ABSTRACT
The evolution of using the spatial analysis capabilities of GIS for the mapping of crime would seem to be hitting high gear these days, with more and more police departments using GIS as a major weapon in their planning arsenal. The push to move from the traditional reactive law enforcement response to a proactive, potentially preemptive approach to fighting crime has prompted agencies to pinpoint the geographic location of incidents and act upon the information. This change is all very heartening and positive, but there it falters. A majority of departments studied reserve information gathered from GIS for in-house use, declining the opportunity to pass on what they have learned to the public they serve. Police department web pages abound with glitzy graphics, public relation homilies to persuade the inquiring citizen of the agency’s user-friendly nature, and in one notable case, a toggle feature allowing the viewer to have a cartoon officer perform a dance to the theme of the “Cops” television program. But specific information regarding the actual location of illegal events in the community is hard to come by, at least for the Internet-using public.
