This edited book explores the history, development and use of technology in the policing of society, showing that technology plays a key, if not pivotal role in the work of law enforcement. The authors analyse several examples of technology in common use today, which include both officers' equipment and technology used by crime scene investigation teams. They discuss the supportive role that technology plays in the investigation process as well as the concerns that may arise from a reliance upon technological advances. The book offers the reader a unique look at the scholarly and professional experience, with chapters written by academic researchers, as well as a number practitioners from the field of policing. It is essential reading for all those interested in a constantly changing and evolving field with implications for both theory and practice.

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE LAW ENFORCEMENT IT REVOLUTION? Law enforcement agencies that are laggards in Information Technology (IT) will soon, if not already, be considered mismanaged. Whether you are in an operational position, or you are a police officer who aspires to a higher rank, you must be aware of how IT can help you perform your job and hel

Part 1 - Introduction to theory and basics : Ch. 1 Introduction to police technology -- Ch. 2 Computer Basics -- Ch. 3 Wireless Communications -- Ch. 4 Networks -- Ch. 5 Geographic Information System [GIS] -- Ch. 6 A brief history of Police Technology -- Part 2 - Strategic Information Systems and Technologies: Ch. 7 Communications Dispatch Centers -- Ch. 8 Agency Systems -- Ch. 9 External Systems -- Ch. 10 The Internet and Law Enforcement -- Ch. 11 Information Exchange -- Ch. 12 Crime analysis -- Part 3 - Tactical Information Systems : Ch. 13 Technology in Investigations -- Ch. 14 Wiretaps -- Ch. 15 Tracking and surveillance -- Ch.16 Hi-Tech Crime -- Ch. 17 Major Incident and Response -- Ch. 18 Technology in the Street -- Part 4 - Technology in Police management : Ch. 19 Personnel and Training -- Ch. 20 Implementing and Managing Technology -- Ch. 21 Emerging and Future Technologies.

Winner, 2018 Law & Legal Studies PROSE Award The consequences of big data and algorithm-driven policing and its impact on law enforcement In a high-tech command center in downtown Los Angeles, a digital map lights up with 911 calls, television monitors track breaking news stories, surveillance cameras sweep the streets, and rows of networked computers link analysts and police officers to a wealth of law enforcement intelligence. This is just a glimpse into a future where software predicts future crimes, algorithms generate virtual “most-wanted” lists, and databanks collect personal and biometric information. The Rise of Big Data Policing introduces the cutting-edge technology that is changing how the police do their jobs and shows why it is more important than ever that citizens understand the far-reaching consequences of big data surveillance as a law enforcement tool. Andrew Guthrie Ferguson reveals how these new technologies —viewed as race-neutral and objective—have been eagerly adopted by police departments hoping to distance themselves from claims of racial bias and unconstitutional practices. After a series of high-profile police shootings and federal investigations into systemic police misconduct, and in an era of law enforcement budget cutbacks, data-driven policing has been billed as a way to “turn the page” on racial bias. But behind the data are real people, and difficult questions remain about racial discrimination and the potential to distort constitutional protections. In this first book on big data policing, Ferguson offers an examination of how new technologies will alter the who, where, when and how we police. These new technologies also offer data-driven methods to improve police accountability and to remedy the underlying socio-economic risk factors that encourage crime. The Rise of Big Data Policing is a must read for anyone concerned with how technology will revolutionize law enforcement and its potential threat to the security, privacy, and constitutional rights of citizens. Read an excerpt and interview with Andrew Guthrie Ferguson in The Economist.

ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE LAW ENFORCEMENT IT REVOLUTION? Law enforcement agencies that are laggards in Information Technology (IT) will soon, if not already, be considered mismanaged. Whether you are in an operational position, or you are a police officer who aspires to a higher rank, you must be aware of how IT can help you perform your job and hel

This study reports on strategic planning activities supporting the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) in the area of information technology, collecting and analyzing data on law enforcement needs and identifying potential solutions through technology assessment studies, extensive outreach and liaison activities, and subject matter expert panels.

With the rise of surveillance technology in the last decade, police departments now have an array of sophisticated tools for tracking, monitoring, even predicting crime patterns. In particular crime mapping, a technique used by the police to monitor crime by the neighborhoods in their geographic regions, has become a regular and relied-upon feature of policing. Many claim that these technological developments played a role in the crime drop of the 1990s, and yet no study of these techniques and their relationship to everyday police work has been made available. Noted scholar Peter K. Manning spent six years observing three American police departments and two British constabularies in order to determine what effects these kinds of analytic tools have had on modern police management and practices. While modern technology allows the police to combat crime in sophisticated, detail-oriented ways, Manning discovers that police strategies and tactics have not been altogether transformed as perhaps would be expected. In The Technology of Policing, Manning untangles the varying kinds of complex crime-control rhetoric that underlie much of today’s police department discussion and management, and provides valuable insight into which are the most effective—and which may be harmful—in successfully tracking criminal behavior. The Technology of Policing offers a new understanding of the changing world of police departments and information technology’s significant and undeniable influence on crime management.