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The Association Matrix is the primary means of entering and maintaining information
in a case. CrimeLink's Association Matrix is a combination of both the standard
association and activities matrices that have been developed and adopted by civil,
federal, and military agencies. CrimeLink’s adaptation of this matrix allows both
people and entities to be displayed on a single matrix, thus enabling relationships
to be defined between any and all items.
The most important purpose of the Association Matrix is to allow relationships (associations)
to be defined and updated in a simple, unambiguous manner. Each cell of the matrix,
which resembles the mileage chart in a road atlas, represents one possible relationship
and all relationships are visible and clearly understood. The Association Matrix
is a record of who knows whom, who has done what, who has been where, etc.
Typically, the Association Matrix is built as the first step of the case creation
process, and then updated as new information is collected. The first step when creating
the matrix is to identify all people who are known to be part of the case and all
entities that are relevant to the case. These people and entities should then be
added to the matrix and any existing relationships annotated.
The Association Matrix can also be used as a visual tool. This streamlined approach
makes it easier, faster, and more intuitive to add, change, and delete people, entities,
and relationships.
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