Research for Practice

Law Enforcement Technology—Are Small 

and Rural Agencies Equipped and Trained?

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

JUN. 04 

National Institute of Justice
This and other publications and products 

found at: 

of the National Institute of Justice can be 

National Institute of Justice 

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij 

Office of Justice Programs 

Partnerships for Safer Communities 

www.ojp.usdoj.gov 

U.S. Department of Justice 

Office of Justice Programs 

810 Seventh Street N.W. 

Washington, DC 20531 

John Ashcroft 

Attorney General 

Deborah J. Daniels 

Assistant Attorney General 

Sarah V. Hart 

Director, National Institute of Justice 
JUNE 04 

Law Enforcement Technology—Are Small 

and Rural Agencies Equipped and Trained? 

Findings and conclusions of the research reported here are those of the 

researchers and do not reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. 

Department of Justice. 

This research was supported by the National Institute of Justice under 

grant number 1999–LT–VX–K022. The study was conducted by Eastern 

Kentucky University’s Justice and Safety Center, led by executive director 

Pamela Collins. 

NCJ 204609 
RESEARCH FOR PRACTICE / JUNE 04 

ABOUT THIS REPORT 

Researchers conducted a national survey of small and rural 

law enforcement agencies to 

understand their technology 

and technology-related training needs and capabilities and 

to determine to what extent 

they have adopted new criminal justice-related technologies into their operations. They 

surveyed 239 agencies with 

fewer than 20 sworn officers 

serving populations of 50,000 

or less. 

What did the 

researchers find? 

Although small and rural agencies use—and are well trained 

in the use of—a variety of 

communications-related technologies, they may be underutilizing such technologies as 

global positioning systems, 

digital imaging for fingerprints, 

less-lethal weapons, and other 

technologies that can help 

them do their jobs better. 

Several factors may contribute 

to underutilization, most notably, limited resources and 

commonly held views among 

small and rural law enforcement personnel that new 

technologies—other than 

communications equipment 

and computers—are less 

applicable to their work. Also, 

these agencies may be unaware of the advantages that 

such technologies offer their 

departments. 

Who should read this 

study? 

Law enforcement officials and 

planners, technology manufacturers, law enforcement 

training providers, State and 

local officials. 

ii 
SMALL AND RURAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 

Law Enforcement Technology— 

Are Small and Rural Agencies 

Equipped and Trained? 

This Research for Practice 

is based on “National 

Assessment of Technology 

and Training for Small and 

Rural Law Enforcement 

Agencies (NATTS): 

A Descriptive Analysis,” 

final report to the 

National Institute of 

Justice, December 2002, 

NCJ 198619, available 

from the National 

Criminal Justice Reference Service Web site at 

www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/ 

nij/grants/198619.pdf. 

Small and rural law enforcement agencies, as a group, 

are susceptible to falling 

behind their urban and suburban counterparts in adopting 

and using computers and 

other new technologies— 

technologies that can help 

reduce crime rates, apprehend criminals, and improve 

safety for officers, suspects, 

and the public. They also face 

the challenge of keeping pace 

with criminals who use some 

of the same new technologies 

in planning and committing 

their crimes. Although these 

agencies use communications 

equipment and personal computers adeptly, they are not 

making full use of other specialized technologies. 

These are the conclusions of 

a study conducted for the National Institute of Justice by 

researchers at Eastern Kentucky University’s Justice and 

Safety Center. 

Most studies of policing have 

focused on large agencies, 

especially those in urban and 

suburban areas. The Justice 

and Safety Center’s study 

was one of the first to look 

nationwide at the extent to 

which small and rural law 

enforcement agencies have 

adopted new technologies, 

the value they place on these 

technologies, and how competent and well trained their 

officers are in using the new 

technologies. 

The study takes on additional 

significance considering that 

90 percent of all law enforcement agencies in the United 

States have fewer than 50 

sworn officers. Indeed, half 

of all law enforcement agencies have 10 or fewer officers. Nationally, 90 percent 

of law enforcement agencies 

serve populations of 25,000 

or less. For the purposes of 

this study, the researchers 

surveyed small and rural law 

enforcement agencies with 

fewer than 20 officers that 

serve populations of 50,000 

people or less. 

