$300K grant will get Tempe police high-tech tools

By Jim Walsh
The Republic

TEMPE — A federal grant will help Tempe police outsmart criminals, identifying the worst repeat offenders and the sort of victims they are most likely to prey upon throughout the Southeast Valley with help from Mesa's East Valley Fusion Center.

Another tool police hope to add through the grant is a geographic information system that would match a patrol officer's location with crime trends in an area on a laptop's dashboard, helping officers make more arrests.

"Part of our problem is getting it to the right people at the right time,'' Tempe Police Chief Tom Ryff said. "Basically, the important information follows their geographic location in the field. As you move into a different area, different information comes up.''

Full Story: Tempe police getting high-tech tools with $300K grant