Keep your cell phone silent
We have been living in a fast-paced, high-tech world for some time now. Cell phones are everywhere and just about everyone has one with them at all times. How about when you are on duty? Do you carry it in your pocket?...
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Mobile phones as flashlights
John Farnam, friend to PoliceOne and recently-named ILEETA Trainer of the Year, sent out a tip last month about the fact that most people in this country — indeed the vast majority of Americans — “are...
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Build a technology plan for interoperability
Any police officer or first responder can attest to the importance of clear and reliable communications with other public safety professionals in an emergency, whether it's a response to a single call or a mass casualty...
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Dealing with digital distractions
Distractions while driving are a huge issue for all drivers but for law enforcement in particular there are activities that simply must be done while driving a vehicle. Talking on a radio, looking for suspects, or...
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Deadline looms for comments on 700MHz waiver requests
In mid-August 2009 the FCC issued a “call for comments” about the dozen public safety entities that are petitioning the FCC for permission to build their own regional wireless broadband networks in 700 MHz. The...
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A refresher on Fusion Centers
We have it in our minds every single day, but this week we take an additional moment to remember the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. As we do so, it’s a worthwhile endeavor to review some of the thinking...
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Tell it to the FCC
Over the course of the past two months, a dozen public safety entities have begun petitioning the FCC for permission to build their own regional wireless broadband networks in 700 MHz. The Public Safety Spectrum Trust,...
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Tie public schools and public safety together
Lorin Bristow, a partner at Galain Solutions, a firm that helps public safety organizations secure grant funding, says that police departments have a very good opportunity to secure money in the U.S. Department of...
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Got P25? Great, but don’t forget your phone
P25 (a.k.a. APCO-25, or Project 25) refers to a suite of standards for interoperable digital radio communications for public safety agencies. Radios built to the P25 standards let first responders from all over the...
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Technology that helps you catch retail thieves
In this week’s PoliceOne video tip, Betsy Brantner-Smith talks with a representative of SIRAS (a Nintendo-owned company) that offers a free Web site for law enforcement to track serial numbers of electronic...
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Stay Charged
The last thing you need when you’re far from home, working a manhunt or manning the perimeter of a standoff, is to have you mobile phone go dead.
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Finding the mobile phone number of your suspect
By Tom Joyce, Lieutenant (Ret.), NYPD As told to PoliceOne Senior Editor Doug WyllieMany people don’t even have a land-line phone anymore, but the mobile carriers do not share information about their customers with...
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"What?"
From: No One Trips Over a Mountain: Enhancing Officer Safety By Doing the Little Things RightThe most important word in a roadside interview is “What.” When he says, “What?” you got him and he is...
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Keyboard shortcuts
Write better, more descriptive reports. Never lose your work to a crashed computer. Surf the Internet with the prowess of a teenager. Find exactly the section of a document you need to see. How? Shortcut keys. Highlight...
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Safe placement of microphone
Clip your remote microphone to the front of your uniform rather than to your shoulder. You will hear it with both ears, and if you're engaged with a suspect, you don't have to look away from him or her to talk into it....
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A $1 solution for microphone issues
I've come up with a $1.00 solution for those who have had difficulty finding the right place to secure their lapel microphone on their uniform without it falling off during a foot chase or have worried about the risk of...
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Bluetooth devices and staying stealth
While assisting officers from another jurisdiction who were dispatched to a report of three armed males using narcotics, a fellow officer was standing in the rear of the residences near the rear door. The very first...
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Protecting your audio transmitter cord
For those who carry audio transmitters on their duty belts: do you have the problem of external mic cords breaking without warning and causing you to have an evidence tape with no audio? To prevent that, try interweaving...
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Using voice recognition software in your squad
I work with a small department in Central Florida. We've had laptops in our patrol units for some years now and are finally capable of accessing all the information we need from the field. Recently our Chief began...
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Wear an ear mic
Wearing an ear mic not only ensures you get your radio traffic, it also eliminates the need to "secure your mic" while standing with a potential suspect. Criminals are just as knowledgeable -- sometimes more so -- about...
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More on safe shoulder mic usage
As a follow up to a tip submitted by Officer Israel about looking at subjects when talking on shoulder mics [Read the tip]: I have done what Officer Israel describes and I've also noticed that I tend to lift my elbow...
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Suspicious person contacts
This is probably nothing new to many of you, but I still see this mistake time and again: When preparing to make contact with a suspicious person, do not grab your mic for the first time while pulling up to him. Instead,...
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Keep your eyes forward
When talking on portable radios, many officers look away from what is taking place in front of them to look at their microphone while transmitting. No matter where your mic is placed—shoulder, right or left epaulette, or...
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Anticipate addresses when responding to domestics
We all know it's not safe to park in front of the residence at a domestic disturbance, but how often have you found yourself searching for house numbers to locate the residence? Teamwork between patrol and dispatch can...
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