ABSTRACT
A geographic information system (GIS) is a powerful technological tool for municipal police departments and other law enforcement agencies. Typical GIS users in law enforcement include crime analysts, computerized crime records management personnel, police executives, shift supervisors, patrol sergeants, and even patrol officers. All current and potential users of GIS can benefit from a better understanding of what GIS is and what makes GIS special and different from other information technologies such as databases, computer-aided dispatching, and computer aided design (Leipnik and Albert 2000). This chapter reviews the basic concepts and applications of GIS in law enforcement activities.
