Remarks by the Honorable James K. Stewart, Director of the National Institute of Justice, to the Technology Assessment Program Advisory Council at Herndon, Virginia on May 6, 1988

• NCJ Number: 114005
• Author(s): J K Stewart
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 11 pages
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Presentation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The director of the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) discusses the NIJ technology assessment program, a program funded by NIJ for the last 17 years.

Abstract

The technology assessment program helps law enforcement agencies select police equipment by pre-testing that equipment for safety and effectiveness. Each year, law enforcement agencies in the United States spend more than $1 billion in equipment. They must be confident that the equipment works properly. They must also protect themselves from false advertising or corrupt business practices. The technology assessment program tests police equipment such as squad cars and revolvers. The standards of the program are stringent, and law enforcement officers rely on the determinations of the program. In the future, the technology assessment program must not only test equipment but it must find new uses for research findings, such as a non-lethal replacement for the revolver. Law enforcement officials concerned about new technology must lobby for funds to support this program.