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19 www.officer.com April 2014 Law Enforcement Technology SMARTER POLICING of both worlds. Nothing takes the place of feet on the ground but technology can assist and supplement this in truly amazing ways. "It's most important benefit is that it enables the searching and coordinating of huge amounts of information rapidly," says Lingerfelt. "That's why the investigator or the offi- cer responding to the event, given the proper data sets, can produce investiga- tive leads that would otherwise take days. It takes only seconds." Technology encourages partnerships As law enforcement agencies try to access and finance advancing technology, they've found working together creates more opportunities. Looking at public safety on a larger scale uncovered impor- tant relationships not only between big and small agencies, but also other departments such as transportation, pub- lic works and public health. Searching for answers on how technology can expand and assist partnerships even more, IBM developed the Smarter Cities Challenge. Smarter Cities, St. Louis A city known for its brews, shoes and being the Gateway to the West, St. Louis is steeped in history and its police department is not untouched. Until September 2013, the City of St. Louis did not have control over its own police force. During the Civil War, Missouri's Segregationist Governor Claiborne Jackson did not want the Unionist City to have control over its arsenal. Instead of having the police under the authority of the city mayor, the mayor was assigned just one seat on a five- seat, state-appointed Board of Police Commissioners. After 152 years of state control, the citizens finally decided it was time to change, and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department now has a new boss. Just a few years prior to this change, in 2011, St. Louis was one of 24 cities to earn a grant from IBM as part of the company's effort to build a Smarter Planet. "The Smarter Cities Challenge was set up to allow the philanthropic side of IBM to set up with the business side," explains Cleverley. "Technology has a role to play in improving society. We sent teams to cities for intensive peri- ods of time to work on specific problems so the city would benefit. But also we would begin to understand what prob- lems they were really focused on. Both sides benefit from that." St. Louis, along with having an intriguing history, also had a very real present day problem. "St. Louis was very, Circle 28 on Reader Service Card AVATAR ® III Tactical Robot WHY ARE YOU STILL OPENING DOORS? A3 also available for EOD, HazMat, and K9 applications. Learn more at www.robotex.com. Quick setup. Climbs stairs. Afordable. Back packable. Plug and play. Two cameras. Afordable. Two way comms. Send a robot before placing a person in harm's way. robot technology solutions LET_16-21_Policing0414.indd 19 3/20/14 9:17 AM