Remember with any of these characters, since this is fan fiction, the setting of the stories can be updated to reflect current or future technology. For example you can have Crockett sporting jeans and carrying a small cell-phone. You can change the police station from using old green-screen Apple computers to flat-screen Dells. You can change Starsky and Hutch’s car, keeping the same look but updating the engine, etc. The Simon brothers could have surveillance around their home and they could own a German shepherd. A.J. could use a laptop computer while Rick could have something line Onstar in his truck. T.J. Hooker could have full use of A.F.I.S. and CODIS. You can have Joe Friday using a palmpilot. You can keep Bo and Luke in their simple country style but the town maybe has a cybercafe, and the homes could have indoor plumbing.
With the exception of only a few of the teams, the other characters did not have the following, but are now available in their crime investigations:
A.F.I.S. – The automatic fingerprint identification system. This allows a fingerprint to be compared to any registered set of prints with in the country. This can take anywhere from a few minutes to a couple of hours depending on the print recovered. With a whole fingerprint, the search can be as little as fifteen minutes. This can be done very quickly using a computer and the Internet.
Audio Surveillanc - This involves listening in to nearby conversation / noise. First it can involve placing a microphone that picks up and records sound in an area for later listening. Others include:
Automatic Library search – Most, if not all libraries have upgraded from the old card catalog to a computer search database.
Autopsy / Necropsy - Also called a postmortem examination, an autopsy is performed on a human body and a necropsy is performed on all other animal bodies. This is an examination done by a specialist to determine the cause of a cadaver's death. The specialist can team up with a doctor, patholigst, archeologist, etc. to help determine the cause of death.
Background check - It's now becoming easier to have a background check done on a person. This checks for police records, military records, etc. This is becoming controversial as some see it as a violation of privacy. Most job applications require this and have a person sign a form allowing for it.
Barcodes – This is the symbol that appears on almost all products or their packaging. This allows the computer to read the lines and numbers to figure out what the product is, its price, etc.
Biological Evidence - Blood, spit, sweat, hair, and other things that come out of or from the outside of a human body. These are carefully collected and preserved because it can break down over time. This evidence contains a person's DNA. Something that cannot be faked unless the person has more than one identical sibling. The Y chromosome is a very important part. Finding the Y chromosome indicates that the person is a male because only the male can carry the Y chromosome.
Biometric face recognition – A camera / computer setup that can scan faces and run it through databases and recognize suspects. Technology is getting better so that it can get more accurate hits. This is commonly used in areas where large people gather in order to help speed up the search for the suspect(s).
Blackberry - One of a line of handheld devices that allow people to text message others on the Internet. This is IM chatting without the computer.
Blood Splatter - Blood splattering is a new form of evidence used in convictions. Scientists have found that wounds, blood on hands, clothing, floors, objects, etc. all have different splatter patterns. A wound that is caused by a bat, would have a large, small and large dotted splatter pattern. While a stab wound would drip less and a large concentrated amount of blood on the floor, bed, etc, where the body lays. Detectives can look at pictures and figure out what happened during the crime. Sometimes blood splatter patterns can be the difference between determining wounds that are self-inflicted versus done by another person's hands.
Body Scans – Using M.R.I.s or Catscans, coroners can take pictures, X-rays, etc of a body that’s too fragile to move out of its current state. This allows the computer to create a 3-D image of the body which can then be crafted from a machine through facial reconstruction, free-hand reconstruction, etc. This is typically used on mummified remains.
Bomb Squad – Exactly what the name says. This unit deals with handling dangerous weapon stashes, bombs, explosives, etc. They have advanced equipment including using robotic rollers to examine and dismantle bombs without having to use human hands.
Bounty Hunting – Every state has it's own laws regarding bounty hunting. There is a license that is required before a permit for bounty hunting can be issued. There are strict weapons laws. Most bounty hunters carry pepper spray.
Broadcasting – News, Sports, Music, etc. All can be broadcasted via satellite to receivers which are getting smaller in size. When it comes to a live broadcast the camera can be as small as a digital palm recorder to a large network-size camera that the operator actually sits in.
Bug evidence – now there is forensics that deals with entomology. This allows a detective to use the bugs that are found on a body to determine date of death, plus if the body was moved, where it’s been, etc.
Bullet proof vests / Body armor / Armored vehicles. – Now police officers can protect their vital organs, head and other limbs by use of these devices. These can take various rounds as these things slow down the path of a bullet and stop it before it breaks through to the skin. Sometimes a bruise is left behind. Vests were made available in the later 70’s early 80’s but now they’ve become refined and more able to withstand armor piercing bullets. A trauma plate is put underneath the vest on the center of the chest as a last layer of protection. They are trying now to improve on the design so they can mimic a spider’s silk. Spider’s silk and the weave it’s made into is as strong if not stronger than steel. Officers have found themselves tempted not to wear their vests yet always think about officers on the one day who chose not to wear their vests and are shot dead.
Armored vehicles are typically seen with money pickup/delivery services, the bomb squad, and SWAT teams. These cars, trucks, vans, etc. contain shatter-proof glass, thick bulletproof padding, bulletproof shielding, etc. These help in siuations where the team has to be protected from automatic fire.
