Thursday, August 28, 2008

The Role of Technology in Improving Crime and Intelligence Analysis

The next Analysts' Corner Blog Talk Radio show is called "The Role of Technology in Improving Crime and Intelligence Analysis". It is this Friday, 8/29/08, at 10 AM EST/9 AM CST. My guest is Jim Mallard. Listen live at the link or download the show as a podcast from iTunes, as an mp3 file from the BTR site, or listen on an RSS feed.... Jim Mallard is the Crime Analysis Supervisor for the Arlington, Texas Police Department. He manages a team of five analysts, including four crime analysts and an operations research analyst. Jim previously worked for the Gainesville, Florida Police Department, first as an intern in the IT department and later as a crime analyst. At GPD, Jim developed his interest in fusing technology with crime analysis. Jim has also volunteered as the webmaster for the International Association of Crime Analysts since 2004. In 2008, Jim won the Innovations in Crime Analysis Award sponsored by Corona Solutions, Inc. The award recognized Jim's creative approach to automating CompStat processes.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Crime Analysis Issues in the News

New High-Tech Crime Fighting Tool
"Techniques on the tv show CSI sometimes seem futuristic, not what you find in a place like Cincinnati, Ohio... until now. A federal grant is going to pay for software that pulls together databases that are being built right now." read more...

Will crime maps work?
"Last month the Home Office announced that everyone in England and Wales will have access to crime maps of their local area by the end of this year. But will they help cut crime, or could they have unforeseen consequences?" read more...

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

iTunes and Blog Talk Radio

My new Blog Talk Radio show, Analysts' Corner, is now available on iTunes in the form of a subscription and free podcasts. This means anyone with an Ipod or Iphone shopping in the iTunes store can find the show. Way cool!!!!

Great Resource!

101 Free Learning Tools
View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: teaching thinking)

Monday, August 25, 2008

Improvement and Development Agency for local government (IDeA)

Improvement and Development Agency for local government (IDeA) is an interesting site with innovative ideas of working with and in the community.

Pinpointing Crimes With Latest Statistics

This news article features crime analysis in Austin, Texas. Austin Police Department Crime Analysts Sheila Hargis is quoted in the article and also in the video clip link at the site. Watching the video, you ill see a pin map on a wall emphasized as a tool to track crimes. While useful, it seems that computerized, interactive maps would be much more useful and would be state-of-the-art in a city known for its progressiveness and technological savvy.

New system helps deputies track metal theft

Systems matter in this article and for analysts everywhere. Read this article to see what I mean by that.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

DHS to use controversial centers during political conventions

This article on fusion centers provides insight into some public mistrust of fusion centers.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

UC Berkeley - Teaching Library Internet Workshops

Thanks to NDIC's Frank Marsh for sending me this very relevant link.
UC Berkeley - Teaching Library Internet Workshops
Since analysts are essentially practical researchers, these tutorials are a valuable resource for improving work skills.

Homeland Security Affairs

Homeland Security Affairs, the Journal of the Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security, is a great resource for those of you interested in expanding your knowledge and insight regarding homeland security.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

The Analyst's Style Manual

"The Mercyhurst College Institute for Intelligence Studies (MCIIS) has developed a style manual for analysts to assist student analysts with the many perplexing and complex rules to follow when producing written intelligence products."

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Report on Disrupting Drug Tafficking

Cooperation with many Drug Transit Countries has Improved, but better Performance Reporting and Sustainability Plans are Needed
"Each year, criminal organizations transport hundreds of tons of illegal drugs from South America to the United States through a 6 million square mile "transit zone" including Central America, the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the eastern Pacific Ocean. Since fiscal year 2003, the United States has provided over $950 million to support counternarcotics efforts in transit zone countries, which historically lacked the capacity to interdict drugs. GAO was asked to examine (1) how the United States has assisted transit zone countries in disrupting drug trafficking and (2) what factors have impeded these efforts. GAO analyzed relevant data, met with U.S. and foreign officials, and visited selected countries."

