughout last year, Ms Charlie worked closely with local law enforcement agencies in an ongoing investigation where she used her analytical skills and knowledge to organize volumes of data from the investigation and categorize it into a usable and concise product. Her knowledge and ability to work efficiently, diligently and her consistent high quality work product has been vital in the investigation. In addition to her duties, Ms Charlie continues to be involved with the Every 15 Minutes Program, various departmental presentations and both the Citizen's and Youth Academies.

Crime Analyst Jodi Summers received the Chief's Award of Distinction for her dedication to the Department and the community. A creative and motivating force within the Department, Ms Summers is always looking for ways to improve upon her work product. Her numerous responsibilities include providing officers with current and vital information on crime trends and statistics, officer safety information and the provision of resources to assist Officers in the field. She has taken on new responsibilities and takes pride in her work and has created a lasting impression on the morale of the Department.

Officer Steve Acosta received the Bravery Award for his involvement in the arrest of a gang member following a shoot out with police officers. While working in cooperation with several other agencies, Officer Acosta was involved in a high risk traffic stop with the suspect. The suspect fired at officers and several shots were exchanged before the suspect was arrested.

Four Officers and a Crime Analyst received Excellence Awards: Officer Bemowski, Officer Hardaker, Officer Franks, Officer Cervantes and Crime Analyst Charley.

§ Officers Jason Bemowski and James Hardaker received the Excellence Award as a result of their success while assigned to the San Bernardino West End Narcotics Enforcement Team in 2008. Together, they acted as the case agents for over 65 narcotics related investigations and made numerous arrests.

§ Officer Robert Franks dedication to the success of the K-9 program earned him the reputation throughout the county as the handler of the top narcotic detection dog. Putting in long hours with his canine partner "Rico" outside of the required weekly training sessions contributed to the overall success of the program and resulted in numerous commendation letters for the pair.

§ Officer John Cervantes is assigned as the School Resource Officer at Chino High School and has worked closely with the school district to create a Comprehensive School Emergency Plan.

§ Crime Analyst Christine Charley received the Excellence Award for her on-going work with the West End Law Enforcement Graffiti Task Force. Her efforts to detour taggers resulted in the City purchasing the Graffiti Tracker system which has helped to identify numerous taggers resulting in their arrest.

The Life Saving Award was presented to Clerical Aide Sheila Jones for her quick actions in assisting a downed bicyclist in Pismo Beach who was suffering from a medical emergency. Ms Jones and another citizen began giving the cyclist CPR when a doctor stopped to help. When Pismo Beach officers arrived on scene, Ms Jones who is a certified AED instructor assisted the doctor using the officers' AED equipment. Ms Jones' actions helped save the cyclist's life.

Four Officers received the Chief's Commendation Award: Officer Herb McKee, Officer James Hardaker, Officer Katie Kreps and Detective Ron Vallejo.

§ Officer McKee received the Chief's Commendation Award for his work at Buena Vista High School over the past two years. Working directly with the principal, the two initiated a program to keep high-risk youths in school. Both truancies and unexcused absences are down and Buena Vista High School has seen an improvement in daily attendance which is at 94% for this school year.

§ Officer Hardaker's assisted the ATF with their investigation into the outlaw motorcycle gang "the Mongols." Officer Hardaker's planning and organization was instrumental in the safe execution of two search warrants in Chino.

§ Officer Kreps' teaching background allowed Officer Kreps to quickly form positive relationships with the staff and students she serves as a School Resource Officer at Don Lugo High School. Her role has directly resulted in crime reduction on the campus.

§ Detective Vallejo received the Chief's Commendation Award for his rural crimes expertise which was instrumental in a landmark animal cruelty case. Officer Vallejo's specialized knowledge was imperative when working with the Humane Society of the United States in a case involving animal cruelty at a local slaughter house. As a result of this case, several changes have been made to the overall meat packing industry.

Officer Jamie Benavides and Officer Scott Trosper received the 2007-2008 MADD Award for their outstanding contribution to reducing DUI related crimes. From July 2007 to July 2008, Officer Benavides made 14 DUI related arrests and Officer Trosper made 13 DUI related arrests.

Citizen's Commendations were presented to four members of the Community Support Team: Gustavo Delgado, William Hamilton, Gus Wybenga and William Sitton. Collectively, these four volunteers donated 1,495 hours of their time and issued 211 parking tickets.

At the conclusion of the meeting, a bi-annual Department photograph was taken of all members, sworn, civilian support staff and the many volunteers that donate hundreds of hours to their community.

Contact : Michelle Van Der Linden, Public Information Officer, Administration 909-591-9803 mvanderlinden@cityofchino.org

Source: http://www.chinohills.com/news-articles-details/Chief_Addresses_Chino_Police_Department_-647

4/1/2009 - CHINO CRIME ANALYSTS RECEIVE AWARDS FOR DISTINCTION
****
04/01/2009: Chino, California crime analysts Christine Charley and Jodi Summers received honors on March 30 for their outstanding work. In a ceremony led by Chino Chief of Police Stan Stewart, Christine was awarded Employee of the Year for her efforts in combating graffiti. Jodi received the Chief's Award for Distinction for her overall dedication to the department and the community.

Christine and Jodi are both valued IACA members. Christine has served on the Conference Committee for 2008 and 2009, and Jodi moderates and manages the IACA's Discussion List.

You can read the full article at this link.

2/17/2009 - Intelligence Added to Close Cases
Reported by: Ryan Kath
Email: kath@nbcactionnews.com
Last Update: 2/11 11:29 pm


INDEPENDENCE, Mo – A little intelligence is going a long way at the Independence Police Department.

Since last December, police have used a crime analyst to help identify patterns around the city. So far, detectives say the process called Crime Overview Response Evaluation –or CORE—is producing positive results.

“We’ve been able to free up some of our detectives and give them the ability to move on something quickly,” said Major Ken Jarnagin of the investigations division. “That has made a huge difference.”

Jennifer Dachenhausen has worked as the department’s only crime analyst, a position that takes years of education and training. Every day, she scrolls through hundreds of files, looks at locations and times of incident reports—basically anything to help identify a pattern.

Her gathered intelligence is then communicated to troops on the ground.

“They take it from there and each of the units goes forward with that information and does what they can to stop it and prevent it in the future,” said Dachenhausen.

In the last month, the focused approach to problem areas has taken suspects off the streets. According to Jarnagin, there have been eight armed robbery arrests and seven burglary arrests. Often times, once suspects are in custody, detectives are able to connect them to other open cases.

“It just blossoms from there,” Jarnagin said.

Jarnagin said most police departments would prefer to have a crime analyst on the force, but it is a resource they can’t afford, especially during tough budget times. Independence is using grant money to help with the cost. On Wednesday, the department was interviewing candidates to fill a second crime analyst position.

2/9/2009 - The IACA conference is not far away! This year, the IACA is teaming up with the Arizona Association of Crime Analysts (AACA) to deliver an awesome conference in sunny Scottsdale, AZ.

Registration will be opening soon, so start beggin'!

12/5/2008 - Crime analyst recognized with international award

Kelli Bamforth, staff writer


Crime analyst Dawn Clausius solves cases behind the scenes.

In her role, Clausius is charged with analyzing all data that filters into the department, including officers’ crime reports, information from the FBI and the Department of Justice, and citizen accounts.

She then aims to turn the data into actionable information by identifying crime patterns and other quality-of-life issues that need to be addressed by the police department.

Making crime stop by catching the suspects - or even preventing crime from occurring in the first place - is the goal.

Clausius was honored last month with the International Association of Crime Analysts’ annual Membership Award in St. Petersburg, Fla.

“I take cases that have no leads and try to develop leads from other cases or calls, or suspects in other cities committing similar crimes,” she said.

One success includes putting a stop to copper thefts throughout the city of Olathe, which had cost the city $75,000 before the suspects were caught.

“The cities of Shawnee and Lenexa were being targeted heavily by copper thieves targeting street lights in future residential areas in which very few houses had been built, with few witnesses,” Clausius said. “It was difficult because we had very little suspect information and the areas we were hit were not heavily inhabited. We were days behind of knowing when the crimes would occur. We continued to be victimized in a particular area of the city.”

Officers started patrolling the area heavily and eventually stopped a vehicle in which four suspects and a bed full of copper wire were found.

