Subject: [NEXTEL-1] justnetnews- July 31, 2003 - NLECTC News Summary

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 31 Jul 2003 14:28:29 -0400

NLECTC Law Enforcement & Corrections Technology News Summary
Thursday, July 31, 2003

***************************HEADLINES************************

"Video System Saving County Thousands" 

"High-Tech Prison Fence Hampered by Problems" 

"Stun Guns, Batons May Join Detroit Cops' Arsenal" 

"Taser International, Inc. Announces a Grant Program for
Purchase of Taser Weapons" 

"Expo to Showcase Latest Tactics, Equipment of Law
Enforcement" 

"Everything Is Watching You" 

"Guns, Gadgets & Hush-Hush Stuff at Security Expo" 

"Turning Cars Into Crime Stoppers" 

"Program to Create Next-Generation Computer Security
Experts" 

"Dispatchers Will Move as Police Get Better Radios" 

"Police Training to Lift Network--Security Skills" 

"Weblogs Help Justice Take a Bite Out of Crime" 

"Funding for TIA All But Dead" 

"Biometric-Based Passport in the Works" 

"DHS Tests Portal for Tracking Cargo" 

"U.S. Researchers Invent Wall Climbing Robot" 

***************************ARTICLES*************************

"Video System Saving County Thousands" 
Citizens Voice (PA) (07/28/03); Napersky, Lisa 

Luzerne County officials estimate that their Polycom
viewstations, which link courtrooms at the county courthouse
to almost every state prison, have saved more than $208,000
since they were put into use last fall. The new system
allows inmates to videoconference with judicial authorities,
saving the state from having to transport prisoners for
minor hearings, which can cost thousands of dollars for a
15-minute hearing. The management information analyst for
the county, Bill Ostroskie, said that the system paid for
itself a few months after its use. Officials say that the
$70,000 for viewstations, $18,000 fiber-optic installation,
and two county positions that were created were a reasonable
price to pay in order to improve efficiency and cut down on
transport costs. The system was originally suggested by
deputy court administrator Jack Mulroy, who had hoped
videoconferencing would ease medical and safety issues of
prisoners and witnesses, and adds that the cost benefits
were an added bonus. Although the state uses the system for
roughly 200 hearings a month, sentencing, guilty pleas and
trials are still conducted face-to-face to allow defendants
the right to confront their accusers.
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=9910552&BRD=2259&PAG=461&dept_id=455154&rfi=6 

"High-Tech Prison Fence Hampered by Problems" 
Associated Press (07/25/03) 

Due to lack of budget, computer and installation problems,
miscommunication issues, and weather, the $657,000 taut-wire
fence installed at the Iowa Medical and Classification
Center by Safeguards Technology has never properly worked.
Some officials believe the fence led to the escape of
convicted murderer Omar Wilkins and thief Jeffrey
Hershberger in April. The escape was the first at the
facility in more than 15 years. The new fence did not
replace an existing fence at the facility, and its failure
to properly work with the center's computer system was not
the main reason for the escape, asserts Warden Rusty
Rogerson, who cites the additional failure of another fence
at the center during the escape. Currently, the center is
operating the new fence using a jury-rig, and complete
installation of a taut-wire fence system is expected once
prison expansions are completed in 2006.
http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=1376815&nav=1sW7H7bn 

"Stun Guns, Batons May Join Detroit Cops' Arsenal" 
Detroit Free Press (07/25/03); Schmitt, Ben 

Following a series of fatal police shootings and beatings in
Detroit, Mich., a federal consent decree is forcing the
department to find nonlethal means to control suspects, such
as stun guns and collapsible batons. The proposed nonlethal
weapons were recommended by a Detroit Police Department
committee. Taser International, which manufactures stun
guns, will demonstrate the weapon in August at a
Detroit-based meeting that is open to the public. Taser
International President Tom Smith reports that his company's
firearms, which incapacitate targets with electric shocks,
are currently being used by 2,800 law enforcement agencies
in the United States. Most disagreement about whether or not
the Taser is nonlethal comes from a general lack of
understanding, which is why the demonstration is open to the
public, according to Detroit Assistant Police Chief Timothy
Black. "Because of misinformation out there it's going to be
an uphill battle to educate not only the citizenry but many
people in city government and within the police department
that [Tasers] provide a safe and nonlethal way of
apprehending people," notes Detroit Chief of Police Jerry
Oliver. The new nonlethal weapons are in addition to the
pepper spray police officers in the department already
carry.
http://www.freep.com/news/locway/oliver25_20030725.htm 

