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14 Law Enforcement Technology March 2014 www.officer.com TECH ON PATROL warning burglars that SmartWater was in use in the neighborhood, in February of 2013. Since then, there's been a 23 percent reduction in home burglaries in the area. "We're helping to change the neigh- borhood," Pierson says. People aren't fearful any more that their house will be broken into while they're at work." SmartWater CSI is available to consumers on the company's web- site, retailing for about $99 for a kit, which will mark 300 to 400 items. The consumer pays to maintain a subscrip- tion to the database, and to retain the right to display the SmartWater CSI signage, an essential component of the SmartWater Strategy. At this time, the agencies using SmartWater CSI are all in the tri- county area of South Florida. With the Broward County Sheriff 's Department, and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department leading the way, the plan is to make an impact in a concentrated area, with 100 percent customer satis- faction and the arrests and convictions to prove it. "No one else has convic- tions," Pierson says. Soon, SmartWater CSI will expand across the USA. The product pro- vides law enforcement agencies the equipment with which to scan for SmartWater, and remains in close contact to assist agencies in maintain- ing the deterrent component of the SmartWater Strategy. Common bonds The one thing all these systems have in common is that each has a proprietary database. There is some merit to the concern that, because property does also change hands legally, database information will deteriorate over time, causing more work than it saves. Says Captain Webb of Hemet PD, "Any system [like this] is only as good as the information in the database. With that, we make sure to educate people in our presentations, to notify the company when they sell their marked property. At least the database gives us a starting point." ■ Melina Moraga is a freelance writer and blogger whose law enforcement experience includes service as a cor- rectional officer, a 911 dispatcher, and a campus police security supervisor. She invites your comments at: www. atozwordsmith.com/blog-code-7, or at www.facebook. com/atozwordsmith. Federal Signal's latest solution for safeguarding law enforcement professionals. To help offcers work more , DTX Digital In-Car V r demands of law enforcement. What's more, DTX is engineered for software and frmware upgrades to ensur as compatible with tomorrow' s. Contact us to fnd out more about the DTX In-Car Video System. www.fedsig.com/dtx 800-264-3578 Circle 54 on Reader Service Card COMPANY READER SERVICE NO. DataDot 55 SelectaDNA 56 SmartWater CSI 57 For more information on these companies, circle the corresponding number on the Reader Service Card M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N LET_08-14_CopDots0314.indd 14 2/24/14 10:40 AM