“Since that apprehension we’ve had zero thefts of copper from street lights reported,” Clausius said.

The award is given for contribution to the field of crime analysis.

“I was floored, needless to say,” she said. “You work hard every day to make a difference, and when things go right, you make a difference for the department and the community. To be nominated and validated by my peers is pretty big. It makes you feel like you’re doing the right thing every day.”


Source: http://www.theolathenews.com/101/story/293871.html

11/24/2008 - The new crime fighter: A civilian analyst


By JOE LAMBE
The Kansas City Star


Pity the poor criminals, furtive souls who watch for police while unseen civilians chase them down from desk chairs.

Armed with crime reports and computer savvy, a growing cadre of crime analysts helps police catch bad guys — sometimes even predicting crimes while they are still gleams in the eyes of crooks.

Ask the serial sub shop armed robber who was nailed last year in Independence after hitting more than 30 area businesses. When he showed up to rob a shop, undercover police were waiting for him. He confessed.

Police in the Kansas City area helped pioneer the field back in the 1990s, and Overland Park is the headquarters of the International Association of Crime Analysts.

Shawnee analyst Susan Smith is a vice president of the group, which has gone from about 250 members in 2000 to more than 1,500 today.

Smith was the one who predicted where the sub shop robber would show up next. Like so many others, he was a “hot dot,” a career criminal with a distinct pattern.

Analysts throughout the area shared data on their robberies, and Smith used patterns and times to predict the Independence robbery.

“He said that was the only way he knew to support himself,” Smith said.

Notches on their ‘guns’

The profession has come a long way since Overland Park police hired Gerald Tallman in 1993 as the metropolitan area’s first civilian crime analyst. The retired Army military police officer manages five other analysts and eight volunteers there.

Kansas City has an analyst in each of its six patrol divisions, plus others who work on task forces. Olathe is about to hire a second analyst, and most area police departments have at least a person who does it part time.

Often they get results quietly.

About two months ago, Tallman said, one of his analysts helped identify suspects in a series of open garage door robberies. They got photos of four teens and the kinds of cars they drove and put the word out on police computer and at roll calls.

“We were able to contact them multiple times, and the activity stopped,” Tallman said of the teens.

The way that works, he said, is to approach the criminals and ask them about the crimes and “they get nervous and decide to go elsewhere.”

If similar crimes start happening in another area city, the suspects are flagged for other police departments.

“Frequent fliers,” criminals who work cities on both sides of the state line, are common.

In Olathe, copper thieves stripped city streetlights for months. The only clue was a trail of darkness.

Olathe police analyst Dawn Clausius followed the trail from reports and mapped it. From November of last year through August, the thieves hit remote areas or new and largely unoccupied subdivisions.

Police patrols responded in those areas, and in September a cruiser stopped a vehicle, arrested four men and recovered pounds of streetlight copper. No Olathe lights have been stripped since.

Clausius said her job includes advising others how to limit crime, “to catch it before, during and after it happens.”

Cities, for example, might consider not installing lights in new subdivisions until people move there.

Clausius, who last month won an award from the analysts association, also predicted that “grease pirates” would hit the city weeks before they did this past summer.

In those, thieves steal used grease from behind restaurants and sell it for biofuel or other uses. Restaurants often contract with companies who pay for the grease, if the pirates don’t get it first.

Clausius knew grease thieves were striking nationwide and had hit a Mission restaurant. So she told officers to watch for trucks at night with big vats. They caught a few pirates.

The problem is that grease thievery is just a city ticket offense, and thieves pay fines and strike again. Maybe restaurants should use locks or other secure methods to store their used grease, she said.

Tallman said crime analysts get the satisfaction of putting crooks behind bars with an added bonus: “We don’t get shot at.”

But they do get noticed.

Jobs that pay well

Dozens of police agencies throughout the United States and even one from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago have sent officers to Overland Park to study the analysts’ work.

Some of their crime maps are in U.S. Department of Justice text.

One map shows how juveniles gathered at a strip mall and moved on foot through drainage ditches and a street to shoot out windows and house lights.

When police confronted three juveniles with the map, Tallman said, the teens said: “You’re right. You got us.”

Crooks should worry, Smith said, because analysts are in more demand than ever and are getting better.

Police usually want people with college degrees related to law enforcement and skills in computers and numbers.

A decade ago, Smith said, the jobs paid in the upper $20,000 or lower $30,000 range, but a recent survey found common starting salaries of $50,000 to $60,000 in Missouri and Kansas.

Tallman said the $1 million Coplink computer intelligence system, which is scheduled to start in a few months, will strengthen analysts and police.

Overland Park, Olathe and Kansas City are among 13 area agencies that will share and link intelligence and reports with instant access.

Now the process can be slowed by the protocol and time it takes for official data requests.

But soon a few keystrokes will spill out criminal names and nicknames, pictures, crime histories, methods and associates. Even the cars they drive.

“We really see it all,” Clausius said.

Source: http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/903514.html

11/24/2008 - "Pity the poor criminals, furtive souls who watch for police while unseen civilians chase them down from desk chairs."

So begins a great write-up of crime analysts in the Kansas City area, including the IACA's vice president, Susan Smith. Click here for the full story.

8/15/2008 - ALEXANDRIA ANALYSIS-DRIVEN 'STRATEGIC RESPONSE SYSTEM' HIGHLIGHTED IN ARTICLE

In science fiction, criminals are detected before they strike. Yet the techniques outlined in Philip K. Dick’s 1956 short story "Minority Report" are outside of the realm of possibility — at least for now. But Alexandria Police Chief David Baker is one step ahead of science fiction, using dynamic mapping technology to identify emerging problems before they spiral out of control. Baker calls it the "Strategic Response System," a mix of newfangled computer imaging and old-fashioned cooperation. Originally based on New York City’s "Comstat" program, the chief’s implementation of the program has been specifically tailored to meet the crime-fighting needs on the streets of Alexandria.

Read the full article at the Alexandria Gazette Packet.

6/29/2008 - Crime analyst helps find patterns of criminals to prevent violence

By Adrielle Harvey
Business Writer


Two charts related to gang violence and a poster with common gang markings cover the slate-colored walls of one of the offices at the Oklahoma City Police Department.

Cubicles with computers and telephones line the room and a large table rests in the center where Bret Aicher unrolls a laminated map that shows how the department is split into divisions.

Aicher, 43, is a civilian crime analyst in the Criminal Intelligence Unit at the Oklahoma City Police Department.

"Basically what we do, we'll look at the crimes happening in Oklahoma City and look at the systematic approaches and patterns and look at when the next one's going to happen,” Aicher said.

Crime analysts use data and computer analyzing software and sort through records to provide information on crime patterns to detectives and other officers. They also put together daily bulletins for officers on patrol so they can see what is happening in each division.

Analysts also create "Wanted” bulletins to distribute to media outlets and the general public, hoping to produce leads. This includes gathering pictures and basic information and then providing a number the public may call.


‘More of a direct impact'
Before Aicher's landing the job at the OCPD, he served 24 years in the Air Force. His first 12 years were spent as a police officer, but Aicher said "that really wasn't for me” and pursued the analyst career for the next half of his military life.
He retired last year and moved to Oklahoma City from Hawaii to be closer to his children. With his analyst experience, Aicher began searching for jobs in a similar field.

"I needed to get a second career after retiring from the Air Force,” he said.


‘More crime-related'
Aicher applied for the crime analyst job at the OCPD and was hired in November.
"The setting in the military was totally different than here,” Aicher said. "This is more crime-related whereas the Air Force was more intel.”

He enjoys making "more of a direct impact” in helping to solve crimes, such as "reviewing phone records on a homicide case, hoping you'd find something in a lead that would help solve the case,” Aicher said.

"It's just interesting to provide some of the case support to the different divisions.”


Proactive vs. reactive
Criminal analysis is fairly new to the career world. It has become a key aspect of the proactive versus reactive approach that police departments are taking by utilizing intelligence-led police.
"There weren't very many crime analysts 10 years ago,” Aicher said.

By finding criminal patterns, preventative measures can be taken — proactive — rather than waiting until a crime does occur – reactive.

Aicher said this is done by "reviewing a series of crime in an area, then letting those officers know in those areas” that certain crimes, appear to be happening at particular times and days.

