BackgroundTo some extent, law enforcement has always relied on the crowd for help -- take the "Wanted, Dead or Alive" posters which papered every town in the Wild West. As mediums of communication changed, so did the the calls for public help. We went from "wanted" posters to "America's Most Wanted," hosted by John Walsh. (The show's viewers are responsible for the capture of 918 fugitives, to date--pretty effective crowdsourcing). Now law enforcement has a new tool of communication, the Internet. We want to find out how the Net is being used to crowdsource the identification and conviction of criminals. One site which has gotten some attention is called Perverted Justice, which targets pedophiles. "Welcome to Convictiontown," the site proudly announces.
Not bad, eh? Shows good progress. Well, 2007 is already shaping up to destroy the previous years... perhaps combined? The first 53 days of 2007 have seen 40 convictions logged into the website. That's right, in less than two months of 2007, we have logged more convictions than for all of the year 2005. We want to find out all about this project, and other ones like it. Let's go even deeper, though, and see what critics and supporters have to say about these groups and their impact on law enforcement, ethically and otherwise. Discuss
Team ReportingWant to contribute? Find an assignment on the right and use the "report here" tab. If you have more questions, check out our FAQ.Want to contribute? Find an assignment on the right and use the "report here" tab. If you have more questions, check out our FAQ. |
