NCJ Number
172491
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 65 Issue: 5 Dated: (May 1998) Pages: 46-49
Date Published
1998
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article describes the planning and development as well as production and output for the Orange County (California) regional crime analysis and information-sharing unit known as PROACT (Proactive Resource Organization Against Crime Through Technology).
Abstract
PROACT involved the cooperation of seven cities, with Huntington Beach designated as the host agency for the project grant. Staffing of the unit involved the hiring of two crime analysts and one office assistant, under the supervision of a senior crime analyst. To facilitate data sharing, PROACT served as a "testing ground" for various pilot projects to overcome the fact that these systems did not interface with each other, and the data they contained were not captured in a common format. A handbook was developed to serve as a tool to aid officers in conducting more thorough preliminary and follow-up investigations. Field officers were encouraged to use uniform terms within their crime reports for weapons, physical features, clothing, and footprints, based on those illustrated in the handbook. The grant called for the agencies to share statistical information, which allowed the unit to forecast crime patterns, develop target profile analysis for various criminals, and help provide investigative leads. PROACT collected and analyzed crime- report criminal method information, parolee information, field interview cards, traffic citation information, arrest data, and other crime and criminal-related data. Once the information was collected, the unit developed and disseminated daily, weekly, and monthly information in the form of newsletters, bulletins, Career Criminal Profiles, Sexual Habitual Offender information, and trend analysis. Through the regional efforts of the participating agencies and PROACT, the goal of increasing communication among agencies has been achieved. A total of 255 career criminals have been identified, with 151 of them having been arrested and 139 referred to the Orange County District Attorney's Office for career criminal prosecution. This article also summarizes future regional planning.