Articles by publisher

New Resource Hub for Law Enforcement

On April 27, 2022, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Law Enforcement Knowledge Lab, a free training, technical assistance and resource hub for law enforcement designed to promote constitutional policing, improve public safety, and build trust in communities across the country. Agencies will be able to turn to the Knowledge Lab for free, voluntary resources, including research summaries, profiles of best practices, training curricula, and a roster of constitutional policing experts to support their needs. The…


New Digital Indoor Mapping Capability Now Available for First Responders

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) funded the development of a cloud-based capability which enables first responders to review and analyze indoor floor plans in real-time when responding to incidents. Mappedin Response was developed in collaboration with Mappedin Inc. of Waterloo, Ontario, and is available to first responders and local governments as a licensed cloud-based service.       “It has been a major challenge for first responders to quickly determine the layouts of structures, hindering them from…


Ballistic Armor Update: 2022

P&SN Staff The 29th Annual Report on the Latest Advances in Ballistic Armor Technology and Design As of the beginning of July, the NIJ’s revised ballistic-resistant body armor standard 0101.07 is still awaiting implementation. Announced back in 2018, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) had planned to release a revised version of the current ballistic-resistant body armor standard in late 2020. Implementation was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, unnamed industry sources state that the new standard will be…


Busted! Real Stories of Genuine Absurdity July/August 2022

James L. McClinton, Ph.D. This sounds “hisssssterical”… A 54-year-old woman from Vero Beach, Florida, was arrested after crashing into multiple vehicles and throwing a fake rubber snake at deputies. Investigators say the chase began when the suspect intentionally hit one of the Martin County Sheriff’s Office vehicles as she tried to evade a traffic stop. She led deputies on a 100 mph chase, hitting another patrol car and a civilian truck, injuring the three people inside. When deputies approached the…


…AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH July/August 2022

Ramesh NybergNot in Kansas Anymore This column is a first – I’m writing it from another country. I’m in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, nearly 10,000 nautical miles from Miami, staying at my in-laws’ house. To say things are “different” would be quite the understatement. It’s culture shock at every turn. I’ve had some remarkable experiences in just the first seven days I’ve been here, but, for this column, we’ll stick to the justice system, the traffic and policing of the…


What Are Predictors of School Violence? What Are Its Consequences?

Published by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), this report discusses the causes and consequences of school violence and how to improve strategies for protecting against school violence and its detrimental effects. The report offers one of the most comprehensive reviews of school violence research to date, helping identify several important implications for strategies to reduce school violence and suggestions for future research. It will also shed light on which factors are strongly or weakly associated with school violence which…


New Research Better Predicts How Things Burn

A newly released report details research focused on measuring key fire-related properties to better understand not only the properties of the material, but also the difficulty and cost in measuring those properties. This research effectively created a more accurate methodology for predicting how things burn to aid in arson investigations. In the report, “Determination of Material Property Input Data for Fire Modeling,” researcher Brian Lattimer noted that the results, “will not only provide a more standardized approach for material property…


New Report on Threat Assessment

Published by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the 2022 Annual Threat Assessment report focuses on the worldwide threats to US national security for the upcoming year and specifically provides the Intelligence Community’s baseline assessments of the most pressing threats to US national interests, while emphasizing the United States’ key adversaries and competitors. The report details the objectives, activities and capabilities of four adversarial nations: China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. Additionally, it examines conflicts and instability taking…


Online First Amendment-protected Event Training for Law Enforcement Personnel

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, has published online trainings titled “Responding to First Amendment-Protected Events – The Role of State and Local Law Enforcement Officers.”  This Web site provides training videos to assist law enforcement personnel in understanding their roles and responsibilities as they prepare for, and respond to, First Amendment-protected events; protecting the privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties of persons and groups participating in these events; and reinforcing fundamental…


Low Powered Variable Optics for Patrol

Paul Reyman Photo courtesy of Richard King Photography Patrol rifles have been an armament for much of American law enforcement for a relatively short period of time. However, lawmen in the Western areas of our country frequently carried rifles as the distances frequently encountered demanded it. Back in the day, most urban or suburban law enforcement agencies issued a shotgun, typically loaded with buckshot and/or slugs. Within its tactical niche, the 12-gauge shotgun is hard to beat. Buckshot, although short-range,…