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The Doclopedia #2,427
Game Changers: Robot Cops
On many Earths, humans invented devices, processes, and life forms that changed the face of civilization rapidly. Here are a few examples of such game changers.
Earth 6-A is about two decades ahead of our Earth where most technology is concerned. That’s why, in 2012, they were able to see the creation of the first Robot Cops. These robots are not 100% autonomous or sentient. They are controlled by a team of three highly trained individuals who operate each officer. None of these individuals gets much standard police training and all of then have at least a Masters Degree in their specialty. They come to work, put on their VR helmets, and assume the role of Driver, Voice, or Device Control. Then, their Robot Cop goes out on patrol. Robot Cops are operated from secure locations and have a range of up to 25 miles.
And the Robot Cops all look like pony sized dogs.
Why dogs? Simply put, people trust dogs more than they do other humans. A pony sized poodle showing up to investigate a disturbance is a hell of a lot less threatening than a 9 foot tall humanoid. These “Cop Dogs” also never look like traditional guard/police dogs. They look like everything from Bichon Frises to Greyhounds to Beagles. They have artificial fur and expressive faces. People really like them.
During operation, the Driver controls the dog and can access it’s vision and hearing. Drivers are almost always a combination of a stunt driver and some form of engineer. The average Robot Cop can run at 90 miles an hour, top speed, for 2 hours.
The Voice is the person who interacts with the public and makes most of the decisions about how to proceed in a given situation. Voices are always trained mental health professionals. A Voices main job is to de-escalate a situation to avoid violence, if at all possible.
Device Control handles all deployment of weapons, detainment devices and observation drones. All weapons are non-lethal, but very effective at bringing a human or animal down. These can include tasers, knock out gas, nets, sonic beams, and a host of other devices. Detainment is handled using Smart Rope, which is not rope at all, but a plastic cable with a Wormbot core. The drones are short distance mini-drones.
As you might imagine, traditional law enforcement absolutely hated Robot Cops. By 2019, thanks to liberal governments in the US and other countries, plus widespread popular support for the new style of law enforcement, police departments were changing at a rapid pace. Along with these changes, which defused the vast majority of crimes and got mental help for those who needed it, the justice system began to change.
Fewer lawbreakers ever reached the court system, since most got help of one kind or another. When the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that people jailed for non-violent crimes had to be released into rehabilitation programs, you could almost hear the for profit prisons shutting down. When governments outlawed the militarization of police, things got even better.
As of current year 2026, crime worldwide crime is down by a staggering 75% from where it was in 2012. Overall, the world is a much happier place.
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