By Jill Hanning
Enquirer contributor

LEBANON - The police department is getting a technical boost.

With an appropriation from the City Council approved at Tuesday night's meeting, and a grant from the Homeland Security fund, the department's 10 marked squad cars will be updated with new radio consoles and mobile data terminals for quick information retrieval.

Mobile data terminals allow officers to look up information such as vehicle registration and records checks quickly from their squad cars, without having to radio back to the communications officer at the station.

The terminals, which cost between $5,000 and $6,000 each, are connected with LEADS, Ohio's law enforcement automated data system.

"If an officer pulls up behind a car and has a hunch, he can enter the license plate himself," said Police Chief Ken Burns. "It's so accessible, arrests will go up."

The council voted Tuesday to allocate $84,792 to the department. They will receive $74,169 back from the grant.

The Ohio Homeland Security Grant is part of the U.S. Justice Department's $316 million federal program for 2002, to help communities.