Police supervisors in Salem, the capital of Oregon, faced a familiar quandary: Where were all their cops?
The ones on duty weren’t only in patrol cars.
“Some were undercover. Some were on bicycles. Some were in armored trucks. Some were in minivans,” recalled Lt. Matt Riddle, a 25-year police officer and one of two commanders of Salem’s SWAT team. Leaders at the headquarters tracked personnel in the field with dry-erase markers on whiteboards or pen and paper. “It was like the old-school World War II movie where they’re moving these little Monopoly pieces around a map,” Riddle added.
Adopting professional-grade mobile collaboration software let Salem police leaders dump their analog tools and establish real-time awareness of officers’ locations. With the new mobile apps, officers work together much faster and easier than they ever could’ve before.
The department’s experience with the DragonForce platform shows how modern mobile apps can help police agencies take advantage of the built-in features in smartphones, tablets and laptops, improving outcomes across their operations.
CHALLENGE: POOR TOOLS FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND MANAGEMENT
“I’d imagine that if you could put 100 SWAT guys in a room, they would all tell you the biggest problems they have are communications,” Riddle said.
Officers, crimes and crises are widely distributed. Riddle’s colleagues see this every day in Salem, a city of just over 175,000 about 45 miles south of Portland. As the seat of state government, Oregon’s Capitol in downtown Salem is a magnet for protesters and political unrest. If things get out of hand, like they did when protestors stormed the Capitol in December 2020, Salem police will be drawn into the fray.
Like many cities nationwide, Salem saw trouble erupt in 2020 with protests over COVID-19 restrictions and demonstrations in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. The whiteboard for mapping officer locations was just one of many outdated tools that made it difficult for Salem’s police officers and supervisors to respond effectively to these and other incidents.
The department did have modern color printers. But giving officers paper printouts was costly and inconsistent. Some cops might not get the latest printout before starting their shift. Three hours later, when they saw a possible suspect and needed the printout, they were out of luck because the printer was miles away.
“I was thinking to myself, ‘This can’t be the best way to do this,’” Riddle said.
Moreover, officers need quick access to the most recent and accurate information about crimes, suspects and investigations. Mistakes can end careers. “Nowadays, every decision they make is going to be scrutinized with a microscope,” Riddle added.
For a while, Salem police used the WhatsApp mobile app for text messaging, file sharing and real-time collaborating. But Riddle and his colleague soon realized it wasn’t a professional-grade law enforcement tool. “We got to thinking, we’re sharing detailed tactical information on this,” Riddle recalled. Officers wondered about the security of an app built overseas and popularized by teenagers. Incompatibilities between iOS and Android mobile apps also made file sharing frustrating.
“We needed a legitimate, purpose-built system that did what we wanted it to do,” he added.
SOLUTION: DRAGONFORCE REAL-TIME COLLABORATION PLATFORM
Officers from the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, SWAT team encouraged Riddle to try WhatsApp, but after a disappointing test, Riddle searched for a better, more secure alternative. That’s when he discovered DragonForce, a mobile software app developed for the U.S. military and updated with the advent of mobile phones and rugged tablets. The platform lets agencies track their personnel in real time. It also has push-to-talk messaging, to allow direct communications with two-way radio users, and mass notifications for updating large groups of people simultaneously.
The mobile apps allow streaming of live video and drone footage. After-action reporting speeds up paperwork processing. API connectivity lets agencies share data from software for computer-aided dispatch (CAD), geographical information systems (GIS), case management systems (CSM) and many more.
The software can be either hosted in the cloud or implemented on premises. The mobile apps are designed for cross-platform functionality, working the same way on iOS and Android.
“We use it every single mission,” Riddle said. “We don’t just use this for riots or SWAT. It can be used for anything.”
The user interface is the heart of the application. It’s designed to allow officers to create groups for working together and sharing pictures, videos, text documents and just about anything else that can be viewed on a mobile device.
The department logs certain activities in a basic Google document. “Because it’s in the cloud, it auto-saves, and it’s linked to DragonForce,” Riddle added. “So, someone can be in the command post, typing on a nice big computer in Google Docs, and it updates in real time on my phone in DragonForce. I don’t have to open up Google Docs. I don’t have to go to Google.com. It’s awesome.”
RESULTS: EASIER COLLABORATION, BETTER SITUATIONAL AWARENESS
Salem police now have answers when they’re wondering about the locations of on-duty officers. Because the phones’ locations can be tracked in real time, anybody carrying one with DragonForce installed can instantly share their location with their colleagues.
The app interface shows it was designed specifically for police on the job. Cops wearing gloves in cold weather, for instance, don’t get tripped up when using it. “The icons are big, it’s simple and easy, and you don’t need to be a techie to figure it out,” Riddle said.
DragonForce reps didn’t exaggerate the software’s capabilities, which impressed Riddle.
“They do exactly what they say they’re going to do, when they’re going to do it, and they don’t promise things they know they can’t deliver just to get the business, which I really appreciate,” he added. He also noted that the software has not had a single crash since it was installed in 2021.
Best of all, the department has a reliable way to keep everybody in the field and the headquarters aligned with the same information.
“When the officer leaves the briefing at 2 in the morning, they don’t remember everything,” Riddle said. With DragonForce, all the pictures and information from the briefing are right there on their phones for easy access. If they see somebody acting suspiciously, they can check suspect mugshots on their phones, send video of the suspect to nearby officers and make PTT calls to request assistance.
The result is better police work. “Leveraging that technology to provide them with the most updated, current, accurate information helps them make good decisions,” Riddle said.
For more information, visit Drakontas.
