Technology and the Criminal Justice System: EXAM2 Study Guide

Required Reading: Chapters 5,6,7 in text; all links to readings listed on our weekly schedule; assigned readings on Tasers in the materials section.

Exam Format: Multiple –choice and true /false questions.

Topic Areas, Key People, and Key Terms

1. Crime Prevention and Soft Technology: Various forms of soft, information-based technology have been applied to the prevention of a diverse number of crimes, including terrorism, school violence, workplace violence and sex crimes. Examples include:

  1. What are threat assessment instruments ?
  2. Terrorist Screening Centers and the FBI: what do they do?
  3. Bullying identification protocol
  4. Can we prevent sex crimes using Sex offender registration; location restrictions, sex offender risk assessment devices, Amber alerts , electronic monitoring, etc?
  5. The use of “profiling” to prevent crime: does it work?
  6. The department of pre-crime:What is it? Do we need one?
  7. Can we accurately profile school shooters( at Columbine-- Eric Harris, Dylan Klebold; at Thurston -- Kip Kinkel) according to the secret service?
  8. The use of mental health data by school officials; and linking mental health, criminal record, and gun purchase data bases; lessons learned from Virginia Tech tragedy.
  9. Profile of the VT shooter (SEUNG HUI CHO) see appendix N of the VT Report.
  10. Research review: Myths and realities about sex offenders—What are they?
  11. Risk Assessment Instruments: False positives and false negatives, actuarial vs. clinical prediction

2. The Police and Hard Technology: Federal, state, and local police have applied hard technology not only in the area of individual offender apprehension, but also in the area of community-level surveillance and control. In addition, technological innovations have been used to improve the safety and protection of police officer. Examples include:

  1. Improvement in weaponry of police: research findings from review of 11 years of gunfire data in NYC.
  2. Types of Less-than-lethal force technology used in mob/potential riot situations
  3. Case: Victoria Snelgrave Investigation-What went wrong?
  4. Computers in squad cars to improve criminal identification and /or for gang identification; cameras/video in squad cars
  5. Project 54 : What is it?
  6. Gunshot location devices( with CCTV): Extent of use
  7. Improvements in offender/citizen identification (e.g. biometrics, fingerprints, etc.)
  8. Improvements in police protection devices (e.g. bullet proof vests, new construction of police departments)

9.  Boston’s Real Time Crime Center: What is it?

3. The Police and Soft Technology: The recent emphasis on intelligence-based policing has resulted in a wide range of soft technology advancements that have transformed police problem-solving strategies at the federal, state, and local level. Examples include:

  1. Crime mapping technology (hot spots in Boston for shootings)
  2. Crime analysis technology (COMPSTAT) used in Boston, New York, and LA( William Bratton’s role)
  3. Operation Ceasefire: What is it?
  4. Record Management Systems(RMS)
  5. Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) Systems
  6. Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs)
  7. COP and POP
  8. Early Intervention Systems
  9. Other “soft” technology applications in policing (e.g. information sharing within the CJS; public-private information sharing)
  10. Case Study: Peter Manning’s assessment of the driving forces behind technological change in the Boston Police Department
  11. Sex Offender Monitoring, Location, and Apprehension: the role of federal, state, and local law enforcement
  12. . Key findings: Performance review of the Boston Police department