Redmond police to offer online crime mapping

Redmond residents and others who want to see where some types of crimes are happening in the city are getting a new online tool to do that this week, in a partnership police say will be free for use by both the city and the public.

The department will “go live” Wednesday with RAIDS Online
http://www.raidsonline.com/, an online crime-mapping website, said Sgt. Curtis Chambers.

Chambers said the partnership with RAIDS Online enables those in the city “to be more aware of crime in their city and neighborhoods by keeping them better informed.”

Redmond police is the first law enforcement agency in Oregon to partner with RAIDS Online, Chambers said.

The city shares some crime types and locations with RAIDS Online. The information is then plotted on a map of the city, so the the public can “see” where a crime occurred in relation to their home, business or school.

The information that is now shared through RAIDS Online goes beyond the standard police blotter and old “media logs” which so many in Redmond and Central Oregon have missed since Deschutes County law enforcement agencies transitioned to a new records management system.

People in and around Redmond can sign up through the RAIDS Online website to receive automated daily, weekly or monthly email alerts about reported crimes within a certain distance of home, business or school.

The Redmond Police Department intends to upload data to RAIDS Online twice daily (working days), therefore, making this information more easily obtainable, timely and relevant, Chambers said.

In addition to mapping crimes, RAIDS Online offers the ability to review crime trends in various graph form. Included is a “heat map” to show the public when crime is occurring.

The types of crimes displayed can be selected by each individual user. But not all crime types will be shared with the public, in order to keep certain crime victims’ privacy guaranteed, Chambers said.

Homicide, attempted homicide, death investigations, rape/sexual assault and certain other sex offenses will not be shared with RAIDS Online.

Also, he said, the exact address of other types of crime activities will be set to the address block, not the individual address, for similar privacy reasons.

Information about homicides, attempted homicides and sex crimes will be shared with the public and media on an as-needed basis through traditional press releases.

Chambers said in a news release, “The Redmond Police Department recognizes the importance of the keeping the populace and media informed about crime and police activity and how the transition to a new records system impaired the public’s ability to receive this information in a manner in which they have grown accustomed to.”

“It is the hope of the Redmond Police Department, through this partnership with RAIDS Online, we can once again provide the information the public and media desires in a manner that far exceeds the way this was done in the past,” he said.

Best of all, Chambers said: This information is provided free to the public and media and there is no charge for the Redmond Police Department to provide this service to the public.

“This information is critical to public safety and we believe in providing this service in a cost-effective manner,” Chambers said. “We believe RAIDS Online best provides the combination of our goals.”

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