Customer Stories
It started with an alert for a stolen vehicle.
A license plate reader flagged the plate in a busy Overland Park shopping center. Officers monitoring the alerts responded and located the car, empty, just outside a retail complex. Detectives, already on assignment nearby, started searching the area. What no one realized yet was that the suspects had just attempted a strong-arm robbery inside— threatening a customer with a firearm.
Within 48 minutes, three individuals were in custody and officers recovered a stolen vehicle, a modified firearm and evidence of financial theft. The entire response, from first alert to arrest, was captured on camera.
It was the kind of coordinated, timely resolution any department would be proud of. It also revealed how much more was possible.
“Having a fully operational Real-Time Information Center (RTIC) could have given us additional situational awareness,” said Major Ricky Breshears. “We have access to camera feeds inside and outside the shopping district. If we had dedicated personnel actively monitoring the cameras, we might have seen the robbery attempt in progress—giving our team an even clearer picture of what they were walking into.”
That moment reinforced what the department already understood: modern policing takes more than instinct and tools—it takes connection, integration and trust.
It was exactly the kind of coordination and awareness Chief Doreen Jokerst set out to support when she arrived in Overland Park—not with a blueprint, but with a question: What do you need?
That question sparked the beginning of a listening tour that stretched across briefing rooms, hallways, and offices. The chief held conversations where officers and professional staff spoke openly about what was working and where they felt they could grow. “I believe my job as the chief is to provide resources and remove obstacles,” she said. “I wanted to hear the historical perspective of what is working really well, and then, what are some challenges or growth opportunities that we have?”
What she heard revealed a department deeply committed to three shared values: protecting the most vulnerable, earning and maintaining public trust, and equipping its people with tools that help them make the safest, most informed decisions possible. “I strongly believe in transparency and accountability and earning public trust and obviously equipping our officers and professional staff with tools and technology to help them be more efficient within their jobs,” Jokerst said.
As conversations unfolded, a clear theme emerged: the department’s technology needed improvements. Systems operated in silos, and information was often fragmented. Major Ricky Breshears remembers feeling the strain across the organization. “We were working with systems that no longer fit the needs of our organization. One system didn't talk to the other,” he said.
The impact was real. “Delayed situational awareness,” he said, “and it was just a growing operational burden for our officers and professional staff.”
The gap between what officers had and what modern technology could provide had grown too large to ignore. That reality pushed the department toward a broader, more connected vision of modernization—one that prioritizes humans before hardware. Jokerst said, “Technology is the mechanism that allows us to be smarter, faster, and more connected to our community. We are designing a policing ecosystem that is human-centered, transparent, and resilient, in addition to high-tech.”
What officers needed was not another standalone system—it was a more connected, comprehensive view. As Breshears put it, “We really wanted a unified picture to give our teams clarity, supervisors better oversight, and for the community, really a higher level of transparency, trust, and quality service.”
In September, with full support of the city manager and Governing Body, the City of Overland Park and OPPD took a major step toward delivering that unified picture—partnering with Axon to begin deploying an integrated network of public safety technologies. The effort includes tools like body-worn and in-car cameras, interview room recording systems, virtual reality training, TASER devices, drones as first responders, and centralized evidence storage—all connected through real-time operations software. The goal is not just to update equipment, but to create a more cohesive system that supports officers, improves coordination, and builds trust with the community.
“All of those capabilities really benefit our officers and our professional staff, and our community members every single day, event or not—whether you’re responding to a welfare check or a large-scale critical incident,” Jokerst said.
That daily utility will soon extend to a global stage. In 2026, Kansas City will host the FIFA World Cup. The event didn’t drive Overland Park’s technology upgrades—but it made clear just how critical those improvements would be. The same tools that support routine calls will also serve during large-scale, high-complexity events.
“The World Cup probably didn't create our push for modernization,” Jokerst said. “It was really our people and listening to what they have to say that would help them in their roles. But it certainly did accelerate some of those pieces. Preparing for any type of event, either large or small, means you need to strengthen coordination, your collaboration, and your partnerships, look at surging your capacity, look at your communication pathways and your regional interoperability.”