Cameras - While instant photos are still being used, the system of using film is being replaced by disposable cameras and digital mediums. Disposble cameras are inexpensive cameras that are used once and then sent completely to be developed, in some cases the camera is reused. (With the film replaced.) Digital cameras are getting smaller with more storage. This allows for a person to print pictures at home. A computer program can fix the picture allowing a detective to enlarge, clean up and try other tricks to bring out images. The hand loaded film camera is mostly used by hobbyists. Digital cameras can sometimes be hidden in something as small as a pen. The pen camera can or it's size can be hidden in just about anything. The lens is about the size of a pin hole.
Coming soon is the penny camera. Peel off stickable cameras that cost a penny each that can be put on things like a lamppost. Once the sticker is applied it becomes a Internet camera that is sending images. The sticker is just that, a sticker!
Cell-phones – Some may have seen the car-phone that was connected to the car itself, now any character can carry a credit card size phone in a pocket. There are camera / internet phones. Phones now have the ablility to send / receive video and photos, play games, text message, act like a walkie-talkie and other uses.
Chemical fingerprint – a computer can by way of sampling an unknown chemical and turning into a gas or liquid to find what the unknown chemical is. Then the computer reads the composition and then prints it as graph. The graph is then compared to graphs of known chemicals to find the match. This is not limited to spilled chemicals. This can be applied to unknown paints, hairdyes, medicines, etc.
Civilian Review Boards – This is a group of citizens elected or hired onto a panel that review police actions. If the police were not acting in accordance to what is acceptable their actions are reviewed by the board. They can recommend fines, imprisonment, or termination of employment. These boards allow the citizens to keep tap on their local police groups and ensure that officers don’t get out of line and civilians don’t get away with phony claims.
CODIS – Combined DNA Index System, is a comprehensive DNA database that works just like AFIS only it compares DNA samples to everyone in the database. This helps to speed up identification.
Cold Case Unit - Police officers, groups, and other law efforcement people, retired or not, who tackle cases dubbed a cold case. A cold case is an unsolved crime that is put aside after a while to allow for the limited resources to solve newer crimes. Cold cases are becoming "hot" again due to law departments opening up cold case units. Their job is to use the tools that were not available during the time that the crime occured in order to find a solution.
Computers – Instead of being big bulky machines now they are small enough to carry with you in a laptop or in a palmpilot. Monitors can be plasma screened. Along with that comes product testing, movie graphics, laser control, endless possibilities. Hand-held devices in things like watches and pens, can conceal tiny hard drives that can be used to download information from a computer. So far they can store about 250MB or one zip disk of information. They are getting smaller and their storage size larger.
Advanced computer storage now in the making can have terabytes of storage. A huge increase from gigabyte storage.
Computer animation – Allows detectives to reconstruct a crime without disturbing the real crime scene.
Computer forensics – The science of computers. A person in this field can take apart a computer and find hidden information even there have been attempts to delete it. They can restore harddrives, figure out where that computer has been on the web, find passwords, etc.
Computer data is never really deleted at one time. If a file is deleted, the computer knows that the space is available to be overwritten. The file remains until it is overwritten.
Computer imaging – A photo, no matter how old, can be scanned by a computer. The computer then can clean up, magnify, repair, enlarge, etc. any picture without destroying the original.
Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) - A team of forensic experts, detectives and officers who break down a crime scene to look for evidence to the cause, victim, criminal, etc. These highly trained technicians take over what was once the police officer’s job. They use very careful measures such as wearing gloves or something to protect their hands from contaminating the scene. They bring sterile tools to collect, store, and protect evidence to be processed outside of the scene. They can only give a preliminary evaluation of what might have happened at the scene.
Cryptology - Codes and code breaking. A system of sending information that is hidden in another form such as a number sequence or picture. The code breaker then breaks the code or finds the hidden information.
DEA – The drug enforcement agency. This group deals with stopping the manufacturing, trafficking, sale, and use of illegal drugs.
Dental evidence – X-rays comparing teeth, molds of teeth used to compare bite marks, DNA extracted from tooth pulp, etc. All of this is now available to use for a detective.
Digitization or Digital Video Enhancement – Taking a normal signal out of an image and turning into a digital image, which is broken down into pixles. Each pixle has its own number. So a computer can lighten, darken, clean up and enhance photographs. Commonly used by NASA to clean up photos from the Hubble telescope and other images, now law enforcement agencies are turning to NASA to help clean up photos, surveillance pictures, etc.
Digital Cable - Cable TV that uses a small computer like box that is hooked to a TV. This allows for more channels, better picture and sound quality, and the ability to record programs without a VCR or other recorder.
Digital Cameras – Now a person can have a camera small enough to fit in a pocket yet take and store hundreds of pictures.
Digital Voice note recorders – These appear anywhere from inside of greeting cards to personal recorders in the shape of a pen. These can record anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes of a person’s voice. These are most often used to remember things like appointments or directions.
DNA / Mitochondria DNA / STR evidence – Up until the late 80’s the only testing available was for blood type. Now the scientist can even run an experiment to duplicate the available amount of DNA to give enough for testing. The DNA can be broken down determine if the blood carries the Y chromosome. This allows the tester to determine if the blood came from a man or a woman. The DNA can be compared not only for identification and parentage, but for disease and potential disease. DNA detection has also improved with the use of luminal, UV lights, etc. DNA can also be lifted from straws, cups, the back of stamps / envelopes, gum, etc.