Aicher admits that he is not too fond of being stuck at his desk, but that's far overshadowed by the edge he gets from his knowledge about the city's crime.

"The best part is getting to see everything that's going on in Oklahoma City, knowing more than what's put out in the media,” Aicher said.

Source: http://newsok.com/crime-analyst-helps-find-patterns-of-criminals-to-prevent-violence/article/3263409/

6/28/2008 - GPD systems spot crime patterns

Months ago, officers from the Gainesville Police Department arrested a burglar who was attempting to steal copper wire from the air-conditioning unit of a local business.

GPD caught the thief in action and took him downtown. While this may seem like an ordinary arrest, it was not.

This quick and efficient arrest is just one of many that have been occurring thanks to new programs that GPD is using to improve communication within the department and to fight crime more accurately, according to Lt. Art Adkins.

If it weren't for the new programs, the patrol officers who made the arrest would not have been given the heads up to watch out for burglaries in the area, and they likely may not have spotted the theft in progress.

The new systems use computers to alert each tier of law enforcement about crime patterns in the Gainesville area and are bringing the department one step closer to so-called "information-led" policing, said Adkins.

According to Adkins, the new crime prevention programs, put into practice in January, allow analysts to put together "crime snapshots" each morning, letting officers in all three districts know if any crime patterns have surfaced during the past 24 hours. The analysts then send those alerts to the patrol officers via computer.

Read the full story here

6/20/2008 - Port St. Lucie (FL) Crime Analysts help catch vehicle burglars!

Crime Analysts with the Port St. Lucie Police Department help officers arrest 2 juveniles connected to over a dozen car break-ins.

Two officers were patrolling the 3000 blk. of SW. Boxwood in an unmarked police car after receiving crime maps from the crime analyst depicting “hot spots” or an area in the city experiencing several vehicle burglaries.


At approximately 1 a.m., officers observed two juveniles walking down the street. When officers questioned the juveniles about their early morning activities, they initially gave several different stories before admitting to break-ins in the area.


Read the full story here!

6/10/2008 -
20-year-old crime analyst solves smash and grab case

New Port Richey, Florida – Michael Natoli owns Best of Philly Cheesesteak House located at 2321 Seven Springs Boulevard in New Port Richey. He says he enjoys whipping up the sandwiches for his customers, but a recent smash and grab break-in at his store has left a bad taste in his mouth.

It happened on May 6th around 10:30 at night, when a thief used some type of blunt object like a brick or a rock to break the front window of his business out and then Natoli says, "He walked in and jumped up here and we had a footprint up here and he ran down and took our register."

The thief caused some $1,400 in damage and only got away with seven bucks. It's something Pasco County Sheriff's office says the thief continued to do. He mainly hit restaurants like Souvlaki a Greek restaurant. In all, he hit about 15 businesses according the Pasco County Sheriff's office.

But like a scene right out of the hit CBS show Numb3rs Pasco County Sheriff's office crime analyst, Amber Vogt was starting to notice a distinct pattern in all the cases. Something she's learned from watching criminal investigation shows at home.

She says, "Some of the investigations that they show that they do to help crack cases I find helpful because it helps you look further into detail of what you could have looked at that other people might not have."

The 20-year-old dug in. She researched where the crimes were happening and starting looking into clues about a getaway car and a partial tag number. Another big clue came when the suspect allegedly broke into the General Nutrition Center store located at 7215 State Road 54 in New Port Richey. There was a manager inside who told deputies he got a good look at him.

All of that lead to the arrest of 42-year-old Holiday resident Nelson Reina.

Vogt is now being praised not only her hard work but quick results. She says “That only took about a day."

Reina appears scratched up in his jail photo. New Port Richey say when they spotted him, he took off running to hide in some mangroves. He was found and remains locked up.

Authorities say he recently got out of prison on similar burglary charges and told detectives he is addicted to drugs.

Detective Anthony Bossone is with the property crime unit at Pasco County Sheriff's Office and says there was a concern that Reina was getting bolder in his crimes. In one instance he's accused of driving his white 2000 Volkswagen Jetta into the Pizza Chef restaurant located at 3438 US19 in Holiday.

After allegedly breaking into the Villa Roma Restaurant at 1818 US 19 in Holiday a witness told deputies that Reina stopped in front of his home and was seen trying to pry open a cash register. The witness says Reina was driving a white Jetta at the time.

Tammie Fields, Tampa Bay's 10 News

Source: http://www.tampabays10.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=82224

6/6/2008 - Aurora Police Analyst Dawn Tollakson honored



Contributed by: Detective Robert Friel on 6/4/2008

Colorado Business and Professional Women (BPW/CO) selected Dawn M. Tollakson of Aurora as the 2008 Young Careerist. Dawn will represent BPW/CO at the BPW/USA Conference in Atlanta, Georgia July 23-26, 2008.


The Young Careerist Program recognizes the accomplishments of successful young women or men. Ms. Tollakson was selected from a field of 6 candidates scored on biographical information, a personal interview, group interaction and 4-minute speech given to the BPW/CO Convention on May 31 st. Judges for the competition were Raj Khandekar, PH.D., Professor of Management at the Metropolitan State College of Denver, Cindy Sutfin, Senior Finance Instructor at the University of Colorado Denver and Theresa M. Szczurek, PH.D., author of Pursuit of Passionate Purpose and owner of Management Solutions, LLC.


Dawn has been a Senior Crime Analyst with the Aurora Police Department for nearly 7 years. She has a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Metro State College. She has received numerous honors for her investigative work including a Chief's Commendation and Commander's Commendations.


Dawn said, "I find my work rewarding and challenging. Each investigation prompts me to grow and I look forward to a long career with Aurora Police making a positive impact on our community."


Recently, Dawn played a critical role in a grand jury case that garnered significant media coverage. The investigation, which began in November of 2006 and involved cases from 12 metro police jurisdictions, effectively dismantled a large ID theft, check fraud ring that preyed on at least 472 people in the southeast Denver metro region. The group broke into cars at fitness centers, trail heads and other recreation areas in order to steal wallets and purses. Last month, twenty members of this criminal enterprise who were responsible for more than $400,000 in losses were indicted by a Denver Grand Jury. Dawn's role as the lead crime analyst for this investigation was critical to the overall success of this complex investigation.


BPW's mission is to achieve equity for all women in the workplace through advocacy, education and information. More information about the Aurora BPW can be found at http://www.aurorabpw.org.

Source: http://denver.yourhub.com/AuroraNorth/Stories/News/Society/Story~479636.aspx

5/14/2008 - Crime Analyst in the News

Greeley, Weld police T.R.A.C. the bad guys

Tactical Response and Control meetings review crime statistics for better patrol patterns


Mike Peters, (mpeters@greeleytribune.com)
May 13, 2008

Each month, they gather in the darkened room -- sheriff's commanders, wildlife officers, police and parole officers -- to talk about the bad guys.

They call it Crime TRAC -- Tactical Response and Control -- and it's not really a meeting everyone looks forward to. On two large screens, the crime statistics for the month in Weld County are shown in brilliant color, but then each sheriff's commander is asked to explain what he's doing about the crimes and what can be done to prevent them.

The person who does much of the work on those sessions, compiling the crime statistics of Weld County and projecting it on maps, is crime analyst Sally Ainsworth, a veteran of the department, and a woman extremely interested in tracking crime.

In Ainsworth's office, on the wall behind her desk is a framed badge and gun. They belonged to Ainsworth's father, a biologist for the Department of Wildlife, who died in a small plane crash in 2002 while he was working near Salida. "He was an inspiration to me," Ainsworth said of her father.

She grew up in western Colorado, got her bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Colorado in criminal justice and pre-law; a master's degree in crime analysis was earned form Tiffin University in Ohio. After first working for the Longmont police, Ainsworth came to the Weld County Sheriff's Office more than eight years ago.

It's her job to take the crime reports and turn them into maps, showing patterns of crime. She produces a Weekly SPUR -- Sheriff Patterns Under Review -- which can be used to follow crime patterns.

For example, when there were numerous vandalisms in the Hill-N-Park mobile home park south of Greeley, Ainsworth brought the reports together to show where and when the crimes occurred. A sheriff's district commander increased patrols in the area and deputies watched for suspicious cars or people in the park; the total number of vandalisms and auto prowls dropped from 26 one month to two the next.

