Graphical Visualization Tools

There has been some very interesting work posted recently at Wolfram Research on graphical presentation of complex relationships.  Everyday courts are faced with complex relationships such as those between family members as well as legal precident and cases.  The Wolfram demonstrations show how these kinds of relationships might be displayed graphically to show both the whole and details of the issue.  But it is difficult to explain how this works without seeing the demonstrations.  The first demonstration, Geneology Graphs from XML allows for several different views of the descendants of first US President, George Washington.  The demonstration can be found at: http://demonstrations.wolfram.com/GenealogyGraphsFromXML/

A second demonstration, shows graphically how common law legal cases cite one another can be viewed at:

http://demonstrations.wolfram.com/SyntheticLegalPrecedentStructuresLevyFlight/

This exciting and interesting work deserves attention from the court community.

In order to interact with the demonstrations you will need to download and install the free Wolfram Mathematica Player 7.  You may have to ask your system manager to allow you to do this if your PC is locked.

NIEM 2.1

The July 2009 edition of the NIEM Newsletter contains an important article regarding the next release of the National Information Exchange Model NIEM designated as version 2.1.  The article states that the "release candidate is expected to be released for public review and comment late this summer" with the final production release slated for debut in late September at the National NIEM Training Event.  The Training Event is scheduled for Baltimore, Maryland from September 30 to October 2, 2009. The article also notes that this version includes an improvement on the structure for an offense in the Justice domain" as well as harmonization that has reduced many overlapping or duplicate data elements between domains and complete element definitions.

Paper Has A Fingerprint

Earlier this year the Princeton University Center for Information Technology Policy published a paper titled - Fingerprinting Blank Paper Using Commodity Scanners.  In other words, paper has a unique fingerprint that can be used to validate vital records such as birth and death certificates.  This technology potentially provides another opportunity to reduce identity crimes due to counterfeit paper documents.

The abstract of the paper states:

This paper presents a novel technique for authenticating physical documents based on random, naturally occurring imperfections in paper texture. We introduce a new method for measuring the three-dimensional surface of a page using only a commodity scanner and without modifying the document in any way. From this physical feature, we generate a concise fingerprint that uniquely identifies the document. Our technique is secure against counterfeiting and robust to harsh handling; it can be used even before any content is printed on a page. It has a wide range of applications, including detecting forged currency and tickets, authenticating passports, and halting counterfeit goods. Document identification could also be applied maliciously to de-anonymize printed surveys and to compromise the secrecy of paper ballots.

E-Ink Devices Growing Larger

Court technologists are watching with interest the introduction of the larger format Kindle DX device from Amazon.com for $489.  The new larger screen DX model sports a 2.5 larger display than the original Kindle models.  In addition, the new system has improved PDF document support.  A couple of interesting reviews were posted on the Wired.com and Engaget with video websites.

Pinellas County Florida releases RFP

Pinellas County, Florida  has released Request for Proposal RFP 089-0408-PJL for the purchase of a Consolidated Justice Case Management System.  A copy of this RFP can be obtained by visiting the Pinellas County Government website http://www.pinellascounty.org/purchase.  On the left side of the page, please click on Current Bids, and then scroll until you find the Consolidated Justice Case Management System RFP.  Questions pertaining to this RFP can be submitted via email to: jlauro@pinellascounty.org.

King County Electronic Court Records System Video

A very nice video showing the King County Electronic Court Records system was posted in early 2009 by the Harvard University Ash Institute on YouTube.  Some great folks from their court including Barbara Miner and Roger Winters are interviewed along with many judges discussing the challenges and benefits of the system

US Federal Courts Look to the Future

The May, 2009 edition of the US Federal Courts The Third Branch newsletter contains an article titled: Looking for the Next Generation of the CM/ECF System.  The article begins:

Over the past decade the federal Judiciary’s Case Management/Electronic Case Files CM/ECF system has dramatically streamlined and simplified federal court case filing, management, and access. Now, a group of federal judges and court staff is thinking about the future of that system and asking: “If we could change CM/ECF in any way, what would we want the Next Generation system to look like?

As the most successful implementation of a combined court case and document management system in the country, courts everywhere will all be interested in their plans.

Technology Projects Gone Wrong

Technology projects face all manner of difficulties.  Recently, Baseline magazine published an excellent article on Projects Gone Wrong.  We in the courts can learn from these troubled and failed projects both in government and by the private sector.

State Legislatures Budget Map

The National Conference of State Legislatures has posted an excellent interactive map of the budget gap experiences as a result of the economic downturn on the various states.  They have also linked a web page on the issue.

New IJIS Blog

A good friend of the NCSC, Mr. Paul Wormeli who is the Executive Director of the IJIS Institute has started a new blog on innovative information technologies and how they apply to justice information sharing and related topics.  He states in his introductory e-mail that:

"We are engaged as a nation in such a radical transformation of the role of IT in government that we need a place to provoke discussion and dialog about how information technology can be used to create useful social outcomes, particularly as it applies to the fields of justice, public safety and homeland security. We also need to ponder how innovative new information technologies, particularly those that might be classed as disruptive, can be explained and presented to the stakeholders in government and industry and therefore applied to practical purpose."