U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

National Institute of Justice

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

OFF ICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS

BJA NI J OJJDP BJS OVC

Research Report

Department of Justice and

Department of Defense

Joint Technology

Program: Second

Anniversary Report

Department of Justice

Department of Defense
Department of Justice and

Department of Defense

Joint Technology Program:

Second Anniversary Report

Prepared by the Joint Program Steering Group

John J. Pennella

Chairman

Peter L. Nacci

Deputy Chairman

February 1997
U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

National Institute of Justice

Jeremy Travis

Director

David Boyd

Director, Office of Science and Technology

Opinions or points of view expressed in this document are those

of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position

of the U.S. Department of Justice.

The National Institute of Justice is a component of the Office of

Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice

Assistance, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Juvenile Justice

and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

NCJ 164268
1

I

n 1994 the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S.

 Department of Defense (DOD) entered into a cooperative

 agreement to develop technologies of value to both. This

agreement, codified in a Memorandum of Understanding

(MOU) and signed by the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the

Attorney General, formalized and focused a longstanding ad hoc

relationship. To manage this technology development program

and to direct its day-to-day activities, the MOU established a

Joint Program Steering Group (JPSG) that would represent both

departments and be staffed with members from several agencies.

Two years have passed since the MOU was signed, but this cooperative effort has already borne fruit. Improved personnel armor and new methods for detecting concealed weapons are

being demonstrated. As this joint effort begins to deliver its

products, DOD and DOJ, through their respective lead agencies—the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

(DARPA) and the National Institute of Justice (NIJ)—have directed the JPSG to produce this anniversary report.

This report consists of three parts. Part I explains how this joint

technology program originated and the need for a JPSG. Part II

focuses on seven technology development areas included in the

JPSG program and the anticipated payoffs. Part III draws conclusions regarding program benefits.

Part I: The Partnership Between Law

Enforcement and the Military

The boundaries separating the functions of the law enforcement

and military communities are clearly defined in law. The

military’s function is to provide for the national defense, while

Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies maintain

domestic tranquillity.
2

Although performing different functions, law enforcement and

the military perform many of the same tasks. Both law enforcement and the military operate their own judicial, police, and

prison systems. Within the limits set by law, civil law enforcement and the military communities work cooperatively. For example, in communities near large military installations, military

police routinely maintain offices in metropolitan police stations.

The Federal Prison System incarcerates hundreds of the military’s more difficult prisoners. At the same time, the Federal

Prison System receives special consideration from the military

in the disposition of military properties made available when

domestic installations close or in locating prisons on active military installations. Often law enforcement and the military may

also participate in the same missions. Such interagency efforts

include waging the war against drugs, countering terrorism and

espionage, and providing disaster relief.

Benefits of Shared Technology

DOJ and DOD have a long history of sharing technology. After

World War II and the Korean War, local and Federal law enforcement agencies benefited from such technology as helicopters and handheld radios, whose development had been spurred

to meet military needs. Additionally, over the years, many

State and local police agencies have received surplus military

equipment.

However, this flow of technology has not been one way. Law

enforcement has also shared its technology with the military. For

example, the current generation of “bulletproof” vests, employed both by the law enforcement and military communities,

evolved from the development of body armor using Kevlar,TM

which was sponsored by NIJ (then the National Institute of Law

Enforcement and Criminal Justice of the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration) in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

When the U.S. Marine Corps deployed to Somalia in 1995 to

assist in the withdrawal of U.N. forces, it did so with an arsenal

of what are termed “less-than-lethal” weapons, including a

“sticky foam” developed by NIJ. The foam works much like

human flypaper and is used to limit the potential for injury to

bystanders and damage to property.
3

Benefits of Joint Technology Development

These ad hoc technology and equipment transfers are beneficial

to both law enforcement and the military. However, greater benefits result when efforts involve joint technology development in

partnerships throughout the Government.

Cost Effectiveness. The benefits to be gained, in terms of dollars saved, is clear. For example, the recent collaboration of the

National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the

U.S. Air Force, NASA, and the U.S. Navy in the development of

meteorological satellites will result in future satellites that will

perform multiple functions. The satellites will not only help produce daily weather forecasts but also assist military and civilian

pilots and military planners. Replacement satellites will last

longer and will reduce the need for more satellites. This effort

should produce a saving in excess of $1 billion over the next 10

years.

