(EASTON, MD) – Maryland’s goal of providing statewide public safety interoperability, data-sharing, situational awareness, and communication is one step closer to reality as Talbot County becomes the first county to partner with the statewide records management system. The $26.4 million dollar statewide computer-aided dispatch (CAD)/records management system (RMS)/automated vehicle locator (AVL)/automated field reporting (AFR)/Mobile project initiated by Governor Martin O’Malley in 2010 is part of the Administration’s goal of increasing public safety interoperability, especially during times of crisis.
Led by the Maryland State Police (MSP) project team, the CAD/RMS/AVL/AFR/Mobile project includes the Maryland Transportation Authority Police (MDTA), Maryland Transit Administration Police (MTA), and Natural Resources Police (NRP). The project team will complete implementation of CAD/RMS/AVL/AFR to these agencies by June 30, 2014. The Mobile implementation will be completed for all agencies by October 2014. All MSP barracks are live with all systems and are successfully using the system. Additionally, other local police departments have joined at a reduced cost by using the established state contract. The New Carrollton Police Department began using RMS in 2013 and the Taneytown Police Department joined earlier this year.
“Talbot County’s partnership is a great example of the steady progress we have made on building and improving homeland security and emergency preparedness in our State. By setting goals and working to better connect public safety agencies, we’ll better prepare more Marylanders for emergency events,” Governor Martin O’Malley said. “Using the latest technology to obtain and send information quickly and efficiently, our dedicated police officers and public safety officials can do a better job of protecting our citizens. The statewide interoperable communications effort will remain a priority as Maryland continues its leadership role in this important area.”
“While being a prime partner with Maryland government as it transforms the public safety report management process across the state, the use of this new and uniform police reporting technology creates a standardized system and format for the collection, reporting, and assessment of data, as well as the collection of intelligence among all participating agencies that better serves all citizens,” Talbot County Sheriff Dallas Pope said. “Talbot County has already begun to see and experience the merit of this reporting process, assimilating an effective, verified, and complete report management system, providing the cross jurisdictional sharing of police information among public safety officials across our State. At no other point have we had the real time ability to share crime, suspect, drug, gang, or other intelligence information among the public safety network across the state in this manner. This serves to streamline resources and address crime at all levels in every jurisdiction.”
“Maryland’s interoperability team continues to network state, county, and municipal public safety agencies as part of a strategy never before seen in our state,” Maryland State Police Superintendent Colonel Marcus L. Brown said. “In addition to projects improving public safety radio communications, closed circuit television camera feeds, license plate readers, and an online emergency management mapping application, CAD/RMS/AVL/AFR/Mobile will greatly improve interoperability with agencies during critical situations and will improve police operations on a daily basis. This new system will also increase officer safety, add new investigative tools necessary for the investigations of cross-border crimes, enhance homeland security and provide better crime fighting technology and tools.”
Currently, state and local law enforcement agencies operate on different, mostly antiquated, systems and some even do their work manually. Under these conditions, it is hard to share and communicate data, which is becoming more and more vital to daily public safety services. There is an essential need to use the latest technology to obtain and send information quickly and efficiently so officers can do a better job of protecting the public.
The new computer-aided dispatch system is a great leap forward for managing police and public safety units in the field. CAD operators can quickly validate addresses for accuracy, see the location of their mobile units on a detailed interactive map using AVL technology, determine if hazardous materials are at a specific location, and more. Plus, the data from a call for service automatically moves from CAD to RMS, where officers do their reporting on incidents and arrests.
Officers can securely access RMS from any device connected to the Internet to do their reporting much more quickly than current reporting methods. Reports can be completed in the field rather than removing data from mobile laptops and completing reports at the barrack or station. InterAct’s mobile capability, available from mobile data terminals used in vehicles, gives the officer on the street the ability to run inquiries independently, perform self-dispatch, update incident and location information, and communicate with other officers in the field. All data is shared with others on the system, including agencies inside and outside of Maryland.
The statewide interoperable platform will become the foundation for future state-of-the-art additions. With the upcoming interfaces to systems that provide current warrant, offender, and other data, CAD/RMS will become a quantum leap forward in sharing data that enables agencies to work better together and increase officer and public safety.
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