See the summary of this July 2008 US Government Accountability Report online.

Marysville: 40 swastikas scrawled on bales of hay

See this article on hate crime type graffiti in western Washington state. This Friday, at 9:30 AM EST, on Blog Talk Radio, I will be discussing graffiti problem solving initiatives with Dr. Pamela Beal.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Why Crime and Intelligence Analysis Matter

Listen to a conversation on Blog Talk radio featuring me, Deborah Osborne, and Lisa Palmieri, President of the International Association of Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysts.

Interested on appearing on Analysts' Corner on Blog Talk Radio to discuss issues related to crime and intelligence analysis? Email me at crmeanalyzer@gmail.com and we can explore the possibilities!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Blog Talk Radio

Listen to Blog Talk radio at 10 AM EST tomorrow, August 18th (later or on podcast/mp3 file. Analysts' Corner will be present a conversation with me, Deborah Osborne, and International Association of Law Enforcement Intelligence Analysts President Lisa Palmieri. We'll be discussing why crime and intelligence analysis matters.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Thursday, August 14, 2008

The Baker Report: Strategic Response System has slowly revolutionized policing in Alexandria.

This article highlights "dynamic mapping technology" in policing in Alexandria, Virginia.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Remarks Prepared for Delivery By Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey at the Oregon Anti-Terrorism Conference and Training

Remarks Prepared for Delivery By Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey at the Oregon Anti-Terrorism Conference and Training

Knowledge Management Assessment for the Edmonton Police Service: Capturing, Sharing, Sustaining

Knowledge Management Assessment for the Edmonton Police Service: Capturing, Sharing, Sustaining, by Lee Weissling, Curtis Clarke, and Kirby Wright,in The Canadian Review of Policing Research (2005), discusses a topic important to the future of crime and intelligence analysis: knowledge management. Wikipedia defines knowledge management as "a range of practices used by organisations to identify, create, represent, distribute and enable adoption of what it knows, and how it knows it." Analysts are the knowledge workers of policing.

Here is one interesting resource for you to help you shift your thinking to the knowledge worker paradigm:
How to Think Like a Knowledge Worker

Information Sharing Among Canadian Police Departments: Trusting Individuals or Systems?

Information Sharing Among Canadian Police Departments: Trusting Individuals or Systems?
This article, by Marcel-Eugène LeBeuf Ph.D, appeared in the The Canadian Review of Policing Research (2005). Information sharing is crucial for quality crime and intelligence analysis and this valuable research article highlights key points on the topic that apply to policing beyond Canada.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Google Alerts and a Perspective

I've been blogging about crime and intelligence analysis in policing for over seven months now. Some of the materials I post come to my attention through Google Alerts. "Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic."

I have alerts for "crime analyst," "crime analysis," "intelligence analyst," "intelligence analysis," "intelligence led policing," a a few other phrases. Very rarely will anything related to policing come to me through an alert with the reference to "intelligence analysis" or "intelligence analyst."

I think this says something. Crime analyst" and "crime analysis" alerts almost always refer to policing while "intelligence analysis" or "intelligence analyst" almost NEVER refer to policing.

What do you think of that? Try it and see for yourself!

Monday, August 11, 2008

The NYPD Diaspora

Read The NYPD Diaspora: Former New York cops bring cutting-edge, effective policing to beleaguered communities in the Manhattan Institute City Journal.

Greenville Crime Analysis: Catalytic Converter Thefts

This alert is a nice summary of the crime and how to prevent it.

Geek squad will go after Tacoma crime

This is quite an interesting article about Tacoma's goal to decrease crime by 50% with analysis at the heart of it.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Community Policing Dispatch

This online publication is a monthly newsletter on Community Policing from the COPS Office.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Rethinking the post-9/11 strategy

Are terrorists criminals? Read this The Cristian Science Monitor article and share your thoughts.