Capital Wireless Integration Network (CAPWIN)

The ability of law enforcement and other emergency response agencies to quickly share information has become increasingly important in the post-September 11th world. Not only will response time and response coordination improve if agencies have instant access to one another, but law enforcement agencies that are able to quickly share information across jurisdictional lines will improve their crime fighting ability. The author provides a glimpse of some of the technologies that are currently being developed and used around the country to link police agencies to one another and to other emergency response agencies. The Pennsylvania State Police are utilizing a program called the Incident Information Management System (IIMS), which transforms a police patrol car into a virtual, mobile office capable of connecting patrol officers to over 20 State and national law enforcement and criminal justice databases. Another promising technology called Informant was developed to allow agencies with incompatible software to access one another’s records through a password-protected Web site browser. The problem of incompatible software, the most prevalent problem to sharing information across jurisdictions, is rendered moot by Informant. Other technologies discussed by the author include the Gateway Information Sharing Initiative (GISI), which integrates investigative data from Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies into one database made available through a secure Internet site. The Capital Wireless Integration Network in the metropolitan Washington, DC area is described as linking police, fire, medical, and transportation personnel, and Federal agencies to one another in real time. In conclusion, the author posits that increasing access to confidential information will raise many privacy issues as the use of this type of technology grows.