Citizen Law Enforcement Analysis and Reporting
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Citizen Law Enforcement Analysis and Reporting, more commonly known as CLEAR, is a system of relational databases used by the Chicago Police Department in Chicago, Illinois. These databases allow law enforcement officials to easily cross-reference available information in investigations and analyze crime patterns using GIS. It also includes a network of remotely operated cameras that exhibit a small amount of artificial intelligence in that they can sense gunshots, loiterers, and suspicious activity and alert the CPD.
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[edit] Uses
The unified CLEAR system is used for a wide variety of tasks:
- Checking a driver license
- Checking a name or address
- Checking for outstanding arrest warrants
- Communicationg with other officers
- Entering evidence into an electronic tracking database
- Retrieving information for a mission
- Checking investigative reports
[edit] Origins
In the 1990s, the Chicago Police Department developed the Criminal History Records Information System (CHRIS). This system was immediately unpopular with officers--so much so that a detective's newsletter warned that the IT employees who developed had better "watch out" on the streets. The Police Department soon teamed with Oracle Corporation to create CLEAR, a set of web-based applications to increase the functionality and usability of the system. CHRIS remains as a backbone, but CLEAR serves as the user interface.
[edit] Criticisms
A number of groups have expressed concerns, particularly regarding privacy and discrimination. Constant electronic monitoring evokes images of a Big Brother world. Concerns have also been raised that racial profiling is being used with the new system. The cameras used in the CLEAR system are designed to be visible so as to deter criminal activities. As such, they are in large checkered boxes with a flashing blue light. Neighbors complain that these boxes flash obnoxious light into bedrooms at night, scare away customers from local businesses, and stigmatize the local community.
