Wendy Balazik, a spokeswoman for the International Association of Chiefs of Police, said she did not know of other law enforcement agencies using YouTube to solve cases, but that it made sense. "It doesn't surprise me, though. It's the next logical step," she said.
Some in law enforcement view it another way. "We've never tried it and probably never will," said Officer Henry Tippett, a spokesman for the Prince George's County Police Department. "There's all kinds of crazy videos on there . . . people getting in fights, whatever."
Tippett said putting up material from the police next to such videos could make the police department "look bad." "It's just bad, bad publicity," he said.
Lisle still believes YouTube is a useful tool. "If it solves a case, its worth it to us," he said. "Let's face it a lot more people are using YouTube than visiting any police department Web site."
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