Most of our DNA is identical to DNA of others. However, there are inherited regions of our DNA that can vary from person to person. Variations in DNA sequence between individuals are termed "polymorphisms". Sequences with the highest degree of polymorphism are very useful for DNA analysis in forensics cases and paternity testing. This activity is based on analyzing the inheritance of a class of DNA polymorphisms known as "Short Tandem Repeats", or simply STRs. (University of Arizona) – STRs are commonly used in cases where there is only a small sample of DNA to test. This allows the scientist to zero in on a specific region of a single strain of DNA to be compared to a known sample, allowing for preservation of any remaining DNA.
Mitochondrial DNA is defined as the genetic material of the mitochondria. The mitochondria are organelles that reproduce themselves semi-autonomously when the eukaryotic cells that they occupy divide. The genetic material forming the mitochondrial genome is similar in structure to that of the prokaryotic genetic material. It is formed of a single circular DNA molecule. The mitochondrial of a sexually-reproducing animal comes only from the mother’s side. The mitochondrial DNA of a human being is essentially the same as that of his or her mother… Basically it's a genetic marker that is passed down from mother to all her children. The mother's DNA will be identical to her mother, who got it from her mother and so fourth. This kind of testing can be done when there isn't enough DNA to work a profile. A DNA profile has to be taken from the nucleus of the cell. Mitochondrial DNA can be found floating throughout the cell. A good source for this DNA is in the hair shaft.
Other animals, specifically domestic cats and dogs, have been used and accepted as evidence in a court case. Scientists have been able to break down the DNA / Mitochondrial DNA and read it just like human DNA. Even with so many of the same breed of cat / dog, scientists can find the DNA source. Cat and dog hair has also been proven to be a valuable source of evidence. A new form of evidence for a dog is a nose print. Science has found that a dog's nose print is as unique to that dog as a fingerprint to a human.
DVD Players / Recorders – Allowing for many movies, TV shows, music, etc, to be recorded on one CD/DVD to be played on small players, computers, game systems, etc. Of which things can be stored and cataloged, etc. Digital video recorders (DVRs) work like a old VCR but record onto DVDs. The DVD lasts longer and can be played repeatedly with no loss to the quality of the image or sound.
Electronic banking – Although the MAC / ATM card has been available since the 80’s, now you have ATMs in supermarkets, etc. People can bank on their computers, get mortgages, insurance, buy cars / homes, pay bills etc. online. Check cards allow for easier shopping. This can now be traced.
Electronic monitoring / Surveillance – Anything from using hidden microphones, hidden cameras small enough to be disguised as almost anything, satellites to take pictures, etc.
Electrophoresis - This is a process that uses an electical current to seperate substances into their components. For example a scientist may use this process to study the pieces of DNA for comparison.
Electrostatic Detector / Voltmeter - A meter / detector that can detect forms of static electricity. In ghost hunting this detector can help explain static noises, things that make buzzing sounds, TVs losing signal or seem to flip stations, minute sounds that people here, etc. This static can interfere with computer function, radio signals, etc. It might affect satellite signal. It can explain why other electronics don’t function properly.
Email / VMail – both Voice and Email can be electronically traced back to its source, establishing time line, location, and frequency.
Encryption – This is where a security device is used to block information on a computer, CD, etc.
EZ Pass - These is an electric device that is placed in your car. It looks somewhat like a thin white panel. Going through a toll both a sensor scans the panel and deducts the toll automatically from an account. This eliminates the need for change / small bills or waiting in line to pay the toll.
Facial reconstruction – This is where a face is reconstructed using paper, computers, X-rays, to form a 3-D model of a victim. If an intact scull is found, the scull has X-rays taken of it then a reconstruction person will use plastic pegs all around the scull to determine skin height from the scull. (The scull looks like it would have a lot of pegs glued to it.) Then, using a special kind of clay, the person will make smooth bars of clay to connect all the dots. Then the patches are filled in. The nose and the eyes are very difficult since the nose does not have a bone, and the eyes are only a guess since the person can only go by what they think is the race of the victim. The latest method is to use a laser / computer scan of the scull. Then the computer will activate a machine that will cut microthin pieces of paper that are ‘glued’ together. The resulting skull is as heavy as the real scull but not as fragile.
Now there is an even more life-like process using polymer materials cured by lasers. This can give doctors a crystal clear image of internal organs. This can be used for a body with the organs still intact but is too delicate for an autopsy.
Facial Superimposing – Using X-rays to take pictures of a scull or body part. Then the image is superimposed on a known picture of a possible identity. The computer compares the two and determines if they match.
Fiber evidence – Clothes, carpeting, blankets, etc. can all leave behind pieces of itself. Using microscopes, computers, etc, the fibers can be traced to its source.
Fingerprint reconstruction – This involves taking a finger from a corpse and hydrating it back to suppleness and putting in other things to allow the finger to function normally. This allowed the investigator to get a good print off a single finger.
Fingerprint search – Once relegated to fingerprint powder and tape/card, now we have digital cameras and improved technology that allows for prints to be gathered off of bullets, cans, etc. Scientists use glue, light, and heat sources to make hidden prints visible. Fingerprints are only taken after the CSI team has finished because getting fingerprints can destroy other evidence. Fingerprints are a tricky piece of evidence. Technicians have to wait until other evidence is gathered because the powders, glues, etc. used to lift the fingerprint could destroy the other stuff.