In addition to talking about crime rates and patterns, the Crime TRAC group also shows photos of suspects in crimes, recently-release prison parolees, and discusses "persons of Interest." Mugshots appeared on the big screens, along with criminal records and aliases. The officers talked about where the fugitives could be found and whether they could expect trouble with an arrest.

In last week's meeting, a business that may be cheating customers was highlighted, as were some of Weld County's Most Wanted, and other people who had warrants issued against them. The officers talked of investigations, where to watch for the next in a series of crimes.

Because of the crime maps, sheriff's deputies are able to pinpoint where and when crimes occur. For example, there have recently been thefts from oil rig sites -- someone breaks into a storage shed at night and steals the tools. By pinpointing the locations of the thefts, then determining which nights and at which times they occur, deputies could patrol specific areas to find the criminals.

Source: http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20080513/NEWS/384425072

5/8/2008 - Commendations Given to Investigator, Crime Analyst and Private Citizen in Flasher Case


Acting Sheriff Jack Anderson made the following comments on May 1, 2008 when giving commendations to Investigator Jeffrey Brown, Crime Analyst Catalina Reyes and Tustin resident Michael Palacio. The three were responsible for the arrest and the large number of cases made against the individual accused of being the culprit who became known as "The O.C. Flasher."

"On Saturday, February 2, 2008, Tustin citizen Michael Palacio was near an apartment complex when he noticed a nude male knocking on a window of an apartment. Mr. Palacio took immediate steps to confront the suspect, ultimately chasing him through the complex and apprehending him.

Our investigators suspect that this individual committed over 200 acts of indecent exposure from 2005 to 2008.

Today, family and friends gathered as we commended Mr. Palacio, Investigator Jeffrey Brown and Crime Analyst Catalina Reyes for their outstanding performance, diligence, and dedication for their efforts on this case.

Mr. Palacio's commendation reads in part: 'In 2005 the Orange County Sheriff's Department became aware of an individual who was accosting and exposing himself to lone female residents.' Based upon the suspect's method of operation, he left virtually no investigative leads or clues to his identity. The Orange County Sheriff's Department utilized all of its resources and manpower to identify and apprehend this suspect.

The Department organized and conducted covert surveillances, reviewed dozens of individuals previously convicted of indecent exposure and released a composite sketch of a suspect. For three years no suspect was identified.

The Department realized that the apprehension of this suspect would likely occur by the initial response of a patrol deputy or by the quick and decisive acts of a citizen.

Mr. Palacio's actions immediately halted the continuing victimization of women and, because of the extraordinary investigative work of Crime Analyst Catalina Reyes and Investigator Jeff Brown, the suspect will be accountable in a court of law for more than the single incident that occurred on February 2.

This is an extraordinary example of the work each of you performs on a daily basis with the support of the communities we serve. Thank you for all of your great efforts.

Source: http://blog.ocsd.org/post/2008/05/07/Commendations-given-to-Investigator2c-Crime-Analyst-and-Private-Citizen-in-Flasher-Case.aspx

4/23/2008 - New Mansfield crime analyst tracks perps via computer


MANSFIELD -- The first thing Beverly Lewis does when she gets to work at the Mansfield Police Department each morning is pull together recent reports on her computer to catch up on burglaries and larcenies.

She's looking to see if some of those incidents might tie in with past crimes, leading officers to a certain suspect.

"I start the reports. Then I go get my coffee ..." she said.

Since recently earning certification as a crime analyst, Lewis has set a goal of working with police officers and Neighborhood Watch groups to better identify criminal patterns.
Relatively few cities Mansfield's size can boast of having a certified crime analyst, police Chief Phil Messer said. Lewis is the only such analyst in north central Ohio.

"This is the most interesting work that I have ever done," Lewis said. "I feel like I'm no longer just part of the administrative side of the police department. I'm more of a part of the law enforcement side."

She generates pin maps and reports, using software to spot situations where prompt attention could mean catching a suspect. By acting swiftly with good data, "you can actually prevent this from happening to someone else," she said.

"I look for patterns in the days of the week, the times of day ... This gets out to officers as soon as possible."

Lewis also forwards monthly crime reports to Neighborhood Watch groups, through community policing officers, to let residents know about problems in their areas.

Patterns appear more frequently in some crimes such as burglary, she said.

"A lot of the burglaries are 'tuck-and-carry'. The suspects may not have a car. They are very likely to live in the same area the crime occurred, so burglaries occur close together," she said.

Lewis has developed a keen eye for detail, especially odd ones.

The thief in one burglary in January didn't steal the usual items -- laptop computers or cash. "The guy stole perfume, undergarments and chicken. It sounded like it had sexual overtones," she said.

Lewis mapped the location with an overlay showing addresses where sex offenders live nearby, so officers would know whether a criminal who'd chosen similar victims was living in that neighborhood.

"Some of them may never have reoffended. (But) it gives us a potential direction, or at least puts us on alert," she said.

Another puzzle currently intrigues her: the astonishing number of thefts involving video game systems.

"You would think the market for those would be saturated. Are they playing them? Are they trading them? Are they pawning them?"

Lewis said her goal is to increase the speed at which crime-tracking reports can be produced, plus improve data quality. Because the records department tends to be two or three days behind entering incidents into the computer system, the crime analyst adds some information on her own to make reports more complete.

Time is important. Lewis was frustrated by one near-miss -- an incident in which a burglary victim was able to identify a suspect to police. That same night, another officer stopped that suspect on an unrelated call. Because the incident wasn't yet in the computer, the officer didn't know to ask the suspect further questions.

Speed can be important, she said.

Lewis started in the police department's traffic division 10 years ago. For the last six years she had been a special projects coordinator, developing the department's Web site and working on accreditation paperwork and grant applications.

Lewis said she looks forward to the day when all law enforcement agencies across Richland County share information and track crimes through a common database. Repeat offenders don't necessarily stop committing crime outside the city's borders, she said.



Source: http://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080420/NEWS01/804200319/1002

4/7/2008 - The 2008 IACA Conference Bulletin Contest is OPEN!!! Send your contest entries or questions to bulletincontest@iaca.net by 8/31/08.

3/28/2008 - Dawn Clausius of the Olathe (KS) Police Department was recently selected as the department's Civilian Employee of the Year! This recognition validates the position of Crime Analyst and the field of Crime Analysis for all.

Congrats Dawn!

2/29/2008 - Data crunching, crime busting

February 28, 2008 - 3:33pm — Leah Shaffer

When it comes to crime prevention, it helps to see the big picture. In Eden Prairie’s case, it starts with intelligence-led policing.

For Ryan Kapaun, Eden Prairie’s law enforcement analyst, that could mean doing research on a problem that is happening nationally that might have an influence in Eden Prairie. Maybe it means looking at past crime data to predict what’s going to happen next, “… predicting what type of crime is going to happen, maybe where it’s going to happen, what time it’s going to happen, your best guess for patrol,” Kapaun said.

By summer, Kapaun will be the department’s full-time data cruncher, taking loads of case and crime data and whittling it down into a form that can be of use to investigators and officers.

Capt. Jim DeMann describes intelligence-led policing as a “management philosophy.”

It helps police better understand what’s happening in the city “and that’s going to help us allocate our resources more efficiently,” he added.

For example, if officers start seeing a trend in residential burglaries in a certain part of town, “Ryan is going to be able to help us determine some more specific information to help us get officers to certain locations at certain days, or certain times,” said DeMann.

Joint analysis

Currently, Kapaun spends part of his time at the Minnesota Joint Analysis Center (MNJAC). Back in 2005, Eden Prairie assigned Lt. Mike Bosacker to the state Homeland Security and Emergency Management Office as part of MNJAC. Bosacker saw the need for Eden Prairie to have its own intelligence analyst and the city hired Kapaun about a year ago. He has remained assigned to MNJAC with that assignment funded through a grant.

Today, Bosacker is director of MNJAC, what is described as an intelligence fusion center, now a task force under the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA). According to the U.S. Department of Justice Web site on fusion center guidelines, the “ultimate goal of a fusion center is to provide a mechanism where law enforcement, public safety and private partners can come together with a common purpose and improve the ability to safeguard our homeland and prevent criminal activity.”

According to Chief Rob Reynolds, over the next few weeks, Kapaun will switch to three days in Eden Prairie, two days at MNJAC, with a full switch to Eden Prairie in July. His work at MNJAC looks at more regional crime trends. There he is also in contact with other states to see what’s going on and hears from analysts working for other city police departments.

