Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ CHAPTER 5 On Patrol

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol I. Patrol as Work A. Purposes and Nature of Patrol 1. Deployment should consider the where and when of crime 2. Many still deploy patrols based upon convenient beat dividers 3. Major purposes of patrol, according to ABA a. To deter crime by maintaining a visible presence

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol b. To maintain public order c. To enable the police department to respond quickly to law violators or other emergencies d. To identify and apprehend law violators e. To aid individuals and care for those who cannot help themselves f. To facilitate the movement of traffic and people g. To create a sense of security in the community

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 4. “JDLR” a. “Just doesn’t look right” 5. Nonemergency calls to Detroit and Los Angeles staff over 60 percent of patrol units with two officers 7. Atlanta and Baltimore have no two-officer units 8. Most agencies assign 77 to 95 percent of their patrols resources to automobiles

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol B. P atrol Work as a Function of Shift Assignment 1. S hift assignments 2. D ay shift have the greatest contact with the citizens 3. U sually, officers with the most seniority work the day shift 4. S wing shift usually makes more arrests than day shift 5. N ight shift is a different world 6. T he shift is busy at the start and then the officer fights boredom at the end of the shift

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol C. Influences of One’s Assigned Beat 1. Three “cops’ rules” are part of the beat culture a. Don’t get involved in another officer’s sector b. Don’t leave work for the next duty shift c. Hold up your end of the work

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol D. Where Danger Lurks 1. During 2000, 151 police officers were killed in the line of duty 2. The annual average in the 1990s was The annual average in the 1980s was The annual average in the 1970s was 222

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol II. An Unappreciated American Icon: The Patrol Vehicle A. A Sanctuary and a Place for Vital Gear 1. A mobile haven 2. An office 3. A rolling symbol of authority B. Evolution of the Patrol Vehicle

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol C. Studies of the Patrol Function 1. Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment (1973) a. City divided into 15 beats b. No preventive patrol i. Police only responded to calls for service

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol c. I ncreased patrol activity d. U sual level of service e. N o increase in crime in any of the patrol zones f. N o change in citizens’ fear of crime or their attitudes toward the police g. N o change in the ability of the police to respond to calls h. P atrol methods ere subject to question

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 2. Team policing a. Officers were divided into small teams b. Assigned permanently to small geographic areas or neighborhoods c. Officers were to be generalists d. The concept was abandoned because of strain on resources e. Was the beginning of the movement toward COP

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 3. D irected patrol (1975) a. C omputer data of crime locations and times to set up deterrent runs b. T he program did not reduce crime, but rather displaced it c. T he program quietly died 4. S plit-force program a. 1 /2 of patrol assigned to basic patrol units b. 1 /2 were assigned to a structured unit c. D eployed in high-crime areas d. P olice productivity increased 20% e. C rime decreased 18% in the first year

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 5. Foot patrol a. Renewed interest in late 1970s b. Crime levels were not affected by foot patrol c. Did have significant effect on the attitudes of the area residents d. Residents felt safer e. Officers had higher levels of job satisfaction f. Officers felt safer on the job than motor officers

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 6. R esponse times a. K ansas City (1977) b. S tudy found that response time was unrelated to the probability of making an arrest or locating witnesses c. D ispatch nor travel time was strongly associated with citizen satisfaction d. T he time it takes to report a crime is the major factor determining whether an on-scene arrest takes place and whether witnesses are located e. T wo-person patrol cars are no more effective than one-person cars in reducing crime or catching criminals f. I njuries to police officers are not more likely to occur in one-person cars g. M ost officers on patrol do not stumble across felony crimes in progress

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol III. D iscretionary Use of Police Authority A. A ttempts to Define Discretion 1. I f the police see something that does not look right, they must decide whether to intervene in the situation and how to intervene 2. I n a traffic stop, police have 770 different combinations of action that may be taken

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 3. Criminal law has two sides a. Formality i. Found in the statutes and opinions of the court b. Reality i. Found in the practices of the enforcement officers ii. When formality and reality differ, reality prevails

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol B. D eterminants of Disciplinary Actions 1. V ariables that enter into the officer’s decision a. T he officer’s attitude b. T he citizen’s attitude or demeanor c. T he citizen’s social class, sex, age, and race C. P ros, Cons, and Politics of Discretionary Authority 1. T he inverse relationship between the officer’s rank and the amount of discretion that is available 2. T he exercise of discretion is an essential part of police work 3. T here is a myth of full enforcement of the laws 4. T he issue of police discretion is shrouded in controversy

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 5. A dvantages of the use of discretion a. I t allows the officer to treat different situations in accordance with humanitarian and practical goals b. J ustice tempered with mercy 6. D isadvantages of the use of discretion a. P artiality b. B reeding ground for corruption c. P olice do not know the consequences of their discretionary decisions

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol 7. Police discretion is part of the American political process 8. State legislative commands are ambiguous 9. Legislatures speak with three voices a. They enact state statutes that seemingly require full enforcement of the laws b. They provide only enough resources for limited enforcement of them c. They consent to such limited enforcement

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol IV. A Related Function: Traffic A. Policing Today’s Motorized Society 1. Traffic stops account for about half of the contact Americans have with the police 2. More than half of the nearly 20 million Americans stopped will be cited 3. Traffic stops are a major source of friction between the police and the citizens 4. Crackdowns on speeding have no impact on fatality rates and have little influence on traffic violations or accident rates

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol B. Traffic Accident Investigation 1. Formal training in the area of accident investigation is essential 2. The era of accountability and litigation 3. The public demands skilled accident investigations

Policing America, 5th edition. Kenneth J. Peak ©2006 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ On Patrol C. In Pursuit of the “Phantom Driver” 1. Public support for the police in their efforts to apprehend the hit-and-run drivers 2. Physical evidence and witness statements must be collected 3. The police may have to use psychology to get a confession from the hit-and-run driver