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Finley is president and CEO of
l.e.a.d.s.online. The online venture pulls information from pawn
shops and second-hand stores across the country into nationwide
databases that help law enforcement track property involved in
crimes. The company was launched in 2000. He was interviewed by
Staff Writer Cynthia D. Webb.
Q: Are private sector/public
partnerships growing, and if so, why?
A: Law enforcement agencies are leveraging the information in
their own communities to do a better job. If they can partner
with online auctions, pawn shops or second-hand stores, they
will have better success when investigating crimes. Community
policing helps law enforcement leverage their limited resources
with new sources of information.
Q: Why should a police department pay for information they
could gather themselves?
A: Government agencies don’t create everything on their own.
They don’t build their own police cars or sew their own
uniforms. Before, officers had to physically collect transaction
tickets from the stores, then wait for the information to be
input into the law enforcement agency’s database. They have to
pay someone to collect and process information. Our system is
more efficient and costs less. What we provide is the difference
between buying the ingredients for a meal and buying dinner at a
restaurant.
Q: What will you do to grow a company that offers such a
unique service to such a limited clientele?
A: We’ve effectively doubled every since 2000. Law enforcement
agencies have too few people and resources that are spread too
thin. There are close to 13,000 pawn shops, 5,000 auction
drop-off stores and thousands of music and sports stores in the
United States, and currently we are working with 2,500. We are
working with 455 law enforcement agencies now, and there are
12,000 across the country.
cwebb@bizjournals.com
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