According to Kapaun, a network of law enforcement analysts is something that’s mostly found in the larger metro cities in Minnesota. Minneapolis has a whole unit dedicated to analysis, he said, while some of the larger suburbs such as Burnsville and Eagan participate in intelligence-led policing.

“It is something that’s new,” he said.

Police Chief Reynolds said that if they had the perfect analysis and data-sharing system, every local department would feed into a regional system (such as MNJAC) then a national system.

“I think we’re headed that way,” he said.

But, it’s a slow process to move forward with data sharing – each level is growing at a different pace.

The thing that’s really different now compared to 10 years ago is that “there’s a lot more sharing,” said Reynolds.

The work

There are a number of duties Kapaun is to undertake for Eden Prairie: Eventually, he’ll set up crime maps the public can access, which would show where, when and what type of crimes have occurred in EP. From Chief Reynolds’ perspective, the more information the Police Department gets out to the public, the more likely they are hear back from the community.

Kapaun’s work could involve analyzing traffic accident reports to determine the worst intersections in Eden Prairie for crashes and figure out why they are the worst (See page 5 for one answer to that question from the city’s Public Works department). Another part of Kapaun’s work would involve helping investigators put together link charts that connect all the different players in a complicated criminal case.

“It’s just taking large amounts of data and paring it down into something that’s understandable for everybody,” said Kapaun. “So that anybody, whether it’s an investigator or an attorney, can figure out exactly who’s involved with who.”

Eden Prairie is looking to another city as an example of intelligence-led policing. Reynolds explained that Overland Park, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City, is in many ways similar to EP.

“They’ve really grabbed hold of this idea” said Reynolds about Overland Park’s work.

He cites one example from that city involving cigarette burglaries from convenience stores.

Overland Park’s analyst determined the pattern in the case and was able to forecast the time, date and place of the next crime.

“They didn’t get them the first night, but they did get them the second,” said Reynolds.

Instead of placing all resources at all different stores, “They were able to narrow the scope of where they should be looking for this,” he added.

Tied to this initiative is the use of the city’s Partnership for Emergency Readiness network. For instance, last summer, there were a number of catalytic converter thefts. The Eden Prairie Police Department put out a bulletin for all our businesses in the PER network explaining what was happening, why it was happening, how criminals were doing it and how to prevent it.

If people are aware of what’s going on, said Reynolds, “Then they’ll start to call.”

source: http://www.edenprairienews.com/news/public-safety/data-crunching-crime-busting-4520

1/15/2008 - Denver Police chief credits crime analysis with crime decrease.

See the article at The Rocky Mountain News

1/9/2008 - Man Admits to 32 Burglaries - Police Credit Crime Analysis - GRAND RAPIDS -- It was Thanksgiving weekend when Michael Jones allegedly hit a 28th Street office complex, including America's Transportation Resource.
He broke in and grabbed any piece of electronics he could get his hands on.
"Things he could remove easy - laptops, projectors, digital cameras, movie cameras," said Mary Beth Knapp, a dispatcher for the firm that supplies drivers to trucking companies.

They've replaced the items.
But ATR's backup computer system didn't work the way it was supposed to. It's a loss measured not just in money, but years.
Eight years to be exact.
"It's the entire customer database. Contact information, assignments," said Knapp.

Grand Rapids police told 24 Hour News 8 Jones has confessed to burglarizing 32 offices and businesses in November and December. Ten of them occurred in one night at the 28th Street business complex.
Jones allegedly then moved downtown Grand Rapids, again burglarizing some places more than once.
Sometimes he'd break in, sometimes he'd sneak in and wait until the building closed for the night.
He was eventually caught hiding inside the building housing San Chez Bistro on Fulton Street, across the street of Grand Rapids Police Headquarters.

Police credit their crime analysis project as a key to catching Jones.
Acting Chief Kevin Belk says it's all about crime patterns. "To identify these patterns early on so we can focus resources on these."

Chief Belk said officers didn't find Jones when they responded to a break-in alarm at San Chez. But they knew their suspect liked to hide. So instead of assuming, they surrounded the building.
When he didn't come out, they sent in the dogs, bringing an end to Jones' crime spree.
But the hassle for his victim has only begun.

"Somehow he needs to know the effect that he had on people," said Knapp. "It's not just a laptop. It's not just an items. It's not just a projector. It's somebody's job. It's their life. It's their work. It's eight years."
Jones has a long criminal record that dates back decades; a fact that could get him life in prison if convicted in these recent cases.

Source: http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7595413&nav=menu44_2

11/1/2007 - NEW PORT RICHEY - Michael Mauritzen, a starting outside linebacker for the New Port Richey Buccaneers of the Police Athletic League, will miss Saturday's playoff game against Wesley Chapel. He is injured because of a blind-side collision. Actually two. They smashed his bones.
Michael was walking to Sunoco to buy a snack about 9 p.m. Oct. 21 when the side-view mirror of a passing minivan clipped his shoulder and knocked him down. He lay there stunned, halfway in the road, and then a car ran him over.

He does not remember how it felt. But he looked down at his legs and they were covered in tire tracks. One of his shoes was missing. Blood poured from his nose and mouth.

I'm going to die, he thought.

Who can say what goes on in the mind of a driver who hits a pedestrian? Who can map out the lightning-quick calculations?

Neither driver stopped.

And at first, it seemed that both had made a clean getaway.

But there were witnesses, and they saw the car that crushed Michael on the west side of Thys Road near State Road 54. They said that it was a Ford Taurus driven by a woman who appeared to be in her 40s. They said they glimpsed part of the tag number.

X74, maybe a Z, maybe an E.

Two nights later, when she was watching the evening news, a woman named Regina Chimile saw a segment about the crash. She saw the tag number. She jotted it down.

- - -


Michael Mauritzen is 16 years old. He's a junior at Gulf High School in New Port Richey. His coach says he is one of the three hardest-hitting defenders on the team. He was still at Bayfront Medical Center on Wednesday, and a release from the Florida Highway Patrol said he was in serious condition.

He was well enough to answer the phone in his hospital room and speak to a reporter. He said he had a broken femur, broken nose, broken collarbone, broken ankle, broken ribs. He said there were 22 stitches in his elbow and 27 staples in his thigh. He said the crash split open his liver.

"I'm in pain every single day," he said. "I do nothing but watch TV."

He will begin rehab soon. He is not sure how complete his recovery will be. "They said it's all up to me," he said.

The New Port Richey Buccaneers will take the field without him Saturday. They will try to win one for Mikey.

- - -


Regina Chimile brought the partial tag number to work. She is a crime analyst for the Pasco County Sheriff's Office. She began checking state databases.

Ford Taurus, woman in 40s, in the 34653 ZIP code. Tag number X74ZE, with a missing sixth digit.

Bingo.

A possible match.

She called up the Florida Highway Patrol, whose investigators were handling the accident. She suggested they check out the Ford Taurus of a woman named Karen D. Kucharczyk, 42, of 6700 block of Albemarle Parkway, New Port Richey.

They did.

They took the Taurus in for processing.

And Kucharczyk, who has no prior criminal record in Florida, went to jail Wednesday on a charge of leaving the scene of a crash with serious bodily injury. She was held in the Land O'Lakes jail in lieu of $5,000 bail.

Witnesses who saw her picture said they recognized her as the driver. But there was something else that FHP spokesman Trooper Larry Coggins Jr. said brought the whole case together.

Something the investigators found on the undercarriage of the Taurus.

Hair, blood and skin.

Source: http://www.sptimes.com/2007/11/01/Pasco/Hit_run_suspect_is_ar.shtml

10/25/2007 - Ever wonder why Crime Analysts should have police radios in their office? Have you been asking for one? Check out this blog post!

10/21/2007 - Looking for a change? There have been several hot new jobs posted to the jobs page.Check them out!

8/23/2007 - CRIME ANALYSIS UNIT CREDITED IN END TO HOUSTON ROBBERY SERIES.

The following article appeared August 23, 2007 in the "Houston Chronicle":

"Teen suspected in 15 southwest Houston armed robberies"

By LINDSAY WISE
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

----------------------------------------
A 16-year-old boy is suspected in 15 robberies in southwest Houston this summer, authorities said.

