West Midlands Police has a clientele that isn't always forthcoming with accurate information. Whenever suspects give fake names or false dates of birth, those inaccuracies could get fed into a system that already faces common errors such as typos or missing information.
Because of these inconsistencies, police officers and staff members were often unable to achieve an accurate, record of individuals in the system – or it would take a long time to identify all relevant records. Officers spent hours trying to run searches and piece together information that might pinpoint trends or help them make decisionson issues such as where suspects might be located, or whether those suspects had the potential to be a serious threat.
West Midlands Police knew the quality of information in its database was not just a matter of inconvenience – it was a safety issue. By correcting and matching criminal records, officers could achieve a more accurate picture of suspects, reducing the risk of harm to members of the public or frontline officers. They could also conduct faster searches, minimizing the time they spent behind computer screens. With those goals in mind, they set out to implement new data management processes.
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