"Taser International, Inc. Announces a Grant Program for
Purchase of Taser Weapons" 
PRNewswire (07/25/03) 

TASER International, Inc., a maker of advanced less-lethal
weapons, reports that the Michigan Municipal Risk Management
Authority (MMRMA) has established a grant through its Risk
Avoidance Program for the purchase of TASER conducted energy
weapons by its members. The MMRMA provides liability
insurance coverage for most of the larger law enforcement
agencies in the state of Michigan, including 59 of the 83
counties in Michigan. Under the terms of the Risk Avoidance
Program grant, the MMRMA will pay $250 towards the purchase
of a TASER conducted energy weapon for its members. The
number of TASER units that will be available for each member
under this grant program will be based upon each member's
need as determined by MMRMA's law enforcement risk
consultants. Phase One of the grant provides a total of
$50,000 funding for this program. TASER International's
Michigan distributor, Michigan Taser Distributing, will work
with the MMRMA to help facilitate this program. "Based on
the significant reduction in officer and suspect injuries
and associated liability claims from the law enforcement
agencies that have deployed the TASER conducted energy
weapon, the MMRMA believes that funding the purchase of
TASER conducted energy weapons for our member agencies
through our Risk Avoidance Program will result in a
reduction of liability claims and lower insurance costs for
our members," stated Michael Rhyner, Executive Director of
the MMRMA. http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030725/laf038_1.html 

"Expo to Showcase Latest Tactics, Equipment of Law
Enforcement" 
Orangeburg Times and Democrat (SC) (07/24/03); Walker,
Richard 

Almost 20 police agencies from Orangeburg County and
surrounding areas in South Carolina will be participating in
an expo at the Prince of Orange shopping mall that will
demonstrate law enforcement tactics, while allowing the
community to meet and interact with officers. The expo will
showcase new law enforcement technologies including the use
of non-deadly firearms to subdue suspects, in-car camera and
radar operations, night-vision, and other equipment. SWAT
teams and K-9 units will hold demonstrations. Law
enforcement agencies hope the expo will establish an
understanding between itself and the community, and allow
for greater cooperation in preventing and responding to
crime. Participating agencies are also hoping to use the
expo to recruit law enforcement officers, from the ranks of
local college students who are interested in making a
difference in the community. "This is a day for the county
and its communities to show uniformity," declared Sheriff
Larry Williams.
http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2003/07/24/news/news7.txt 

"Everything Is Watching You" 
Salon.com (07/24/03); Manjoo, Farhad 

Robotics scientists have come full circle on the best way to
get a computer to understand the physical world around it,
from giving a robot "eyes" to direct rays of light into a
"mental image" of its surroundings, to having objects in a
room identify themselves to a robot. But the new approach to
having machines emulate human beings is also being hailed as
a way to revolutionize retail sales in that manufacturers
could embed their products with identifying technology,
which would allow companies to collect information on
buyers. Researchers at MIT are working to create an
inexpensive, industry-standard product-tagging system using
radio frequency identification (RFID) technology. However,
the RFID technology is generating some concern from consumer
privacy advocates who believe companies will use it to
monitor every aspect of the lives of consumers, in real
time. A published report in the trade publication Smart
Labels Analyst reveals that in a Tesco store in Cambridge,
England, a surveillance camera focused on shoppers every
time they removed a package of tagged Gillette razors from
an RFID "smart shelf." Retailers see electronic tagging as
offering greater benefits of controlling inventory and the
supply chain, and add that RFID technology could very easily
be turned off once the products leaves a store. The
technology could allow shopping carts to calculate the
nutritional value of food placed in them and automatically
check shoppers out of stores, enable packages to sort
themselves for recycling, allow products to alert buyers
when they are recalled, and enable washing machines to tell
users that colors are being washed with whites, among other
things. RFID technology would create an intelligent network
of objects all around us, an "Internet of things," explains
MIT's Auto-ID Center.
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/07/24/rfid/index.html 

