The Atlanta Lawyer August/September 2012 | Page 8

law enforcement appreciation efforts to suppress crime has made Atlanta the safest it has been since 1969, and the City is well on its way to being the safest large city in the nation. As proof: Today, APF is regarded as one of the premiere police foundations in the nation for its forward-thinking, resultsdriven, holistic approach to public safety issues and its ability to keep public safety top-of-mind at all levels of city government. • Before the end of this year, the APD will claim a 2,000 Public Safety: The Next Generation • The department’s non-retirement attrition rate is The next few years will bring exciting changes and opportunities. The APD looks to lead the charge in the integration of sophisticated crime-fighting technologies and implementation of “smart” policing strategies. officer-strong force; police visibility rises with every new officer. the lowest in the last eight years, with a two percent reduction since 2008. Using traditional business intelligence concepts such as • Since Mayor Kasim Reed took office, 640 new officers statistical modeling, predictive behavior analysis, interactive have been hired. • More officers are choosing to move into the communities they serve – more than 100 officers moved into the City through the APF’s Housing program. • The APD is staking its claim at the forefront of policing technology through the Operation Shield Video Integration Center – the only video surveillance system in the country that integrates private and public cameras, making it the most robust system in the nation. President Lynn Roberson and Lawyer Referral & Information Service Director Carla Brown extend appreciation to the following firms for their generous donations of desks and other furnishings for the newly expanded space on the fourth floor of the International Tower: data mapping, data mining and enterprise search of historical crime data, the APD leadership will be able to “predict” future crime hot spots. By doing so, the department can effectively allocate patrol efforts based on the statistical probability of crime in a given area. Combined with enhanced video analytics software, this technology can trigger alerts according to criteria specified by officers. For example, by knowing a red sedan could have been involved in a crime, APD officers will be able to apprehend predators more quickly and identify connections they might not have otherwise known existed. The stage has been set. Atlanta’s public safety platform has seen a transformational change that puts it in line with other major cities across the country. The next phase will catapult it to the next level: leading the way in crime fighting tactics and technologies. The APD will be smarter, faster and more efficient at solving crimes and, perhaps more importantly, deterring crime before it ever happens. Smart policing and cutting edge technology will ensure a safer Atlanta for tomorrow and a model for policing moving forward. ■ Carlock & Copeland LeGault Legal, LLC Weissman, Nowack, Curry & Wilco Don’t let a poor quality sound recording sabotage your case. We are a forensic audio restoration service headed by GRAMMY® award winning audio engineer Michael Graves. Using the most advanced tools available, we can significantly enhance the intelligibility of most recordings. Contact us: David Rubenstein s (404) 992-9820 www.OsirisStudio.com 8 THE ATLANTA LAWYER August/September 2012 The Official News Publication of the Atlanta Bar Association