Using GPS tracking features in a cell phone, police have been able to foil a crime in progress.

In one instance, a victim called 911 and left the phone on while the perpetrator didn’t realize it was on. The police officers activated the emergency tracking system on the phone and then located the car and arrested the perpetrator.

The government mandated enhanced 911 capabilities on all cell phones after September 11, 2001. Police use cell phones and vehicle tracking systems in many cases for missing persons, drug trafficking and stolen property.

State courts are arguing if a warrant is needed when concealing a tracking system in a suspect’s car.

When Cory Pulsipher began working in law enforcement over 20 years ago in Washington  County, Utah, the main channel of communication  for police and sheriffs was the two-way radio. Because of the area’s mountainous terrain, there were numerous “dead” spots – remote locations  outside of signal range where oficers could not communicate with central dispatch or call for  backup. Cellular telephones have changed communication  significantly for law enforcement officers like  Pulsipher. Today, Washington County Sheriffs  routinely rely on cell phones for critical  communications and everyday operations. Weak signals and dropped calls can easily be perilous for police, fire and rescue workers.

An effective means of improving cellular communications for police and other emergency services personnel is to use products that enhance cellular service. Many law enforcement agencies use Wilson Electronics amplifiers to extend service into remote locations, to improve the quality of voice and data communications, and to reduce the number of dropped calls for critical communication.

Members of both the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Washington County Search and Rescue Team worked tirelessly throughout a recent Saturday night to rescue two stranded hikers. Bob Hatter and Suzanne Lawrence were lost on Canaan Mountain (near Zion National Park) for several hours before rescuers were able to bring them to safety. Jeff Bailey with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office said, “We knew they were low on water and we would need to get to them soon.” The search and rescue team brought their mobile command center to a valley that is known to most local cell phone users as a “no service” area. The command center is equipped with Wilson antennas and amplifiers that improve cellular communications. With this equipment they were able to establish and maintain communication with the lost hikers.  Rich Caulield, a member of the Washington County Search and Rescue Team, said that because of the precarious terrain and the time of night, the crew was forced to wait until sunrise to make it to the lost hikers. “We remained in contact with the hikers by cell phone throughout the night to make sure they were doing alright,” he said. Staying in touch with rescue workers via cell phone made all the difference for Hatter and Lawrence. Knowing that someone was coming to rescue them was enough to keep them going. “We were just so relieved to see the rescuers coming up the mountain towards us,” Hatter said. “You have no idea the gratitude you feel, until you are in a situation like this.”

Dan Kreynest, the Mobile Systems Administrator for the department said, “when we upgraded the patrol leet over a year ago we promised our officers better data throughput and more stable wireless connections, but we didn’t deliver on that promise completely until we installed the amplifiers and antennas”. Kreynest documented the signal strength at 300 locations throughout St. Louis and found that even with a reliable carrier and quality hardware, the city has dead zones and weak signal areas.  “The way our patrol leet rotates throughout the city, it just made sense to install the amplifiers and antennas in all of the vehicles,” said Kreynest.

Increasingly, law enforcement officers are using  mobile data communications systems that provide real-time data management and reporting to police in squad cars in the field. Typically, patrol officers use laptop computer systems to receive dispatch assignments, search records for criminal histories, verify license plates, and enter incident reports and trafic citations. Using wireless air cards to receive and transmit cellular signals, these laptop computers can help police and sheriffs perform better and to make better use of their time in the field. When they can’t get a clear connection, however, using the mobile data communications systems can be frustrating and time-consuming. The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department has approximately 270 Wilson Electronics cellular enhancing systems in vehicles and one in-building system.

In addition to the challenges faced by officers working in the field, those working inside police stations and law enforcement office buildings have issues that affect their ability to get and maintain reliable cellular signals.  In St. Louis, for example, Kreynest configures his mobile units in a steel-lined room that once housed a test firing range.  “It had minimal signal reception before we installed the amplifier and antenna,” he said.  “Now it has five bars all the time.” Steel and concrete buildings are ot unusual in law enforcement, but in the county sheriff’s offices that are located in the same buildings as the county jails, for example, extra steel reinforcements are even more common because of the security requirements.  In buildings like this, Wilson equipment can make all the difference.

The office adjacent to the Purgatory Jail in Washington County, Utah, where Cory Pulsipher has worked for many years, is equipped with amplifiers and antennas that boost cellular performance for virtually everyone who works there.  “We didn’t realize how spoiled we were until we built the new building,” said Pulsipher, referring to a new office building nearby that will house the sheriff’s offices along with the Utah Highway Patrol and the Adult Probation Officers in the region.  “Toward the end of construction it was clear how much weaker the signal was and how different the cellular performance was in the new building,” he said.  “We are getting the Wilson equipment installed now because we don’t want to operate without it.”