One of the primary characteristics of the contemporary world is its rapid technological development and progress. The newest and more advanced technologies emerge every year and quickly penetrate all spheres of human life. Technologies have become an essential aspect of a variety of public and private services, healthcare, transportation, education, science, military organizations, and of course, law enforcement. There is a multitude of the most recent inventions designed to provide law enforcement with better capacities, faster reactions, sharper vision, and more effective capture and interception tactics. For the modern police departments and officers, the technologies are just as crucial as for the rest of the world as they significantly increase the efficiency of their day to day work and ensure a higher level of safety for the population.
Device 1: Stingray
After the release of a series of crowd-control devices such as the LRAD acoustic cannon that induces instant headaches, Puke Ray that causes projectile vomiting by means of multi-color light flashes, and Ray Gun that produces hot electromagnetic beams, the inventors presented Stingray (Siegel, 2014). This device is designed to provide crowd-control in a much smarter and informative way. Stingray imitates a cell tower so that the mobile phones around begin to send data about calls to the device (Siegel, 2014).
Stingray is a powerful device and has faced both appraisal and criticism for its features. First of all, Stingray’s primary function is to empower the police to equip them with the information and awareness of the situation around all the potential dangers a location may hold. On the one hand, this ability is quite useful in terms of public safety and the maintenance of control and order. On the other hand, Stingray is able to collect private information. That is why the departments that currently use this device are obliged to sign non-disclosure agreements with their manufacturer (Siegel, 2014).
Device 2: The Peacemaker
The Peacemaker combines a simplistic and highly technological approach. This device represents surveillance equipment for the crime-fighting. The Peacemaker is a vehicle covered in armor that has big red letters on the side saying that the neighborhood is under video surveillance. Another sign of the front of the vehicle says, “Whatcha gonna do when we come for you?” (Storm, 2012, para. 1). This car is a former SWAT truck converted into a modern surveillance and warning device. Parked in neighborhoods with high rates of crime, the Peacemaker ensures the constant presence of law enforcement that significantly reduces criminal activity and protects those not involved in unlawful behaviors from the potential offenders.
Device 3: The Negotiator
The Negotiator is a robot that is steered with the help of a console. Currently, the Negotiator is used by SWAT teams for a multitude of tasks. The robot is equipped with a video camera that instantly provides the officers with the view of the surroundings. That way, the primary function of the Negotiator is to ensure the security of the law enforcement employees collecting the intelligence about the area or a building before people enter it. The Negotiator is rather useful as it can climb stairs or even carry objects of small size (Police Using More High-Tech Gadgets, 2009). Currently, robots of this kind are used not only by the police but also by the military. The Negotiator is valuable for the public and for the police as it allows the law enforcement workers to evaluate dangerous situations better and work more efficiently while diffusing it.
Conclusion
All of the three devices described above are actively used by the police in the United States and have proved rather effective in terms of help for the law enforcers and security for the public. The devices increase the effectiveness of the crime-fighting operations and reduce the number of injuries and deaths among the police officers, criminals, or innocent bystanders.
References
Police Using More High-Tech Gadgets. (2009). Web.
Siegel, N. (2014). Cop-Tech: The inevitable future of policing. Web.
Storm, D. (2012). High tech police gadgets to fight crime. Web.