SIERRA VISTA, ARIZ. (KGUN) — Law enforcement agencies in Cochise County are getting iris scanners, and all departments will be using the same technology.
The scanners work like binoculars, held up to a person's face until the scan is complete. Within seconds, the system returns an identification. The database already contains 5 million names and is used by federal and local agencies across the country.
Cochise County Sheriff Mark Dannels said the technology has already been in use inside county jails and that putting it in the hands of road deputies will help officers identify people who may be using a fake name or who have warrants.
"You can get rid of a fingerprint, but it's hard to get rid of your iris scan unless you want to pop your eyeball out," Dannels said.
Dannels said the border location of Cochise County makes identity verification a persistent challenge.
"It's amazing how many aliases people have. Somebody in New York committing crimes comes down here, changes their names, changes their identity, their looks, but we can pop them. You can't change your eyeball, and that's what's great about it," Dannels said.
Dannels said the speed of the technology makes it a practical tool for deputies in the field.
"Within seconds, we have who this person is. So it's just new technology. It's modernized policing using the best technology out there right now," Dannels said.
Dannels said the technology is especially valuable in a border community where people frequently cannot produce identification.
"We got to be smarter than the criminal element. They're getting smarter. You look at the cartels, especially here on the border. They got billions of dollars supporting their cause, we got to be better than those that are violating our citizens," Dannels said.
Dannels said the equipment itself was provided at no cost to the county, and the company behind the technology has committed to not selling the data. There is an annual fee of about a couple thousand dollars. Dannels also said Homeland Security is looking to use the technology as well.
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Alexis Ramanjulu is a reporter in Cochise County for KGUN 9. She began her journalism career reporting for the Herald/Review in Sierra Vista, which she also calls home. Share your story ideas with Alexis by emailing alexis.ramanjulu@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook.
