Tomorrow’s Law Enforcement Technology Could Save Lives

Published in

Homeland Security

5 min readJan 27, 2016

By Patrick Hensley

It’s dark, and John sees them but they don’t see him. He can’t quite make out what they are doing but the little hairs standing up on the back of his neck tell him it’s not good. They are laughing and drinking, but something isn’t quite right. John has been a police officer for many years, and he can’t put a finger on it, but something is going on. As he watches he hears the distinct sound of a shotgun round being chambered. He figures his pulse rate is increasing and it won’t be long before his sergeant asks for a status check out of concern. Damn these sensors. He knows he can appear cool as a cucumber on the outside while feeling something entirely different on the inside. He is able to make out faces and thinks he may recognize these guys as bad characters. About that same moment a voice in his ear confirms he is watching local gang members, and they are getting ready to send a message to their rivals in the form of a shotgun blast. He realizes what he is wearing is a game changer and tactically retreats as he waits for the cavalry to arrive.

The year is 2022 and John has responded to hundreds of similar calls in the past. One thing is very different now and that difference provides John with a situational awareness that could one day save his life and yours. Today it might have done just that. As part of John’s daily routine he now wears intuitive, wearable technology that is both lightweight and blends into his uniform. The technology learns from John as he learns its capabilities. As an example, when John focuses his attention on a person or license plate for an extra second or so, the system automatically searches for identifying information.

John’s scenario may seem like science fiction, but it’s not. In fact, it’s much closer than you might think. There are a number of emerging technologies that will make a significant difference to the safety and functionality of the police officer in the very near future. Some of the technologies that will soon be available include cameras, sensors, and access to information on an unprecedented level. Each of these systems can provide an officer with situational awareness unlike anything law enforcement has ever seen. For example in 2022, John is equipped with a lightweight/flexible ballistic vest made of gel, facial recognition software, body scanning technology, and immediate access to all forms of social media in a real-time environment.

Law enforcement’s relationship with the public today can best be described as strained. Following the tragic events of September 11, law enforcement and public safety in general enjoyed very positive relationships with the communities they serve. Over time, that relationship has changed, and recent events indicate a segment of the public no longer trusts the police.

We can point to many events leading to the decline in those relationships, although the fact is it was law enforcement’s own doing in some cases. The widely reported government intrusions into the private lives of our citizens in 2013 in the interest of homeland security did not help, even if those intrusions may have saved lives.

These emerging technologies will provide law enforcement with unprecedented amounts of personal information on the people they serve. That fatal combination of mistrust of government coupled with the abundance of personal information available to law enforcement in the future is a recipe for major conflict if left untended. There are two areas of work to ensure any new technologies are accepted by the communities served by their police: addressing privacy concerns and educating the public on the intent and capabilities of new technologies.

“When governments fear the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny.” Law enforcement would benefit from involving community stakeholders early in the process of purchasing these technologies. Authoring policies that both support the use of this technology and address the public’s concerns could very well serve as a win/win for everyone. Law enforcement’s efforts to educate the public and address any concerns they have will lead to these technologies being viewed as an asset to both the agency and the community.

The communities served need to be included in the process of policy development. That education regarding these new technologies should focus on the mutual priority of keeping police officers and the public safe. The challenge is for law enforcement to adopt appropriate policies and hold police officers accountable to those policies. Law enforcement has made mistakes with new technologies in the past, and those mistakes should serve as a lesson so that we don’t repeat them with the new technologies of tomorrow. As Yogi Berra said, “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up some place else.”

With power comes great responsibility, and law enforcement needs to prepare for these changes or risk a further erosion on the already strained relationships with the communities they serve. They need to be prepared to work to build support for the use of these technologies and work with the communities served to develop policies sensitive to privacy concerns. Law enforcement will be watched closely as these emerging technologies become available, and they have an obligation to keep their police officers and communities safe.

Are you ready for this new technology and what concerns do you have?

Patrick has been a police officer for 21 years and currently occupies a command position with a mid-sized police department in the Bay Area. He is also a graduate student attending the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security. Homeland XYZ was developed in collaboration with members of his cohort to introduce a writing platform for students to publish and for crowd-sourcing answers to difficult Homeland Security questions.

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Tomorrow’s Law Enforcement Technology Could Save Lives

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