Police using software to predict crimes, portable fingerprint scanners, and microphones positioned around a city to detect gunshots and triangulate their location
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A map of a city is marked up with small red squares, each indicating a 500-by-500-foot zone where crimes are likely to take place next. A heat-map mode shows even more precisely where cars may be stolen, houses robbed, people mugged.
The program is called
PredPol, and it calculates its forecasts based on times and locations of previous crimes, combined with sociological information about criminal behavior and patterns. The technology has been beta tested in the Santa Cruz, California police department for the past year, and in an L.A. police precinct for the past six months, with promising results.
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In Southern Florida, many police departments are using portable fingerprint scanners to ID suspects and bring up any outstanding warrants on the spot. The
smartphone-sized devices cost $2,500 apiece.
A
ShotSpotter system uses microphones positioned around a city to detect gunshots and triangulate their location within 40 to 50 feet. A human at ShotSpotter's headquarters confirms if it's a gunshot and alerts the police. The system starts at $40,000 for every square mile of coverage.
More here: Police embracing tech that predicts crimes - CNN.com