Long-Term Research. Combined technology development

projects involving the military and law enforcement have

spanned decades. In the 1960s the Law Enforcement Assistance

Administration sponsored joint technology developments in the

area of remote bomb detection. Other early joint projects included the development of riot control agents, night vision devices, and “nonlethal” bullets. More recently, the Federal

Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and DARPA have worked on a

number of projects, including the application of advanced computer technology to crime solving, while DEA and other law

enforcement agencies have collaborated with DARPA in developing technologies to counter the flow of narcotics into this

country.

Joint Technology Improvement and the JPSG. Federal agencies frequently collaborate to develop technology. However, the

differences in cultures, missions, and applications among agencies can make joint development and transition of technology

challenging. To make reasoned judgments about technology

options requires an understanding of these differences that

comes only with experience. In a partnership between DOD and

DOJ, the most effective way of ensuring that such experience
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was applied was to jointly staff a program steering group; hence

the establishment of the JPSG.

Perhaps the best single example of a technology area that has

been cooperatively advanced by the military and law enforcement communities is the development of body armor. Both law

enforcement and military personnel wear body armor. More and

more often, this includes the law enforcement officer and the

ordinary soldier, as well as special purpose units such as police

Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams and U.S. Special

Forces. Current body armor is heavy, movement impairing, and

costly, and it does not dissipate heat very well. Consequently,

body armor design has had to strike a less-than-optimum compromise between level of protection and area protected. As a

result, the standard issue “bulletproof” vests worn by most police and soldiers offer limited protection, especially little if any

protection against rifle bullets.

In the JPSG-managed body armor development program, jointly

developed technologies incorporate design preferences from

both the military and law enforcement communities. One body

armor effort that the JPSG is managing is development of a

“bulletproof” vest with titanium or ceramic inserts that does offer some rifle and bullet protection. Designed to be worn inconspicuously as an undergarment, the vest causes minimal

impairment to its wearer’s freedom of movement. This “concealable” armor weighs around 8 pounds and affords handgun

protection over the entire area that it covers. Inserts positioned

over the heart and spine offer rifle fire protection.

Technology Transfer. Joint development programs such as the

body armor program also ease technology transfer. New products usually require modifications when transferred from one

agency to another. Such changes are due to differences in environment, operating procedures, and performance requirements.

Perhaps the most commonly cited example of modification requirements is the military’s requirement for “ruggedization.”

This includes, in certain circumstances, protecting electronic

equipment against the effects of the electromagnetic pulse produced when a nuclear weapon is detonated. Very few if any law
5

enforcement organizations require equipment designed to such

specifications.

Law Enforcement and Military Technology Convergence:

Needed More Today Than Ever

The post-Cold War era has seen a convergence in the technology

needs of the law enforcement and military communities in more

than just law enforcement operations. Today the Nation’s more

than 3,000,000 civilian law enforcement officers and soldiers,

sailors, marines, and airmen find themselves performing many

of the same tasks. The three facets to this convergence result

from the need to (1) limit force, (2) defend against common

threats, and (3) participate in common missions.

Limiting Force. Increasingly, the military finds itself conducting operations such as peacekeeping, in which it is confronted

by an absolute mandate to apply force discreetly and then to use

only the minimum amount of force necessary to accomplish a

particular mission. These are essentially the same rules under

which law enforcement agencies operate. Like their counterparts

in the law enforcement community, military commanders find

that these constraints severely limit their options and thus too

often limit their effectiveness. On occasion, the severity of these

constraints leaves commanders with the alternative of doing

nothing or placing the lives of the involved personnel at risk.

A further consideration that affects how the military and law

enforcement apply force is the greater presence of members of

the media or other civilians who are observing, if not recording,

the situation. Even the lawful application of force can be misrepresented to or misunderstood by the public. More than ever, the

police and the military must be highly discreet when applying

force.

Defending Against Common Threats. As more and more military technology finds its way into criminal hands, law officers

today confront threats that have more and more military aspects.