The teen, whose identity was withheld because of his age, has been charged with seven of the robberies, most which took place at gunpoint in driveways, police said.

He was referred to the Harris County Juvenile Probation authorities Aug. 3.

Police said the teen is responsible for a series of "driveway robberies" in the Fondren area that began June 29 and ended July 27. In each case, the teen would surprise people in their driveways or at the back door of their homes and rob them at gunpoint, police said.

Sometimes he would steal the victim's vehicle and later use it to commit other robberies, they said.

The teen's arrest was the result of a combined effort between the Westside Robbery Division and the Fondren Division's Tactical and Crime Analysis Units. When the teen was taken into custody, he was found with stolen property from some of the robberies, police said.

7/19/2007 - NOMINATIONS OPEN FOR MEMBER OF THE YEAR

Make sure you send Susan Smith (ssmith@ci.shawnee.ks.us) your nominations for the 2007 Membership Award, which will be presented at the 2007 conference in Pasadena.

5/18/2007 - Prevention Wins Every Time - (a blog posting by Chief Tom Casady of Lincoln, Nebraska) ACUDAT is an acronym we use for our version of COMPSTAT. It stands for Analyzing Crime Using Data About Trends. ACUDAT is a monthly meeting I host on the third Wednesdays at 7:00 PM in the LPD assembly room at headquarters. Any officer of any rank and any civilian employee is welcome to attend. It's optional, and open to all. Generally about 20 to 30 people are there.

The purpose of the meeting is to review our current crime trends, patterns, cases, and suspects. We are trying, once a month, to step back from the volume and from the daily drum beat of activity to take a look at a bigger picture: the entire city, the broader pattern, how we're doing, and the connections that might get lost otherwise in the sheer volume of what we do.

As of last night, I have held ACUDAT meetings for exactly 10 years. I'm not sure about everyone else, but for me it has been a valuable experience, that has led to lots and lots of learning and many fresh observations that would not have been made otherwise.

One of the outcomes of ACUDAT is action. This might be additional follow up on a case that we suddenly realize is related to other cases, or further work on a new suspect that has been identified. But as we've continued this process, our outcomes have increasingly involved creating or energizing preventative interventions. An excellent example follows, and one that constitutes absolutely outstanding police work by Capt. Kim Koluch's late shift officers on Lincoln's Southeast Police Team...

Read the rest of this blog entry by Chief Tom Casady at:

http://lpd304.blogspot.com/2007/05/prevention-wins-every-time.html

5/17/2007 - Don't forget to register for the IACA conference coming up in Pasadena!

3/17/2007 - Crime Analysis helps nab bank robber! While staking out a bank, Plano police caught the suspected "Paper Sack Robber" in the act.

The suspect, described as a white male, wearing a baseball cap and a long sleeve shirt, is believed to be responsible for three bank robberies in Plano. Police nabbed him on Thursday after he robbed the American National Bank at 1101 East Plano Parkway.

Members of the Plano police department tactical team had the bank under surveillance when they received a robbery alarm; before their eyes, the suspect left the bank.

They were at the bank as the result of a crime analysis from the recent Plano bank robberies. Surveillance and apprehension teams were at numerous locations throughout the city.

See http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2007/mar/17/plano-cops-stake-out-bank-and-catch-paper-sack-rob/ for the full story.

3/10/2007 - Crime analyst helps track trouble spots in Salem

Her findings aid Salem police in identifying criminal patterns

DENNIS THOMPSON
Statesman Journal

March 5, 2007

Cara Steele knows where the most "car clouts" -- car break-ins -- are taking place in the city of Salem.

She knows which neighborhoods are suffering more burglaries, and on which streets you're more likely to wake up and find your car stolen.

She knows where the meth houses are and where the graffiti is sprayed. She knows the names of people detectives should talk with if they're investigating gang activity or drug dealing or violence.

And Steele knows all these things from a fairly small room located deep inside the offices of the Salem Police Department.

Steele, 33, is the department's crime analyst. Every work day she pores through police reports and scans data, tracking crime trends and potential trouble spots and known offenders who might be up to no good.

Her work helps shape the decisions Salem police officials make as they try to keep a lid on crime in Oregon's capital city.

Question: What goes into crime analysis?

Answer: There's a lot of different facets of crime analysis. I, at this department, do both crime and intelligence.

Q: What's the difference?

A: Crime analysis is focused on the actual crimes. We look for patterns and trends for specific crime sets. Intel is looking at the people who commit the crimes. That's the primary difference between the two. I function on both sides.

Q: How do you look at the people who commit crimes?

A: I'll focus on specific people, like if I have an auto-theft ring or I have a homicide or rape or drugs, I'll track an individual and provide support to the detectives who are assigned to a case.

Q: How does crime shift and move around in the community?

A: It really depends on what crime you're looking at. We had a rash of stolen autos that was occurring in South Salem. We'll provide that information to the detectives and to the street officers assigned to those districts, and we'll ensure that we can target the areas and the times and that sort of thing. It moves, and we're very mobile in that community. It's transitional. We see crimes occurring in all areas of the city, at different times.

Q: Can you give me an example of a trend that shifted into something else?

A: It's not unusual after you've seen a bunch of stolen autos to see a bunch of car clouts coming in. People pay more attention, so if the word gets out that cars are being stolen, we might see an influx of drug-activity complaints. Our citizens may report a drug house. And from there, we'll target those. You keep evolving depending on what's occurring. Graffiti is a great example. It's primarily a central-north issue, but you're seeing a lot going on down south now. We have some documented sets of tagger groups that have evolved into more of a gang, so it's not unusual to see a more violent episode come out of that activity. It's kind of like graffiti may be a kind of a beginning crime, like we refer to marijuana as a gateway drug.

Q: Has there been a trend that startled or surprised you, that you didn't expect, or have you gotten to the point where things naturally evolve and not much surprises you?

A: You know, it's kind of sad, but you get a little cynical. Two weeks ago, we were real low on our auto theft, and every day we would check in figuring something was going to happen. Someone was in jail, or was in a transition period, and weren't doing what they normally do. When it gets low, you kind of expect things to swing back.

Q: What are the big crime trends in Salem right now?

A: We are very fortunate in that we have very few persons crimes. Typically we don't have a lot of stranger-to-stranger crimes. In terms of just general personal safety, Salem is a great community. We're high in property crimes. Typically what we see is a lot of car clouts and stolen autos and residential burglaries. Some of those are preventable, and we can do things as citizens to make sure to reduce that rate.

Q: Do you ever have to deal with a misperception regarding crime in a certain neighborhood?

A: Sure. A lot of time, people may perceive they have a tremendous car-clout issue. That's not to say they maybe haven't had a lot of car clouts, but sometimes they don't get reported. If it's not reported, it's clearly not something I can track, so I may not be able to back up what they're concerned about. It boils down to whether it's been reported.

Q: So it's important for you, in your job, that people report crimes?

A: Absolutely. If your vehicle is broken into and you don't report it, we're not able to do our job and make sure that we've put a dot on a map. We may not be able to solve it. We may not find out who did it. But it allows us to look at the information and maybe we can be better aware and focus more police resources in your area.

dmthomps@StatesmanJournal.com or (503) 399-6719

Source: http://www.statesmanjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070305/NEWS/703050317

1/14/2007 - Happy New Year! Just a reminder to all that the 9th Annual Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety (MAPS)
conference is coming up (3/28/07-3/31/07) at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. You can learn more about the crime mapping conference here.

12/4/2006 - Photos from the 2006 IACA conference in New Orleans have been added to the 2006 conference page!

10/6/2006 - The first and second place winners for the 2006 IACA Bulletin and Analytical Products contest have been posted! IACA members can go to the conference page here and follow the link (you must be logged in to view the entries).