Despite their size, these small 

and rural law enforcement 

agencies face many of the 

same problems as their large 

urban and suburban counterparts. Armed robberies, 

thefts, fraud, rapes, assaults, 

1 
RESEARCH FOR PRACTICE / JUNE 04 

murders, and many other violent and nonviolent crimes 

occur in small towns and rural 

areas as well as in cities and 

suburbs. Small and rural agencies have to deal with the 

same issues of specialization, 

volume and nature of workload, training, local history and 

culture, and limited budgets as 

do large police departments. Because of their small size 

and limited financial resources, 

few small agencies can afford 

to have officers who specialize 

in particular types of crimes 

or are highly trained in using 

new technologies. Police officers in small towns and rural 

areas have to be generalists. 

Still, they need to be aware 

of technology and its application to crime investigation. Thus, for example, officers do 

not have to be computer or 

video specialists, but they do 

need to know that a suspect’s 

personal computer or home 

digital camera may contain 

useful evidence. They also 

need access to other police 

departments that do have 

specialists who can retrieve 

and analyze that evidence. 

Some new technologies are 

now widely used in American 

society while others are more 

specific to police and the military. The former include laptop and personal computers, 

mobile telephones, portable 

radios, and video cameras. 

Slightly more esoteric devices 

such as global positioning systems (which link computers 

with earth-orbiting satellites) 

and geographic information 

systems are becoming more 

common. More specialized 

equipment includes devices 

that allow police to track stolen cars or disrupt a vehicle’s 

engine, night-vision goggles, 

stun and TASER® guns, rubber bullets and other lesslethal weapons, and digital 

imaging fingerprint systems 

(see “Law Enforcement Tools 

of the Trade”, page 4). 

Exhibit 1 lists the technologies included in the survey 

and their reported frequency 

of use. Technology in small 

agencies Recognizing what technology 

can help police do, the critical 

concerns are whether small 

and rural agencies are adopting new technologies, how 

important they perceive these 

systems or devices to be for 

their operations, and whether 

or not they have the ability to 

use new technologies effectively. To find out, the Justice 

and Safety Center’s researchers sent a survey to 384 small 

and rural agencies across the 

United States to learn what 

2 
SMALL AND RURAL LA W ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 

Exhibit 1. How frequently do small agencies use technology? 