For example, narcotics traffickers and smugglers use bulletproof

vests, electro-optic devices that enable them to see at night, and

semiautomatic and even automatic weapons. In addition, law
6

enforcement agencies must be able to deal with the threat from

international terrorism, from which the United States is no

longer immune—if it ever was.

The nature of criminals and their crimes has changed as well.

Although the rate of victimization has declined over the past

decade, there have been surges in rates of violent crimes, especially those associated with youth.

Participating in Common Missions. The best examples of law

enforcement and military participation in common missions are

the “wars” being waged against narcotics and terrorism. This

convergence of missions was illustrated by President Clinton’s

nomination of the Commanding General of the U.S. Southern

Command to the position of Director of the Office of National

Drug Control Policy. The U.S. Southern Command, headquartered in Panama, plays a key role in the effort to stop the flow of

drugs from South America into the United States.

At an overall level, these three shared needs suggest that the

roles of traditional law enforcement and the military are changing and that the tactics, technologies, and tools of use to one

may be of use to the other.

Interagency Agreement

The potential benefits of a joint development program became

clear to officials in DOD and DOJ, as well as to Congress, in

1993. The overlap of technology needs had been noted by a senior working group (SWG) convened by DARPA in 1993 to

assist in formulating a program to develop technologies to enhance the effectiveness of U.S. forces engaged in Operations

Other Than War (OOTW). These kinds of operations involve

providing humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping, countering the

flow of drugs into the United States, and countering terrorism.

This initiative was prompted by events in Somalia and elsewhere. The SWG and DARPA noted many common technology

needs between civilian law enforcement operations and OOTW.

Congress and senior officials in both DOJ and DOD moved

DARPA and NIJ toward establishing a formal partnership agree-
7

ment. In June 1993, the Attorney General sent a letter to DOD

and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) suggesting collaboration on technology development. In July 1993, Congress initiated language directing the establishment of an interagency

working group, which included DOJ and DOD, to look to the

development of dual-use technologies. This was prompted by

the recognition of the effect of defense downsizing on the industrial base and the effort to reduce Federal expenditures and by

apparent interest within the administration to “reinvent government” by eliminating unnecessary redundancies. In hearings

before the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee

on Research and Technology that year, the DOD Director of

Defense Research and Engineering endorsed establishing joint

technology development with DOJ. Also at these hearings, key

NIJ and industry officials testified about the value such a partnership might produce.

NIJ reorganized in 1994 by elevating its Division of Science and

Technology to full office status and establishing a Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Advisory Council (LECTAC)

consisting of 85 representatives from Federal, State and local

law enforcement agencies. At that time, LECTAC identified law

enforcement technology needs for NIJ and noted that many of

these needs were pertinent to the military.

Memorandum of Understanding. The clear benefits of this

partnership led to the execution of an MOU between DOJ and

DOD on April 20, 1994. Highlighting the importance attached to

this MOU was its execution by the Attorney General and the

Deputy Secretary of Defense and the presence of the Vice President, the Secretary of the Treasury, and the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy at the signing ceremony.

This MOU set in motion the development and enactment of the

technology program described in Part II of this report.

The MOU calls for the establishment of an extendable 5-year

program in which a JPSG, jointly staffed by DOD and DOJ representatives, manages daily operations and a high-level interagency Senior Review Group sets policy. Members of the JPSG

have been drawn from DARPA, NIJ, the FBI, the Bureau of

Prisons, and the U.S. Army. The JPSG works at any point along
8

the research, development, and acquisition (RDA) spectrum so

that it can support demonstrations of existing technology as well

as development of totally new and unique technologies.

On October 1, 1994, the JPSG was established at DARPA in

Arlington, Virginia. The Chairman, from DARPA, and Deputy

Chairman, from NIJ, co-manage the program. Congress appropriated $37.5 million in Fiscal Year 1995 to support the MOU.

Of this, $26 million was made available for JPSG-sponsored

projects.

The execution of the MOU set in motion what would become an

important series of briefings and information exchanges between

DARPA and NIJ. These sessions were used to define agency

priorities, capabilities, and department interest. During these

sessions, similarities in DOJ and DOD technology needs were

apparent. At the same time, many agency-specific requirements

were examined. This reaffirmed the view that the agencies need

to collaborate in joint development of technology, rather than for

one simply to develop the technology independently for direct

transfer to the other.

