Law Enforcement Web Sites.

New Utility for a New Era

If law enforcement administrators were asked 10 years ago what role they thought the Internet would play in their agency's operation in the future, the response may have been "what's the Internet?" This once obscure medium, originally designed for researchers to communicate more effectively, has evolved into a communications staple for households and businesses. Recent surveys indicate that more than 153 million Americans currently use the Internet. [1]

The Law Enforcement Web Site Evolves

While most historians measure time in decades or centuries, the evolution of law enforcement's involvement with the Internet is only a few years old. One part of a police department's role in society is to provide various types of information to its citizens. For many years, law enforcement agencies have relied on traditional means of disseminating information. These standard proven methods include public service spots that appear on network and public access cable television, in newspaper articles, at displays at local fairs and expos, and in an agency's annual report. With the advent of the law enforcement Web site, agencies now can add a valuable information resource and public relations tool to that list. Even those individuals who do not own a computer or have Internet service usually can get access at their workplace, local libraries, or other nonprofit public resources. In addition to the public relations benefits, agencies can garner widespread utility from a well-crafted Web site, which now can incl ude information ranging from crime statistics to employment opportunities.

Going On-line with a Web Site

Regardless of an agency's size, it must follow several basic steps when creating a Web site. First, an agency must identify and understand what resources are available to it in the process. When developing new sites, agencies should remember that they should custom design their Web pages to meet their specific requirements. An agency must select a host server and register a domain name--essentially the Internet address of the organization (e.g., www.youragency.org). Agencies can register their domain names with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a nonprofit organization that coordinates the assignment of Internet domain names. Agencies interested in registering a domain name or seeking Web site hosting arrangements can review a list of companies qualified to register domain names and provide Web site registration services within the ICANN Web site. Registering a domain name costs approximately $50 for a 2-year registration, but many packages or service bundles are available thro ugh ICANN-accredited domain name registrars.

A host is an Internet Service Provider (ISP), either publicly or privately owned, which provides a link between an agency's Web site and the Internet for little or no fee. The cost of using a private host can range from as little as $20 to as much as several thousand dollars per month, based on the size of the Web site and the amount of traffic it transmits and receives. In Florida, the State's Attorney General's Office provides free hosting to the Internet for law enforcement agencies.

A Web site can be as simple as a single page, or it may contain several hundred pages, depending on the scope of the information offered. When first creating a Web site, an agency must decide the purpose of the site. Will they use it simply as a public relations tool, merely highlighting various facets of the agency? Will it be self-contained or offer additional resource links? Will it provide interactive services to its visitors?

For those agencies that need outside assistance to develop and create a Web site, a plethora of companies exist that offer these services for a fee, which can range from several hundred to several thousand dollars, depending on the size of the site and the various options selected. However, because small Web sites are relatively easy to create, in-house personnel with above-average computer skills often can maintain the agency's site. Agencies do not require special software for basic Web site creations because most popular browsers, and even some word processing software, include a composer to create basic Web pages. However, to produce more advanced Web sites, agencies usually will need specialized software.

Web sites requiring such specialized software may offer interactive services that derive information from the agency's computer databases. This software, referred to as Internet Commerce Enabler (ICE) software, serves two major purposes. First, it acts as a firewall, allowing only certain information to enter into the site and restricting what information users can retrieve. Due to recent publicized hackings into well-known Web sites and the potential damage such an intrusion can cause, this product becomes essential when managing public access to an agency's data. ICE also converts information from an agency's database into Hyper Text Markup Language, commonly referred to as HTML. [2]

One Agency's Experience

In 1994, the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office (HCSO) in Tampa, Florida, launched its first Web site. At its inception, the site consisted of only a few pages, limited pictures, and some information about the agency. The first venture into this new medium proved a learning experience for the HCSO; however, neither the agency nor the public gleaned much utility from this site. In 1998, HCSO management realized that having a Web site provided great potential, which led the way to a revision of the old site. HCSO wanted to furnish timely information about how the agency serves the public (e.g., various programs, agency organizational charts, location of departments) and to provide a utility for the agency and the Web site visitors (e.g., crime statistics, history, on-line forms).

Additionally, the update added state-of-the-art features to the site, allowing greater access and ease of use. For example, the HCSO Detention Department receives hundreds of calls every day inquiring about the status of the inmates housed in the county correctional system. The new Web site now interfaces with the HCSO's mainframe computer and, because the arrest data is public information, anyone can access the information by querying either a name or a booking number.

Other law enforcement agencies also have gone on-line with inmate information. In March 2000, the Los Angeles County, California, Sheriffs Department (LASD) went on-line allowing anyone with Internet access to search the department's database of arrest records, including the names and dates of births of individuals arrested in the last 30 days, along with the charges, bail amounts, and court dates. Additionally, the LASD database includes information on the 20,000 inmates in custody and the 2,400 inmates in community-based programs 2

The HCSO warrants section currently has more than 90,000 active warrants, which also are public information and accessible via the Web site. Previously, the agency handled only wanted-person inquiries from citizens, private investigators, or businesses conducting pre-employment screening in person at the records section of the agency. These advances in the HCSO site have proved useful to the agency by reducing the number of walk-in ally, those individuals or businesses seeking information benefit by receiving more timely, convenient information.