9/19/2006 - The 2006 Bulletins and Analytical Products contest results are in!!! Congratulations to the following winners:

Bulletins
1st place - Kevin Jeffrey (RCMP, Surrey, British Columbia)
2nd place - Cory Figueiredo (Overland Park Kansas Police Department)

Maps
1st place - Kevin Jeffrey (RCMP, Surrey, British Columbia)
2nd place - Claudia Saheb (Halton Regional Police Service, Milton, Ontario, Canada)

Association and Analytical Charting
1st place - Christina Novello (El Dorado County Sheriff's Office, Placerville, California)
2nd place - Cynthia Cortner (Department of Homeland Security, San Diego, California)

Reports
1st place - Sharon Nelson (El Paso Texas Police Department)
2nd place - Corinne Swart (Long Beach California Police Department)

Best Overall Crime Analysis Product
Kevin Jeffrey (RCMP, Surrey, British Columbia)

A special thank you to the individuals who volunteered their expertise as the contest Judges.
Chris Hay (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)
Metre Lewis (Kissimmee Florida Police Department)
Nanci Plouffe (Chula Vista California Police Department)
Karen Kontak (Phoenix Arizona Police Department)
Charles Chandler (Hattiesburg Mississippi Police Department)
Jamie May, Committee Chair for Bulletins and Door Prizes (Overland Park Kansas Police Department)

6/30/2006 - Are you hiring a new analyst? Try a new (FREE!) service offered by CMAP (Crime Mapping and Analysis Program). They can assist with testing, job descriptions and application review. Contact CMAP today to find out more about this free new service!

6/14/2006 - Congratulations to the IACA’s first Certified Analysts!!! - The IACA would like to congratulate and recognize the first IACA Certified Analysts, Sally Olterman and Michele Kennedy. Click here for more!

6/12/2006 - GRAFFITI ANALYST PROFILED - Prince William County "Graffiti Analyst" Tom Sullivan is profiled in the Potomac News on Sunday, June 11.

Read the Article

"Sullivan's job," according to the article, "Requires that he eat, drink, and breathe gangs."

5/10/2006 - Nominations for each elected office are now being submitted to the Election Committee. The Nomination Petition can be accessed through the Members Login. Each potential nominee must receive a minimum of 24 votes to qualify for the general election. Once a Nomination Petition has been submitted by a member, they will not be able to return to the Nomination Petition webpage to vote again. Nominations will be accepted by the Election Committee through May 26th.

Thank you,

Election Committee

4/28/2006 - The IACA Election Committee is now accepting names of members in good standing who are interested in being nominated for one or more of the following offices: President, Vice President of Administration, Vice President of Membership, Secretary, and Treasurer. You can contact the Election Committee at election-committee@iaca.net if you are interested in being considered for nomination. The Election Committee will be accepting names through Monday, May 8th. Please provide the Election Committee with your name and the office(s) of interest.

Thank you,
IACA Election Committee

3/20/2006 - The 17th Annual Problem-Oriented Policing Conference will be held September 25th-27th, 2006 at the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

The Problem-Oriented Policing Conference recognizes excellence and innovation in the use of problem-solving by police to address public safety issues. This year's conference will feature presentations by police practitioners from the best submissions for the Herman Goldstein Award for Excellence in Problem-Oriented Policing. These submissions will be judged at the conference by the award program judges with input from the conference attendees and the winner and finalists will be announced on the last day of the conference. The conference will also feature other panels and presentations highlighting important new work in problem-oriented policing including sessions on:

Drunk driving
Bar violence
House parties
Methamphetamine trafficking and abuse
Drug markets
Sexual abuse of children and child pornography
Construction-site thefts
Designing crime-resistant commercial products
Security cameras in public places
Mayors, city managers, and problem-oriented policing


The conference agenda will be posted on the POP Center website.

3/6/2006 - IACA Partnership with JRSA

The International Association of Crime Analysts has entered into an agreement with the Justice Research & Statistics Association (JRSA) that should be mutually beneficial to the two associations.

JRSA publishes a semi-annual policy-oriented, peer-reviewed journal titled Justice Research and Policy. Most of its articles cover areas of interest to crime analysts, and many of them are directly relevant to the operational level at which most of us work. Examples include recent articles on:

· Geocoding precision
· Police data collection
· Racial profiling
· Prisoner re-entry
· Community policing effectiveness

Issues of JRP typically run between 120 and 160 pages.

Under the IACA’s agreement with JRSA, the IACA will become an affiliate of Justice Research and Policy, and JRP will add articles on crime analysis issues to its issues. IACA members will be encouraged to submit articles to JRP for peer review, and an IACA member will serve as an Associate Editor of the journal. Other IACA members will have the opportunity to review articles submitted by their peers.

This affiliation will in no way take the place of the IACA’s Forecaster, the articles on its web site, or any other practitioners’ publications that we might develop. It is simply an extra opportunity for our members to add a peer-reviewed journal to their publishing credits, to learn more about some of the issues surrounding their daily work, and to have the chance to influence law enforcement policy.

For the affiliation to proceed, a reasonable number of IACA members must either join JRSA or subscribe to the journal. (Joining JRSA allows access to a number of other publications, including the JRP Digest, Grant Notes, and The JRSA Forum.) JRSA is offering IACA members a discount on the journal; annual subscription for IACA members is $45.

I would ask members to visit JRSA’s web site at www.jrsa.org and check out its publications. If, after doing so, you feel that this affiliation would be good for you and the IACA, either subscribe to the journal or join JRSA ($75).

Please send us any comments or feedback about this affiliation, or feel free to post your thoughts to the list.

Thank you for your time and attention.

2/7/2006 - NYPD Launches "Real-Time Crime Center"


The Los Angeles Police Department announced in January that it would begin operation of a 24-hour crime analysis center to analyze crime as it happened and support officers on scene, or even before they got there. Now the NYPD has followed suit, launching a Real Time Crime Center in which analysts will review calls for service and crime reports as they are received, returning live information to responding officers.

See

NY1 News for more.

1/18/2006 - LAPD Launches 24-Hour Crime Analysis Center

From the Los Angeles Daily News of January 18, 2006:

The Los Angeles Police Department has opened a 24-hour operations center in a City Hall basement to provide instant crime and emergency analysis, officials said Tuesday.
The operation is the central piece of a newly created LAPD unit known as the Realtime Analysis Critical Response Division, which launched last week, officials told the Police Commission in a briefing.

The unit is modeled after a 24-hour crime information processing center in New York, which LAPD officials visited last year.

While New York spent $15 million developing its center, Los Angeles consolidated existing analytical functions into a single command post at a fraction of the cost. However, no figures were available.

"Working as we often do here in Los Angeles on a shoestring budget, we've crafted something that in some ways goes beyond what they have in New York," said LAPD Chief William Bratton, a former top cop in New York as well.

The crime analysis center is an extension of the department's focus on a statistically driven approach to policing that Bratton implemented when he took over as chief in 2002. Under his leadership, LAPD officials constantly analyze crime patterns and redeploy resources accordingly.

Read the full article at the LA Daily News Web Site

10/17/2005 - A Trendy Career - So Mr. Criminal, any plans for today?

Yeah, maybe rob a Lake Ridge bank this morning, break into a Dale City home in the afternoon and then steal a car out in Gainesville just before dinner.

If only it were that easy.

But the criminals of Prince William County, or anywhere for that matter, do not exactly say when and where they will be.

The police, though, do -- at least sometimes.

The Prince William County police Crime Analysis Unit is using ever-evolving technology and good old-fashioned hard work in trying to predict when and where crimes will occur by studying crime trends and criminal behavior.

"There's a little bit of future telling in what we do," said Gwen Udell, supervisor of the nine-person unit.

"Our job is to go through all the police reports, arrest, booking sheets, summons, all that stuff, to look for trends," Udell said. "We make sure that we get that stuff to [street officers] who will use that information to hopefully arrest whoever is responsible."

For instance, there was a series of burglaries at the Tacketts Mill shopping center in Woodbridge in 2000, all late at night. Crime analysts studied the reports and found the burglaries occurred Monday through Thursday night, between 9:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m.

With further study, the crime analysis unit was able to pass on information to street officers, thus narrowing down the likelihood of another burglary occurring one of the those night, likely around 3 a.m. That next week, two suspects were arrested at 3:02 a.m. committing a burglary at a business at the shopping center.

"The crime analysts take a broad look at the individual incidents and try to pull out incidents that identifies certain crimes as being the same," said Chief of Police Charlie Deane. "It's very difficult for the average officer to identify patterns because they work different shifts and cannot keep track of all the crimes that occur."

The crime analysis unit succeeds on some criminals' cyclical nature. If a criminal breaks into a car Wednesday night at a commuter lot off Dumfries Road, they may feel that's a good time strike and may try again the next week.

