A major challenge for any police administrator is to determine how to allocate the limited resources of the police department to meet the law enforcement needs of the community being served. There is no facet of policing that better demonstrates this challenge than the patrol function. An administrator must not only assess the purpose and capability of the patrol function within the department, but also determine what the patrol will look like in the community, and when and where it will do so.
Everyone would like to see a cop drive down their street from time to time. But does everyone need a cop in their neighborhood? What purpose and interests are being served by having patrol officers in one area of town instead of another? Does it make sense to saturate some areas with coverage, even if other areas will go unpatrolled? These are the real choices confronting police chiefs and sheriffs today.
Instructions:
In this assignment, assume the role of an assistant chief in the Centervale Police Department (CPD). The police chief has asked you to develop a position paper to reflect a patrol strategy for the department which will best serve the needs of Centervale. The chief wants you to consider everything you know about the effectiveness of preventive patrol, directed patrol, broken windows theory, notions of fairness and equity, and other considerations you deem important.
Here are some basic facts about Centervale that will help guide your patrol strategy:
Centervale is a fairly large, suburban, working class community near a major American city. Your police department includes 100 patrol officers.
50% of the population lives north of the railroad tracks; 50% lives south of the railroad tracks.
80% of the crime occurs north of the railroad tracks; 20% occurs south of the tracks.
20% of the tax base can be found north of the railroad tracks; 80% is south of the tracks (that is, most of the money paying for town services is generated in the south).
Crime rates in town go up significantly at night; however, the population of the town goes up significantly during the day (due to an influx of reverse commuters and vibrant retail activity).
On average, it takes ten minutes for an officer to arrive to a call when dispatched from the south side of town to the north, or vice versa; however, on average it takes only five minutes to arrive to a call when the officer is already on the correct side of the tracks for the call.
What You Need to Do .
Write a paper for the chief's consideration which outlines your belief as to how patrol resources should be allocated in Centervale. In other words, where and when would you place your patrol officers in the community?
Further, justify your approach based on current research and existing literature about preventive and directed patrol, notions of fairness and equity, the importance of response times, and any other considerations you deem important.
Answer:
Police patrols are a very important aspect of policing. It is essential to understand that various police officers undertake patrol due to different reasons. There are a number of reasons that have been identified as to why it is important for police patrols to take place. One of the benefits of police patrol that has been observed is that of ensuring that the response time is reduced (Taylor, 2001). When citizens report a crime or need the assistance of a police officer the same should be able to take effect within the shortest time possible. Police patrols help in ensuring that the response time to various crime scenes is reduced. When police officers are on patrol it is faster for them to be dispatched in areas near them that need help. The other important factor in relation to police patrol that
has been identified is the fact that it prevents crimes from taking place. When there is the presence of police officers in sight, it is more likely that no one will partake in crime (Collier, 2006). Criminals tend to undertake their activities in any case they feel that the authorities will not be able to apprehend and catch up with them, however if there are patrols taking place there is a likelihood that they will be arrested. Engaging citizens is also another important aspect of police patrols, it is essential to ensure that the police are able to interact with the citizens. This in turn creates a platform whereby citizens can air their grievances have the same attended to by the various responsible agents. The other aspect of police patrols is that of maintaining visibility. It is important for the citizens to feel that they are secure and one of the ways to achieve this is ensuring that there are police patrols taking place regularly. This is turn ensures that people feel much more secure rather have the feeling that the authorities have neglected them yet they expect such services from it.
There are different types of patrols in which police engage in in order to provide their services to the people. One of the types of patrols that they engage in is the preventive patrol. One of the major reasons as to why police engage in preventive patrol is in order to deter crime. As it was noted earlier on, police aim to ensure that no one is involved in any criminal activity and their presence in neighborhoods, they ensure that the same effectively undertaken. In this type of patrol, the police are more likely to focus on areas whereby crime is more likely to take place (Famega et al., 2005). For example in parking lots whereby criminals may be tempted to break into vehicles and go away with valuable goods. The other type of patrol that police are more likely to be involved in is the directed patrol. In type of patrol the police are more likely acting on a report that has been forwarded to them. In type of patrol the police are focused in some types of activities that might take place in order to apprehend the criminals (Braga & Bond, 2008). These patrols usually take place during an ongoing investigation in order to deter a certain type of crime.
One of the theories that have been presented in order to prevent crime is the broken glass theory. This theory states that it is more likely for crime to take place in places whereby there seems to be a social disorder (Harcourt & Ludwig, 2006). One of the examples that have been provided by the theory is that of broken glasses in a building there is likelihood that crime may take place. Therefore it is necessary that effective measures are taken by first dealing with the small social disorders in order to prevent crime from taking place. Some of the social disorders that can be dealt with in order to prevent crime are first ensuring that houses with broken windows are repaired and ensuring that small crowds along the streets that seem rowdy are dispersed. It is very important to ensure that potential criminal elements are eliminated in order to prevent them from escalating to bigger crimes.
It is also important to identify the various interest of the community while developing patrol allocation schedule. This is because various neighborhoods have different needs that ensure police patrols are allocated in the area. One of the factors to consider is that of justice. It is important to ensure that all communities are treated equally despite there being crime prone or not. As it has been noted, there are low crime rates reported in the Southside of the rail but this does not mean that the area should not be allocated any patrol (Collier, 2006). The residents of the area being tax payers need to feel that there is the presence of security in the area and this can be achieved by ensuring that there are patrol police who have been allocated. Police patrolling the area should act to ensure that crime is curbed in the area and also ensure that justice is served to all tax payers (Weisburd & Eck, 2004). However, a larger number of police patrols should be directed to the North side due to the factor that most crimes have been reported in the area. The patrols undertaken should also be directed in order to ensure that the criminals in the area are apprehended and dealt with since it is more likely that the crime taking place in the area is as a result of the same offenders (Weisburd & Eck, 2004). The patrol that should take place should largely be aimed at ensuring that crime in the north parts is fully eradicated. Police can undertake this by ensuring that they develop routine patrols as well as a great relationship between them and the citizens in order to ensure that they get the relevant information that enable them apprehend criminals. Response time is also another factor that determines how police patrols should be allocated in the area. If the citizens demand a more responsive police force, then there will be need to ensure that patrols are increased in the areas whereby most crimes are reported.
References
Collier, P. M. (2006). Policing and the intelligent application of knowledge. Public Money and Management, 26(2), 109-116.
Ericson, R. V. (2005). The police as reproducers of order. Policing. Key Readings, 215-246.
Famega, C. N., Frank, J., & Mazerolle, L. (2005). Managing police patrol time: The role of supervisor directives. Justice Quarterly, 22(4), 540-559.
Weisburd, D., & Eck, J. E. (2004). What can police do to reduce crime, disorder, and fear?. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 593(1), 42-65.
Taylor, R. B. (2001). Breaking away from broken windows: Baltimore neighborhoods and the nationwide fight against crime, grime, fear, and decline (pp. 286-287). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Harcourt, B. E., & Ludwig, J. (2006). Broken windows: New evidence from New York City and a five-city social experiment. The University of Chicago Law Review, 271-320.
Braga, A. A., & Bond, B. J. (2008). Policing crime and disorder hot spots: A randomized controlled trial. Criminology, 46(3), 577-607.
Weisburd, D., & Eck, J. E. (2004). What can police do to reduce crime, disorder, and fear?. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 593(1), 42-65.
