June 03, 2000 - Computers Installed in Cruisers

PAWTUCKET - A crew of technicians descended on the police station on Thursday and Friday, installing libraries in 27 police cars.

The libraries are the size of a briefcase and contain the world - laptop computers that Commander Douglas Clary expects will become the most important piece of equipment in the police cruisers. Heavy duty Panasonic laptop computers - covered in armored cases and built to withstand punishment - were installed in all the department's frontline cars and will go into service almost immediately. "At first, they will use the laptops to write their reports," Clary said. "They'll be downloading their reports onto discs to feed into the mainframe."

But the laptops will be equipped with modems to connect to a digital satellite link that will connect them to the Internet. "With the modems, a certain amount of training will be required," Clary said. "But once they are operational, they will have an incredible amount of information at their fingertips. Maps, laws, everything."

Clary said he can see an officer pulling up to a hazardous materials incident, getting detailed information about the material in question, its qualities, behavior and risks. The officer could even pull down a map of the neighborhood and overlay the evacuation zone recommended by the computer. "The officers will be able to get all the information they need, immediately, right on the scene," Clary said.

With the installation of the laptop computers in the cruisers, Clary and Police Chief George Kelley III say they believe Pawtucket is now leading the state in applying information technology to the police department. That, Kelley added, is a nice change. One of Mayor James Doyle's first campaigns, after taking office, was to fix the department's constant computer problems.

Consultants were brought in who basically recommended that the department scrap everything it was doing and start over. That was 18 months ago. "When the Doyle administration came in, we had the study done, broke everything down and started building from the bottom up," Kelley said. "With that, we had to install a new system, move from Armistice Boulevard to the main station, and make sure everything was Y2K compliant. When you look at it that way, we've come a long way in a short time."

Kelley credited Clary and Sgt. Edward Warzycha and Detective Steven Allcock for taking the time and the effort to procure and install a system that works. They have also found training programs for department personnel that has been praised throughout the department. "By having the work done in-house, we were able to spend all our money on technology," Kelley said.

The computers were paid for through a $325,000 federal grant that the late U.S. Sen. John Chafee shepherded through Washington D.C. 18 months ago. On Friday his son and successor, U.S. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, visited Pawtucket and promised to fight for another $300,000 grants for more computers.

Kelley said he would like to see computers used by the Special Response Team - the first information to be downloaded will be the blueprints and floor plans of all the city's public buildings, especially the schools. Traffic cars and the Special Squad are also in line for the next round of laptops, Kelley said. "By putting these laptops in the cruisers," Clary said, "we've opened up the world to them."

©The Pawtucket Times 2000