5 Ways Athena RMS Modernizes Police Records Management

Police officers lose time to documentation demands — time better spent on critical tasks and caring for their communities. On average, officers spend 2-4 hours per shift on administrative tasks like report writing. But report writing no longer calls for a lengthy visit to an antiquated desk. Remote solutions make it possible to write reports in real-time while in the field without worrying about duplicate entries or digging for data.

Records management systems (RMS) save time and increase efficiency for police departments, fire departments, emergency medical services, and animal control. They are crucial for maintaining accurate and organized documentation of investigations, cases, and other police activities.

Agencies can use the information stored in Athena RMS to provide critical insights for enhancing public safety, analyzing crime trends, and elevating situational awareness. 

From innovative RMS modules to increased field intelligence, here are 5 ways Athena RMS enables exceptional police records management.

1. Centralized Data Storage

Use a centralized location to store all police records and help eliminate outdated, inefficient paper-based filing systems. A consolidated system enables officers to easily access the information they need when they need it. 

Some of the centralized features in Athena RMS include:

• Call-for-Service integration — avoiding duplicate data entry
• Report templates for ease of narrative writing
• Master record files integrated into CAD and Mobile for intel searches
• Robust case preparation and packager
• Browser-based software for easy accessibility to the software 
• Animal Control Module, covering shelters and control services
• K9 Module featuring Training and Call Outs
• Drone Module with FAA and state reporting

In addition to improved data access, agencies benefit from enhanced data security in a centralized data storage environment because the software implements robust security measures (including firewalls, encryption, and access controls) to protect sensitive police data. 

Centralized data allows for greater data consistency, eliminating the inevitability of data duplication and other risks when data is stored across multiple separate systems. Plus, agencies, departments, and responders can reap the benefits of streamlined collaboration with the ability to access the same data simultaneously.

2. Increased Field Intelligence

Athena RMS elevates real-time information access for law enforcement, fire departments, emergency medical services, and animal control, enabling responders to make faster, more informed decisions through heightened situational awareness. 

With its adaptable design, Athena RMS can be utilized by investigators and other responders to gather information about various crimes and incidents. The tool allows for the inclusion of videos, photos, narratives, sound bites, and special events, which are all easily searchable and accessible. 

When officers respond to an incident, they can immediately enter the relevant information into the RMS, allowing responders and other personnel to access that information in real-time. It reduces the lag time between when an incident occurs and when that information becomes available to others in the department, and RMS can be configured to automatically send alerts to other departments when specific events occur, like when a suspect’s criminal record is updated, for example. 

This mobile access enables officers to take immediate action, stay informed of critical developments, receive real-time alerts, and implement on-the-fly planning, regardless of location. 

3. Improved Data Accuracy

Duplicate data entry is a common challenge across police departments when officers and other personnel must enter the same information multiple times into different databases.

One of the most beneficial features of Athena RMS is eliminating dual data entry, as it significantly reduces the time to prepare an incident report, arrest record, or jailing record. 

Plus, it integrates with Athena Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Athena Mobile Data Client (MDC), allowing officers and other personnel to import data across multiple departments and even agencies. Standardized data entry fields also ensure all records are entered accurately and consistently to alleviate duplications. Real-time NIBRS validation helps check for errors and create quality reports to ensure that all entered data is accurate and complete.

All information is stored within one database within a law enforcement agency, leaving little room for error and inconsistencies. This allows responders to delegate more time to patrolling the streets while benefiting from elevating situational awareness in the field.

4. Advanced Module Additions

Athena RMS has three advanced tools that can be easily activated as excellent additions to the RMS software. The Animal Control Module, K9 Module, and Drone Module are all modern components offered to expand specific reporting needs at any agency.

The Animal Control Module 

Athena RMS Animal Control Module has shelter and service features — managing everything about an animal that comes into its system, from physical characteristics to managing adoptions. It also tracks events like bite reports and animal traps while managing lost and found records.

One of the top benefits of the Animal Control Module is that it implements instant reports in RMS, so for bite tracking and other incidents, it can associate to any call for service record. In the Animal Control Module, users can search for animals by breed, chip ID, gender, or history. It tracks specific events, too, so owners can be contacted if there's a chip.

The Athena RMS Animal Control Module is unique in that it can be fully integrated or implemented as a stand-alone function.

The K9 Module 

Athena RMS K9 Module considers K9 officers’ requirements for specialized care and training, keeping track of the well-being of each canine and their corresponding certifications, training, vaccinations, and history.

Through Athena RMS, you can monitor and assign K9 teams, keeping track of the handlers as well. If a dog is ever on the scene, there’s always a link to those RMS reports detailing the K9’s role throughout that particular incident. Plus, if there’s ever a request for public information surrounding a particular K9, it’s easily searchable through the RMS.

The K9 Module enables veterinary visit tracking, too, ensuring the health and safety of every K9 officer. The Module includes detailed monthly breakdowns of Training and Call Outs with detection success metrics, including helpful information such as weather and terrain. You can also add attachments to the Call Out records through the module, including PDFs, photographs, and videos.

The Drone Module

With exponential growth in law enforcement’s drone usage over the last decade, fast adoption has led to unfortunate gaps in reporting and monitoring through RMS tools. Athena RMS Drone Module is simple and easy to use, with a robust check-in and check-out records system. If an agency needs permission to fly near an airport, they have everything they need to submit requested information, either ahead of time or after.

The FAA mandates quarterly reports, and Texas mandates monthly reports, which is why The Drone Module tracks when and how each agency drone is used. You can export any records for FAA and state reporting requirements, all through the RMS. 

With precise location mapping and the ability to attach video and other media files, all drone activity can be linked to incident case numbers.

5. Accurate Analytics and Reporting

Law enforcement agencies must consistently collect and report crime data to the FBI. Athena RMS ensures that all required data elements are collected and properly documented, facilitating the transfer of National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data to the appropriate agencies. 

Athena RMS also has a real-time NIBRS validation check, so you don’t have to rely on the Department of Public Safety (DPS) for quality checks. While Athena RMS still sends accurate, complete, and compliant data to the DPS, with the real-time NIBRS check, you can rest assured anything you submit already complies with NIBRS and TIBRS standards. 

The same data can be used to identify crime trends, track the effectiveness of police department strategies, and inform policy decisions. Athena RMS can help agencies identify patterns and correlations within the data that wouldn’t otherwise be apparent. Plus, due to an evolving society with a growing demand for public information and satisfaction, having sufficient stats and crime reporting is paramount to running an efficient agency. 

Along with the real-time records validation feature, Athena RMS has more than 40 default report templates to make pulling statistical data faster. It saves time and eliminates guesswork when submitting incident data to the state.

Unmatched Companion for Situational Awareness

Athena RMS modernizes police records management by cutting administrative task time, improving efficiency, and enhancing collaboration between police departments, fire departments, and emergency medical services.

With its centralized data storage feature, Athena RMS offers improved security, greater consistency, and streamlined collaboration. Eliminating data duplication and using standardized entry fields help maintain data accuracy across an agency. 

The three advanced modules, the Animal Control Module, K9 Module, and Drone Module, make Athena RMS unique through features like adoption management, K9 history tracking, and real-time drone reporting.

Athena RMS sets a standard for efficient and modern police records management, allowing responders to focus more on critical tasks and the communities' safety. Reach out to our support team for an Athena Records Management System demo or to learn more about our unique module integration.