Ontario Police Department uses Visionics IBIS Mobile Identification System

JANUARY 14--In the first two months of operation of the IBIS mobile identification system (Visionics Corp.; Jersey City, NJ, and Minnetonka, MN; www.visionics.com) at the Ontario, CA, Police Department, more than 490 transactions were completed and 15 individuals with outstanding warrants were identified. The average response time from the field was 2.5 minutes. Police chief Lloyd Scharf commented, "Given the success in identifying subjects with outstanding warrants in real time, in only three months we have managed to see the positive effect that IBIS offers law enforcement. We continue to be highly enthusiastic by the performance of the system and the impact it has on our department's ability to maintain law and order and enhance public safety."

At the cornerstone of IBIS is a hand-held portable device, called a Remote Data Terminal (RDT), which captures photographs, forensic-quality fingerprint images, and magnetic stripe data. The data are then transmitted wirelessly to a laptop in the squad car and to the central IBIS server via the police radio communication system or cellular communications. At the IBIS server, the data are processed and transferred to one or more AFIS databases--in this case, the AFIS is provided by Cogent Systems. If a fingerprint match exists, identification information is transferred back to the RDT. If there is no match, the fingerprint and photo files are discarded from the system.

Ontario, CA, is the first municipality to activate the IBIS system under a National Institute of Justice grant. IBIS is also being deployed under the grant in Hennepin County, MN, and the City of Redlands, CA.