Sometimes even the process of lifting fingerprints can ruin the print. They may use a technique called superglue fuming. Superglue is heated until it makes a fume. The superglue, inside a closed area, will adhear itself to the prints. Then afterwards, the techincian applies a special powder to make the prints visible, while the superglue protects the print. This process only works if the body hasn't been touched by paramedics, the temperature hasn't been too hot or too cold, precipitaiton (rain, dew, snow, etc.) hasn't washed it away, and the body hasn't been sitting for too long.
Fire Arms Examiner - This person examines weapons to deterimine if they were used in a crime. The examiner looks for refiling impressions on the bullet. These are caused by grooves and marks inside the barrel of the gun. This in turn gives the bullet it's own unique characteristics. This allows the examiner to determine which bullet was fired from which gun.
Fire investigation – (A.K.A. Arson investigators) There are special fire fighters that expert fire investigators. Their job is figure out how a fire started. They can use dogs to sniff out accelerants. They look for burn patterns, burned items, mechanical failures, etc. They help out investigators solving cases of arson and other crimes.
Forensic Animation – Animations made for courts. Sometimes using the old post-to-post animation technique where a computer takes several major poses say from eye witness accounts then fills in with the most likely scenario or using other animation programs to create the sequence. These animations are made according to rules set by the court.
Forensic Anthropologist – Much like anthropologist that studies the past to discover what had happened, so does this person expect its more into the criminal aspect with the crimes much more recent. These specialists are sometimes referred to as bone doctors.
Forensic Audio Expert – These experts are sometimes referred to as acoustic phoneticians. One of their main jobs is dealing with voice prints, or trying figure out which voice belongs to which person. Another job is taking video or audio data and filtering out "noise" to figure out individual sounds and voices.
Forensic Document Examiner - A person who examines documents and looks for forgeries. A key point being that no two people write alike and within a person's own handwriting there is normal variation.
Forensic Entomology – The science of using bugs to determine time, day, and area of death. The most common used insect is the fly. The life cycle of insects and type of insects are very precise such as the fly and help the coroner in the autopsy.
Forensic Geologist - The science of using dirt, rocks, and other natural earth formations. A forensic geologist can break down the dirt found at a crime scene to determine it's origin, movement, etc. This allows the detective to determine where the crime took place, movement of the criminal, etc.
Forensic Linguistics – The science of language. How people write and compose. With written language a handwriting expert can determine forgeries and other such things. If they don’t have paper or written words, they can use composition. Composition could be how certain words are spelled, how sentences are written, the tone of the words.
Forensic Meteorology – The science of weather. A forensic meteorogligist or any metoerologist can be called upon to determine weather over a period of time. Weather can play a role in the temperature, bug and mold growth, movement, decomposition, plant growth, etc. of a crime scene.
Forensic Plummer – A plummer that works in crime scenes looking for evidence in pipes, sinks, toilets, and other such places.
Forensic Psychologist / Profiler – These people get into minds of the criminals, of the cases, of everything around the crime. They help to determine why a crime is committed. If they are dealing with serial crimes, these experts can help predict future crimes.
Forensic Reconstruction Artist – Armed mostly with a gut-instinct, these artists use their skills to reconstruct, age, or put a face on a suspect, missing person, victim, etc. Such like the cases of Frank Bender, probably one of the most recognized reconstruction artists.
Forensic Tire Expert - Tie-bars, groves, treds, size, shape, lines, depth, all go towards determining which tire left the specific mark. Tires can be traced by all of these back to the manufacturer. Since tire designs change for the type of vehicle, weather conditions, and performance needed, this can be a great help to narrow down to a specific type of vehicle. Then the field can be narrowed down even more to where the tire was sold and possibly to the buyer. Peter McDonald, Forensic tire expert, wrote a book on tire impressions.
Forensic Toxicology - The science of studying chemicals, toxins, and other things to aid in an investigation. Toxicologists can often break down chemicals, toxins, alloys, and other things to their structures to identify an unknown substance. They can use special X-Rays to determine the unique structure of each element, chemical, etc.
Food Safety - Food safety laws have been passed to ensure that the food supply stays safe. Food has to be inspected. Other safety measures include experiation dates both for fresh and shelf-stable food. Scientists are now working on portable, hand-held food safety sensors that will detect dangerous bacteria and viruses on fresh produce. Other types include strips that change color in the presence of harmful bacteria.
GPS – Global positioning system. Allows you the user to use satellites to figure out your local to within 100 meters or slightly less of your location. Due to military protocol civilians normally do not have machines that track closer. These can be turned into bracelets that can be worn by people suffering from alzeimer's disease to help keep track of their movements and find them if they become lost. GPS can also start a process known as geocoding. This allows a person to turn an address into GPS coordinates. This helps to find a location during a disaster where everything has been leveled.
Ground penatrating radar – A device that scans the surface of the earth. The radar scans through the layers below to look for anomolies and other disturbances. Originally and still used by archeologists and geologists, this allows a detective to look for buried objects without having to dig.
Hacking – While breaking into security systems has been around for as long there has been security systems, today’s hacking can involve someone using a laptop and a wireless internet connection. The more experienced the hacker is, the faster they can gain entry and not leave a trace. Hackers typically hack into systems to steal information, for the thrill of getting into secure sites, or do damage to the site.
Hand Sanitizers – Portable hand cleaners that work as good as soap and water when those two items are not available. It's a liquid that rapidly dries on the skin and helps to kill germs.