JPSG Technology Plan. The Senior Review Group approved

the technology plan submitted by the JPSG in March 1995, 6

months after the JPSG was formed. The plan represented extensive research and coordination by the JPSG within the law enforcement and military communities. Essentially, the JPSG

examined technology priorities submitted to it by both communities, identified overlapping technology needs not being pursued, and formulated a plan to address them.

Part II: The JPSG Program

The JPSG program focuses on seven main areas of technology

development.

Concealed Weapons Detection

Concealed weapons—principally handguns and stabbing and

edged weapons—pose a major threat to military and law enforcement personnel. Existing detection systems, mainly metal
9

detectors, have limited ranges and high false-alarm rates; they

are also obtrusive and thus easily circumvented. Further, lowmetal-content handguns and non-metallic stabbing and cutting

weapons make effective detection challenging.

NIJ Program. Recognizing this problem, NIJ initiated a program in January 1995 to develop better ways to detect concealed

weapons. This program is pursuing three technology development approaches: (1) passive millimeter wave (MMW) sensor,

(2) active low-frequency magnetic sensor, and (3) magnetometer. Underscoring the importance of this problem, the JPSG has

undertaken a program that complements this NIJ effort and that

is closely coordinated with it.

The JPSG Program. The JPSG intends to develop safe, affordable and, inasmuch as possible, inconspicuous systems that can

detect from more than 30 feet away weapons with little or no

metal content as well as those made of metal. Initial efforts are

focusing on developing stationary devices, much like the metal

detectors found in airports. Such devices might be used to protect courts and, in today’s environment, even schools. Development of smaller, handheld versions will also be explored.

In June 1995 the JPSG selected four approaches for development, based on the recommendations of a board of military and

law enforcement users and technical experts. These technology

approaches consisted of the following: (1) an x-ray sensor, (2) a

sensor system combining passive MMW and infrared (IR) cameras, (3) a sensor system combining ultrasound and radar sensors, and (4) a low-frequency magnetic sensor. The ultrasound

portion of the ultrasound-radar technology approach may lend

itself to being carried by a soldier or police officer in a unit

much the same size as a bullhorn.
10

All of these technologies

produce images. Figure 1

shows a person with a 22-

caliber “Saturday night special” (see arrow) concealed

under his clothes. The photograph was taken using one of

the technologies that employs low level x-rays. The

radiation exposure needed to

make this picture is equivalent to spending approximately 5 minutes in the sun.

Figure 2 was taken with an

MMW camera. It shows a

person with two automatic

pistols concealed under his

clothing—one metal and one

ceramic (see arrows). Figure 3 was taken with an IR camera.

Again, it shows a person with a concealed automatic pistol

(see arrow).

The x-ray picture was taken with a system that will be demonstrated in two corrections facilities over a 6-month period. The

first facility had a system installed in May 1996. A suitable location for the second system is being sought.

Component-level demonstrations of the

other technologies were completed by December 1996. The results of these demonstrations are being evaluated. Additional

funds will be sought to further develop

successful technologies.

The JPSG program manager runs both NIJ

and JPSG programs. He is supported by

the NIJ National Law Enforcement and

Corrections Technology Center

(NLECTC)–Northeast, which acts as his

technical agent for both efforts, providing

Figure 2 staff and technical support. The NIJ and

Figure 1
11

JPSG program efforts complement each

other in that they are looking at different

approaches to this challenging problem.

Limited Effects Technology (LET)

Today military rules of engagement, legal

constraints, and policy, which are driven by

considerations of the potential for injury to

bystanders and unintended damage to property, may restrict the use of force. Both

civilian law enforcement agencies and the

military need more options for stopping

fleeing suspects and for handling and containing crowds. The JPSG is sponsoring a

number of efforts in this area. A key consideration in each of these efforts is that the technology be legally and socially acceptable.

Stopping Fleeing Individuals. To stop individuals, the JPSG is

sponsoring development of a ballistic device—a gas-launched,

wireless, electric stun projectile with a self-contained power

supply. The projectile adheres to clothing and imparts a strong

electric shock. A successful demonstration of a prototype was

demonstrated in August 1996.

