Issue link: http://lawandordermag.epubxp.com/i/144260
FOCUS CODY Systems & WDFW SUMMARY The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is blending "anywhere" RMS access with cross system interoperability to achieve total data awareness statewide. MORE INFORMATION www.codysystems.com Officer Chris Zuchlewski TRANSFORMING DATA INTO INFORMATION FOR EFFECTIVE LAW ENFORCEMENT By Myles Tillotson W hen he's asked what the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Law Enforcement Program wanted most from its new records management and data interoperability system when it went live in 2010, Chief Bruce Bjork's concise reply is: "good data." That meant getting at data locked in standalone databases, as well as information previously captured on hardcopy forms – or not captured at all. Unlike most law enforcement professionals, conservation offcers often work alone in remote areas and in the constant presence of lethal weapons (and those with the permits to use them). With dual respon- 20 LAW and ORDER I July 2013 sibility for enforcing criminal and conservation laws, the need for instant access to cross-system information to quickly assess a situation and the people involved in it was paramount. To help make this happen, WDFW needed a partner that knows data and could approach the solution from a holistic data integration perspective, rather than simply as a packaged RMS installation. CODY Systems, based in Pottstown, Penn., was the logical choice. The CODY team brought solid state-level experience in both RMS software and integrating disparate data from multiple sources via their COBRA.net platform, as well as expertise in transforming it into actionable information for public safety and regulatory enforcement. That experience and expertise has also helped WDFW eliminate reliance on standalone legacy systems and databases and reduce associated maintenance costs. Now operational statewide for two years, the new