Once you get this information, you can ask the police what they're doing to combat this. Last month, Chicago police launched a Web site that allows the public instant access to crime information. The whole idea is to identify problems and think of ways to cooperatively solve them. The police really do want citizens to be involved. Anyone with access to the Internet can call up the site, type in an address, intersection or police beat, and instantly get information dating back 90 days.
Reports are a week old.
For those who want more information, crimes can be listed in a chart with their case numbers, block of occurrence and whether an arrest has been made. Specific addresses and names of victims are not included. Getting people involved Within days of its debut, the system was overloaded. In the first two weeks, police say, there were more than 210,000 hits on the site, causing the department to expand its computer server capacity. Police are hoping residents use the site for more than satisfying their curiosity.