Police cars get high-tech boost

BRADENTON - Sleek red and blue police lights, a sophisticated backlit touch-screen computer system with voice-activated software and a small dot-matrix printer that prepares a legible traffic citation in a matter of seconds.

The equipment sounds like it's part of a prime-time crime drama, but it's actually part of the upgrade Bradenton Police Department patrol cars have received in recent years.

"They have an office in their cars," Bradenton Police spokesman J.J. Lewis said. "It's a rolling office."

Patrol cars are usually equipped with police radios, radars and mobile data terminals that allow officers to communicate with one another and with dispatch operators while on the road.

But many of the agency's mobile data terminals have been upgraded to a touch-screen computer system that features voice-activated software particularly useful during car chases or routine stops.

If a vehicle seems suspicious, an officer just types its license plate number into the system and, in seconds, a clear human voice reads information to the officer, such as the make and model of the vehicle the plate was issued to, while the officer watches the particular vehicle.

With the swipe of a driver's license, the Virtual Partner software - produced by a company named Advanced Public Safety - verbally tells officers critical information such as age, sex, race, vehicle registration, license status and whether any warrants have been issued for the person.

Bradenton Police officials say the software allows supervisors to know the kind of call the officers are on and whether backup should be requested.

"We can be here and see the same information the officers see in the car," Bradenton Police spokesman J.J. Lewis said. "We can also see the status of the call they're on.

"One of the most important functions is the immediate availability to information that officer needs to perform their job and ensure their safety," Lewis added.

The agency began its upgrades in 1999, Bradenton Police technology specialist Jake Zaagman said. Within the next few years, the agency hopes to have all of its 57 patrol cars and 12 unmarked vehicles wired with the upgraded equipment, which costs about $5,000 per vehicle.

Because the upgrades are costly, Bradenton Police are upgrading 16 to 17 vehicles per year - which could cost up to $85,000 per year.

About 32 to 34 patrol cars sport the new features since the agency began the latest upgrade in 2002.

Manatee County Sheriff's Office spokesman Dave Bristow said the sheriff's office is in the midst of a two-year upgrade installing similar equipment in the agency's patrol cars but not as advanced. The sheriff's office hopes to upgrade about 60 of its vehicles per year - which could cost up to $600,000 per year. The sheriff's office has a little more than 400 patrol cars and unmarked vehicles.

Tight budgets prohibit many agencies from undergoing such upgrades, Palmetto Police Sgt. Scott Tyler said. He said Palmetto Police recently acquired used mobile data terminals from the sheriff's office that were wired into the agency's patrol cars. The officers use laptops to electronically file incident reports, which are turned in at the end of their shifts.

Both the sheriff's office and Palmetto Police hope to eventually transition to the high-tech equipment Bradenton Police has been able to acquire.

Bradenton Police officers say the new equipment has been helpful.

"It's a lot nicer ride than we had before," Officer Pete Biddlecome said. "It's very efficient."