Percentage of agencies* that use it Technology Often Sometimes Never 

Communications—mobile radios 98.7 0.0 1.3 

Communications—portable radios 95.3 2.1 2.6 

Communications—base station radios 82.5 7.7 9.8 

Personal computer (PC/microcomputer) 66.4 11.1 22.6 

Communications—cellular phones 59.5 30.8 9.7 

Mainframe computer 43.6 9.4 47.0 

Video camera (in patrol cars) 33.6 18.1 48.3 

Digital imaging—mug shots 31.2 14.1 54.7 

Minicomputer 25.8 10.0 64.2 

Car-mounted mobile digital/data terminal 15.9 3.1 81.1 

Car-mounted mobile digital/data computer 12.9 1.3 85.8 

Laptop computer (in field) 11.3 15.2 73.5 

Digital imaging—fingerprints 9.6 7.9 82.5 

Video camera (fixed-site surveillance) 8.3 30.9 60.9 

Video camera (mobile surveillance) 8.3 31.0 60.7 

Digital imaging—suspect composites 6.9 30.2 62.9 

Vehicle (tire deflation spikes) 3.9 37.4 58.7 

Night vision/electro-optic (image intensifiers) 3.5 38.2 58.3 

Night vision/electro-optic (infrared—thermal imagers) 1.8 23.7 74.6 

Vehicle (stolen-vehicle tracking) 1.3 5.3 93.4 

Global positioning systems—mobile surveillance 1.3 7.4 91.3 

Night vision/electro-optic (laser rangefinders) 1.3 8.4 90.3 

Global positioning systems—vehicle location 0.9 1.8 97.4 

Hand-held digital terminal 0.9 1.8 97.4 

Less-lethal force—hand-held electrical device/direct contact 0.4 7.0 92.5 

Less-lethal force—stun devices 0.4 8.8 90.8 

Less-lethal force—choke hold or neck restraint 0.4 15.7 83.9 

Less-lethal force—flash/bang grenade 0.4 21.6 78.0 

Less-lethal force—three-pole trip 0.0 0.0 100.0 

Less-lethal force—tranquilizer darts 0.0 1.3 98.7 

Vehicle (electrical/engine disruption) 0.0 1.3 98.7 

Less-lethal force—capture net 0.0 2.2 97.8 

Less-lethal force—rubber bullets 0.0 8.8 91.2 

Less-lethal force—soft projectiles 0.0 14.5 85.5 

*N = 239 

Note: Figures may not sum to 100 due to rounding. 

3 
RESEARCH FOR PRACTICE / JUNE 04 

LAW ENFORCEMENT T TRADE 

Wired. For modern law enforcement agencies, computers have many uses beyond their traditional 

laptops that can be moved from place to place or personal computers mounted in the car*—can 

connect officers in the field with computers at their police station, other police stations around the 

puter connections can quickly inform officers, for example, that a suspect they have just arrested 

or a person they have questioned is wanted by other law enforcement agencies and might be 

armed and dangerous. 

Computers can also be used to help police map where certain crimes are occurring, locate crime 

tant tool that allows police to spot patterns, calculate whether a series of similar crimes were committed by the same person or different individuals, and sometimes even prevent crimes or catch 

suspects by increasing patrols in hard-hit areas. By connecting their separate computer systems, 

neighboring small and rural police departments can extend their crime-mapping abilities beyond 

Modem operandi. Computers, especially when combined with other new technologies, can also 

link officers in the field with national databases. Digital imaging fingerprint systems can scan 

arrestees’ fingers electronically instead of using the traditional ink-and-paper method. The results 

base that lets police compare a set of newly taken fingerprints with those already in the system. 

cellular telephones can help officers in the field better apprise their home station of their position 

and situation, and they can enable dispatchers to send more police to a crime scene quickly if neclaw enforcement tools. These systems can help small and rural agencies—especially those with 

sprawling jurisdictions—by enabling officers in the field to pinpoint their precise location. They 

can help individual officers describe more accurately to dispatchers the exact position of a crime 

scene or rescue situation, or they can help police locate the car of officers who have failed to 

Less lethal. 

citizens, and suspects. These include such nonlethal weapon systems as rubber bullets and other ® guns, and grenades that produce a loud bang 

and a bright flash to disorient a suspect. These weapons allow police to better control a crowd, 

defuse a riot, or capture a suspect without seriously injuring or killing anyone. 

puter in the trunk is mounted in the front seat or on the dashboard. 

OOLS OF THE 

administrative, recordkeeping, and report-writing functions. Patrol car-based computers—either 

community, and State and Federal law enforcement agencies. Information obtained via those comhot spots, and identify geographic patterns in criminal behavior. Such crime mapping is an importheir own jurisdictions to see regional patterns and assign officers accordingly. 

can be sent electronically to the FBI’s Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS), a dataAs with computers, modern communications are vital to today’s police work. Portable radios and 

essary. Global positioning and geographic information systems also show great promise as useful 

radio in on time. They can even help find a stolen police car. 

Some technologies, a few of which are not so new, can help save the lives of officers, 

“soft” projectiles, capture nets, stun and TASER

*Computers installed in patrol cars are often called “digital/data systems” or “mobile digital/data computers and terminals.” The 

former are usually mounted between the driver and front passenger. Mobile systems are placed in the car’s trunk because the 

passenger compartment is too small to accommodate the computer. With these systems, a smaller terminal linked to the com4 
SMALL AND RURAL LA W ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 

technologies they are using, 

which technologies they perceive as important to their 

work, what technical competency and training needs exist, 

and what obstacles prevent 

or limit agency access to new 

technology. Of the 384 agencies that received surveys in 

the fall of 2000, 239 (62 percent) responded. 