Haz-Mat Team – This team deals with spilled unknown substances, biological spills, etc. They have the equipment to test, contain, and clean up dangerous spills and other stuff. They are required by law to be called into a scene if there is an unknown substance in the area.
Headset / Internet hook up – Emerging technology that allows a person to wear a headset with an eyepiece, camera, wrist-cuffed keyboard, and small mouse that is small than the palm of your hand. This allows a person to actively search the internet at the same time without the use of a desktop, laptop, or a landline.
Health concerns – Disesase like SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), Legionnaire’s Disease, Bird / Avian Flu, AIDS / HIV, Ebola Virus, flu, pneumonia, bronchitis, etc, can all affect someone. In today’s society now there are better ways to protect from HIV/AIDS, SARS, infection, etc. Plus remember diseases like SARS, bird flu, etc, were not heard of even during the 80's. Now with modern testing, a “disease trail” can be linked back to a single person. Also cancer can be treated much easier and be detected much sooner.
Health concerns can also include bacterial infections. Wounds need to be treated and cleaned. Areas of hospitals are now closed off to the public to keep germs at bay. It used to be that someone, anyone could be around a doctor while he treated a patient in a hospital. Now hospitals are very cautious about germs and use sterilization, disinfectants, etc. to keep them at bay. Disposible needles and latex gloves are mandatory to prevent disease / infection from being transmitted from one person to another.
Outside of a hospital, food safety laws have been passed to keep the public from getting sick. Body art shops such as tatoo parlors, piercing shops, beauty parlors, etc. are by law required to follow safety standards such as heat sterlization, disposible tools, etc. to protect their customers. While not every business follows these practices, investigators can use a disease trail to help find the source of contamination.
Helicopter search with FLIR / gryocam – A helicopter now is equipped with FLIR. Forward looking infra-red allows the cops to pursue a criminal in the dark by using heat sensors. Gryrocam is a nick name for the new type of camera most often used by newscopters. These cameras have a complete circle of rotation of which to follow something or someone and can be mounted on the helicopter itsef. Also a helicopter is much more advanced. It can fly faster, farther and can land in a smaller place.
Hospitals – Trauma units, Life-flight helicopters, blood transfusions, CAT scans, organ transplants, kidney dialysis, specialized care, MRIs, paramedics that can treat patients at the scene without calling into a doctor, and lots of other aspects are all available now. What could have killed a detective twenty years ago can now be stopped. Cancer is treatable including the most severe diagnosis. The only one that is not treatable at this time is pancreatic cancer.
I.B.I.S. – Integrated Ballistics Identification System, much like IAFIS, it compares spent bullets and cartridges and looks for a match.
I.A.F.I.S. – Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, allowing paperless submission, storage, and search capabilities, directly to the national database maintained at the FBI.
Identity theft / phishing – These two terms describe people who will steal personal information including sending phony email or setting up duplicate pages that people believe is legitimate. The stolen social security numbers, names, etc. to create phony IDs, open up bank accounts, get credit cards, loans, etc. so that the theft can try to not be traced. Now people can have fraud alerts attached to their social security numbers, credit cards, etc. or have them temporarily frozen so that the thief can be tracked.
Illegal Drugs – These are subtsances that are abused in order to get a 'high'. One illegal drug, marijuana, is controversial because it has show medicinal qualities for people with diseases like glaucoma and cancer. Some street drugs are actually drugs used by Vets on animals. These drugs are bought and sold in varying quantities and strengths. Laws regarding them vary state to state. Sometimes, if it's just a little bit of marijuana, the person may be let go with a fine. The penalties for carrying drugs depends on the amount of the drug.
Internet – This allows all types of research available for those who know how to break into certain sites. Most research can be done without hacking. The internet can be reached now using cordless laptops and cell-phones. Internet surveillance can be used to track and record where people go and what they do. Copies of emails and chats can be obtained using spyware.
IR / X-Ray / Lie detector glasses – Both the X-ray and Lie detector glasses are in the development stages, right now readily available are Infrared or IR glasses. These allow a person to walk around at night without needing a light source because IR tracks heat sources. Animals, people, vehicles, fire, light, all give off heat. These glasses allow for tracking in the dark.
IP reversal number – tracing a computer’s IP internet protocol number through various places that computer has logged into.
Laws – These have changed over the years. The blood alcohol level for intoxication has been lowered in many states. Some of adopted victim’s laws so that if the officer shows up and sees marks on one or more people, the officer doesn’t have to ask the victim if they want to prosecute the offender. The officer can automatically arrest the offender. Identity theft laws are popping up. Seatbelt use is now mandatory in most states. Cellphone use while driving is against the law in some states. Carrying concealed firearms is against the law in most states. If you have a lot of illegal drugs on you, you can be charged with intent to distribute. You need a warrant for a wiretap and for searching computers / cellphone records.
Laser finger / palm / iris / retina readings – More accurate than a picture or ink, the laser can scan and know minute details of these and can help speed up a match search.
LEDs – Light emitting diodes. – Allow for a bulb that can change to a computer programmed color, uses far less energy to run, and lasts much longer. These are used to make very bright flashlights, computer generated light displays, etc. With LEDs, displays can seem almost seamless. LEDs come in Blue, Red, and Green. All three lit together at highest intensity become white. A combination of the three make other colors.
LexisNexis - provides authoritative legal, news, public records and business information; including tax and regulatory publications in online, print or CDs. This is a huge database of information that is available in most colleges and universities and through subscribing.