"Guns, Gadgets & Hush-Hush Stuff at Security Expo" 
Washington Post (07/24/03) P. C1; McCombs, Phil 

An estimated 8,000 people were on hand for the opening day
of last week's GOVSEC/U.S. Law Enforcement trade show at the
Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. In a bid to
appeal to law enforcement agents, this year's conference
featured more exhibits showcasing weapons and other
technologies among the 450 booths in the exhibit hall. The
types of security products on display ran the gamut and
included biometric fingerprint recognition boxes,
super-locks, radiation measurement devices, computer
firewalls, encryption devices, body armor, motion detectors,
a high-tech chain-link fence, and X-ray vision radar.
Salesman Gary Clark pitched the $29,000 RadarVision device
that allows authorities to detect movement through walls.
American Innovations President Grant Haber touted his
company's bomb-resistant trash cans, while Peter Moncure,
vice president of RadioSoft, exhibited his company's radio
mapping technology. Meanwhile, a SIGARMS salesman touted his
company's submachine gun.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38071-2003Jul23.html 

"Turning Cars Into Crime Stoppers" 
USA Today (07/23/03) P. 3B; Eldridge, Earle; O'Donnell,
Jayne 

Employing a combination of global positioning system and
cell phone technology, the current crop of auto security
systems can find stolen vehicles and listen to the thieves
inside, while other systems allow owners to track vehicles
over the Internet. Such systems are becoming more popular as
auto thefts in the United States increase; thefts were up by
4.6 percent across the nation during last year's initial six
months, the FBI reports. Around 62 percent of stolen
vehicles are recovered, while certain alarm firms claim a
recovery rate of 90 percent. Features and options on auto
theft systems differ depending on whether the system comes
from the factory with the car or is purchased and later
installed by an auto shop. Prices run between $200 and
$1,000. Some systems, including those that auto
manufacturers install, have monthly fees or per-use charges
that can start at $30 per month to $49 for 50 requests.
General Motors was the first to use an auto theft system in
the form of OnStar, and currently receives 400 calls per
month to locate stolen autos equipped with the system.
Directed Electronics' systems have the ability to disable a
car engine during a carjacking, while some firms, including
Audiovox and LoJack, intend to provide systems that employ
the Internet to follow a vehicle and make certain that it is
being used correctly.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2003-07-23-securecars_x.htm 

"Program to Create Next-Generation Computer Security
Experts" 
Newswise (07/22/03) 

Mississippi State University (MSU), an academic institution
certified by the National Security Agency as a Center of
Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education, aims
to build a new generation of cybersecurity specialists for
both the government and the private sector using MSU's
high-performance computing resources. MSU Center for
Computer Excellence director and former Army colonel Ray
Vaughn explains that his center trains students on $200,000
worth of cutting-edge gear to cultivate skills in a wide
spectrum of cybersecurity issues, including shielding
critical national infrastructure from cyberspace-based
attacks, computer hacking, methods terrorists use to hide
information, and assaulting computer systems by overloading
them. Vaughn points out that breeding next-generation
security experts is critical, because "Computers are
inherently insecure, and there's a growing shortage of
computer security people." Vaughn and department associate
and artificial intelligence expert Susan Bridges have
together persuaded government and private industry to
provide almost $5 million in funding over the past five
years. Bridges explains that artificial intelligence is
employed to detect the presence of network intruders. The
Federal Cyber Service Training and Education Initiative's
Scholarship for Service program and the Defense Department's
Information Assurance Scholarship Program have been the
primary sources of roughly $3 million in grants for the MSU
center's Cybercorps Scholarship Program. Federally funded
scholarships are set up so that students receive free
tuition and school supplies in exchange for a period of
federal employment. Vaughn is working with Iowa State
University and University of Kansas officials to set up a
National Center for Information Protection as part of a
joint federal/industrial/academic effort to tackle future
cybersecurity problems.
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/?id=500213 