Law enforcement public information officers (PIOs) often spend a great deal of their time working with reporters. A large agency typically will have one or two full-time PIOs. The HCSO Public Information Office handles approximately 1,200 requests from the media and the public per month. By placing newsworthy press releases on a continually updated special press release Web page, the HCSO has significantly reduced the telephone inquiries to its public information office. Additionally, this special Web page provides timely information to some smaller news agencies that may not have full-time reporters. At the HCSO, most calls from the news media regard traffic conditions, particularly during the morning and afternoon rush hours, which represent some of the busiest times in the communications section that handles those inquiries. To address this problem, the HCSO Web site has interfaced a traffic advisory Web page with its computer-aided dispatch system. Television and radio stations, citizens, and any other i nterested parties can visit that page to view real-time dispatch information regarding vehicular accidents, detours, and road obstructions. The display indicates the location of the problem and advises when an HCSO unit is en route or arrives at the scene. The HCSO Web site also allows citizens to view pictures of wanted individuals, crime statistics, and upcoming events involving the office. Additionally, the HCSO Community-Oriented Policing Program provides residents with up-to-date information on particular activities in their community.

Currently, the HCSO Web site contains 800 linked pages and receives a daily average of 40,000 hits. Visitors also can e-mail comments or questions on the site to the HCSO Web site administrator, who responds to all legitimate e-mails in a timely manner.

The HCSO started an on-line store offering T-shirts and hats for sale. Further, HCSO has created a special secure section, accessed by a password, which allows its employees access to information, such as the list of available off-duty employment jobs and recent departmentwide memos and training bulletins.

Advanced Utility to an Agency

As the information technology field grows, law enforcement agencies will continue to find new ways to integrate their mission with the Internet. For the last several years, the Riverside County, California, Sheriffs Office has allowed citizens to file reports on-line.

To file a report on-line with the Riverside County Sheriffs Office, a complainant can access the Riverside Sheriff's Office Web site, click on "Crime Report Form," and complete the basic information on a user-friendly form. The complainant will receive an acknowledgment within 3 days, via e-mail, and the assigned case number. The department has limited such on-line reporting to property crimes and miscellaneous occurrences and does not allow a complainant to file on-line if the crime involved known suspects, violence of any kind, or if it required officers to collect physical evidence at the scene. Although this agency characterized the practice as a good learning experience, they consistently have received only a few on-line reports per month.

The FBI National Executive Institute Associates recently conducted a survey of agencies with more than 500 officers that had Web sites. The results of this survey yielded valuable information regarding a variety of Web site uses by law enforcement. Of the 68 agencies that responded to the survey, 27 percent provided sexual offender information, 9 percent offered accident report information, and 18 percent allowed individuals to file reports on-line. [4] These results reveal only a small percentage of the effective uses of Web sites for law enforcement.

Conclusion

Web site technology has advanced both extensively and rapidly. Daily improvements to capabilities, such as video, audio, and general accessibility, significantly increase the potential uses a Web site can offer law enforcement. As this technology continues to advance, the future utility of a Web site virtually is unlimited, given the collective imagination of an agency's members, and the vital input of the public it serves.

By developing and maintaining an informative Web site, an agency, as well as the public it serves, can benefit by conserving time and resources. More important, numerous categories of users would gain valuable, free information quickly and with minimal cost to the community.

Endonotes

(1.) See, http://www.nielsonnetratings.com; accessed January 23, 2001.

(2.) HTML is the computer language of thc Internet-recognized Web browsers.

(3.) "Los Angeles Sheriff Puts Inmate Information On-line," Government Technology vol. 13, no. 8 (June 2000): 11.

(4.) E. Tully, "The Present and Future Use of the Internet by Law Enforcement-Part One," National Executive Institute Associates Research Projects On-line, June 2000; www.neiassociates.org; accessed January 22, 2001.

Web Site Resources

* Nielsen Net ratings, available at www.nielsennetratings.com, offers information on Internet usage in the United States and worldwide.

* The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, available at www.icann.org, is one of the technical coordinating bodies for the assigning of domain names and numbers for the Internet.

* Officer.com, available at www.officer.com, provides a comprehensive, alphabetized list of law enforcement agency Web sites.

* Hillsborough County, Florida, Sheriffs Office, available at www.hcso.tampa.fl.us.

* Los Angeles County, California, Sheriffs Department, available at www.lasd.org.

* Riverside County, California, Sheriffs Department, available at www.co. riverside.ca.us/sheriff/.