Testing The Brakes
The Central Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council Reconstruction Team will be purchasing a new state-of-the-art computerized accelerometer device to help the team’s accident reconstruction specialists when they conduct accident investigations. The device, a Vericom 3000, is manufactured by Minnesota-based Vericom Computers.
A local business donated $3,000 to the reconstruction team so that it can purchase the Vericom 3000 device, which allows investigators to test any vehicle’s acceleration and brake performance, average G force, speed, distance, and time.
The reconstruction team has been in existence for 18 months, averaging four to five life-threatening or fatal accidents per month. The members of the team include police officers who have been trained in scientific and computer analysis of accident scenes.
This analysis includes data recovery from vehicles’ onboard computer systems, surveying and drawing accident scenes, solar and lunar analysis to measure the amount of light at the time of an accident, and videotaping and photographing accident scenes.
Mendon Police Chief Ernest Horn says that the Vericom 3000 is being used by thousands of experts, including the University of Florida Institute of Police Technology and Management and Northwestern University’s Traffic Institute.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA) (12/23/04) P. B1; Bock, Linda.
