Public agencies are often stretched thin and need more efficient ways to respond to events and emergencies within their cities. Dense populations, vast networks, and increasing responsibilities are challenging public safety agencies with information overload. Public safety needs unified and innovative solutions to continue to ensure the well-being and safety of their communities

The Problem

As urban centers continue to grow, public safety agencies need a better way to monitor and respond to criminal activity. Likewise, growing expectations for public safety translate into a need for better emergency response coordination and incident tracking.

When cities and agencies grow, and teams change over time, technology strategies risk becoming fragmented over time. A good example of this phenomenon can be seen in Albuquerque.

In the past, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) used many different independent systems and in-house databases to access and share information with responding officers. Over time, this collection of systems became hard to navigate. It was stressful for real-time crime center (RTCC) operators to get time-sensitive information to those who needed it.

Another example can be seen in Mesa, Arizona, the Mesa Police Department (MPD) invested in many innovative technologies over the years, but each one was managed and monitored within its own system. The police department also had over 800 city-owned surveillance cameras running on one system that was only accessible to certain teams, while data from 350 traffic cameras was stored on a separate platform. Data from 911 calls was logged in yet another system and so on.

Upgrading to Genetec Citigraf and Clearance has made it possible for these agencies to fully leverage all of that technology within one easy-to-use platform.

The Solution

Technology today can dramatically reduce the amount of time and effort required for officers to locate, gather, catalog, and share evidence. This in turn enables officers to spend less time at their desks and more time in the field and closing cases.

Genetec’s Citigraf brings all video and public safety data within a unified dashboard, so RTCC operators can quickly gain a thorough understanding of unfolding events. This empowers them to act faster and with greater confidence.

Operators can also configure alerts based on triggers such as a license plate match with a hotlist or when a gunshot is detected. They may also filter the data by map location or time, so operators are able to quickly find the most relevant information connected to a case.

Paired with Genetec’s Clearance digital evidence management system, Citigraf is a powerful tool to break down silos. The tools allow closer collaboration between departments and external stakeholders while speeding up incident response times.

Operators can easily export video, events, and other incident data directly from Citigraf to Clearance. Built-in audit trails ensure that there’s no doubt about who has received, viewed, shared, or downloaded files. The audit processes also validate that the evidence is authentic and unaltered.

Using Clearance, police departments can also create a community camera registry program. This community policing initiative establishes partnerships with organizations such as transit authorities, schools, private organizations, or even individual citizens. Police can access private video systems to aid in investigations. Organizations may choose whether to grant access only by request or under certain conditions. The system also enables RTCCs to gather video from bodycam and in-car systems, and even photos or mobile phone videos from witnesses.

Case Studies

Albuquerque Police Department

Adopting a unified public safety platform has allowed the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) to deliver valuable data-driven insight to public safety teams so they can make faster, better decisions. Everything from cameras and gunshot detection analytics to computer-assisted dispatch (CAD) information and officer GIS locations are combined within a visual dashboard.

Now, when a priority incident occurs, an icon appears on a map within the Citigraf dashboard. Operators click on it to reveal CAD information. They quickly learn everything that’s known at the time of the call, gathering data from all cameras and sensors within the area. Operations can start playing the most relevant live video feeds and locate nearby officers within seconds. All the information they need is at their fingertips, including recent reports of other crimes in the area. This process ensures that the responding officers are well informed when they arrive on the scene.

After collecting evidence from the scene, the APD saves time storing files and sharing them with investigators by using Genetec Clearance digital evidence management system. Operators can easily export video, events, and other incident data from Citigraf directly into Clearance with a few clicks. They can then grant investigators access to the case files so they may retrieve or view evidence whenever needed. Further, automated audit logs ensure the chain of custody is always protected.

Mesa Police Department

Before implementing the new system, the Mesa Police Department mainly focused on after-the-fact investigations. Now, when a 911 call comes in, RTCC operators can listen to the call live and transfer the information to Citigraf. The system displays a list of the closest video feeds based on the caller’s coordinates and identifies the closest police vehicles on the map. All of this information can be quickly displayed and relayed to responding officers.

Within the first 12 months of implementing Citigraf and Clearance within the revamped RTCC, the MPD solved exponentially more cases and recovered hundreds of stolen vehicles. Officers were able to respond more quickly to emergencies and arrived better prepared on the scene.

Citigraf and Clearance offer public safety teams new levels of situational intelligence, response capabilities, and investigation efficiencies. Citigraf disseminates timely information and provides greater situational awareness to law enforcement agencies. Clearance helps organize case files and securely share evidence with the click of a button. Together, these capabilities help improve public safety response strategies for communities.

Erick Ceresato is Product Group Sr. Manager, Clearance, at Genetec