Technologies in use. Not surprisingly, nearly all the small 

and rural agencies surveyed 

use computers in their work, 

but most use them more for 

administrative support than 

for specific law enforcement 

functions. In fact, a majority 

said they use computers for 

only three law enforcement 

functions: managing records 

such as computerized arrest 

files and telephone calls for 

service (86 percent), accessing the Internet (73 percent), 

and criminal investigations 

(72 percent). In contrast, only 

46 percent reported using 

computers for dispatch purposes, 41 percent for crime 

analysis, and less than onethird for crime mapping, infield communications, and/or 

resource allocation. 

Modern communications systems are more important to 

small and rural agencies than 

computers. More than 97 

percent of the agencies surveyed said they consider communications to be vital to their 

work. Ninety-nine percent 

reported that they often use 

mobile radios, 95 percent 

often use portable radios, and 

82 percent use two-way radios. Nearly 60 percent often 

use cellular telephones. 

On the other hand, less than 

one-third of the agencies 

reported that they maintain 

an official home page on the 

Internet, and less than 

one-fourth of the agencies 

reported that they had computer crime investigation 

capabilities. 

Perception of value. Beyond 

use, the researchers wanted 

to know how important small 

and rural police agencies consider modern technology to be 

to their operations. In addition 

to the high value placed on 

communications equipment, 

the police departments surveyed said that personal computers, video cameras in 

police cars, and mainframe 

computers are important. 

Seventy-two percent said 

that personal computers are 

“very important,” 55 percent 

said the same for video 

cameras in patrol cars, and 

53 percent for mainframe 

computers. 

5 
RESEARCH FOR PRACTICE / JUNE 04 

In most cases, respondents 

rated the importance of technologies at the ends of the 

spectrum—either “not important” or “very important.” 

However, some technologies 

were rated in the middle 

(“somewhat important”), including rubber bullets and stun 

guns, laptop computers, nightvision goggles, surveillance 

video cameras, and stolenvehicle tracking systems. 

Training needs. Most small 

and rural police departments 

gave their officers a low rating 

for their knowledge of and/or 

competence in using new 

technologies. A “no-competence” rating was most often 

associated with less-lethal 

weapons, car-mounted digital/ 

data terminals, digital imaging 

for fingerprints and suspect 

composites, global positioning 

systems, mainframe computers, night-vision goggles, vehicle engine disruption devices, 

and stolen-vehicle tracking 

devices. It should be noted 

that the technologies given 

“no-competence” ratings 

were those perceived as unimportant and not used by 

the agencies. 

Small and rural agencies rated 

their officers as “fully competent” in using two-way, portable, and mobile radios and 

cellular telephones. These are 

the same technologies that 

most of the agencies said 

their officers have access to 

and see as important to their 

work. A smaller number reported that their officers are 

“fully competent” in using 

personal computers (38 percent) and video cameras (36 

percent). As noted above, the 

new technologies that police 

become competent in and 

use are those that agencies 

have available and view as 

important. 

Regarding training needs, the 

surveyed agencies gave more 

varied responses. Most indicated their officers need 

training in the use of such 

technologies as global positioning systems, hand-held 

digital terminals, digital fingerprinting, and less-lethal 

weapons. They also reported 

needing training for devices 

that track stolen vehicles, carmounted digital/data systems, 

and equipment that disrupts a 

vehicle’s engine. Again, these 

are the technologies that most 

small and rural law enforcement agencies do not use, 

do not see as important, and 

do not view their officers as 

being competent to use. 

Fully 82 percent said that 

their police officers do not 

need further training in the use 

of cellular phones or mobile 

6 
SMALL AND RURAL LA W ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 

and portable radios. Most 

said, however, that they do 

need “some training” in the 

use of personal computers. 

Cooperation, barriers, and 

resources. The survey also 

asked about interagency cooperation, barriers to acquiring 

technology, and resources for 

acquiring technology. On the 

subject of cooperation between police departments, 

nearly 65 percent of respondents said they have interagency cooperation with other 

police departments to provide 

technology assistance. Most 

often, these agreements are 

with other local and State law 

enforcement agencies. 

Regarding barriers to obtaining new technologies, more 

than 83 percent cited financial and budget constraints. 

