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| Policing and Crime Prevention |
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After years of reluctance, the New York Police Department has begun to videotape the interrogations of some of its suspects. The program is being piloted in two of the department’s precincts and only in cases of felony assaults. While the leadership of the police department and the state bar association support the measure, the detectives union warns that videotaping suspects may ultimately curb conviction rates.
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| Emergency Management |
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In an emergency, officials in Florida’s Miami-Dade County can assign disaster response roles through the use a software application that maps where its employees reside and work, their job titles, languages spoken, and any special skills they possess. Employees not essential to the operations of their respective departments are required to assist in this response. Officials say the tool helps them deploy resources effectively.
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| Corrections, Probation, and Parole |
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Project GRIP, the Gang Re-Entry Initiative Program, modeled after “drug court” programs, is a novel federal court program designed to keep felons from returning to gangs after their release from prison. With the involvement of court officers, public defenders, prosecutors, probation workers, the Bureau of Prisons, and law enforcement, Project GRIP has helped former gang members avoid more prison time and come off supervised release earlier. The program has saved thousands of dollars in administration and potential incarceration costs.
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| Juvenile Justice |
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Under the Juvenile Court Infant Toddler Initiative program, some North Carolina courts will intervene on behalf of children three and younger whose parents have lost custody to reduce the risk of abuse and neglect. The children will undergo a regimen of developmental, social, medical, and educational evaluations. In addition, a system of care will be designed that will include increased access to services and decreased time in foster care. The program, free to those it serves, is modeled after a similar program in Miami.
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| Environmental Education |
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The University of Iowa is developing a new system that produces high-resolution flood maps to provide individuals, businesses, and cities with better information about flood risks. The maps let users see where floodwaters will flow under different scenarios, providing them with data to better prepare themselves for emergent floods and evacuate, if needed. The state of Iowa has underwritten the project.
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| Corrections, Probation, and Parole |
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The Cook County Jail now uses full-body scanners to detect drugs, weapons, or other contraband on detainees in seconds. The scanners allow correction officials to avoid strip searches, improving the security for both inmates and officers alike. Officials argue that the scanners, deployed partly in response to successful lawsuits against incidences of strip searches, provide prisoners with more privacy.
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| Policing and Crime Prevention |
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In Volusia County, Florida, volunteer citizens on patrol will be empowered to issue tickets to illegally parked drivers after the completion of a 16-hour course. With the assistance of these participants, the Citizen Observer Program will allow officers to focus on more serious crime. While some residents question the delegation of this authority to civilians, those needing access to handicap spots, for example, hope the program will help deter parking violators.
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Management Insights
A Governing.com Series |
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What does Obama's performance agenda mean for your budget? The author examines the implications of program performance measurement for state and local governments.
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| Progressive? Not Anymore. |
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In the Wall Street Journal, BFC contributor Stephen Goldsmith outlines how the legacy rules of the Progressive Era are crippling government operations, although they were originally motivated by a concern for the common man.
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| Designing for Success |
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Lawmakers can avoid costly and politically embarrassing boondoggles while devoting scarce funds to their most promising new programs by using the authors’ Design for Success tools.
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| The IT Gap |
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Innovation potential exists when technologies outstrip management's ability to put them to good use. It is our understanding of how to use it that is the limiting factor.
Newsletter produced by: Jessica Engelman, editor; Brendan St. Amant, researcher and writer.
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About the Ash Center
The Roy and Lila Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation advances excellence in governance and strengthens democratic institutions worldwide. Through its research, education, international programs, and government innovations awards, the Center fosters creative and effective problem solving and serves as a catalyst for addressing many of the most pressing needs of the world's citizens. The Ford Foundation is a founding donor of the Center. Additional information about the Ash Center is available at http://ash.harvard.edu.
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