Quantifying and Ranking Quality for Acquired Recordings on Digital Video Recorders

As the closed-circuit television (CCTV) security industry transitioned from analog media to digital video recorders (DVRs) with digital storage, the law enforcement community struggled with the means with which to collect the recordings. New guidelines needed to be established to determine the collection method which would be efficient as well as provide the best quality evidence from live DVRs. A test design was developed to measure, quantify, and rank the quality of acquisition methods used on live systems from DVRs typically used in digital CCTV systems. The purpose was to determine guidelines for acquiring the best quality video for investigative purposes. A test pattern which provided multiple quantifiable metrics for comparison between the methods of acquisition was used. The methods of acquisition included direct data download of the proprietary file and open file format as well as recording the video playback from the DVR via the available display monitor connections including the composite video, Video Graphics Array (VGA), and high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI). While some acquisition methods may provide the best quality evidence, other methods of acquisition are not to be discounted depending on the situation and need for efficiency. As an investigator that needs to retrieve video evidence from live digital CCTV systems, the proprietary file format, overall, provides the best quality evidence. However, depending on the circumstance and as recording technology continues to evolve, options other than the proprietary file format may provide quality that is equal to or greater than the proprietary file format.     

Jennifer Pan,Welfare for Autocrats: How Social Assistance in China Cares for its Rulers

Journal of Chinese Political Science -     

Youth Gangs: A 1990s Perspective

The juvenile gang in the 1990s differs in many significant ways from the gangs described in the “classical” gang studies of the 1950s and 1960s. Juvenile justice professionals should be aware of the changes in the nature, organization, motivation, and activities of gangs and plan intervention strategies accordingly. One important issue in gang research—one which has great implications for public policy—is defining “gang” and “gang-related crime.” The existence of a “gang problem” in a community may be more related to the definition of “gang” and “gang-related” than to the objective issue of whether, or not, a gang problem exists. Further issues relating to the gang of the 1990s involve changing age and sex distribution of gang members, increasing violence by gangs, and deeper involvement with drug distribution. Implications for public policy are discussed.