New data center aids cops on the street

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Albuquerque police on Friday officially opened a new resource to help its officers and the people they protect.

Here's how the Real Time Crime Center works:  When someone makes calls 911 about an emergency and can name the person involved, officers in the center will be able to search databases for that name almost instantly.

The system will pull up any mental health issues, restraining orders or criminal history of that person and send the information directly to officers' cell phones.

"This will work; this works very, very well," Detective Nicholas Sanders said.  "It well help officers and help the public and change how policing is done."

The cost of the two-year project was $800,000 in city money and federal grants.  The center is located in a renovated wing of the Albuquerque Police Department headquarters downtown.