12.12.09
Editorial: Better way

Online reporting would help pawn shops, police crack down on thieves
www.dispatch.com
For three months, about three dozen Columbus pawnshops and other second-hand stores voluntarily tested an online system for reporting their daily purchases to the Columbus Division of Police. The results are encouraging, and this should become a permanent city program.

The Web-based reporting system, called Leads on Line, is made by the same Texas company that created a program for Columbus' scrap-metal dealers more than two years ago. The scrap yards record details about their daily purchases online and submit them to police. The records are searchable. The system has proved its worth: Columbus police have recovered millions of dollars in stolen materials and made numerous arrests. The program has helped them track crime patterns in a way that wasn't possible before.

Likewise, pawnbrokers and other secondhand dealers would report their purchases to police. The system provides some perks for store owners, including accounting and inventory tools. The only barrier to entry would be if a shop doesn't have a computer.

Over the 90-day trial, the software helped police recover more than $300,000 in stolen property. Lev's, with 11 stores in the Columbus area, was a volunteer. So was Game Stop, a major seller of new and used video games and equipment.

On Monday, Columbus City Councilman Andrew J. Ginther plans to introduce legislation to adopt Leads on Line permanently for pawnshops. The cost for three years, $48,000, will come from money seized in drug cases.

Ginther is to be commended for working with detectives and business owners on the project. The program would simplify the work of police and help city residents who are victims of crime.

Pawn industry representatives have little reason to complain: They already are required by law to report the information about the items they buy. Using a computer, which is voluntary, should make the process simpler than filling out and submitting paperwork.

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