Chapter 5 The Police: Role and Function

Learning Objectives

Understand the organization of police departments

Articulate the complexities of the police role

Explain the limitations of patrol and methods for improving it

Summarize the investigation function

Learning objectives

Explain what forensics is and what forensic experts do for police agencies

Understand the concept of community policing

Discuss the concept of problem-oriented policing

Be familiar with the various police support functions

The Police Organization

Local police agencies are independent agencies within the executive branch of government

Often cooperate and participate in mutually beneficial enterprises such as joint task forces

Most local police departments are organized in a hierarchical manner

The Police Organization

The Police Organization

Police agencies are functionally independent organizations with unique set of:

Rules

Policies

Procedures

Norms

Budgets

Regardless of its size, the head of a police organization is the police chief

The Police Organization

Pros and Cons of Police Organization

Most police departments employ a time-in-rank system for determining promotion eligibility

Those promoted must spend a designated period of time in the next lowest rank

Pros:

This system promotes stability, fairness and limits favoritism

Cons:

Limits administrative flexibility to promote talented people

The Police Role

Crime fighting is a small part of overall police activities

Significant portion of officers’ time is spent handling:

Minor disturbances

Calls for service

Administrative duties

The police role is both varied and complex

The Police Role

About 1/3 of all sworn officers in the nation’s largest police departments are assigned to such units as:

Communications

Antiterrorism

Administrations

Personnel

The Patrol Function

Uniform patrol officers are the backbone of policing Account for two-thirds of most departments’

personnel

Major purposes of patrol are to: Deter crime by maintaining a visible presence

Maintain order within a patrol area

Respond quickly to law violations or other emergencies

Identify and apprehend law violators

Aids citizens in distress

Facilitate movement of people and traffic

Create a feeling of security in the community

Patrol Activities

The bulk of patrol efforts are devoted to order maintenance Peacekeeping

Officer discretion often defines the balance between orderly or disorderly conduct

The primary role of police seems to be “handling the situation”

The real police role may be as a community problem solver

Does Patrol Deter Crime?

Kansas City Patrol Study:

The most widely heralded attempt to measure patrol effectiveness

Variations in patrol strategies had little effect on crime patterns

No clear deterrent effects of preventive patrol efforts

Improving Patrol

Police departments have initiated a number of programs and policies to improve patrol effectiveness:

Proactive policing and directed patrol

Making arrests

Rapid response

Broken Windows policing

Proactive Policing and Directed Patrol

Use of aggressive, proactive patrol may help reduce crime

Active enforcement of minor regulations

More likely to experience lower felony crime

Directed patrol

Involves concentrating police resources in high crime areas

Making Arrests

Some studies suggest that contact with the police may cause some offenders to forgo repeat criminal behavior

If the number of arrests per capita increases, crime rates go down

Rapid Response

Efforts to improve police efficiency with rapid response times have not been proven to be effective

Studies showed that the rapid response by officers had little to no effect on crime

Broken Windows Model of Policing

A term used to describe police as maintainers of community order and safety Neighborhood disorder creates fear Neighborhoods give out crime-promoting

signals Police need citizen cooperation

Community preservation, public safety, and order maintenance – not crime fighting – should be primary focus of patrol

Using Technology

Police departments have relied upon technology to guide patrol efforts. One such program:

ComStat:

The best known program first used in New York City

The system provided information about where and when crime was occurring

Policing strategies were incorporated

ComStat is credited as a major contributor to the drop in crime in NYC

The Investigation Function

Modern criminal investigators:

An experienced civil servant

Trained in investigatory techniques

Knowledgeable about legal rule of evidence and procedure

Cautious about the legal and administrative consequences of his or her actions

The Investigation Function

How Do Detectives Detect?

Detectives investigate causes of crime and attempt to identify those responsible

Police detective rely heavily upon interviews and forensic evidence

In order to create a crime story detective use a three pronged approach:

① Specific focus

② General coverage

③ Informative

The Investigation Function

Sting Operations An investigatory approach using undercover

officers who deceive criminals into openly committing illegal acts

Common, and highly successful in investigation of prostitution, gambling, and narcotics

Critics argue constitutes entrapment or may encourage commission of additional offenses

Evaluating Investigations

Police have only a 5 percent chance of solving a crime if more than 15 minutes elapse from the time of occurrence to reporting

Detectives generally lack sufficient resources to carry out lengthy probes unless crime is serious

Most crimes are solved when the perpetrator is identified at scene of crime by patrol officers

Improving Investigation with Technology

Technological breakthroughs have aided crime investigation

Information technology has revolutionized police work in many areas:

Communications

Criminal Identification

Record Storage

CopLink

Improving Investigation with Technology

DNA Profiling:

Most important investigative technology since the adoption of fingerprint comparison

Facebook and Twitter have also been added as tools

Improving Investigations with Forensic Science

Forensic specialists can examine blood and other body fluids and tissues for the presence of: Alcohol

Drugs

Poisons

Forensic scientists analyze trace physical evidence such as: Blood spatters

Paint

Soil

Glass

Improving Investigations with Forensic Science

Forensic scientists also provide testimony in a court of law when the case is brought to trial

Some criminalists are generalists many focus on a particular area: Toxicology

Blood pattern analysis

Crime scene investigation

Impression evidence

Trace evidence

Questioned documents

Community Policing

Set of programs and strategies designed to bring police and the public closer together and create a more cooperative working environment

First involved improving relationships with the public

Designed to make citizens: More aware of police activities

Alert them to methods of self-protection

Improve general attitudes toward policing

Implementing Community Policing

The community-oriented policing concept was implemented through a number of innovative demonstration projects:

Foot Patrols

Neighborhood based policing models

Changing the Police Role

Neighborhood–Orientated Policing (NOP)

Changing Management Styles

Changing Recruitment and Training

Challenges of Community Policing

Defining Community

Defining Roles

Changing Supervisor Attitudes

Reorienting Police Values

Revise Training

Reorient Recruitment

Community Policing Effectiveness

Some community policing efforts can reduce disorder and impact the crime rate

Volunteers report higher confidence in the police force and its ability to create a secure environment

No clear-cut evidence that community policing is highly successful at reducing all types of crime

Problem-Oriented Policing

Requires police agencies to identify particular long-term community problems and develop solutions to eliminate problems

Departments must rely on local residents and private resources in order to be problem solvers

Police resources concentrate on “hot spots”

Concentrating police resources on these areas could reduce crime

Support Functions

Personnel Services

Internal Affairs

Budgeting

Communications

Training