Res Communis

by P.J. Blount with the blog faculty

From GPS Daily:

GPS Tracking Plays Key Role In Arrest Of Armed Robbery Suspect

by Staff Writers
Cary IL (SPX) Aug 26, 2008
A GPS Tracking Key placed in the vehicle of an armed robbery suspect last February in Colusa County, CA, ultimately led to an arrest and conviction.

On the evening of February 26, 2008, at approximately 7:30 p.m., an incident occurred at a Valero gas station at Bridge and Market Streets in Colusa. A man, reported to have been wearing a ski mask and carrying a sawn-off firearm, entered the convenience store portion of the gas station and began threatening the station’s owner.

Just prior to that time, the Tracking Key had detected the arrival of the suspect’s vehicle two blocks away from the crime scene, and recorded the departure of the vehicle shortly thereafter.

At a subsequent stop also recorded by the Tracking Key, DNA evidence was collected; additionally, a deputy search warrant in the city of Colusa and the suspect’s home, revealed a ski mask, gloves and an “imitation firearm,” providing the Colusa County Sheriff’s Department with enough incriminating evidence to make an arrest. The arrest was made on March 6, 2008.

On March 14, 2008, following a string of convenience store robberies, a Colusa County Sheriff contacted LandAirSea Systems Vice President, Steve Moehling, seeking additional information on his company’s product, the GPS Tracking Key.

Police believed that the information stored on the Tracking Key held valuable evidence that would link their suspect to the number of armed robbery incidents that had taken place over the past several weeks.

After extensively reviewing the data file, including second by second raw data, Moehling informed the Colusa County Sheriff’s Office that the Tracking Key was, in his opinion, a fully functional unit. Police arrested the suspect and a trial date was set for June.

Early that month, Moehling was given a subpoena to appear in late July as an expert witness.

The date was pushed back to August 12th and on the following day, Moehling testified, giving validation to the accuracy of the GPS Tracking Key.

Detective work combined with evidence produced by DNA testing and GPS tracking culminated in the arrest and conviction of a man guilty of at least four attacks on small stores since the beginning of this year.