Local, county, and state officials announce the new Albany Crime Analysis Center where information about crimes and suspects can be shared easier than ever. Our Steve Ference reports.

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ALBANY, N.Y. -- Above Albany City Court, 14 employees - including six analysts - pore over the latest crime data.

Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings said, "Today there's no reason we can't enhance how we go after crime and be more proactive."

Local officials say the Albany Crime Analysis Center will use cutting-edge technology to pick up on crime trends and stop criminals sooner than they could have before.

Albany Crime Analysis Center Director John Riegert said, "This is the next step using technology. We're now able to in real time get information back to officers on the street, our detectives, and administrators across the county."

The center uses crime heat maps and other tools to put numbers to what otherwise might seem like random crimes. But the million dollar facility also brings together various agencies to communicate more efficiently.

Albany County Executive Mike Breslin said, "It means what used to be gaps in information, or perceived gaps of information, many times weren't. The information was there; it just wasn't being shared."

Albany Police Chief Steven Krokoff said, "It allows us to work smarter and deploy our resources in an appropriate way."

Leaders say it's more than local information sharing. The State Division of Criminal Justice Services said city police and the sheriff's department can also work with others across the state in what's become a network of crime analysis centers in Syracuse, Buffalo, and Rochester.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares said, "If you reduce or get rid of some of these organizations or criminals in Albany County, these folks are less inclined to travel to other places that our roadways lead to."

They say bringing together information from license plate readers, crime maps and photos of suspects - has already resulted in several arrests.

Division of Criminal Justice Services Acting Commissioner Sean Byrne said, "The Crime Analysis Center rapidly put out a bulletin including a photo of the suspect. It included a map of the center part of the City of Albany and a collection of license plate reader data that showed various locations where the suspect's vehicle had been recorded as visiting in the last several weeks before the incident."

It's just one case where the center helped police make an arrest, fighting crime one data point at a time.