Kimberly S. Johnson
New Haven Register
06/10/2003
EAST HAVEN — The ability to track and catch criminals is only as good as the technology used by the police, according to the owners of NexGen Solutions.

NexGen develops software to run and maintain police departments and other emergency services.

"I was learning a new (software) language on my own and saw a need for it," said Lee Wezenski, co-founder and director of development, who is a Branford supernumerary, or part-time police officer.

In recent years just about everything officers do has become computerized, from writing in the police log and filling out police reports to checking prior arrest records.

After working on the software in his basement, Wezenski co-founded NexGen in 1997 with John DeCarlo, who is now Branford’s deputy police chief. DeCarlo left the firm early this year.

In 2000, Sal Annunziato joined the company as managing principal to market and sell its flagship product, the Law Enforcement Administration System.

Today the company has eight full-time employees, and law enforcement officials in 25 cities and towns across the state are using NexGen’s software.

"We’ve done things that are state specific," said Annunziato. "We’re trying to become the state standard."

The company’s two main competitors — Visionair and New World — are national in scope.

The LEAS software provides a complete technology package for police departments. Officers at the station and on the road use it to fill out reports; check arrest records, citations, pawned property and gun permits; and view mug shots.

Officers can dispatch and monitor cars sent into the field and manage shift assignments and department equipment using LEAS.

It takes 60 days to install and set up the software in a police department, and typically costs between $150,000 and $200,000, Annunziato said.

The company’s goal is to allow police officers to query records from other departments all across Connecticut, he said.

Sometimes it’s a challenge to get police departments interested in NexGen’s software because many have tried similar software packages and were unhappy with the results, Annunziato said.

"Nearly 80 percent of our clients have previously purchased a product for hundreds of thousands of dollars," he said. "Now they scrutinize us even more."

Paul Jakubson, chief of police in Madison, said the department has used NexGen’s software for about five years and it offers the flexibility to make adjustments when necessary.

"It had everything we needed to do to perform our functions — dispatching, records management," Jakubson said. "The company has been very receptive in making changes to make it a more effective piece of software."

NexGen is working to expand its client base within the state and connect all of the different databases. In the past two weeks, the company added police departments in Vernon and North Branford.

Annunziato said the company may expand into other towns in New England.