Light spectrometer – A spectrometer that measures the refraction of light of a material. That is how much the speed of light changes as it passes through a substance. i.e. How much the speed changes when the light passes through water or alcohol. Each substance has a different refractive index number, or refraction of light number. Much like a fingerprint, each substance has a unique number.
Lighting - A first it was just a simple bulb, now the lights can be dimmed or put on timers. Sensors can be put into place so the light automatically comes on when a person enters a room and turn off when the person exits. Lights can come in all sorts of different shapes, sizes, and functions. DJs can use disco light balls with their music. Laser lights can create shape and movement. Strobe lights can be used to make it look like movement is slowing down or speeding up. Strobe lights are being placed on some police cars to allow for hidden units since most people recognize a police car from the light strip on the top of it.
Lojack - A computer service that helps to track stolen vehicles. A computer tracking device, such as a small chip or transmitter is placed inside of the vehicle in a place where it can't be tampered or removed. Once it's activated, the device sends out a singal that computers, police officers, and other people can use to track the vehicle's movements or current location. Trackers can be placed inside of a patrol car.
Mass spectrometer – A machine that turns liquids into gasses to develope the chemical 'fingerprint' of an unknown substance. Each substance has its own fingerprint. By comparing the unknown substance to a list of known substances, a scientist can determine the identity of the unknown substance. In some cases the machine will use a laser to create a plasma spark, then the smoke from the spark is analyzed.
Metal Detector – A simple device that uses a magnet to detect metal objects on the ground or slightly below the surfice.
Microfiche – A card or sheet of microfilm capable of accommodating and preserving a considerable number of pages, as of printed text, in reduced form (Dictionary.com) This is used a lot in college libraries that store massive amounts of information in one place. It allows for storing of magazines, newspapers and other information media that after time would become too fragile to use.
Miranda rights – These are the rights that are read by all law enforcement officers when they arrest any suspect. These rights have to be read in the language that is spoken by the person being arrested. Example: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney and to have that attorney present before any questioning. If you desire an attorney and can’t afford one, one will be appointed to you by a court of law. You have the right to stop questioning at any time.” If these rights are not read, anything the suspect says cannot be used against them at trial. If the rights are violated, anything the suspect says cannot be used against them at trial.
Missing Person Bulletin / Amber Alert – These are activated when someone goes missing, i.e. a child or a mentally impaired elderly person goes missing. There is a standard time limit before a bulletin can be issued in some cases. This is a message that is said over police bands on the radio, through TV stations as a scrolling bar alert, and through highway lighted work signs. The alert can be county, state, or nationwide. This allows for more people to be looking for the person to help in the search.
Motorvehicle crash reconstruction – By using real cars, trucks, or computer animation, the detectives look to see if they can duplicate the accident as the witnesses or people involved say. And see if it matches with the resulting damage, placement of cars, etc.
Music on MP3, CD, DVD, Ipod – This technology can be played on a computer, laptop, player on a TV, playsystem, carried with you, etc. The MP3 / Ipod allows for entire libraries of music to be carried in a compact, portable player. This has allowed for more data to be in a smaller source. So now anything for research, evidence, etc. can be stored on them. Ipod/MP3 works by compressing music. Since the human ear can't hear lower sounds over larger sounds, the system eliminates the softer sound allowing for more space. Music is downloaded over the Internet.
The Ipod has gotten so small and slim it can easily fit into a small pocket. Versions are coming out now to make it even smaller. The Ipod is also changing to allow video to be downloaded onto it. Some Ipods now have 60GBs of storage which allows for up to 15,000 songs, 25,000 pictures, and 25 hours of video.
NCIC – The National Crime Information Center. An FBI database of criminal justice information like criminal records, fugitives, stolen property, missing persons.
Nightvision – Available in googles, binoculars, and other forms, nightvision allows a person to walk around at night. Nightvision uses IR to help the person move.
On-board cameras – These are mounted onto police cars to monitor activity outside and inside the patrol unit. These not only protect the civilian from police brutality but also protect the officer from false claims and catches suspects hiding evidence or planning to lie. These cameras also provide video for training so that future cadets can learn from them.
Paints - Once only lead based now have been banned. Now paints come in oil, latex, or in environmentally friend soy-based. Technology in the works is moving towards "live" paint, where a person by a flip of a switch, can change the color of the entire area of paint to whatever color they choose.
Palm pilot – One of the first personal devices that allow a person to have a electronic date book, address book, note taker, calculator, picture taker, etc, in one small convenient device that is usually no bigger than a checkbook.
Personal Care Items - Sonicare toothbrushes. Electric powerered tooth brushes, with brisles that occlelate so fast you have to use a strobe light to see them moving. This allows for the best clean possible because it can monitor and help a person brush for the needed two minutes for a proper clean. Contact lens which allow for eyeglass-free vision. Some of these come in crazy patterns and colors for costume effects. Recently there is latix surgery. This is a form of laser surgery that can rid a person of the need to wear glasses and contacts. Aerobed / Memory foam bed mattresses. Allowing for either airchambers to adjust the firmness of the bed or a memory foam which adjusts around a person.
Plant evidence – Use of powerful microscopes have allowed horticulturalists, plant biologists, etc. to help discover different types of pollen, plant cells, bark, etc. that are found on a person. This can determine location, movement, etc.
Plasma screen – These allow for clarity unlike anything before allowing for almost 3D images.
