By Lori Stone
Late on January 25, 2024, a fire erupted underground in downtown Baltimore. First responders from the Baltimore City Fire Department, Police Department, Office of Emergency Management and Sheriff’s Office arrived on scene and found they were in the dark — figuratively and literally. The fire had shut down power in the area and it was pitch black. Responders couldn’t communicate with their radios, and 9-1-1 services were down.
As responders rushed to put out the fire and evacuate residents, incident commanders hurried to get communications back up and running. At the Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office, Chief Information Officer Ray Perales decided to try something new. He worked with his team to distribute a set of FirstNet smartphone devices his team had recently procured. For most deputies on scene, it was the first time they were using the devices.
The change was instantaneous. The Baltimore City Sheriff’s Office found it was suddenly the only crew that was able to communicate.
“We were able to tell our deputies, go to your phones, and they were able to communicate through the push-to-talk function,” said Baltimore City Sheriff Sam Cogen. “We didn’t have to train the deputies on which channels to use, which would have been time-consuming. We were able to communicate with our dispatchers and work through the emergency. And we never lost communications in our office.”
That night was a proof point for Sheriff Cogen on the power of broadband for public safety.
Transitioning to broadband
Sheriff Cogen has long been an advocate for bringing modern technology into law enforcement operations. As a member of the Sheriff’s Office for nearly 30 years, he experienced firsthand the challenges of using outdated technology and tools on the job.
“We relied solely on radio, which had known dead spots. If the radio failed, you were out of communication, and you were really in it alone,” he explained. “As Sheriff, the worst thing to happen would be a deputy trying to communicate in an emergency situation and not being able to get through. We want to try to avoid that at all costs.”
With that goal in mind, the Sheriff and his CIO team looked at broadband as a way to improve communications and information sharing. Until then, deputies had been operating primarily with pen-and-paper records from the field. Sheriff Cogen knew the ability to access and share critical data in real-time would be a significant upgrade for the team’s operations.
“Broadband technology will help the deputies enhance the investigations they conduct. It will help us collectively become more organized and have more intelligence that we can act on,” Cogen said. “It will raise the whole level of awareness and the ability of the sheriff’s office.”
Ultimately, they selected FirstNet, the nationwide public safety broadband network. The network provided the connectivity, reliability, security, cost-effectiveness and user experience their team needed. Another key differentiator was that FirstNet is managed through a public-private partnership between the federal government and AT&T. “It was incredibly important that the network is validated by the federal government,” Sheriff Cogen said. “It lends credibility to the technology.”
The Sheriff’s Office was able to quickly procure the technology, receiving the first batch of devices in November 2023. One week before the underground fire, the devices started to be rolled out to staff. For many responding to the fire, it was their first time using the devices. The feedback was swift and positive. “This phone was a lifesaver,” explained Special Operations Deputy Gary Young, who responded to the fire.
How broadband is changing sheriff’s operations
In the months since, deputies have come to rely on their smartphones for daily communications and operations, leading to greater efficiencies in field work.
Deputies are using their devices and apps to capture information and fill out forms, like arrest reports, faster and in greater detail. “The apps help because I can just turn on a microphone and talk out my report,” explained Deputy Young. “While the guy is being processed, my report is already done.”
Having these tools available means that deputies can stay in the community longer rather than returning to headquarters to complete reports and documentation. “It has made things a lot easier,” said Deputy Young. “I can pretty much do my job in the palm of my hand with this phone.”
Keeping deputies connected anywhere
Communications are a lifeline for law enforcement officials, which means robust coverage is a must. With their broadband devices, the Sheriff’s Office found a communications solution that kept them connected inside the city and in the suburban and rural areas that surround Baltimore.
Deputies put their connection to the test during longer prisoner transports, which can sometimes take them 150 miles outside of the city — a round trip of about 8 hours.
Captain Edwin Santiago recalled, “Prior to FirstNet, on these long trips we would get to a certain area and we would lose communications with our dispatch. That left us to depend on our [personal] cell phones, which at times had spotty service. If we needed to communicate something, it wasn’t getting back to dispatch in real-time.”
With a dedicated broadband service, the captain and his team have a steady connection for the entire ride, helping ensure the safety of deputies and prisoners alike.
A direct connection means faster coordination
Deputies are also using the push-to-talk capability on their smartphones to stay directly connected with their teams. Instead of routing their call through dispatch and then setting up a specific talk group to have one-on-one communications, they can contact each other directly and communicate in the moment. This means faster, more efficient response.
CIO Perales noted, “Push-to-talk can be very helpful because a deputy can respond quickly. If it’s a panic situation, they can communicate with another deputy for backup and provide situational awareness of what’s going on. They can even record a video or audio of what’s happening, which may be needed for evidence.”
Outsidethe courtroom, deputies are finding benefits of having their devices during on- and off-duty hours. With their smartphones, they can call in an incident to dispatch directly at any time. In turn, dispatch can monitor the location of the deputies.
Deputy Young explained, “I love it because if something’s going on, I can just talk to my dispatcher and say, ‘Right now, I’m undercover or I’m off duty and I have this situation going. Can you get me some officers here?’”
CIO Perales added, “With our phones and tablets, we’re using it to connect with our dispatchers so they can track deputies for safety purposes. They can see where they are located.”
This combination of data sharing and direct access to dispatch brings deputies peace of mind, even when they’re off duty.
An eye on the future
Broadband technologies open up new possibilities for public safety, and the Sheriff’s Office is eager to explore new ways to integrate broadband into their operations.
CIO Ray Perales and his team are looking at ways to adapt a wearable panic button, originally designed for school safety purposes, to use for judicial security. The wearable device can transmit critical data directly to a 9-1-1 center to initiate faster response, while simultaneously silently notifying the wearer of an emergency through haptic vibration.
“We’re looking to use a panic button to protect the judges within a certain region,” he said. “When they push the panic button, it will alert our dispatcher and they’ll assess the nature of the situation and then dispatch a deputy if needed.”
Perales is also looking at ways to improve coverage inside the courthouse, an older building known for its architecture, heavy marble, and thick walls. “We have a lot of dead space within the courthouse,” he shared. “And building communication is critical because our deputies need to be able to respond at a moment’s notice. They need to be able to get in touch with each other.”
Perales and his team are testing the use of Cell Booster Pros — miniature cell sites that can bring FirstNet service indoors and improve signal in the buildings where public safety works. A single Cell Booster Pro can provide up to 15,000 square feet of coverage. Perales noted, “We tested the speed and it was night and day.” Now, he is working to install the devices throughout the two courthouses and administrative offices so deputies can stay connected, inside and out.
Leading the way with broadband
Broadband technologies are giving leadership the data they need to make more informed decisions about staffing and resources.
“It’s a new thing for our deputies to go out and take a picture of an incident, geocode it, save it in a file, transmit it back to the office, and then have there be a permanent record,” explained Sheriff Cogen. “They’re starting to understand how this can have a positive impact on their work.”
As Sheriff Cogen and his team continue to plan for the future, they know broadband will be critical to their communications.
“I believe it’s the way the future to go this way,” said Sheriff Cogen. “Broadband has enabled us to run an intelligence-led policing agency. Now, with our data, we have good situational awareness of what’s going on. That wouldn’t have been possible prior to FirstNet.”
About the author
Lori Stone is a senior public safety advisor for the First Responder Network Authority.