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Michigan Lobbies For Security Center
by Chloe Albanesius
Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is pushing for the U.S. Homeland Security Department to locate a Center of Excellence in the state. She and Democratic Sen. Carl Levin on Tuesday met with U.S. Assistant Defense Secretary Paul McHale to discuss the prospects for getting a center.
"America needs to remain vigilant at home, and vigilance will require highly specialized training on the part of our first responders," Granholm said in a release. "Just as Michigan was once the arsenal of democracy, today it can be the training ground for those who will protect our democracy on the home front."
Granholm and Levin said the center could be housed at the state's two National Guard facilities, the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center and Camp Grayling. The goal is to provide a setting where "first responders" to emergencies can practice emergency drills. Alpena would be used mainly for training Air National Guard firefighters and emergency medical personnel.
Parents As Online Protectors
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott on Monday told parents that they are "still the most effective tool" in protecting their children from online predators.
"You can protect your child by taking some simple precautions," he wrote in his weekly column. He suggested placing the family computer in an easily monitored location, establishing ground rules for Internet usage and installing technical safeguards on computers.
Abbott's Internet Bureau has arrested 11 suspected child molesters since May. Officers trained in pre-teen lingo patrol chat rooms posing as young children in the hopes that predators will take the bait and try to arrange meetings with the undercover "children."
Most recently, the Internet Bureau nabbed four men in Hays and Kendall counties. Phillip Bryan Stewart was charged with felony solicitation of a minor after attempting to lure a presumed 13-year-old boy to a location along Interstate 35 in Kendall County. The other three men were charged with attempted aggravated assault of a child for arranging meetings with someone whom they assumed was a 13-year-old girl.
"The true intentions of child predators are clear, and our Internet Bureau officers have no qualms whatsoever about taking these people off the street and putting them behind bars when they cross the line," Abbott said.
Rhode Island Clears Tech Measures
The Rhode Island legislature cleared several tech-related measures in its 2003 session, including bills related to identity theft, child abduction and research.
One bill, S. 663, makes it illegal to use someone's financial information to assume their identity and commit crimes. In addition, it forbids the use of technology such as computers and software to make illegal documents.
Another bill, H. 5015, focuses on the AMBER Alert system, which uses the Internet and other forums in the search for missing children. The measure designates the Rhode Island state police as the agency in charge of coordinating law enforcement authorities, state and local officials, and members of the media in the event of child abduction. The state police will develop the protocols and procedures to be followed after a kidnapping.
A third bill, S. 864, looks to encourage commercial ventures stemming from scientific research. It allows researchers to use the private sector for marketing purposes when they have discovered something worthwhile. The state's Ethics Commission has the final say about whether given ventures are acceptable.
Meanwhile, the SSTI Weekly Digest reports that the legislature also voted to increase by $1.5 million the appropriations for the Slater Samuel Technology Fund, a program intended to encourage the growth of entrepreneurial tech firms via mentoring and financial backing.
Cameras Monitor Seattle Bus Passengers
Privacy issues are at the heart of the debate over whether Seattle buses should be equipped with surveillance cameras and microphones, The Seattle Times reports. The city has been installing the devices since last year for security reasons. Depending on bus size, about four or five cameras are placed on a bus, as is a microphone near the driver. A small sign notifies passengers.
"I can see microphones, even with a posted notice, raising real concerns about whether we're running afoul of state privacy laws," said Rob McKenna, a member of the Metropolitan King County Council.
Washington's American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) already has questioned the plan. "We don't really think that people boarding buses expect to be recorded, either [with] video or audio," said Doug Klunder, ACLU's privacy project director.
Officials have not yet been able to determine if the cameras decrease violence on buses. The only incident the cameras have captured thus far is a disgruntled driver, angry over not receiving a vacation day, faking an assault by spraying herself with mace.
States Integrate Criminal Systems
Arizona's Maricopa County has started the first phase of its integrated criminal justice system, Federal Computer Week reports.
The system will assign the same case numbers for separate agencies, making them easier to reference. The idea that will be tested at the Initial Appearance Court, where people who are arrested are arraigned within 48 hours. The first phase also includes plans for an online pre-booking system for criminal suspects, business-process improvements and an integration server, programs scheduled to be in place by 2005.
Maricopa County is home to 60 percent of the state's population and its residents are the cause of 60 percent to 70 percent of Arizona's criminal filings, said Larry Bernosky, data-integration manager for system.
Federal Computer Week also reports that Columbia County, Ga., has launched a technology system for its six agencies that enables users to connect with the Georgia Information Crime Center. Vibren Technologies, a unit of NEC, built and designed the network.
In other news, Stan Wise, Georgia's public service commissioner, has been named president of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), which represents state agencies that regulate utilities nationwide. Wise started the job on Monday, replacing current President David Svanda, a member of the Michigan Public Service Commission.
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