RARITAN TOWNSHIP, N.J.-Police in Raritan Township, N.J., have had increased success in apprehending drivers with suspended licenses or other violations using Bell Atlantic Nynex Mobile’s AirBridge Cellular Digital Packet Data service.
Nine patrol cars have been equipped with laptop computers that use the service. Officers have wireless access to real-time information on vehicles and drivers by connecting to the Department of Motor Vehicles, municipal court listings, and state and federal criminal records provided by Cerulean Technology Inc. of Massachusetts.
“Just by typing in the vehicle’s license plate number, our officers can identify the registered owner and determine whether the vehicle has been reported stolen, said the township’s Police Chief, Donald Montross. “The system also identifies citizens driving with revoked and expired driver’s licenses.
“We have an overworked county communications system,” Montross continued. “In the past, our officers called in driver’s license numbers when they stopped a driver, but license plate numbers were never routinely run, because our dispatcher was always so busy.”
