Communications
IAFC seeks input on digital radio problem
The Fairfax, Va.-based International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) needs input from members who have experienced problems with unintelligible transmissions while using digital two-way portable radios....
Toll officials crack down on violators
By: Annie Gentile
Electronic toll collection systems help ease highway traffic, improve safety and reduce costs for toll road operators. But, because drivers using electronic...
Locals want to help residents turn on DTV
By: Jennifer Grzeskowiak
By Feb. 17, 2009, TV broadcasters will begin sending programming only as digital signals, which means TV sets that use antennas to receive over-the-air...
Seaside supervision
By: Deanna Hart
By the end of the 1960s, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., lifeguards responded to emergencies using beach phones at 22 reporting stations along the southern Florida...
High-tech crime fighting
By: Chief Rodney Monroe, Richmond, Va., Police Department
Project: Crime prediction and prevention Jurisdiction: Richmond, Va. Agency: Police Department Vendor: Chicago-based SPSS; New York-based Information...
Protecting and serving
When domestic violence victims request protection orders against their abusers in Kane County, Ill., they can expect police protection almost immediately....
Ads aim at gun data
By: By Meredith Preston
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is digging into his own wallet to help launch an ad campaign designed to pressure Congress to reject a provision that...
Connecting the pieces
By: By Kim A. O'Connell
In 2004, a man and his wife drove an SUV across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Maryland, seeming to enjoy the scenery like countless other travelers. The...
Solving true crimes
By: By Doug Mamroth
Television dramas have contributed to the public's perception that high-speed chases and shoot-outs thwart lawbreakers. However, in reality, most crimes...
All together now
By: By Timothy Miller
The last thing anyone wants in an emergency is confusion among the professionals responding to it. But, that often happens when several public safety...
Talk to me
By: By Lynn Peisner
While terrorist acts on U.S. soil notoriously exposed weaknesses in the way governments and first-responders communicate and operate, many other challenges...
Making the cut
By: By Meredith Preston
The Department of Homeland Security's new formula only funds communities with the highest risks....
Learning from experience
By: Dana Hansen
Past emergencies guide first responders' communication fixes....
Homeland security outlook
Local governments reveal purchasing plans for 2006....
Protecting residents from sex offenders
By: Annie Gentile
Registering former predators is only the start....
Waving some cash in Hollywood's direction
By: Jennifer Grzeskowiak
States offer tax incentives to lure film industry, jobs....
How safe is your city?
By: By Jeffrey Slotnick
Assessing risks is the first critical step in protecting a community's assets....
Fighting threats at every possible turn
By: Jim Ludwick
Agencies work to protect public transit riders....
Sounding the alarm on false activations
By: Annie Gentile
Governments try to reduce costly false alarms....
States consider stun gun guidelines
By: Sibley Fleming
Leaders act on controversial Taser-related deaths....
Homing in
By: By N. Tayfun Amur
Finally, the homeland security picture is coming into focus for local governments....
Dane County, Wis., struggles with crowded jail
With one of the fastest growing populations in Wisconsin, Dane County is at a crossroads with its overcrowding jails. ...
Chicago considers "traffic" ticket for marijuana possession
In many Chicago-area municipalities, getting caught with less than 10 grams of marijuana gets the offender a ticket rather than a trip to jail. ...
Locating emergency calls
Software upgrade allows city to pinpoint cellular users in trouble....