Play Station Portable (PSP) – A portable game system that can fit in a large pocket. This system can not only play games but now plays movies on it using same shaped disks.
Poisoning - Poisoning can be in various forms. Even overdosing the water can harm or kill the body. There are different methods of detecting poisons. One problem with poisoning is that some types resemble flu/cold symptoms or stomach bug symptoms so by the time the cause is determined it can be too late.
Police Chase – Seen on many news broadcasts and police video shows, many new things have been used to bring a chase to an end.
Police Standoff - Takedowns, police chases, arrests, mental illness, threats, and other events can lead to a police standoff. This is where one or more people are holding either themselves or innocent people to get the police to do something like give up money, go away, let the criminal escape etc. The police now have many tools at their disposal to handle a standoff to try and end it peacefully. Sometimes these same tools can be used during riots.
Police Issued orders - To keep calls short and keep everyone on the same page, police departments will often issue orders about missing people, wanted fugitives, lost or stolen cars, etc.
Portable mass spectrometer – A machine that weighs forty pounds and can be easily carried to any crime scene. This machine does everything that it's bigger counterpart does only in a smaller size.
Psychic detectives – While this can spark controversy, more police units are allowing for people with psychic powers to help in investigations, searches, etc.
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) - Used to replace bar codes on purchased goods. These allow an entire shopping cart of groceries to be checked out at one time. It can be used to track just about anything. Tiny devices can be hidden in clothing to track someone. The device can become so small that it can become an implantable microchips to track pets, livestock, and now people. This helps keep track of people who suffer from diseases like alzheimer's.
The Reader – A device that can scan and verbally tell a visually impaired person what is printed so they don’t have to ask someone to read it to them. It can scan most printed words like newspapers, food labels, bills, and restaurant menus.
Real-Time TV - Allows a person to hook up a small box to their TV and connect it to their home computer. It allows a person to use a remote computer to tap into the home computer and watch TV.
Rifling Marks - The distinctive imprints left on a bullet after it's been fired. Each rifling mark comes from the inside the gun, rifle, etc. The rifling marks are divided into two types; lands and grooves. By matching up the rifling marks of a fired bullet to the rifling marks of a firmarm, the scientist can determine if there is a match. Rifling marks are as unique as a fingerprint is to a human finger.
Riot Units – Designed to handle out-of-control crowds, this unit helps to control these by use of sometimes brute force, officers on horseback, tear gas, armored cars, pepper spray, etc. The unit is equipped with body armor, patons, shields, etc. They are used to help restore order and are sometimes kept on standby in places where large crowds gather, i.e.: Mardi Gras, college bowl games, Superbowl, rival hockey games, protests., etc. This unit cannot move into a crowd until they are ordered.
Robotic home machines – A robotic lawnmower, robotic mopper (Scooba), robotic vacuum cleaner (Roomba), automatic door openers / garage door openers, etc. are all now available. Some now act as a small robotic “dog” that will watch your house, and via cell-phone let you see in your apartment so you can check to see if you’ve turned off everything, locked the door, etc. You can program the heat/AC in your home to be warm or cool when you come home but turn off when you’re not in the house. All of which can establish timeline.
Searches during arrest / going into lockup - New technology as elimiated the need for cavity search as a prisoner can sit on a "chair" that X-rays the entire body, looking for hidden objects. Policy in America states that only female officers can search female prisoners. Out in the field a woman can request a female officer for a patdown, though male officers already call for a female officer if needed.
Search warrants / breaking in – Police now have to announce who they are and have a search warrant before they break in. Police can use several methods, search dogs, stun grenades, ram rod, etc. of getting into a place. A search warrant has to be valid and proven before a court. The police can only search for and take items on the warrant. They can’t look in places not on the warrant. For example they can’t look for magazines in a person’s refrigerator unless the warrant specifies they can look in the kitchen. Also, if they are looking for drugs and find pornography, the porn can’t be taken or used as evidence because it was not on the warrant, unless the porn was found in the same place as the drugs. Say a person hides dirty magazines in the same box as his cocaine stash, or in the same closet as his cocaine stash, then it would be reasonable that the officer would find it. Also there is plain sight evidence. If the officer came in and found a gun on the table, and wasn’t looking for a gun, then it’s called plain sight because anyone could see it. But if the gun was found in a coat and not on a warrant it’s not admissible because the officer nor anyone else could see it right away.
Shoeprint / Footprint - Each person's footprint is as unique to them as their fingerprint. Footprint evidence is harder to collect but just as valuable to an investigator. Shoes, especially sneakers, have soles on the bottom. The shoe imprint is gathered in the same manner outside in dirt, snow, etc. as a tire imprint. On the inside of a place, such as a house, the techician will use different methods such as tape, paper, fingerprint powder, etc. to lift the print. For the shoes, just like tires, wearing, scuffing, chips, and other blemishes on the sole make each one unique to that line of shoes and to the individual shoe.
S.W.A.T. – Special Weapons and Tactics. A team much like the Army and equipped like it, this is a special task force designed to tackle the hardest jobs that officers themselves cannot. S.W.A.T teams often have snipers, which are trained to take out suspects at long ranges. This task force is only called in when other resources the police have do not work, or the situation is too dangerous to send normal officers.