Twenty-six percent said the 

lack of trained personnel and 

limited manpower impedes 

their ability to acquire new 

technology, and nearly 14 

percent pointed to a lack of 

available training. To overcome those barriers, the 

surveyed law enforcement 

agencies most often cited 

taking advantage of State 

and Federal grants and State 

training programs (see “Getting the Tools,” page 9). 

County versus 

municipal agency 

technology use 

Finally, the study looked at 

differences among small and 

rural law enforcement agencies based on whether they 

represented a county or 

municipality. Significant differences were found mostly in 

how county versus municipal 

police departments use computerized data files. Municipal agencies are more likely 

than county agencies to use 

computers for in-field report 

writing and to maintain computerized files for alarms, 

traffic accidents, and traffic 

citations. Conversely, twice 

as many county agencies use 

computerized files for warrants as their municipal counterparts. And, although very 

few county and municipal 

departments reported using 

global positioning systems, 

slightly more municipal agencies use these systems than 

county agencies. 

7 
RESEARCH FOR PRACTICE / JUNE 04 

Technology gap 

Study results suggest that 

rural and small law enforcement agencies nationwide do 

not use most of the technologies included in the survey. 

These agencies tend to use, 

to be competently trained in, 

and to perceive as important 

a variety of communicationsrelated technologies and personal computers. They tend, 

however, not to use, not to be 

trained in, and to be ambiguous about the need for or 

importance of more sophisticated technologies. Clearly, 

these issues will have to be 

addressed systematically for 

small and rural law enforcement agencies to become 

better versed in more sophisticated law enforcement 

technologies. 

Recommended 

reading 

The Justice and Safety Center, 

Eastern Kentucky University, 

“National Assessment of 

Technology and Training for 

Small and Rural Law Enforcement Agencies (NATTS): A 

Descriptive Analysis,” final 

report to the National Institute 

of Justice, December 2002, 

NCJ 198619, available at 

www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/nij/ 

grants/198619.pdf. 

Hickman, N.J., and B.A. 

Reaves, Local Police Departments 2000, Washington, DC: 

U.S. Department of Justice, 

Bureau of Justice Statistics, 

2001, NCJ 196002, available 

at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/ 

abstract/lpd00.htm. 

Weisheit, R.A., D.N. Falcone, 

and L.E. Wells, Crime and 

Policing in Rural and Small 

Town America, Prospect 

Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 

Inc., 1999. 

“Technology: Alaska to the 

Appalachians,” Techbeat 

(Winter 2002), available at 

www.nlectc.org/techbeat/ 

winter2002/AlaskaWinter02. 

pdf. Techbeat is published 

quarterly by the National 

Institute of Justice’s National 

Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center 

(NLECTC). 

NLECTC provides technology 

information and assistance 

to State and local law enforcement agencies through 

five regional centers that 

specialize in specific areas 

of technology research 

and development. See 

www.nlectc.org or call 

1-800-248-2742 for more 

information. 

8 
SMALL AND RURAL LA W ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY 

G TOOLS 

Small and rural law enforcement agencies can get information and 

assistance in determining how technology can help them and how they 

can obtain equipment and training. Grants and buying consortia are 

available to help cash-strapped local law enforcement agencies purchase and install new technologies. The U.S. Department of Defense 

and other Federal agencies, such as the U.S. Forest Service, as well as 

police departments across the Nation often make surplus or outdated 

but still useful equipment available free or at a reduced price. Small and 

rural agencies often can share expensive technologies with neighboring agencies, thus making their purchase feasible for all; or they can 

buy less costly alternatives. Free or low-cost training programs can 

help officers learn how to use computers and other new technologies. 

has a technology funding page* with information on funding availability 

for technology purchases and on surplus property programs. 

ETTING THE 

The National Institute of Justice’s Science and Technology Web site 

*www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/sciencetech/techfunding.htm#equipmentfunding 

9 
The National Institute of Justice is the 

research, development, and evaluation 

agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. 

NIJ provides objective, independent, 

evidence-based knowledge and tools 

to enhance the administration 

of justice and public safety. 

NIJ is a component of the Office of Justice 

Programs, which also includes the Bureau 

of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice 

Statistics, the Office of Juvenile Justice 

and Delinquency Prevention, and the 

Office for Victims of Crime.