How did the police do vehicle registration lookups in the 60s/70s?

[rolypolyman]

Listening to PD frequencies I've been noticing vehicle registration lookups. are done constantly. How did they do this in the era before computer databases? Was there a microfiche listing that was mailed out to all the police departments every month? Or did they have to contact a vehicle registration call center at the state capital?

I can imagine this had to be pretty labor intensive. Maybe the officers didn't call in regisrtations so casually and went by the authenticity of the paperwork.

 

[doctordialtone]

Maybe the officers didn't call in registrations so casually and went by the authenticity of the paperwork.

This is true.

There were fewer inquiries, simply because it was harder to do.

First. by telephone and -with the advent of computers- over data circuits from the PD to DMV Mainframe.

 

[phask]

Old enough to remember that there were printouts for all in the county. If not in that list, phone... and wait.

 

[ecps92]

Index Cards and MicroFiche - all depended on who/what/where and how lucky to have the info


And for the few [70/80's] who had access to the Teletype Writers [ASR 28] they would type out the ticker tape, load it, send it, wait for the response

Listening to PD frequencies I've been noticing vehicle registration lookups. are done constantly. How did they do this in the era before computer databases? Was there a microfiche listing that was mailed out to all the police departments every month? Or did they have to contact a vehicle registration call center at the state capital?

I can imagine this had to be pretty labor intensive. Maybe the officers didn't call in regisrtations so casually and went by the authenticity of the paperwork.

 

[wa8pyr]

Index Cards and MicroFiche - all depended on who/what/where and how lucky to have the info

And for the few [70/80's] who had access to the Teletype Writers [ASR 28] they would type out the ticker tape, load it, send it, wait for the response

Shared computer database systems came online in Ohio with LEADS in the late 60s (I think 1969) and at least through the 70s they used an interesting terminal that was kind of a cross between a terminal and teletype machine (might have been a Model 33 KSR). For some reason the paper was backed with silver foil (we called it Christmas paper); I recall when I started as a dispatcher in the mid-80s my agency still had several warrants in the file which had been entered in the late 70s and were printed on that early "Christmas paper;" when I became TAC officer those were some of the first ones to get purged as the wanted individuals had A) had the charges dismissed or reduced, or B) been apprehended and no one told us, or C) died.

Prior to shared computer databases, it would have involved a teletype or phone call to the BMV, a hand check of paper files or microfilm/microfiche, and a return call/teletype.

I suspect the timeline is about the same for most states.

 

[ko6jw_2]

California had CLETS - California Law Enforcement Teletype System. Made the request on the radio and some minutes later the dispatcher would read back the information. But, frequently you would hear "CLETS is down." Also had local hot sheets of stolen vehicles. DMV database was computerized in the mid-70's.

 

[KD4YGG]

And from The Blues Brothers movie...

Elwood: Man, I haven't been pulled over in six months. I bet those cops have got "SCMODS"

Jake: "SCMODS?"

Elwood: "State/County/Municipal Offender Data System."

 

[jhooten]

Pony Express. By the 80s we had advanced to carrier pigeons.


But seriously,
Surprisingly to some in the 80s even in our small rural department we did have two way wireless contact with dispatch who were able to send a request to local, state, and federal agencies by teletype and receive a response back in just a few minutes, usually in less time than it took us to fill out the hand written citation.

 

[ladn]

I don't know how lookups were done in Texas, but in the Los Angeles area, LAPD units had a daily "hot sheet" of stolen vehicles, listed by license plates. For "wants and warrants" units would radio* in and a records request would be initiated. Someone would check the requested information via teletype inquiry or manually checking 3 x 5 file cards--a process that could take some time.

* Up until the early 1960's and going back many decades, officers would use "Gamewell" landline call boxes to communicate with the dispatch center, their "desk" or sometimes other units. Both Dragnet and Adam 12 television shows were pretty spot on with regard to how records checks were done.

 

[Giddyuptd]

By phone and or teletype to state communications where older dos based type systems kept logs or tape decks on microfilm and actual physical records where a division usually state police communications in a state had folks working the records and would answer the records requests by phone or teletype.

 

[IAmSixNine]

also a lot less cars on the road back in the 60s and more honest people who were law abiding citizens who registered and stuff.

 

[Blackink]

This was a great question with some good responses!

Interesting info on how it was done back in the day...

 

[ecps92]

Still have my ASR manuals at my desk and the ole NLETS ORI Manual [before ORION came on-line] and they have one at the MSP Museum and learning center

MA State Police Museum & Learning Center

Museum Hours: Tue 11am-2pm; every 2nd & 4th weekend Saturday & Sunday 12pm-3pm

www.mspmlc.org

Grafton barracks now a police museum

GRAFTON — In the rooms that once served as a barracks for troopers covering southeast Worcester County, nearly 150 years of state police history are

www.telegram.com

Shared computer database systems came online in Ohio with LEADS in the late 60s (I think 1969) and at least through the 70s they used an interesting terminal that was kind of a cross between a terminal and teletype machine (might have been a Model 33 KSR). For some reason the paper was backed with silver foil (we called it Christmas paper); I recall when I started as a dispatcher in the mid-80s my agency still had several warrants in the file which had been entered in the late 70s and were printed on that early "Christmas paper;" when I became TAC officer those were some of the first ones to get purged as the wanted individuals had A) had the charges dismissed or reduced, or B) been apprehended and no one told us, or C) died.

Prior to shared computer databases, it would have involved a teletype or phone call to the BMV, a hand check of paper files or microfilm/microfiche, and a return call/teletype.

I suspect the timeline is about the same for most states.

 

[danesgs]

I can also remember here in the DC area, police using NCIC and WALES systems. National Crime Information Computer and the Washinton Area Law Enforcement System. Not sure when those came online or if they still exist in some form.

 

[ecps92]

National Crime Information Center - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Law enforcement in the United States - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

I can also remember here in the DC area, police using NCIC and WALES systems. National Crime Information Computer and the Washinton Area Law Enforcement System. Not sure when those came online or if they still exist in some form.

 

[Para078]

We used to get the registration list from the county clerk's office. If it wasn'
t a local number we had to call a neighboring department and get them to run it for us. Since we were all on 37.260 the officer heard the return on the radio. We didn't get a teletype system until 1973. The county almost lost their MVD access when the troops were running more tags in a small county than Dallas.