Police Get Crash Investigation Tool
The Broken Arrow, Okla., police department recently implemented a laser system called Quick Map 3D for analyzing car accidents in less time.
Officers point the system’s laser at different points to send information to a portable data collector, says Sgt. Ed Ferguson of the Traffic Specialist department.
The information is sent to and processed by a PC, which creates a three-dimensional diagram of the crash, he says. “You don’t have to manually obtain measurements for everything you need to document,” Ferguson says.
The system is intended to be used for only the most serious situations where lives are in danger, he says.
Ferguson notes that both the Federal Highway Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have called upon police agencies to apply such “quick-clearance practices.”
The laser system costs approximately $3,000 and will be merged with the department’s Laser Infrared Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) devices.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Tulsa World (01/03/03) P. A9; Morgan, Rhett.