The JPSG is also sponsoring development of eyesafe laser dazzler devices to disorient individuals; a vehicular laser surveillance and dazzler system was demonstrated in June 1996.

Law enforcement and military personnel need less lethal, faster

acting pyrotechnic devices such as flash-bang grenades, smoke

grenades, and so on. The JPSG is funding a program to develop

such devices.

Crowd Control. Both law enforcement and military representatives advising the JPSG have agreed that using sound to control

crowds shows promise but that the precise effects of such a technology have not been well documented. As a result, the JPSG is

sponsoring a study to determine these effects.

Figure 3
12

Further development and funding may be sought in the area of

LET after current projects are completed in December 1997 and

the results are evaluated.

New Body Armor

The performance of the

jointly developed, concealable body armor, discussed

earlier in this report, was

much better than anticipated.

The design goal was that the

vest areas covered by inserts

would stop bullets from a

Russian AK-47 assault rifle

at a range of 328 yards. In

testing, the armor stopped

these bullets at around 190 yards. The insert areas of this vest

should offer protection from “cop killer” bullets, as well. The

size and position of the inserts were chosen to minimize the likelihood that its wearer would be killed instantly, while still allowing the armor to be inconspicuous and “wearable.” Figure 4

shows a body armor prototype worn by a soldier at the U.S.

Army Natick Research, Development, and Engineering Center,

both with and without his uniform blouse.

In addition to developing concealable body armor, the JPSG is

developing improved outergarment body armor. The JPSG program has demonstrated ceramic inserts as alternatives to those

currently used in the military’s Ranger Body Armor, with a resulting weight savings of around 30 percent. The JPSG is also

supporting the use of new materials in the development of an

entirely new outergarment body armor that offers protection

from a 30–06 armor-piercing bullet, at about a 40-percent

weight savings over current body armor offering a similar level

of protection.

Another challenge being undertaken is development of a helmet

weighing less than 5 pounds that stops handgun bullets and offers limited protection from rifle fire. The current KevlarTM helmet, issued to the military and used by police SWAT teams, is

not designed to offer handgun or rifle protection. The proposed

Figure 4
13

helmet will consist of a

titanium shell with a

KevlarTM variant liner.

Figure 5 shows both the

liner and the shell of a

prototype of this helmet.

(The shell does not conform totally to the liner

because excess material

resulting from its manufacture has not yet been trimmed.)

The new inserts for the Ranger Body Armor that the JPSG developed are being evaluated for the U.S. Special Operations

Command. Concealable armor is of great interest to law enforcement. The U.S. Secret Service has placed an order, and the FBI

is evaluating prototypes. Eleven prototypes were ordered by the

U.S. Army for use in Bosnia. The helmets and outergarment

body armor may be found useful for hostage rescue work and

SWAT teams in general.

Medical Technologies

The JPSG is sponsoring a limited demonstration of the application of telemedicine to the provision of medical services to remote locations. Telemedicine is the practice of health care

delivery, diagnosis, consultation, and treatment using interactive

video, audio, and data communications. While telemedicine

technology is fairly mature, its deployment and utilization are

still low.

This demonstration is being conducted in Federal penitentiaries;

the technology can help them better fulfill the responsibility for

providing full-time, comprehensive medical care to prisoners. In

many places it is difficult to find specialists or those willing to

treat prisoners either inside or outside prison walls. Telemedicine

affords an excellent opportunity to extend the range of health

care inside prisons and jails while avoiding costly and potentially dangerous trips to local hospitals.

DOD requires the same kind of access to medical information

from remote areas, both in war and in operations other than war,

Figure 5
14

such as providing humanitarian relief in Rwanda, giving disaster

assistance to the victims of Hurricane Andrew, or detaining

large groups of foreign nationals. This telemedicine capability

can provide medical care to deployed personnel and, as the mission dictates, to the local populace, detainees, and others.

