GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Local law enforcement officials are unified in their belief that a new automated dispatch system is putting themselves and the public in unnecessary danger.
A new computer automated dispatch (CAD) system called X-Cad was released by the Brown County Communications Center in December 2018 and it’s first few months have been anything but smooth.
Agencies were prepared for some minor snags in implementing a new system, but they say that minor glitches have expanded to widespread bugs that are seriously hampering critical services.
Detective Phil Scanlan, President of the Green Bay Police Protective Association, gives an example of how the glitches impact police work.
“We’ve had officers find suspicious vehicles in the middle of the night, they run the license plate, and it doesn’t return,” he says.
Other concerns relate to civilian 911 calls, where the system is failing to generate the location of the caller.
“Heaven forbid someone calls 911 and the GPS coordinates show that they’re in Iceland,” says Scanlan. “Then we can’t get a rescue squad or a squad car to them.”
Other cited failures include the inability to provide accurate wanted records to law enforcement in the field and the failure to send/receive standard alerts relating to vehicles that may have been stolen or involved in a crime.
These inefficiencies are forcing law enforcement to utilize manual data entry, which takes away from their available time to patrol communities.
For the frustrated individuals impacted by the failures, it’s jarring that this is happening in an age when technology is so paramount to everyday life.
“It’s 2019, information technology should not be buried to law enforcement,” says Scanlan.
He feels this is a frustration that should be easily understood by anyone.
“You’re at home and your wi-fi goes out, the frustration that you feel,” he explains. “Or you’re driving in a big city and you’re using your Google Maps and when you know you have to exit it freezes.”
The hope for agencies is that the old automated system can be brought back while a replacement is sought after.
Until a fully functional CAD system can be restored the concerns will continue to be twofold
“That it’s creating a danger for officers, that it’s creating a danger for civilians who might not get their 911 information properly to our officers,” says Scanlan.