As the department works to deploy the new solutions and tools, the modernization wasn’t met with skepticism, it was met with excitement. Breshears immediately recognized the shift in energy. “Before we went down this path I worked in the technology realm here. I was able to attend [conferences] and see the technology firsthand. I’m now seeing that excitement that I had in our frontline officers. They’re like, ‘We can’t believe we’re getting this. This is amazing … We’re going to be so much more efficient.’”
That efficiency wasn’t just about speed; it was about mental clarity. “Modernization also reduces cognitive load,” he said. “It gives officers more time to think, observe, and respond rather than fight outdated systems or incomplete data.”
One of the department’s most significant efforts now underway is the full implementation of its Real-Time Information Center (RTIC). The idea isn’t new—technology was already in place during the shopping center incident, and dispatchers were informally filling the role by monitoring traffic cameras and license plate readers as needs grew.
But as more data sources emerged, the demands became overwhelming. “That workflow and the ability to go search these multiple databases became a significant strain on their main function of answering 911 calls,” Breshears said.
Now, with dedicated personnel and integrated platforms like Axon Fusus coming online, the RTIC is positioned to become a true community asset and the central hub for real-time operations. It will strengthen Overland Park’s ability to manage emergencies, major weather events, and other large-scale incidents where coordinated, real-time information is critical.
Together, with the department’s drones as first responder program and other integrated technologies, the RTIC is helping deliver real-time information before officers even arrive on scene. “Technology, while not a substitute for good judgment, enables us to utilize tools such as body-worn cameras, robots, and drones to effectively reduce the risk of harm to both our personnel and the community. The RTIC is enhancing situational awareness, streamlining coordination, and helping officers respond with more context, faster,” Breshears said.
As the department’s deployment continues, Jokerst has kept one priority at the center: ensuring the community understands how technology is used, why it exists, and how it protects them.
Transparency, she said, is essential. And as the tools evolve, the philosophy stays the same. “Technology doesn’t replace good policing; it enhances it,” she said. “These tools improve accuracy, reduce bias, and protect both community members and our officers. They provide documentation, context, and visibility, not surveillance.”
As word of their progress spread, other agencies began reaching out. Overland Park’s advice is clear and pragmatic. “Do your research,” Breshears said. “What works for Overland Park may not work for the next agency. It has to work for your agency. Be willing to be uncomfortable and try something new. You have to have people that embrace it and are willing to try it.”
Start small, Chief Jokerst says, but start with intention. “Choose one piece, whether it’s reports, evidence, or situational awareness. Don’t underestimate the cultural component. Modernization succeeds when officers and professional staff and the community feel included. When city leadership and those you serve understand the why—the community can see how these efforts enhance safety and accountability.”
Breshears added, “Start by integrating what you already have. Most agencies have tools, they just aren’t connected. Even linking CAD with video or alerts with mapping creates huge operational gains.”
And once the systems support the officers, the impact is immediate. “Officers consistently say they feel more prepared walking into scenes and less burdened by administrative tasks,” he said. “They’re gaining confidence because they have more information faster and systems that support, not hinder, them.”
Jokerst acknowledges that stepping into modernization takes courage—but staying still is the bigger risk. “Sometimes you have to build the plane while you’re flying it,” she said. “I didn’t have all the answers. But sooner or later, you have to have some intestinal fortitude to make those decisions and take off. It’s going to be a little bumpy, but it’s better than being stuck at the airport.”
In Overland Park, modernization isn’t a technology project or a response to a single event. It’s a commitment—built one connection, one enhancement, and one moment of listening at a time. They are creating a policing model where officers walk into every call better prepared, where information moves seamlessly, and where the community sees what accountability and transparency look like in practice. And in doing so, Overland Park PD is becoming a blueprint for what’s possible when an agency embraces the future with purpose, partnership- and people at the center.