Raytheon partners with Los Angeles Sheriff's Department on in-vehicle computers

Raytheon Company announced on Nov. 2 that Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD) vehicles equipped with new mobile data computer systems (MDCS) are now rolling out on the streets, protecting residents.

LASD patrol cars, motorcycles, prisoner transport vehicles and SUVs outfitted with the Raytheon-integrated computer systems were being unveiled on Nov. 2 at a news briefing in Los Angeles.

The computer systems will enhance the access of more than 2,400 field units to new public safety technologies. Deputies will now be able to utilize the Sheriff's Data Network, Intranet and other criminal databases from their vehicles with the state-of-the-art mobile data computers. They can also access a variety of law enforcement information, including fingerprint databases, Global Positioning System (GPS)-expedited routing to emergency calls, and other critical resources peace officers need to efficiently serve the public.

Sheriff Lee Baca, whose agency is the largest sheriff's department in the nation with a county population of more than 10 million, said, "Raytheon worked closely with our sheriff's deputies, engineers and technicians to integrate the latest public safety technologies and capabilities into our vehicles. This new mobile data computer system will greatly increase the efficiency of deputies in the field, providing them more knowledge at their fingertips, and enabling them to do more for the public now and in the years ahead."

Daniel Crowley, president of Raytheon Network Centric Systems, said, "Linking the complex hardware and software in the vehicles required a skilled systems integrator like Raytheon. That expertise is what makes our company a leader in the public safety market. As a significant employer in Los Angeles County, Raytheon has a vested interest in improving public safety for the county."

The LASD will have the added benefit of using Raytheon's new Public Safety Regional Technology Center, opening in Downey, CA, this winter, to maximize the capabilities of the system as new technologies become available. This is in addition to Raytheon's laying the foundation for the new UCLA Center for Public Safety Network Systems that will create a collaborative research forum that brings together academia, industry and public safety agencies.

The $19.9 million investment with Raytheon by the LASD and the County of Los Angeles will dramatically upgrade the 1987 mobile digital technology currently in use and is important to the future of public safety for the millions of people living in the greater Los Angeles area, says a Raytheon news release issued on Nov. 2.