David Thorp

Lieutenant David Thorp has over 23 years of law enforcement experience and is recognized as a leader in building high-performance teams through innovation, collaboration and accountability. Most of his career has been spent in investigative units, and he has focused on technology-led policing. An early adopter of License Plate Recognition (LPR) technology, he developed his first investigative lead using LPR in 2007. In 2013, he helped turn a missing person case into a murder investigation by generating a lead from an LPR camera. Lieutenant Thorp currently commands the Field Operations Response, Crime Analysis and Strategic Technologies (FOReCAST) unit, which includes the Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) and the Facial Recognition Section. He led the RTCC project management and the integration of public safety technologies within the center. His extensive experience spans criminal investigations, crime analysis and facial recognition. Committed to enhancing public-private partnerships, Lieutenant Thorp advocates for a real-time policing model. The Cobb County Police Department’s RTCC has received recognition from both the National Real Time Crime Center Association (NRTCCA) and the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police (GACP). As the department administrator for strategic technologies, Lieutenant Thorp oversees LPR and facial recognition systems and authored the department’s current facial recognition policy.