ORDER OF COUNCILLOR JOHN M. TOBIN, JR.

WHEREAS: The amount of personal property that is stolen in Boston cannot be thoroughly traced by the Boston Police Department (BPD) because of limited manpower, resources, and information; and

WHEREAS: Pawn shops are one of the locations where stolen goods could be discovered; and

WHEREAS: The BPD must rely on pawn shops’ record keeping when searching for stolen goods; and

WHEREAS: Local law enforcement would benefit from the use of an automated system that is easily searched and continually updated with the current inventory of the city’s pawn shops; and

WHEREAS: Numerous cities and states around the country, such as California, Minnesota, Florida, and Washington, DC, have successfully adopted automated systems that provide open channels of communication between the police and pawn shops, and

WHEREAS: States and cities that have implemented automated tracking systems for stolen goods have seen an increase in the recovery of stolen property; Therefore Be It

ORDERED: That the appropriate committee of the Boston City Council conduct a public hearing to consider the possibility of the BPD adopting an electronic system to allow the inventory of the city’s pawn shops to be easily accessed and searched by the police.

Filed in Boston City Council: Wednesday, August 29, 2007.