"Dispatchers Will Move as Police Get Better Radios" 
Lafayette Journal & Courier (07/22/03) P. 1B; Hlavek, Beth 

Tippecanoe County, Ind., police officers will share a
dispatch center at the Tippecanoe Jail beginning next year.
The county has designated $3.58 million to modernize
dispatch centers at Purdue University, the West Lafayette
Police Department, and the sheriff's department. In
addition, two more dispatch positions will be opened to take
911 calls from West Lafayette residents. The system will
also connect to Purdue University and link all police
agencies within the county. Dispatchers at the Sheriff's
department will relocate to the Lafayette police
headquarters until upgrades of their dispatch system are
completed. "Eventually, we hope to bring everyone into the
same command center," declares county 911 director Mark
Kirby. "This would be a first step in that direction."
http://www.lafayettejc.com/news20030722/200307225local_news1058851006.shtml 

"Police Training to Lift Network--Security Skills" 
Australian Financial Review (07/21/03) P. 46; Lebihan,
Rachel 

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) hired AusCERT to develop
a four-day course to train officers on how to conduct
extensive investigations of computer networks. AusCERT,
which is the national leader in computer emergency issues,
can teach the course to up to six officers at a time from
the national high-technology crime center or other AFP
agencies. AusCERT general manager Graham Ingram said the
course will focus on familiarizing officers with ISP
equipment and investigative techniques, and aid the federal
police's maintenance of an in-house knowledge base. Alastair
MacGibbon of the high-tech crime center noted it cost the
AFP roughly $20,000 to have AusCERT develop the course, and
said officers from every state and territory are eligible
for the sessions. "For most officers to walk into a large
ISP, be confronted with racks of equipment, and know how to
run an investigation could be quite daunting," noted Ingram.
"The course is designed to give reassurance and a basic
understanding of how it all works." The training contract
indicates a subscription to AusCERT's nation
incident-reporting project, which allows anyone to disclose
security intrusions that involve Australian networks.
http://afr.com/ 

"Weblogs Help Justice Take a Bite Out of Crime" 
Washington Technology (07/21/03) Vol. 18, No. 8, P. 42;
Jackson, Joab 

Justice Department analysts and law enforcement officials
often share information via email, but this can generate
multiple copies and lack a central repository. One regional
Justice Department office has set up a Weblog--a Web page of
links and short comments--on its intranet for such
information sharing, allowing agents to look at what has
been posted and to comment and add information. Systems
integrator clients could do the same, says Traction Software
President Greg Lloyd, who notes that Weblogs can replace
expensive collaboration software. His company supplied the
Justice Department with the Weblog software. Weblogs are
spreading into the workplace, and Lloyd points out that over
80 percent of email sent out in many organizations is sent
to multiple recipients, while Weblogs can eliminate the
duplication. Integrators can keep track of multiple projects
with Weblogs as well. Traction's TeamPage enterprise Weblog
software lets users set up a portal to view multiple Weblogs
from one page and to search old posts for information, as
well as to create daily digests. Karen Aumond, assistant
director of the Justice Department's Western States
Information Network, says that Weblogs reduced email traffic
for her office, saving server space. Analysts post reports
and other materials so law enforcement officials can read
them, while department personnel respond to agencies'
inquiries, and system personnel create policies and
procedures for their programs.
http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/18_8/emerging-tech/21220-1.html 

"Funding for TIA All But Dead" 
Wired News (07/14/03); Singel, Ryan 

A 2004 defense spending bill that the U.S. Senate might pass
as early as next week could effectively kill the Terrorism
(formally Total) Information Awareness program through a
defunding provision. The bill states, "No funds appropriated
or otherwise made available to the Department of
Defense...or to any other department, agency or element of
the Federal Government, may be obligated or expended on
research and development on the Terrorism Information
Awareness program." TIA, which has a projected 2004 budget
of $169 million, aims to uncover evidence of terrorist
activity by mining a vast database of Americans' personal
records, but both left-wing and right-wing critics oppose
the program on the grounds that it would be used to spy on
innocent American citizens. Following the Senate vote, a
joint committee will have the final say on the TIA defunding
provision, and seek to align the Senate bill with a House
version that does not explicitly block TIA funding. Both
bills indicate that the use of TIA on American citizens is
dependent on congressional approval, a provision requested
by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who amended an earlier bill to
deny TIA funding unless the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA) furnished Congress with a detailed
report on the program. DARPA submitted such a report in May,
but privacy proponents such as the Electronic Frontier
Foundation declared that the study merely paid lip service
to TIA's privacy implications.
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,59606,00.html 