Satellite Radio / TV – Allows a person to watch commercial free TV / Movies or listen to commercial free radio stations by paying a fee and having a small receiver to pick up the signal. The receivers, which used to take up half a front yard, are now small enough to fit on a small corner of a roof. For the radio signal the receiver is small enough to be in a car, home, or inside of a small radio. Two current exampls of this service are SIRUS and XM satellite radio providers.
Sensors - Devices that can track, detect, warn, and do other things that were once done by human eyes. Or alert the human watcher and allow the watcher to automatically secure areas, send out warnings, call police and fire personnel, call a paramedic, etc.
Serial Numbers – A sequence of numbers and letters that is imprinted into everything from DVD players to vehicle engines. This sequence can trace the item back to the exact place, time, and date when it was made. These numbers are usually imprinted into the metal / plastic part of an item so that it cannot be tampered or removed. There are tests such as acid lifts that help to bring out serial numbers that have been removed.
Solemate - A database of footwear to assist in the identification of shoes from shoe prints.
Steganography - The art or practice of concealing a message, image, or file within another message, image, or file. This is typically seen but not limited to the porn industry. Companies will hide their images in another image, then send an emailer teling the person who wants the photo, where to find it in the picture. The hidden secret is usually compressed to be concelled so that it will trick filters, people looking at the larger image, etc.
Stringer - A stringer is a freelance camera person. They usually drive around with a video camera (either DVD or tape) and listen to the police band (the band the police use on the CB). They go to scenes of standoffs, arrests, accidents, protests, etc. or other places of high activity. They film what happens and sell their footage to local news stations. Although they may get in the way sometimes, stringers can be valuable in determining what happened.
Tip Lines – Anonymous phone and Internet lines that are set up so that people can call in with information but stay anonymous and out of any kind of trouble with anyone. Sometimes rewards are given if tips pan out. John Walsh with his America’s Most Wanted is the most famous example.
TiVo - A device that allows a person to pause and rewind live TV, allowing a person to leave for a phone call, food break, etc. without missing something on TV. TiVo works best on a modern TV that can automatically take a DVD player.
Television - Once big and lumbering that could only do one or two things and came solely in black and white, now come in a variety of sizes, nearly always in color. Plasma, High-definition, and LCD TVs are now becoming more accessible, allowing for one-inch thick TV systems that can be mounted on a ceiling/wall like a framed picture. Plasma TVs use a gas and LCD uses a liquid crystal. Remote controls can become voice automated. Now technology is moving towards having wafer thin, roll up screens that a person can take anywhere and place just about anywhere. This also allows for wafer thin tiny pieces of "screen" that can be placed just about anywhere, rolled up or wrapped around anything, so a person can watch TV on nearly anything in the house. Even better technology is going towards live mediums (actual tiny organisms) inside the wafer to allow for the most realistic picture ever.
Vice Unit – This unit deals with sexually-based crimes. They often have counselors on hand to help with victims. The officers are specially trained to deal with this sensitive area.
Video taping interviews – This came from controversies over officers being too aggressive in getting people to talk. Now all interviews are videotaped to protect the person’s rights. (It’s not like what you see on Law and Order. No agency would be allowed to get away with what they do without the review board hearing about it.)
Visual Surviellance - This means watching someone or something using simple vision or a vision amplifier. Visual watching has been done for a long time. It can be seen in traffic monitoring, pro-game flyovers, police helicopters, etc. Yet, sometimes it's done discretely to avoid detection.
Virtual Reality - A system where a computer generates a second world and let's a person interact with it. Techology is getting better, allowing for more realistic looking setting and higher quality sound.
Voice-over-Internet-Protocol (VoIP) - Phone systems that use the Internet to make phone calls. Allows a person to make phone calls at the rate the Internet company charges. So the person is making a free call, no extra fee included unless they are using a paid Internet phone service.
Voice recognition / Retinal or Iris Scan – this technology allows a person to use their voice print or the shape of their eye’s retina/iris to open doors, bank, etc.
Weapons – Moving beyond the simple handgun, officers can now equip themselves with backup pistols, rifles, patons, stun-gun, pepper spray, etc. to protect themselves and the public. Now they have a variety of non-lethal take down weapons: rubber bullets, tear gas, stun grenades, tazer guns, pepper spray, etc.
Weather forecasting – satellites and modern computers allow for more accurate predicting. Weather forecasting has been used to help in crime detection, crime prevention, and determining when things actually happened.
Wi-Fi – used to certify the interoperability of wireless computer networking devices. Wi-Fi is commonly seen in coffeeshops, libraries, and other places, allowing for users to hook up their laptops to the Internet. Or provide computer labs access to the Internet without having the need to use dialup or put in phone lines. One common goal of Wi-Fi is to spread affordable or free access to the Internet for city residents in poor neighborhoods.
Wireless Internet – Now available, computers and laptops can access the Internet using a special signal device installed in it, and a nearby port. This allows the uses to move any where within the signal range and use the internet without wires. Wireless Internet can be used also with a cell-phone, a computer that has it's own ability to wirelessly connect to the Internet, etc.
Wound examination – Performed during an autopsy, doctor examination, etc. This helps to determine what type of attack the victim receive such as self-defense, post mortum, by a right-handed person, etc. This also helps the doctor help a victim who might not be able to communicate verbally what has happened.
Wrist bands with GPS - These wrists bands, which are connected to police departments, have GPS or other tracking chips installed onto them. Given to people suffering from alzheimer’s or other mentally disabling diseases, it can help to locate someone who has wondered away.