April2008PC-cover

April 2008

Information Sharing
Guest Editors: Heather Ruzbasan Cotter, Project Manager, Law Enforcement Information Technology Standards Council, IACP, Alexandria, Virginia; and Pamela Scanlon, Chair, IACP Criminal Justice Information System Committee, and Executive Director, Automated Regional Justice Information System, San Diego, California

According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2005 the United States spent, an estimated $204 billion for police protection, corrections, and judicial and legal activities, a 5.5 percent increase over the previous year. The federal government spent more than $35 billion on direct expenditures for ciminal and civil justice in 2005; state governments spent over $65 billion; and local governments spent over $104 billion.

Articles

  • Police Week 2008

    Communities across North America have built memorials to honor peace officers who have died or become disabled in the line of duty. Each year during Police Week, departments hold open houses, conduct ...

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  • IACP and Joyce Foundation Summit and Report: Taking a Stand: Reducing Gun Violence in Our Communities

    Nearly 30,000 American lives are lost to gun violence each year—a number far higher than in any other developed country. Since 1963, more Americans have died by gunfire than perished in combat durin...

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  • Information Sharing in the Last Frontier

    Although police work is much the same around the world, Alaska police face some unique challenges. The state is over twice the size of Texas yet has a population of just over 650,000; about half are l...

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  • U.S. National Strategy for Information Sharing Released

    On October 31, 2007, U.S. president George W. Bush announced the release of the National Strategy for Information Sharing. Joining the president were his homeland security advisor; the secretar...

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  • LODIS, a New Investigative Tool: DNA Is Not Just Court Evidence Anymore

    In December 2006, the Palm Bay, Florida, Police Department (PBPD) and DNA Security, Inc. (DNA:SI LABS), collaborated to develop a local agency databank of forensic DNA evidence for use on most crimes....

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  • Cybercitizenship for the Very Young

    Cybercrime is a threat to all societies and touches all aspects of the law enforcement profession. Strong detective and investigative policies need to be developed to protect our communities from this...

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  • A Short History of Junior Police

    In 1944, Oliver Cowan, a District of Columbia police officer, remarked: “Many of these kids never had a chance. . . . They never were important in their classes. . . . They get into mischief. Now, i...

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Columns