The JPSG, in collaboration with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons,

DOD, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, operates

telemedicine suites in the Federal penitentiaries at Lewisburg,

Pennsylvania, and Allenwood, Pennsylvania, the Bureau of Prisons’ Federal Medical Center at Lexington, Kentucky, and the

Veterans Health Administration Medical Center in Lexington,

Kentucky (see figure 6). There is also the potential for DOD to

adopt this technology to small or remote installations and disaster relief missions.

Lexington Medical Center

Lexington VA Hospital

USP, FCI Allenwood

USP Lewisburg

Information Sharing During Crises

Both the law enforcement and military communities respond to

crises. However, the effectiveness of their response is often limited by the inability of the participants to easily and securely

communicate and share information. The JPSG is addressing

Figure 6
15

this problem by taking advantage of advances in civilian- and

government-sponsored information and communications technologies. The JPSG plans to demonstrate an interagency crisis

management system that provides the capability to readily and

securely communicate and share information among agencies.

Using the existing commercial communications infrastructure

(i.e., the World Wide Web and cellular communications) and

communications security technology developed under the sponsorship of the National Security Agency (NSA), this information

management system should demonstrate the following:

• A crisis management center providing real-time situation

awareness of the location of deployed forces, crowd locations and densities, threat areas, and potential locations of

probable suspects. The system includes the capability to

transmit images.

• Access to and sharing of relevant information through computer systems with “firewalls” to assure the required level

of privacy and security. Access will be based on the

recipient’s information needs, authorized level of access,

and parent organization.

• Automatic update of significant events to deployed personnel as well as decisionmakers.

Data exchange and retrieval will be accomplished through the

Information Support for Law Enforcement (ISLE) integrating

architecture. The NSA-sponsored FORTEZZA encryption device will be employed to provide privacy and authentication.

The telecommunications portions of this system will be provided

by leveraging the DARPA Global Mobile (GloMo) Communications Program.

Demonstrations of a crisis management testbed, involving law

enforcement and military agencies, were completed in October

1996. NIJ’s National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center–Rocky Mountain is supporting this effort by conducting a study to determine the interoperability requirements of

law enforcement agencies involved in crisis management.
16

Locating Sniper Fire

Locating and neutralizing snipers is a need of both the military

and law enforcement communities. Unfortunately, the main

means used today for gunfire detection—the human ear and

eye—are highly inaccurate. The JPSG intends to develop and

demonstrate an affordable sniper detection system that can detect and locate a sniper to within a 10-foot by 10-foot area, in

urban as well as rural environments, and at ranges greater than

half a mile.

Locating a sniper in urban environments is challenging because

manmade structures cause echoes, complicating detection by

acoustic means, and hide visual cues such as muzzle flashes.

Another major technical challenge is motion compensation for

sniper detection systems that are mounted on moving vehicles or

worn by soldiers or police officers. Although mobile systems are

more technically challenging, they offer inherently greater flexibility than fixed-site systems.

This sniper detection effort focuses

on developing systems that can be

(1) carried by and

put in place by

hand, (2) worn,

and (3) mounted

on vehicles. Technologies being

explored employ

acoustic, IR, integrated IR-acoustic,

and integrated IRlaser sensors. Figure 7 shows portable acoustic systems that

were demonstrated at the Camp Pendleton, California, test site

in May 1996. Six prototypes of the best performing acoustic

systems from the Camp Pendleton demonstration will be fabricated and provided to the military, potentially for use in ongoing

operations such as those in Bosnia.

Figure 7
17

In October 1996 a portable, integrated IR-acoustic system was

demonstrated at Camp Pendleton. This will be followed in April

1997 by an integrated IR-laser system demonstration also at

Camp Pendleton. The integrated IR-laser system tracks a bullet

in flight based on the heat caused by friction as the bullet passes

through the air. The bullet’s track is then used to determine its

three-dimensional trajectory. Based on this information, the system can determine the exact location of the sniper. This system

will effectively locate snipers even when they employ advanced

tactics and special devices such as silencers and flash suppressors to conceal their location.

Demonstrations of sniper detection systems that are worn are

scheduled to be completed by the summer of 1997.

Locating and Tagging Individuals and Property

Locating, identifying, and monitoring the movement of individuals, vehicles, and containers are important law enforcement

and military functions. However, the technologies currently

available to perform these functions do not work as well as they

should. With better technologies, emergency medical care might

be delivered faster, movement of contraband tracked more accurately, and stolen property located more precisely.

