Video Conferencing May Be A Lifesaver

Courthouses turn to video conferencing after Atlanta rampage.

By Harold German

American Police Beat

5/1/05

In the wake of the tragic shootings that took place in an Atlanta courthouse last month, there will be enormous pressure to enhance courtroom security.

Most counties are addressing the issue through technology—in particular video conferencing.

Already in use by legal systems throughout the world, video conferencing is revolutionizing the way criminal cases are tried.

By simply installing one video conferencing system at the courthouse and another at the jail, incarcerated defendants can participate in all legal procedures without the municipality enduring the costs and dangers associated with jail-to-courthouse prisoner transport.

The monetary savings become clear when one considers the costly resources that need to be allocated when transporting dangerous defendants, such as armed law enforcement officers, a vehicle, courthouse security, gasoline, and tolls, to name a few.

Depending on the distance of the courthouse to the jail, these costs can sometimes reach into the thousands, even for just one trip. Over the course of a year, the result is a hefty bill that video conferencing aims to eliminate.

In October of 2003, the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance, at the request of the Badger State Sheriff’s Association, which represents sheriff, departments in various Wisconsin counties, initiated a study into the possible time and cost-saving benefits of video conferencing. The study revealed a savings of about $2.7 million if all counties used the technology. That data, along with the obvious security benefits, was enough for Wisconsin’s Green County to move ‘full speed ahead’ with video conferencing.

Like many courthouses, Green County’s proposed video conferencing system had been in the planning stages for quite some time. The incident in Atlanta proved to be the spark needed to move the project forward. In an interview with Brian Gray of The Monroe Times, Green County Circuit Court Judge James Beer said, “video conferencing is the wave of future. It shows the court is moving into the 21st century.”

The equipment will also enable doctors to appear at mental health proceedings and people who are serving time in prison to appear remotely.

Video conferencing in the courtroom also has other uses. In Pennsylvania’s Montgomery County, large police departments such as Abington, with 92 officers, use the technology not only to handle on-camera arraignments for smaller departments in the county, but also to digitally process and transmit photographs and fingerprints into criminal databases.

Harold German is the Director of Marketing for IVCi. His articles and commentaries have appeared in numerous publications, including The Economist.

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