Site Map - Law Enforcement

11/29/2007 - Atherton, California, which has fewer than 10,000 residents, doesn't worry a lot about crime. From 2002-2003, there were fewer than 50 reports of vandalism--the highest category of crime in the city. Although the crime rate is low by most standards, police officers in Atherton face many of the same logistical challenges that confront departments twice their size. Securing the evidence room is one such challenge.

11/29/2007 - Learn how the Southeastern Transportation Security Council bridges the gap between private industry and law enforcement in the fight against cargo theft

11/28/2007 - While the danger of the "insider threat" has been well cataloged, the details of inside attacks have not been considered in much depth. For example, who are these insiders? And what sorts of attacks do they launch? A new joint study by the U.S. Secret Service and the CERT Coordination Center helps shed some light on these questions. Read the full Insider Threat Study at SM Online.

11/28/2007 - Under a new proposed rule issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Internet phone calls--voice over Internet protocol, or VoIP--would be subject to federal laws governing wiretaps. This means that VoIP providers would have to equip their devices to allow law enforcement to intercept calls in cases where a court order is issued for surveillance.

11/28/2007 - In early September, four men in suburban Carácas disguised themselves as police officers and kidnapped the mother of Ugueth Urbina, a baseball pitcher from Venezuela who plays for the Detroit Tigers. The outcome of the incident was unknown at press time. That's just one example of how, in the globalizing marketplace, corporate executives and other high-profile personnel and their families are at constant risk of abduction.

11/28/2007 - Two new reports look into changing responsibilities of federal law enforcement. One explores the transfer of the Federal Protective Service (FPS) to the Department of Homeland Security, noting that although FPS's mission has expanded, it does not have a transformation strategy to address this expanding mission. A second report analyzes the FBI's transformation to increase its focus on homeland security. Have the FBI's efforts to combat drug, white-collar, and violent crime suffered as a result? The results are mixed, say GAO auditors.

11/28/2007 - Authors Nigel Iyer and Martin Samociuk avoid philosophical arguments on business theories regarding corporate fraud and corruption to provide practical and workable solutions for prevention and detection programs.

11/28/2007 - A new device that uses light to incapacitate suspects is the latest tool in law enforcement's nonlethal arsenal.

11/28/2007 - The Miami-Dade Police Department will begin testing unmanned drones as law enforcement tools.

11/28/2007 - This book examines the concept of private security companies providing community-oriented crime prevention on a contract basis. Borrowing heavily from the experience of security practitioners, it is rich in detail, well thought-out, and comprehensive--a close look at a bold new way to protect neighborhoods with a high risk of crime.

11/27/2007 - Danville, Virginia, didn't need an incident of national significance to drive home the need for interoperable communications.

11/27/2007 - A law (P.L. 108-277) exempts off-duty and retired law enforcement personnel from compliance with concealed weapons except in certain circumstances. The law does not supercede state laws that allow private property owners to ban firearms on their property. Similarly, the law does not apply to state or local government buildings where firearms are prohibited.

11/27/2007 - In the oft-spoofed television ad for a personal alarm, an elderly woman cries "I've fallen and I can't get up." As security professionals are well aware, it's not just the elderly and infirm who benefit from duress systems. Correctional officers, who are constantly at risk of being attacked, also need a quick way to call for assistance. The National Institute of Justice and the Department of Defense have pulled together information on commercial systems and prepared a selection guide for correctional officers. Correctional Officer Duress Systems: Selection Guide provides detailed information on nine commercially available systems and vendor contact information. The guide divides duress alarms into three types. First are panic-button alarms, which are often found in banks. Second are identification alarms, which officers carry; they work by broadcasting a wireless signal to a nearby sensor, which forwards the alarm to a central console. Third are identification/location alarms, which are similar to ID alarms but can also track corrections staff and pinpoint alarm locations. The guide describes the benefits and drawbacks of each type of alarm. For example, while identification/location alarms provide the most information, they are also most costly and difficult to install. Links to both the report and a summary of it can be found on SM Online.