How does having the internet available benefit the police?
Not so much internet, but wireless data connections. We have computers in our cars that connect to state databases to run DL’s, Tags, criminal histories, etc. Some places can talk to other units via the PC’s in their units. It has mainly cut down on time. I can pull someone over and have their tag, DL and criminal history in front of me before I get out of the car, so I will know if they are a felon, have warrants, etc. Back in the day, you had to call it in after obtaining one’s license and then wait, knowing the guy knows he has warrants and possibly escalating the situation. We can diffuse it before it even starts because we usually know more than the person thinks, and we are prepared. Best to know is someone has 2 felony convictions for carrying a handgun than not before walking up to his car at 2am with 3 of his buddies in the car. It helps more than you could ever imagine.
