INSIDE the Lakeland Police Department: Crime Maps

Daily Crime Maps - They're Here!

I received an e-mail last night in which the author asked where the weekly crime maps had gone. It is nice to hear people look for these maps, and so here is the rest of the story...

We are now up and running with daily crime maps via SpotCrime.com. Here is a link to Lakeland's maps.

Our goal is to use this technology which now allows viewers to customize date ranges, time frames, and specific crime categories for what meets their individual needs. Rather than focus on one week at a time, viewers can look at one day or multiple date ranges (say the last month rather than the last week) to see broader trends. There is no need to wait for the weekly map to be posted. You can see the list of crime calls from yesterday - that's how fast we can get the data uploaded and available to you.

You can also sign up to receive crime alerts via e-mail. It is our hope this enhanced access to crime data will be much better than our previous weekly maps and more empowering to residents.

The other advantage to this new system is it is much less manpower intensive on us. In my book, better service to the community that requires less work by us is a win-win for all!

Please take a moment to visit the new crime maps on SpotCrime and give me your feedback. You may leave a comment here, send me an e-mail , or call me at the office (863-834-8989). Let us know what you think of the new maps!

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Posted at 10:41 AM in Community Policing, Crime Maps, Public Information Office, Weekly Crime Statistics | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0)

Daily Crime Maps: We're Getting Closer!

I previously posted about our thirst for immediate news and a goal we have to increase the frequency of crime maps from weekly to daily. We may have a solution just around the corner and ask for some feedback from you, the consumer of this information.

SpotCrime.com is interested in taking daily reports from us and incorporating them into a crime map with multiple search options, including daily, any date range you select, or by crime category. The company usually targets larger jurisdictions, but they have an interest in the Lakeland market.

Check out a Lakeland PD crime map and let us know what you think. Leave a comment here, send me a tweet on Twitter (LakelandPD), or send me an e-mail. We look forward to your feedback and comments.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Posted at 09:09 PM in Crime Maps | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

Weekly Crime Map for September 21st to September 28th

Here is the weekly crime map of significant events for the period of Crime Map – 09/21 to 09/28.

- Sergeant Terri Smith

Please note this is basic information that has not been subjected to further investigation or crime analysis. Some calls may eventually be cleared as unfounded from what was originally reported or reclassified into a different crime category upon further investigation.

Posted at 04:14 PM in Crime Maps | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Lakeland Police Ask: Where is it Safe to Drive?

Lakeland is experiencing a decline in the number of traffic crashes over the past couple of years. This may be the result of safer drivers, enhanced traffic enforcement, or more recently less driving due to the high cost of gasoline. Whatever is causing the reduction to occur, we are grateful for it.

Even with these reductions, Lakeland PD investigates thousands of crashes each year. Many of these occur at "frequent-flier" locations, meaning we have well known intersections throughout the city with a high number of crashes. Our traffic officers, when not investigating crashes or monitoring neighborhood speeding complaints, spend time at these high-crash intersections.

But what about the "big picture" - how does the overall layout of crash locations throughout Lakeland look on a map? Glad you asked because here is a pin map (in PDF format) showing the locations of all crashes for 2008.

Any of these along routes you commonly drive during the day?

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Posted at 10:43 AM in Community Policing, Crime Maps, Public Information Office, Traffic Safety | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Weekly Crime Map for September 15th to September 21st

Here is the weekly crime map of significant events for the period of Crime Map – 09/15 to 09/21.

- Sergeant Terri Smith

Posted at 02:26 PM in Crime Maps | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Our Thirst For Immediate News

In today's world where everyone is connected to the global big picture, I think it is fair to say people have an addiction for immediate news. It began many years ago when 24-hour news networks began to feed us constant updates and provide live video footage of breaking news. Now when we hear about a breaking story, we expect to see video right away and have the story told to us in moments rather than hours later. Our connectivity today with electronic devices has us tuned into the world like never before. Text alerts with breaking news are now delivered directly to our cell phones - no need to even look for these stories. The flow of information is almost immediate.

I am as guilty of that as anyone. While enjoying the Lakeland High football game last night, I checked for scoring updates on the Tampa Bay Rays' game and looked to see how Boston was doing against the Blue Jays. Text message updates were shared throughout our section of the stands. People want to know the latest as soon as it happens.

And so it should come as no surprise to me that one bit of constant feedback we get here is for more neighborhood crime information on a quicker basis than weekly crime maps. People want to know what is going on in their neighborhoods to satisfy a desire for immediate news and to feel safe. Both are reasonable expectations that police departments should try to accomplish.

The challenge to us then is to create a system by which crime news can be released as close to real time as possible and to do that with what is arguably very limited resources. One of the traits of a visionary organization striving to constantly improve its systems and processes is when leaders ask questions like "What if we could..." or "Wonder if there is a way...". I believe we are up to the challenge.

Transparent government agencies find ways to meet the needs of their communities and keep the flow of information open so people can easily learn what is going on. We pride ourselves in accomplishing this goal.

I KNOW we are up to the challenge.

- Asst Chief Bill LePere

Posted at 07:29 AM in Community Policing, Crime Maps, Miscellaneous, Public Information Office, Weekly Crime Statistics | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)