The lack of public information being released by the NOPD about crime has been lamented several times in the past on this blog. It looks like concerned citizens are starting to take this matter into their own hands and implement solutions. The website http://www.citizencrimewatch.org/ intends to eventually map all NOPD incidents via the google maps API, as well as allow citizens to share other information such as blighted property reports and other quality of life concerns. Currently the site only contains homicide information, which seems to be the only thing reliably reported to the public by the NOPD.

If you are interested in helping or learning more, read below.

Begin forwarded message:
From: Brian Denzer
Date: February 12, 2007 8:34:50 AM CST
Subject: Monday crime mapping meeting time change

Note the earlier time for tonight’s crime mapping meeting.

What: How to use the Web as a tool for public safety and criminal
justice reform.

Where: The Sound Café, 2700 Chartres Street in the Bywater.

Map: http://tinyurl.com/37ubf6

When: Mon, 2/12/07, 6:00 p.m. (sharp) — though I will be there at
5:30 for the early birds. We’d like to honor the Sound Café’s normal 7
p.m. closing time. If participants would like to carry on the
discussion later, perhaps we can get a bite to eat somewhere, or
continue the discussion online.

Who: Anyone with a good idea (but especially developers and project
managers). If you can’t attend the meeting, please feel free to share
your good ideas with briandenzer@yahoo.com, 504-344-3366.

CitizenCrimeWatch.org is in development as a crime mapping, reporting,
alert and analysis tool. It harnesses a Google Map application
interface using PHP and AJAX to map crime information. Presently,
January 2007 homicides are mapped. Over the weekend, a volunteer typed
a number of January robberies, burglaries, shootings, and other
incidents. These will be added to the map shortly. The Web site is
being developed as a tool for the community to own. Therefore, it will
be guided by open source practices which means that anyone can have
the source code upon request, install it on a Web host, and own a
crime mapping service for themselves (neighborhood organizations, for
example).

This is the current list of suggestions and tools that are being
worked on:

* A database of crime incidents searchable by address, crime type, and
date.

* An alert system to use email or text messaging to notify citizens
when their user-defined thresholds for certain crimes are reached (a
robbery occurs within a radius from an address, or a certain number of
car break-ins are logged within a specified time frame and radius from
an address).

* Tracking of incidents through the criminal justice system from
arrest to prosecution.

* Capabilities for users to type in an address, or click on the map,
and enter citizen reports about locations of drug dealing, as well as
public nuisances like blighted housing, broken street lamps, and
abandoned cars. When these quality of life issues are memorialized in
a map and brought to the attention of public officials, the complaints
will be visible to the whole world, and it will be much more difficult
for officials to ignore.

The key to making this resource a truly timely and meaningful resource
will be access to criminal justice records – starting with the raw 911
calls for service data collected by the Orleans 911 Communications
District, and disseminated to the New Orleans Police Department.
Citizen pressure will be needed to assert ownership of those public
records.

This is just one sliver of a solution to the issue of criminal justice
reform, but it’s a start that offers the possibility of empowering
citizens. All that’s required to make this effort a success is your
passion and your participation!

Feel free to pass this message along to your neighbors.