The state has signed a $14.2 million contract with Affiliated Computer Services Inc. to create a system that will allow the sharing of information across nearly a dozen criminal justice agencies in Connecticut, the governor's office announced Tuesday.
After the 2007 Cheshire triple murder, police, prosecutors and parole officials told lawmakers that the state needed a computer network that allows agencies to track offenders through the system. The concept became the centerpiece of the $24-million-a-year justice reform laws of 2008, but until recently money was not allocated to start paying for the network.
In a statement Tuesday, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said: "While I was amazed to see how little had been done to implement this system earlier this year when I assumed office, I'm glad the state is finally on track to make this become a reality and I remain committed to its completion being one of my highest priorities."
The new Criminal Justice Information System, his office said, will be "the first unified information sharing system for all of these users and systems, allowing the instant sharing of everything from audio, video, graphic, and text files." The state's criminal justice community, the statement said, comprises 11 agencies with more than 23,000 staff members and 52 information systems.