FUTURISTIC GADGETS ARM LAPD CAR NEW `SMART CAR' SCANS LICENSE PLATES, TRACKS VEHICLES AS THEY FLEE.

Byline: ANGIE VALENCIA-MARTINEZ Staff Writer

By 2021, the bad guys might be a lot smarter than they are today. But so will the police cars.

Imagine a patrol car that scans hundreds of license plates an hour, fires Global Positioning System trackers on get-away cars and comes fully loaded with facial-recognition software and a mobile fingerprint identifier.

While only one such car is now in the police garage at Parker Center headquarters, Los Angeles Police Department brass hope that by 2021 every patrol officer will be sitting behind the wheel of one of these specially souped up Crown Victorias -- known as the Smart Car.

``The officers absolutely love it,'' said Sgt. Dan Gomez of the LAPD's Tactical Technology Unit. ``Whenever I take it to any of our divisions, the No. 1 question is: `When am I getting one?' or `Can I borrow yours?'''

Costs will delay a rollout to the entire force -- the license-plate scanner alone is worth $20,000 -- but the department plans to introduce bits of the new technology as early as this year.

Among the gizmos, the car has a digital in-car audio-video recorder, bullet-resistant doors, removable laptop computers and technology that allows live monitoring from surveillance cameras to be viewed on the laptop's screen.

The laptops also allow for the first-time officers in the department's 1,500 patrol cars to file reports while in the field.

Every division will be equipped with some license-plate recognition cameras, and 300 squad cars will be outfitted with audio-video recorders by July.

Officer Jesus Zaragoza of the West Valley Division has tested the license-plate system and said he and his partner impounded 11 stolen cars during one outing.

In seven months, the technology has helped the LAPD recover more than 200 parked stolen vehicles and an additional 50 vehicles that were being driven.

``Every time I've used it, I impound a vehicle,'' Zaragoza said.

Cameras on the car's roof scan vehicle plates, processing about 8,000 plates through criminal databases in an average 10-hour shift.

By contrast, a single officer can run about 100 license plates manually in that time.

In Los Angeles, where grand theft outnumbers homicides 50-1, the technology is especially valuable in alerting patrol officers to cars wanted in connection with crimes, including warrants and Amber Alerts.

``The car is designed to be a force multiplier,'' Gomez said. ``Our officers can do more with their time, by doing less. We want the bad guys to know what we're doing.''

The Smart Car also has a front-bumper device that shoots and sticks a GPS tracker -- about the size of a cigarette box -- onto fleeing cars. Officers can then track the car without having to engage in a high-speed pursuit that could endanger the public.

Meanwhile, a handheld fingerprint identification system saves police a drive back to the station when potential suspects don't have proper identification.

Funding for the new technology is expected to be the biggest hurdle, and some local organizations have already started to pitch in.

The Mid-Valley Community Police Council, a nonprofit community service organization, is raising money to buy a license-plate reader for the Van Nuys Division.

Police Commissioner Alan Skobin, a reserve deputy sheriff, said the Smart Cars are expensive but an essential tool in the future of policing.

``Funding is critical, but when you have too few police officers, technology is not a luxury, it's a necessity,'' he said.

Sgt. Mike Zaboski of the Valley Traffic Division said the new gadgets benefit the department, but like cell phones, the Internet and other technological advances, they can also complicate lives.

``On the one hand, it's going to help the officers do their job more efficiently,'' Zaboski said.

``On the other hand, it's more systems to be acquainted with and maintain and operate. It kind of changes the focus of police work.''

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- 2) The StarChase mounted on the front grill of the patrol vehicle, right, has a laser that guides a Global Positioning System tracker fired at fleeing cars. Below, the Mobile Identifier scans fingerprints on the spot and is able to access a computer database while officers work in the field.

John Lazar/Staff Photographer