Good Idea of the Week

This week's honor goes to Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers.

Inmates will soon be able to help solve crimes while playing cards.

Local law enforcement is borrowing the playing card idea the federal government used to help catch war criminals.

Each deck will randomly feature 52 victims from unsolved cases in Southwest Florida.
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"You have inmates sitting in a jail all day long. A lot of them are playing cards. By putting cold cases on these playing cards we're hoping to stir up some conversations," said Trish Routte of Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers.

Any doubt that the program would work was put to rest when an inmate in Polk County was playing cards and recognized a man on one of the cards. The man was a victim in an unsolved murder investigation.

The inmate called Crime Stoppers and told them what he knew. Detectives then arrested two people.
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Crime Stoppers plans to deal out the cards to inmates across Southwest Florida in April, including Charlotte, Hendry, and Collier Counties.