If a criminal strikes 10 times, the same officer may only handle two of the reports, not knowing about the other eight. Crime analysis looks at all 10 incidents and then gives all the officers who work that area on each of three different shifts a general overview.

In order to do that, the unit's eight full-time workers and one volunteer go through hundreds of reports a day.

Each worker specializes in a certain area, such as car thefts or business burglaries, and puts each report into a computer program. They'll input the time and location of the crime, how the crime occurred, among other things, to find trends. A large part is simple organization and memory, just on a large scale.

"I will call over and ask for information about a series of crimes and they will fire off five or six instances, usually to the day of when they happened," said Officer John Bogert, one of the department's official spokespersons. "It's amazing sometimes."

Crime analysis has been in police departments in some form or another for years, just without formal departments. Deane said when he started with the Prince William County Police Department in the early 1970s, crime analysis was simply detectives reading reports without the formality that exists today.

"A detective working a series of crimes may read others looking for similar ones with keeping an eye out for other trends," Deane said. "Now there is so much information, it helps to have people who specifically watch for trends to help us better use our resources."

By DAVID STEGON
dstegon@potomacnews.com
Sunday, October 16, 2005

Originally posted at: http://www.manassasjm.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=MJM%2FMGArticle%2FWPN_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1128767570633&path=!news

10/13/2005 - LPD crime analysis abilities mirror those on the silver screen

By MARK KARPF
October 09, 2005


With the television success of the “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “NYPD Blue” and “The Shield,” and the box office triumphs of “Lethal Weapon,” “Bad Boys” and “Rush Hour,” some people overestimate the capabilities of the average police department outside of Hollywood.

But for the citizens of Lincoln, the silver screen’s version of police capabilities, both big and small, is often a reality.

Lincoln has become one of the national and international leaders in crime analysis, with a heavy focus on crime mapping, said Lincoln Police Chief Tom Casady.

Casady is active in the field of crime analysis and is a member of the International Association of Crime Analysts, being a keynote speaker and presenter at various conferences throughout the years.

But people often confuse “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and crime analysis, Casady said. Crime analysis is not about physical evidence, but is instead about studying information and data and discovering patterns and trends.

“Not all police departments have a crime analysis unit,” Casady said.

A major reorganization in 1977, led by then-police chief George Hansen, created a unit called operations information, he said. Hansen was a member of a small national group of police chiefs who were on the cutting edge of research and policy.

Lincoln Police Department’s OI unit, which later turned into the present-day crime analysis unit, served a dual function of intelligence and analysis.

Casady said studies on the intelligence branch look at released criminals who display identifiable modus operandi, meaning a unique method of operation for a specific type of crime.

The analysis side of things looks at crime patterns and trends.

“But what really makes us effective is our information system,” Casady said.

It’s just like TV, he said. Police officers can punch in a name or partial license plate number and get everything they need to know about a person – what kind of car a person drives or has driven, where a person lives and what are his or her past crimes and arrests.

Most departments are only able to do this Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Only one person may know how to access the information, meaning it takes more time to get what officers need, he said.

“Here it’s instantly available,” Casady said. “Having a great information system is a critical part of our success. There isn’t a day that goes by that it doesn’t help us.”

The information system not only helps the Lincoln Police Department, but also the University Police.

The two departments cooperate on many things through mutual shared information, said Sgt. Tyler Schmidt of the University Police.

Schmidt said University Police uses LPD’s crime analysis capabilities, and it is also tied into the Nebraska State Patrol’s analysis unit.

University Police also compiles its own statistics, which is under continual review.

“When continual trends start to emerge, something that would perk our interest,” Schmidt said, “we start to modify our patrols.”

One of the newest and most integral parts of the Lincoln Police Department’s crime analyses is computerized mapping and the Geographic Information System, a relational database that interprets and outputs different references in the form of a map.

And while crime analysis predates computers by 100 years, Casady said, computers have largely improved the field and allowed police officers to do an incredible amount of work, almost instantly.

Casady said GIS has really helped push the field forward.

“What took a week to do in 1988 can now be done in 30 seconds,” he said. “(However), nothing can do the job of the human mind.”

Casady said it’s important to realize that the crime analysis capability of the department is not centered on the crime analysis unit. Crime analysis is what resides in each and every rank-and-file officer, and that’s where Casady said the Lincoln Police Department excels.

Capt. David Beggs of Lincoln police is a duty commander who gives five briefings a day to keep those coming on duty informed of what happened throughout the day.

Beggs said some of the most important things in crime analysis and police work is sharing information, helping each other out, being aware of what happened and getting to know the people in a police officer’s area – all of which can really make a difference.

These are all things Casady emphasizes and are key to the Lincoln Police Department's ability to solve crimes.

And as Casady likes to say in his in criminal analysts presentations: “Three hundred and seventeen mediocre crime analysts (officers) will outperform four experts any day.”


This article appeared in the Daily Nebraskan on 10/9/05 and was originally posted at:

http://www.dailynebraskan.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/10/09/4349fe8f0f44b

9/20/2005 - The IACA conference starts bright and early tomorrow morning! Those who arrived today met for refreshments and networking in the hospitality suite at the beautiful Crystal City Hilton! Haven't registered yet? Still thinking about coming? It's not too late to register and get in on the exciting training sessions at this year's conference!

8/30/2005 - New feature on IACA.net! The Analyst Toolbox has been expanded to include a new feature. Now, when you see a tip that you find useful, you can click the "Send to a colleague" link and email the tip to someone else.

8/18/2005 - Have you booked your room for the conference? The Crystal City Hilton is full and the overflow hotel - the Radisson - is filling up fast! Book your room TODAY to get the conference rate!

8/11/2005 - A new book is available! Crime Analysis and Crime Mapping, authored by IACA member Rachel Boba, is available from SAGE Publications (sagepub.com) and other online book sellers.

Crime Analysis and Crime Mapping is designed for undergraduate and graduate courses in Criminology, Criminal Justice, Forensic Science, Criminal Investigation, GIS, Geography, and Sociology. This book will also be of interest to current and future crime analysts and other police practitioners. In addition, it is valuable for practitioner training in crime analysis and crime mapping.

7/6/2005 - An updated version of the 2005 IACA conference schedule has been posted on the conference page. Please take a few moments to review the schedule. Check back often as the schedule may change.

6/23/2005 - IACA Members Only - The IACA Certification practice exam is up and running on Ecollege.com. In order to view the announcement (with instructions) and take the practice test, just log into the members area. Once you are logged in, you will see a link for the announcement and another link for the exam. Please read the announcement in its entirety before trying to take the test! If you have any issues with logging into the website, please notify the webmaster.


The IACA will be offering the formal exam for the first time at our 2005 Training Conference in Arlington, VA. Stay tuned to the website and the listserv for details on how & when to apply. If you need more information about IACA Certification, please visit the certification section of the website (http://www.iaca.net/Certification.asp) and be sure to read the Certification Proposal and the FAQ. If you have any further questions at all, please email Samantha Gwinn (treasurer@iaca.net).

6/6/2005 - The preliminary 2005 IACA Conference Schedule has been posted. Please take a few moments to review the schedule. Check back often as the schedule may change.

5/6/2005 - The 2005 IACA Conference brochure was updated today. Please visit the conference page for complete details. Check often as the information is constantly being updated.

4/30/2005 - The IACA Bulletin Contest rules have been posted. Please visit the 2005 conference page for more details!

4/14/2005 - The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) today released Issues in IT: A Reader for the Busy Police Chief Executive. This publication, supported by Versaterm, Inc., is a concise and informative overview of the issues most important to police leaders interested in employing cutting-edge technology. The reader focuses on such topics as emerging technologies, strategic planning, working with vendors, ways to get funded, information sharing and more. Written by law enforcement executives, policing IT managers, a city chief information officer and other experts in the field, this nontechnical publication identifies the questions to ask and issues to consider when trying to make the most of technology. In agencies with limited resources, but ever-expanding responsibilities, this publication is a good starting point for considering the best way to integrate information systems that will improve police processes.

Visit http://www.PoliceForum.org for more information.

3/16/2005 - Welcome to the new International Association of Crime Analysts website at http://www.iaca.net!

The IACA Executive Board has been working hard for many months to provide IACA members with a new website that will provide current information in a timely manner (sound familar?)

Please take a few minutes to browse the new site. Use our new feedback form and let us know what you think.