Iowa Prisons Take Part In Anti-Gang Project
Iowa’s prison system will use “data mining” software to monitor inmates participating in prison threat groups, according to Larry Brimeyer of the Iowa Department of Corrections. The National Institute of Justice is sponsoring the anti-gang project, which uses software to evaluate inmate-related information, including criminal histories, participation in treatment programs, and visiting lists, stored in the Iowa’s Department of Corrections’ computer system.
Brimeyer notes that examining the visiting lists could be particularly helpful in discovering visitors that act as liaisons for inmates held in different institutions.
Brimeyer estimates that nearly 500 of the roughly 8,600 inmates held in Iowa prisons are gang members.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Associated Press (03/06/04) .