Barrow dispatch center starts connection to national database

WINDER - On a day that America stoped to remember the past, Barrow County Emergency Services took another step toward the future to keep the citizens of Barrow County safer. <br /> <br /> "Today our 911 Communication Center will begin the process of expanding our ability to obtain information from the National Crime Information Center," commented Chief Dennis Merrifield. "When the process is complete it will result in a much more efficient system for the law enforcement officers in Barrow County."<br /> <br /> The current system that law enforcement officers utilize has limited capability, and requires Communication Officers with Barrow County Emergency Services to enter the information that is being relayed to them over the radio. With this expansion, the officers in the field will be able to enter the information directly and see firsthand the information that is being transmitted back form the National Crime Information Center (NCIC).<br /> <br /> NCIC is a computerized index of criminal justice information, such as criminal record histories, fugitives and missing persons. This index is available to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and other criminal justice agencies and is available twenty four hours a day. This information assists the law enforcement officers in criminal justice and law enforcement objectives such as apprehending fugitives, locating missing person and retrieving stolen property. It is also utilized in the fight against terrorism.<br /> <br /> One such success story from the NCIC happened in December of 2005. Members of the California Highway Patrol pulled a vehicle over in a speeding-related traffic stop in Newhall California. They conducted a search of the NCIC which produced a terrorism-related lookout on one of the subjects in the vehicle. After contacting the FBI's Terrorist Screening Center for assistance in identifying the subject, they were positively identified as a main subject of an international terrorism investigation. <br /> <br /> "On September 11, 2001 America was attacked and many first responders stepped up and gave their lives so that others could survive. As a way to honor their memories, it is fitting that this project starts on the eleventh anniversary of 9/11," Chief Merrifield said. "This is a great example of how departments at all levels in Barrow County are cooperating with each other in an effort to keep our citizens safe. May we always remember the sacrifices of so many, and work together to better protect our citizens. <br />