Published: September 24, 2006 10:18 am      

In-car computers, police

Officers will be able to spend more time on patrol

CUMBERLAND — Cumberland Police officers will be spending more time on the street and less time in the station once computers are installed in their police cruisers in the near future.

By virtue of a $100,000 grant from the Maryland Emergency Management Agency’s Law Enforcement Terrorist Prevention Program, approximately 15 city police cruisers will be equipped with Datalux mobile computers.

“We want to keep our officers on the street as much as possible and these computers will help us to reach that goal,” said Acting Chief Kevin Ogle.

Officers will be able to file their incident reports through their car computers rather than returning to the station to file their reports.

The in-car computers will allow officers to check the Cumberland Police reporting system for wanted fugitives instantly. All warrants issued in Allegany County are filed in the system.

Officers will be able to access nationwide police records on file in the National Crime Information Center and the Criminal Justice Information System easily.

Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration records will be available through the new computer system. At present, the MVA checks must be made by radio communication with police dispatchers at the Allegany County 911 Joint Communications Division.

“These car computers will allow us to make more vehicle checks since the motor vehicle records in Maryland will be at the fingertips of our patrolling officers,” said Ogle.

Prior to purchasing the system, Cumberland Police and city officials visited Datalux Corp., whose factory and corporate headquarters is located in Winchester, Va.

“I was impressed with the fact that all of the computers and components are assembled on-site. There is no assembly line. I am also impressed that everything they have done is still in the field and in service.” said Ogle.

Scott Dunklee, Datalux director of marketing and sales for public safety, said his company has sold systems in at least 25 states throughout the country.

“These computers are designed from the ground up just for use in a police car. They are tested for heat, humidity, dust, shock and durability and designed for the heavy wear and tear of police mobility.

“This is a computer and monitor in one unit and the screen is nine times brighter than a laptop. The computer also features a touch screen to activate the software. The keyboard is also removable so the officer can set it on his lap,” said Dunklee, who is a retired Prince George’s County police officer.

The notion to install computers in city police cruisers is not new.

“We installed them in a number of our cars about 10 years ago but they were not durable and they were not user-friendly. We also couldn’t always connect with various nationwide computer records systems,” said Ogle.

The new in-car computers include a $1,500 connecting device that will eliminate those interconnection problems of the past.

Ocean City Police Department is another Maryland police department that uses Datalux in-car computers.

“We have about 50 current-model Tracers in our cars that have been installed over the last 18 months and we are very happy with them,” said Lt. Robert Noll.

With 104 full-time officers, and an additional 110 seasonal officers, Noll said the goal is to equip all of the department’s vehicles with in-car computers.

“The car computers have greatly enhanced the amount of time our officers are on the road,” he said.

“Our officers can even do court-charging documents in the car and they’re printed to the detention facility,” said Noll, who is familiar with the durability of the Tracer computers.

“In April 2001 I was doing 30 miles per hour in a posted zone when a Suburban ran a stop sign and I hit them broadside,” said Noll.

Upon impact, the Suburban rolled and burst all of its windows. Four occupants escaped serious injury. Noll suffered a couple of fractured ribs and a fractured thumb when his Ford Crown Victoria struck the SUV.

The vehicle was demolished but the Tracer was not damaged.

With air bags deployed at the instant of collision, Noll was dazed but had the presence of mind to reach for the Tracer touch screen to activate the department-wide “emergency” signal. Help arrived quickly.

Noll’s Tracer computer was installed later in another vehicle.

The incident presented the need for global positioning software so department vehicles can be tracked easily.

The grant that will bring in-car computers to the Cumberland Police Department was made possible with the cooperation of the Allegany County commissioners, Department of Public Safety and MEMA Regional Director Roger Bennett.

Ogle said Sgt. Chuck Ternent, the department’s grants coordinator, led efforts to obtain the funds for the mobile computers.

“Sgt. Ternent has applied for nearly $700,000 in grant money this year,” said Ogle. “His initiative and performance is greatly appreciated by every member of this department.”

Ogle said his goal is to have all of the department’s cruisers equipped with computers eventually. Efforts continue to obtain more grant money for that purpose.

Jeff Alderton can be reached at jlalderton@times-news.com.