The JPSG program will demonstrate these locating and tagging

technologies, relying heavily on ongoing related DARPA efforts

in electronics miniaturization and packaging, especially of navigation technologies such as Global Positioning Systems, and in

reduction of power consumption. The two major efforts in the

program are Soldier 911 and tagging.

Soldier 911. This technology

provides the capability to locate, identify, and track the

movement of individuals and

vehicles by using a device about

the size of a brick. The device

can be handheld, attached to the

harness system that a soldier

uses to carry his other equipment, or mounted in a vehicle

or aircraft. Figure 8 shows a Figure 8
18

Soldier 911 unit. Soldier 911 can be programmed to provide an

early warning signal to individuals, vehicles, and aircraft when

approaching a dangerous area. It also has the ability to emit a

distress or “911” call—hence the name “Soldier 911.” When an

individual with a Soldier 911 system gets in trouble, he can call

for help by simply pressing a button. The resulting distress call

automatically provides the coordinates of the location of the

signal’s origin to the station receiving the call.

Soldier 911 could also be called Law Enforcement Officer 911.

The JPSG sponsors portions of this ongoing DARPA program

because of its obvious value to law enforcement, particularly

in operations at or near the U.S. borders or in other remote

locations.

Soldier 911 is being demonstrated with U.S. forces in the former

Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and in the Republic of Korea.

Tagging. The second JPSG effort in this technology area is a

12-month effort to develop and demonstrate a family of miniature, low-cost, wireless, modular devices that can locate, identify, and monitor the movement of selected individuals and other

mobile objects.

Other Efforts

In addition to the seven groups of technologies described above,

the JPSG is also sponsoring studies in the following four areas:

interactive simulation and training, perimeter security, small

mobile sensors, and detection of explosives. These efforts are

studies, rather than programs, because while there is a consensus

that work needs to be done in these areas, sufficient information

was not available to develop a coherent, structured program.

The objective of each of these studies is to better define the

problem and, if warranted, to enable an appropriate program to

be developed. Additionally, these studies will in themselves provide useful products. The perimeter security study, for example,

will produce for security managers a single source document

that lists available intrusion warning systems and devices and

their capabilities and limitations.
19

Part III: Program Benefits

The JPSG program has proved a remarkable success. In less

than 2 years it has already produced a number of technology

prototypes:

• A Soldier 911 system.

• An alternative ballistic insert for the Ranger Body Armor

System.

• A concealable body armor.

• A laser surveillance and dazzler system.

• A concealed weapons detection system.

• A telemedicine suite tailored for application in a corrections environment.

• Fixed site and portable sniper detection systems.

From DOJ’s perspective, the joint technology partnership has

opened doors to new technologies. DOD has gained a greater

access to the law enforcement community and an understanding

of its needs. New avenues to move technologies to and from

private industry have also been opened to both partners. Ultimately, the future of this partnership will depend on the value

and importance of the technologies that the JPSG produces.

With the initial technology plan well established, the JPSG has

begun to develop a new plan that builds on the old. Among the

new technology areas being considered are vehicle stopping;

noninvasive drug detection; punctureproof and flexible,

nonpermeable gloves and puncture- and cut-resistant personnel

armor; explosives detection; and simulation for training, planning, and analysis.

Inquiries for more information or submissions of concepts for

consideration by the JPSG may be sent to jpsg@snap.org on the

Internet or to:

Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

Attn: Dr. David Fields

3701 N. Fairfax Drive

Arlington, VA 22203–1714
For more information on the National

Institute of Justice, please contact:

National Criminal Justice Reference Service

Box 6000

Rockville, MD 20849–6000

800–851–3420

e-mail: askncjrs@ncjrs.org

To view or obtain an electronic version of this document

from the NCJRS Bulletin Board System or the NCJRS

Justice Information Center World Wide Web site, access

the system in one of the following ways:

To access the BBS, direct dial through your computer

modem: 301–738–8895 (modems should be set at 9600

baud and 8–N–1) or telnet to bbs.ncjrs.org

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If you have any questions, call or e-mail NCJRS.