Final Police Department Organization free essay sample

Police organizations are social institutions that operate to their external environment ; Organization and activities must be understood in the context of their institutional environment ; The Institutional environment includes the mayor, city counsel and many others Resource Dependency Theory ; Theory that organizations must obtain resources to ; Organizations must alter their structure or strategy to accommodate others ; Environmental factors influence the structure and activities of organizations ; Organizational structures and practices are adopted to meet resource needsOrganization of Police Agencies Local Level ; Local law enforcement sectors are the closest protection and authority to the general population. Local law enforcement agencies are divided among county police departments and city police. ; City and county law enforcement divisions have the same qualifications; however each division has different responsibilities. The most prevalent county law enforcement department is the sheriffs department. Typically sheriffs are elected to their positions by the people of their county. ; Sheriff Job responsibilities are similar to that of a city police officer. Sheriff Deputies are responsible for all traffic procedures and/or prisoners in their county of employment ; City police is another Job opportunity at the local law enforcement level.City police enforce traffic procedures, handle crowd control, and deal with emergency and disasters within their city limits State Level ; Just as county and city law enforcement sectors are head of their designated county or city, state law enforcement sectors are head over all state mandated roads and state affairs. State police are considered to be higher rank than those of the local law enforcement level, however the qualifications for state police is similar to that of local police. The most familiar state law enforcement profession is State Highway Patrol. State Highway Patrol is best known for issuing traffic tickets to motorist, arresting criminals statewide, and enforcing other motor vehicle laws and regulations ; State Highway Patrol is also a resource to travelers. State Highway Patrol is ava ilable to travelers for information that they may need while on state mandated roads ; Another sector of state law enforcement is the State Bureau of Investigation. The SIB s a states version of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This agency is worked by plain clothed agents that investigate criminal and civil cases involving illegal narcotics, apprehending fugitives, and enforcing anti-terrorism laws Federal Level ; The Bis Jurisdiction covers organized crime, public corruption, financial crime, fraud against the government, bribery, copyright infringement, and drug trafficking ; The FBI is the primary investigative arm for all federal crimes. Another federal law enforcement agency that many overlook is the Secret Service.The Secret Service is a Job opportunity that has to be fulfilled by a highly dedicated and trained person who is willing to protect some of the most renowned people in the United States. ; Secret Service agents are responsible for protecting the President of the United States and immediate family, Vice President and immediate family, President-elect, Vice President-elect, and various other significant governmental figures ; These are Just two of many federal law enforcement agencies that p revent crime and protect the lives of society. Civil Service System ; Civil service procedures are a major feature of American police organizations.Civil revive represents a set of formal and legally binding procedures governing personnel decisions. ; The purpose of civil service is to ensure that personnel decisions are based on objective criteria, and not on favoritism, bias, and political influence. ; Civil service agencies are responsible for developing Job descriptions and pay scales, developing recruitment procedures, developing and administering recruitment tests, certifying qualified applicants, developing promotional criteria, developing and administering promotional tests, developing disciplinary procedures, and hearing appeals of disciplinary actions. Police departments provide input on Job descriptions, participate in recruiting, conduct some of the recruitment tests, and select recruits from certified lists. ; Civil service systems reinforce the hierarchical structure of police departments. There are four formal ; hierarchies that stratify organizational members. First, there is a rewards hierarchy. This hierarchy typically corresponds with an officers rank and seniority within the department. It does not, however, typically correspond with individual skill or performance. Second, officers are differentiated on the basis of a seniority hierarchy. Officers with more years of service are typically paid more and are given advantage over which shifts and Jobs they are assigned. Third, officers are differentiated on the basis of a status hierarchy-?their assigned status within the police department. Officers who are assigned to a specialized unit, such as detective, or who occupy a particular Job in the department, such as special assistant to the chief, typically have greater authority and responsibility in particular situations.However, an officer carries the title and authority only while assigned or appointed to a particular Job; if reassigned, the person loses both the title and the authority. Fourth, officers are differentiated on the basis of a rank hierarchy. An officer carries his or her rank permanently, until promoted. For example, an officer holding the rank of sergeant is restricted to those Jobs designated for sergeants by civil service Job descriptions. Affects of the Civil Service System ; Civil service creates a number of problems for police organizations.First, it limits the power of police chiefs in making personnel decisions. A chief cannot hire, fire, or promote those people at will. Nor can a chief change existing personnel standards at will. Second, it limits the opportunities and incentives for individual officers. Officers cannot earn financial bonuses or receive rapid promotions for exceptional performance. ; Third, many argue that the provisions for discipline make it extremely difficult for chiefs to terminate bad officers or even to discipline officers for poor performance.City of Combed Team Police Department Organization ; Establish three shifts per day, seven days a week, for full coverage with ; the appropriate number of patrol officers, sergeants and lieutenants Assign patrol officers to zones for maximum coverage. The number of zones and assigned officers depends on available staff. Record every activity, whether its checking for unlocked doors at a business after hours, writing a speeding ticket, making an arrest or interviewing a witness in an ongoing investigation Require regular radio communications with neighboring agencies Designate a limited number of evidence custodians.Not every officer should be responsible for processing and tracking cash, drugs, weapons and other evidence recovered from crime scenes. Specialized Units ; Specialized units needed based on crime in th e area ; Juvenile Units ; Dare programs K-9 units Decision Making Within Our Department ; Our decision regarding our department would be decentralized. Being decentralized, the ; decision making process is more spread all through the departments rather than concentrated on a narrow characteristic Since our focus is working with our communities to better serve them, having a decentralized organization is perfect. Unlike a centralize department, decentralized had local control. Citizens can workout a greater degree of misunderstandings and direction over their police. They have more say as to how the police operate and what aspects of public safety they focus on. Communication within the department is a crucial aspect and with having a decentralized department reduces the issue of having linkage blindness. If issues ever do transpire, they can De dealt with right then and there rather than having to wait to go through the chain of command like as centralize departments do.