What could a “Real-Time Crime Center” in Jacksonville look like?

Jacksonville, FL — Jacksonville's Mayor is pitching a "Real-Time Crime Center" in his $1.2 billion City budget proposal, and we're now getting a better idea of what that could look like for the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.

The idea was initially described by Mayor Lenny Curry as the ability to use technology and resources together, and make communication and investigations more efficient. JSO has since given some more insight, saying the budget for the initial year is expected to be around $1.625 million.

JSO says the Real-Time Crime Center is a pilot program with Motorola that builds on programs like ShotSpotter and the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network- which JSO already has in effect. JSO says Sheriff Mike Williams is committed to using advanced technology to cut back on crime.

“This center will incorporate data from multiple technological systems including ShotSpotter, the new Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Motorola’s Command Central Aware solution to provide officers invaluable data, both in the field and during follow-up investigations. This system will provide integrated voice, data and video criminal intelligence to responding officers and investigators,” says a statement from JSO.

JSO and the City are declining at this point to give further details about this program, and Motorola Solutions deferred questions to JSO. WOKV found information through Motorola Solutions’ website that details some of the technology that appears to be what we could see in Jacksonville, if this project is approved.

Motorola Solutions describes its CommandCentral software as a platform that brings together various data streams for efficient and enhanced analysis. The system can get real-time information relayed by officers, surveillance cameras, license plate readers, facial recognition systems, emergency alerts, and more. Analysts then help coordinate the officer’s response, including providing information from these streams and any data on past criminal activity in the area. Some of the information that can be sent to officers from analysts includes suspect or vehicle images, if they are captured on some of those aggregated feeds.

CommandCentral also can help analyze crime patterns and hot spots, track officers and their actions, and detect unrest or trends on social media. Motorola Solutions even says the software can help forecast crime. Data is also stored for “objective analysis” after the fact, according to Motorola Solution’s website.

Although JSO spelled the name of the system differently in their release, this appears to align with the program that they are looking to bring to Jacksonville. Motorola Solutions also touts additional features that can be synced in to CommandCentral, but it’s unclear at this time if that is something that Jacksonville is planning for as well. One example is “BriefCam”, which Motorola Solutions says allows analysts to search video for specific descriptions- like a red car- and the program will remove non-red cars from the footage. This cuts the time needed to analyze a video.

Information on the Motorola Solutions website shows they have previously partnered with Springfield, Massachusetts and Detroit, Michigan in similar projects.

JSO says their initial year budget request includes funding for four new Safety Analyst positions- one supervisor and three analysts. Those staffers will provide officers real-time information in the field, while monitoring programs in the Center.

WOKV continues to work through the Mayor’s new budget proposal. The City Council Finance Committee begins budget hearings in August and must approve a full spending plan before the end of September.