Greenwood police invests in technology to pinpoint where its strained resources are needed

<p>Greenwood’s police force continues to grapple with being short staffed, but it is making do by investing in technology advancements to improve data-based policing and lead to more intentional, preventative work.</p><p>The Greenwood Police Department has 63 officers — nearly half the numbers it should according to agency standards — and there is funding available for eight more positions that leaders are working slowly but surely to fill.</p><p>The Bureau of Justice Statistics suggests cities have at least two police officers for every 1,000 residents. That means Greenwood would have to have nearly 120 officers to be considered “fully-staffed,” but most cities rarely meet that ratio, said Jim Ison, Greenwood police chief.</p><p>Since Ison transitioned to the top leadership position last fall, he has put more emphasis on using data to make better use of the department’s resources, and officers’ time.</p><p>Right now, Greenwood police relies on two traffic data collectors — which cost about $5,000 each — and five new Flock security license plate reading cameras that were added to the department’s budget this year, costing about $12,500.</p><p>Through the use of analytics and statistics, the department can better allocate officers in places where they are needed most. The traffic monitors are moved around periodically to different intersections in the city, and they collect data on how many cars pass through the areas at any given time, how fast cars are going and what times of day traffic patterns might be concerning.</p><p>“If the data that comes out of there doesn’t recommend we put officers out there, we don’t,” said Matt Fillenwarth, assistant police chief. “Those boxes help us immensely.”</p><p>The license plate cameras have also been crucial to the city’s police work, Fillenwarth said. Within 45 minutes of being installed for the first time earlier this year, the cameras caught a car that was reported stolen, he said.</p><p>The five cameras are placed throughout the city on public streets, and have the ability to read and record the license plates of cars that pass by on the road. For example, if a car driving by is registered as stolen, or if it fits the description of a car involved in a crime, the camera will catch that and notify officers in about 45 seconds on their laptops and phones.</p><p>The cameras are also used across different agencies in the state. If a suspect is wanted in a different county where law enforcement also uses the Flock system, the suspect’s car would be flagged on Greenwood’s cameras if it passes one.</p><p>“It could be seen as a little Big Brother-ish, yeah,” Fillenwarth said. “But there’s so many agencies across this country that are going to stuff like that because, let’s face it, those Flock cameras are a lot cheaper than one or two officers.”</p><p>That does not mean Greenwood is prioritizing technology over hiring physical officers, Fillenwarth said. Department leaders have constant conversations about how they can balance budgeting for technology advancements — which are needed in today’s digital age — and hiring more officers.</p><p>“Technology, as it is used more and more by society, it will be used more and more by your law enforcement. At the same time, I don’t think I’ve ever heard a police chief say, ‘I’ve got enough officers,’” Fillenwarth said.</p><p>And technology will not offset the work officers need to do on a regular basis. They can’t patrol a single intersection for several hours of the day..</p><p>“When we can hire new officers, they’ve got a ton of other stuff to do. The things that are expected of police has multiplied time after time in my career,” Fillenwarth said.</p><p>Greenwood Police has been faced with a staffing issue for a while now, and Ison fully expects to fill those eight open positions with new officers and lateral transfers by the end of the year, he said. Four transfers will be brought on in June, and four more will be added in the fall.</p><p>The city did not add extra funding to the police department’s $6.8 million budget this year because it froze most departmental budgets due to anticipated financial losses caused by the coronavirus pandemic. But because the department is still staffed below the 71 officers already funded, Ison did not feel the need to ask the city for more money for new hires this year, he said.</p><p>“At budget time for next year, I will discuss that with the council and the mayor as far as what we may get or may not get next year,” Ison said.</p><p>In addition to filling the officer positions, Greenwood Police will soon be adding even more technology to its tool belt.</p><p>As part of the rest of the federal CARES Act money, which can be used for public safety, the Greenwood Police Department will get $18,500 for an iPhone unlocking software.</p><p>The software can be used to unlock phones seized from suspects, if a search warrants allows, and police will have access to information such as text messages, GPS locations, photos and videos for evidence.</p><p>“It is a game changer,” Ison said. “So much of our lives is kept on our phones … we use phones for a multitude of crime-solving aspects.”</p><p>The department will also soon be using Motorola Solutions for data tracking. The system is able to track crime patterns throughout the city, and then recommend where officers are needed to patrol the most.</p><p>“It will give you a heat map that shows, based on past data, that the computer would anticipate that the odds are better than not that if you’re going to assign resources, put them here,” Fillenwarth said.</p><p>In addition to investing in data collection and tools, the department will also pay $15,000 each year for Lexipol, a national company made up of attorneys and experts focused on risk management solutions for public safety agencies, to upkeep its policies and implement new training programs for officers.</p><p>Officers will download an app for the training on their computers and phones that will send “pop-up” policy quizzes daily to test the officer on his or her training. The quizzes will include a policy and scenario that officers will have to answer questions about before starting a shift.</p><p>Funding for these advancements mostly comes from grants or out of the police department’s equipment budget, which is funded by taxpayers.</p>