More than a year ago, in an effort to support the victims of the violent rapes and assaults he all-too-often treats in the emergency room, Ed Lowder decided to symbolically scrap his scrubs and fight back. Instead of traditional crime-fighting tools, the weapon he chose was the dissemination of information on the World Wide Web. There he displays mug shots, composite sketches, descriptions and other relevant information to help inform the public and catch wanted criminals. Wanted posters, similar to those once displayed on Marshall Virgil Earp's wall, are now posted on computer screens around the world via the Web.
With Senior Lead Officer Tim Kidd of the Los Angeles Police Department's West Valley Division at his side, Lowder enlisted the help of InstaNet, a Southern California-based Internet service provider, to host the site. As a community service, InstaNet offered free Web space to the LAPD and the crime-fighting doctor. Then Lowder proceeded to compile the information and place Southern California's first official law enforcement site on the Web. With community service in mind, InstaNet continues to offer Web space, free of charge, to any agency related to law enforcement as well as a few other non-profit organizations such as the Missing Children Investigation Center.
You can be one of the thousands of Web surfers to join Lowder's 'Puter Posse and review the LAPD's Most Wanted, updated regularly. Who knows? Maybe you'll see somebody you recognize!
In addition to the "Most Wanted" area, the site includes Community Policing News, information on the Neighborhood Watch program and crime statistics accompanied by maps showing crime occurrences by neighborhood. Thinking of joining the force? You will also find LAPD recruiting information on the site.
"It's a real good tool for us," said Senior Lead Officer Tim Kidd. "It's one more part of the Neighborhood Watch program, which is part of community-based policing." He also predicted, "The Web site will be a very good place for us to comply with the recent federal mandate requiring us to notify communities when a convicted sex offender has moved into a neighborhood. The information will be available to anyone who inquires, without it being intrusive."
The site offers Special Crime Alerts on timely topics such as the "Rolex Bandits" and a telephone extortion scheme currently being pulled on unsuspecting businesses. It also includes descriptions of unsolved crimes, along with requests for pertinent information, as well as links to other law enforcement agencies such as the FBI, Department of Justice, Orange County Sheriff's Department, the Pasadena Police Department and more. The site also offers links to the Abuse, Assault and Domestic Violence Resources site and a Police Forensic Science site.
Now, in the comfort and safety of your home or office, you can meet some of Los Angeles' (and possibly the world's) scariest people! According to Lowder, "The virtue of the Web is that you can review the pictures at any time. Unlike a newspaper which you throw away (hopefully recycling) or the television which only offers fleeting images that quickly disappear, the Web offers a dynamic environment that can be updated regularly with new information and more recent pictures. The Web is just as perfect for displaying 'Most Wanted' pictures as it is for catalogs."
"The Most Wanted page is the most visited section of the site. We just hope we can close a couple of good sales!" he joked.
This is not the first time Lowder has changed hats in the name of serving the community. Once a successful engineer with the National Aeronautic and Space Administration, Lowder wanted to contribute more to society, so he left NASA to become a doctor. "I can leave the hospital at the end of my shift and feel like I've made a difference in people's lives, that I really helped them," he said.
Not long after the introduction of the LAPD site, the Irvine Police Department introduced their Web site. The Irvine site even includes a posted $20,000 reward for information leading to the capture of a murderer. Now if it said, "Wanted Dead or Alive," it would be exactly like something right out of the Old West!
This Web page "has been very effective, generating a number of leads that, in turn, produced verifiable information," explained Irvine Detective Victor Ray, a primary Webmaster of both the Irvine and Orange County Sheriff's Department's Web sites. "The Internet enables us to easily transfer data to other law enforcement agencies. High-resolution color pictures instead of low-quality faxes is alone a major improvement," Ray continued. "Our Web page has provided our department with a number of opportunities to create partnerships with businesses in the community. It has also prompted people to use email to report various problems."
The Irvine Police Department's Web site also includes information on the D.A.R.E. program, missing persons and traffic issues such as accident and drunk driver statistics, as well as recent changes in traffic laws.
As with any Web site, each law enforcement site tends to have its own personality, reflecting the talents and interests of the Webmaster, as well as the directions and priorities of each individual department and the community it serves.
More recently, the Downey Police Department established a Web site. Detective Bill Gough pitched the site idea to his superiors and got an almost immediate and very enthusiastic approval. In a very short period of time, Gough developed the Downey PD site into a very significant site, with one of the most extensive lists of links on any law enforcement agency's site. Interestingly, Gough never intended to put recruitment information on the site, but after repeatedly receiving email requests for information, he relented and added it. "People are responding well to the site. We've been getting quite a bit of email as a result of people seeing it," boasted Gough.
"Before we got the site up, half the guys here didn't even know what a computer was!" joked detective- turned-Webmaster Gough. "Now there is a very active interest from the officers in the department. They all want to know how to get on the Internet."
In addition to the standard topics found on other police sites, the Pasadena PD site boasts information on their "K9" units and helicopter fleet, including information on infrared and searchlight technologies. The Orange County Sheriffs Department site even covers custody, corrections and coroner issues, and provides a link to the California Legislative Council.
These police Web sites are not just another set of pretty pictures—they have actually resulted in the capture of wanted criminals (see WWWiz, March 1996).
In a well-publicized instance, the FBI places sole responsibility for the capture of one of their "Ten Most Wanted" on the far-reaching scope of the Web. Escaped federal prisoner Leslie Isben Rogge, wanted for a series of bank robberies involving the use of a handgun, posted on the FBI Web site, was identified as living in Guatemala—a direct result of the Web page picture being recognized. As a result of this information, the Guatemalan National Police and Diplomatic Security personnel at the U.S. Embassy began an extensive manhunt for Rogge. Feeling the intense pressure, Rogge surrendered to the FBI at the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala City.
On the wake of such success, as well as the success of TV shows such as the Fox Network's "America's Most Wanted," virtually every law enforcement agency has already established a site on the Web or currently is in the process of establishing one. Surprisingly, however, the Fox show has not produced a Web site to enhance the show's effectiveness.
Residents using these Web sites say that it decreases their fear of crime. After reviewing the crime maps posted on these sites, they know what's going on in their community and have a better chance of recognizing undesirable people, potential problems and enables them to actually take action (calling for help) before situations occur. This is particularly true for residents in an area with increased crime activity. "These people should be more wary of unusual activity in their area and report it immediately," suggests Officer Kidd.
Woodland Hills resident, Neighborhood Watch Block Captain and Co-Chair of the West Valley Community Police Advisory Board, Ellie Vargas uses the Internet to protect local children from known child molesters. "By using the Internet, I can [make] wanted posters, run them off on my printer, and take them to the elementary schools in the area."
It seems little has changed from the community-based policing methods of old—neighbors watching out for neighbors. With the help of technology, the Internet and World Wide Web empowering members of the community with information, law enforcement has come full-circle.