Can Crowds Solve Crime?

In the world of solving crime and tracking down criminals, the process of police work today is very secretive for the most part.  Traditionally, when an officer is in pursuit of evidence to track down or identify a suspect, this process is done under the cloak.  We have all seen the movies of the solo officer working in a vacuum to find an assailant. 

Technology is beginning to change this process, as the public continues to show its support in helping our crime fighters.  One of the most effective methods today of involving the public to solve crime is the AmberAlert, for child abductions.  When abductions are reported, the incident immediately posts on all active freeway traffic signs, the Emergency Broadcast network, plus text messages and e-mails to subscribers (I just subscribed myself).  The website boasts several success stories using this powerful tool, including the following.

In July 2007, three children, ages 14 days, 9 years and 11 years, were forced out of their mother’s car by an acquaintance in Meridian, Idaho. Within one hour of an AmberAlert being issued by the AAWP, an officer in Ontario, Oregon located the vehicle used in the abduction, and the children were returned safely. Because both Idaho and Oregon are members of the AAWP, the alert went out to law enforcement in both states and doubled the chances that the children would be recovered.

In Australia, a program called Crime Stoppers has gone a step further in institutionalizing the use of crowdsourcing to solve crime.  On CrimeStoppers.com, the police post wanted criminals and unsolved crime incidents to solicit the help of the crowd.  The program has been well received, and it has seen some substantial growth:

“The 2007-08 financial year results for your program have seen continued growth in all areas.  We believe this growth stems from increased community recognition and participation.”

The following figures depict some of that growth

- 43145 calls (up from 34572)

- 12770 Information reports sent for Investigation (up from 11772)

- 1048 arrests (up from 1011)

- More than 19 million website hits (up from 16 million)

The truth of the matter is that the crowd is here to help, and given the right tools and opportunities, much can be accomplished be enabling this level of participation.  This is not to say that the world of public safety and crime solving should be on public display.  There must be some lines drawn for sure, as there are reasons to keep things secret.  But as this data suggests, there are plenty of reasons to increase the involvement of crowds.

The Crowd is gathering………