The
TUPPER Project
Information
Sharing within Law Enforcement
Technology Utilization Pilot Project For Enhancing Resources
November 1999
Background
Of the many pressing issues that Law Enforcement faces, the efficient utilization of resources in an ever-shrinking world of Municipal Government is a critical focus point. This is not a new issue, but one well worth consideration. One area of efficiency that needed desperate attention was in communications both within the Department and but also to neighboring Departments as well. To get a simple question answered, let alone asked to another Officer, could take days. This Communications Gap was actually a resource drain to the Department.
In 1995, seven Communities
in the South Hills of Allegheny County took a rather bold step in addressing
the problem of how to help their Officers bridge the Communications Gap and
become more efficient by simply using tools that had been routinely used by
Corporations. That tool was
e-mail. The seven Departments submitted
a proposal to TIIAP[1], a
department of the United States Department of Commerce. Well over 1,500 proposals were submitted to
TIIAP for funding the TUPPER project was 1 of 108 that was awarded funding.
The Project Goals
Since the
Government loves acronyms, we dubbed this effort TUPPER which translated to
Technology Utilization Pilot Project for Enhancing Resources. The premise was
simple. The criminal element that we
deal with on a daily basis knows no Jurisdictional Boundaries. We needed the tools to bridge the
communications gap, the very tools that the criminal elements were already
using. There were three main objectives in the TUPPER Project.
First, an e-mail system was
implemented between all of the Departments.
This allowed our Officers to communicate more efficiently both within
our Departments and between the TUPPER Departments. Initially when the grant process was in the drafting stage, we
really had no concept of how important e-mail was as a communications
media. After all, there were pagers,
faxes and phones. Were we ever
mistaken!
The second goal in the project was to
share contact information with the other Departments. Since we all shared a common records management program, The
Informer by Tulip Systems, we had an advantage. Tulip Systems added additional functionality
to the system to provide a data file called the Super Master Name Index
(SMNI). The SMNI contained pedigree
information on any individual that had contact with any of the respective
Departments. New entries to each of the
TUPPER Departments Master Name Index would be sent to other Departments as an
e-mail attachment.
The
third goal of the project was to implement a Centralized Mug Shot Library, or
CMSL. In the CMSL we were to store
Arrest Information as well as photos of the individuals.
The
Growth and Development
All of the major
goals of the project were achieved in the first year of the project. The e-mail system was the first priority in
the project. Initially there was a
dubious aura surrounding e-mail. We did
not understand it initially and had little feeling for its capability. As one Chief put it, “…we are being dragged
into the 20th century whether we like it or not.” Those perceptions and misconceptions quickly
disappeared however once we began using it.
In July of 1999,
there were over 7,000 messages transmitted through our centralized e-mail Hub.
Although not an astounding number when one thinks of AOL or some other Internet
provider, but significant when there are some 450 users of the system. We have recently migrated to the latest
version of e-mail that affords us a far greater capability. Now meetings can be scheduled across the
network and an acceptance will update our personal calendars. Some Departments are using this new feature
to schedule and track court time.
The functionality and
capability of the Super Master Name Index has grown as well within TUPPER. Today, not only can we retrieve records by a
multitude of keys (Name, Phone Number, OLNs, etc.) but associated records are
also made known. For example, when a
record is retrieved from the SMNI, all other parties that have the same
address, use the same phone number, or drive the same vehicle are automatically
presented.
The Centralized
Mug Shot Library has also gone through a large metamorphous. Initially in 1996, one could retrieve a
photo of an individual as well as the arrest history for that person. Today, we
have a large research database where we can search for persons based on
physical characteristics, arrests based on Criminal Statute, and partial
vehicle plate information. In all,
there are over 15 standardized query tools available to investigators. Currently there is information on over
24,000 arrests with some 9,000 associated photos.
Interim Results
Why Interim Results? We believe that the growth of TUPPER is just
starting. Where has this project gone since 1995 and has it lived up to its
expectations? The project has proven to
be a great success and has evolved well beyond the expectations that we had in
1995. In terms of an overview, the following table speaks to the merits of
TUPPER.
|
Area of Growth |
March 1995 |
October 1999 |
March 2000 Projection |
|
Number
of Departments |
7 |
20 |
30 |
|
Number
of Personnel on e-mail |
128 |
472 |
745 |
|
Number
of Counties Covered |
1 |
3 |
3 |
|
Total
Number of Residents |
105,000 |
206,000 |
262,000 |
|
Total
Square Mileage of Coverage |
94 |
113 |
140 |
|
Total
Entries in the SMNI |
67,000 |
325,000 |
350,000 |
Growth has led to additional successes with the Consortium's effort to tackle these mobile criminals. One of the more poignant examples of the mobility of the criminal element and the power of TUPPER involved a Larceny at a store in Greensburg. Two actors were caught on a store surveillance camera stealing several expensive coats. The State Trooper who was assigned to the investigation had a feeling that the Actors were from the Pittsburgh area. With the assistance of his father, a Chief with one of the TUPPER Departments, an image was sent via e-mail to all Officers on the Network requesting assistance. Within two days the Trooper received the names of the Actors from a member Department and arrests were made.
This is but one
minor example as to how communications has enhanced the effectiveness of Law
Enforcement.
Technology Utilization
TUPPER, in terms of
Technology Utilization to enhance resources, has grown well beyond its initial
goals and objectives. Knowing what a
positive impact technology has made on our Departments, there is a continued
push to stay current with tools that will assist our efforts. Several areas of improvements are as
follows:
In
Car Computers
A
number of the member Departments are in the process of installing Laptops in the
vehicles for information retrieval from NCIC/CLEAN. With the assistance of our Systems Integrator, we have gone one
step further than NCIC/CLEAN information.
We now have the capability of viewing Mug Shots directly in the
vehicle. In addition, we are also able
to retrieve Super Master Name Index information. Plans are also in progress that will permit direct access to our
local databases from the vehicles, which will be invaluable in terms of Officer
safety.
Fingerprint Technology
Currently
two AFIX Fingerprint Identification systems are being installed in different
member Departments. These systems will
allow the retention of a total of 200,000 “Ten Print Cards” and all member
Departments have been invited to submit print cards as part of a collaborative
database. We fully expect that this
technology will expedite the processing of latent prints that are often placed
on a very low priority order by other print processing agencies.
One
of the very interesting features of this technology is that latent prints can
be e-mailed to all of the AFIX computers for identification. If this pilot project performs as expected,
the TUPPER Group intends to acquire additional machines for placement
throughout the region.
The Future
We see an expanding future for the
TUPPER Network. Given the affordability
of the environment and the benefits that it returns, we see other Departments
joining in the effort. The cost of Technology is becoming very affordable, and
the Consortium intends to capitalize on that fact.