"Biometric-Based Passport in the Works" 
Federal Computer Week (07/14/03) Vol. 17, No. 23, P. 8;
Hasson, Judi 

The State Department is creating a passport that possesses
biometric technology to authenticate the identities of
American citizens who travel overseas. The new documents are
intended to be more secure, and will also be more costly--an
expense that will be passed on to passport owners. State
Department officials are looking for ideas from the
biometric technology industry for making a tamper-resistant
document with an incorporated circuit in a paper-based
passport. The circuit would have a picture of the passport
holder and some biographic information. A main force behind
the effort is a new law that mandates nations taking part in
the U.S. Visa Waiver Program to dispense machine-readable
passports and include biometric identifiers that meet
international regulations. The residents of 27 nations,
primarily in Europe, would not be made to acquire U.S. visas
if they have a chip-embedded passport. The State
Department's information request is due July 28. It seeks
dependable chips that can last for the passport's
decade-validity period and survive the demands of overseas
travel, such as changes in temperature.
http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0714/news-passport-07-14-03.asp 

"DHS Tests Portal for Tracking Cargo" 
Federal Computer Week (07/14/03) Vol. 17, No. 23, P. 12;
Hasson, Judi 

The Homeland Security Department has introduced a Web portal
for shippers to use to disclose their imports prior to
docking at a U.S. port, to be tested by 41 companies. The
portal is part of the former Customs Service modernization
program Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), and
officials say that the idea is to find out as soon as
possible what is coming into the country. The portal has a
log of significant activity, among other capabilities, and
Charles Armstrong, executive director of the Bureau of
Customs and Border Protection's Modernization Office, says
that "This lays out a foundation for ACE over the long run,
and it's the first time we've opened up our systems so that
the trading public can come in and look at their own data
and interact with us in real time." Shipping companies will
be able to file manifests electronically and update them at
any time, and U.S. officials say that the additional data
will let them target their inspections more precisely. "If
you are going to find a weapon of mass destruction, it's
better to find it before it is sitting in a port in the
United States," notes former Customs Service commissioner
George Weise. The portal should reduce the burden for the
trade community as well.
http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0714/news-cargo-07-14-03.asp 

"U.S. Researchers Invent Wall Climbing Robot" 
rediff.com (07/10/03); Parasuram, T.V. 

A number of initiatives being overseen by the U.S. Defense
Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) focus on
technologies that will enhance homeland security and
military operations. American and Canadian engineers have
collaborated to develop a prototype multi-legged robot
called Rhex that can swim and cover difficult terrain, and
will soon be refined to scale walls; the machine will
eventually be outfitted with cameras and biochemical sensors
so that it may serve as both a remote reconnaissance device
and a biological agent detector. DARPA director Tony Tether
testified in late March before the House Armed Services'
Subcommittee on Terrorism, Unconventional Threats, and
Capabilities, arguing that current computer systems are
marked by limited usability and intelligence, and citing
cognitive computing as the solution. Cognitive computer
systems would exhibit more human-like behavior, higher
intelligence, and greater interactivity, and be capable of
learning as well as teaching. "The idea is not simply to
replace people with machines, but to team people with robots
to create a more capable, agile and cost-effective force
that lowers U.S. casualties," Tether explained.
Anti-terrorism projects underway by the Pentagon's Technical
Support Working Group include mass transit surveillance,
fingerprint DNA extraction, a device that can irradiate
luggage to sterilize biological and chemical weapons, a
cooling system that can be embedded within body armor, and a
handheld explosives detector. So that soldiers can safely
probe enemy facilities located underground or in other
hard-to-reach places, American researchers are devising
sensor technologies that pick up seismic, chemical,
electro-optical, radio frequency, and acoustic signals.
http://www.rediff.com/us/2003/jul/10us1.htm

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