1. Police in America
Chapter 15
The Future of Policing
in America
McGraw-Hill
© 2013 McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights Reserved.

2. Police Technology

Major technology applications
 1. Database and information technology
• Computerized systems that operate like a card-file index and
allow the police to store large amounts of information from a
variety of sources
 2. Computer-aided dispatch (CAD)
• Reduce officer confusion, send clear messages instantaneously
to officers’ mobile computers, keep officers safe, prioritize calls
for serves
 3. Records management systems
• Used to input and organize information from different types of
reports in an easy-to-access format
 4. Mobile computing
• Primary mechanism used by officers to access and deposit
information
• Eliminates all the paper generated by reports
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3. The Use of Technology in the Field

COMPSTAT
 Provides timely data on crime and disorder by neighborhood

Early Intervention (EI) Systems
 An application of personnel records management for the purpose
of increasing the accountability of police officers

License Plate Readers
 Installed on police vehicles and fixed sites such as traffic
intersections
 Five potential uses:
•
•
•
•
•
1. Crime analysis
2. Alerts and hot lists
3. Tracking individuals
4. Identifying previously undetected crimes
5. Revenue generation
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4. The Future of Police Information
Technology
 Technology to increase information sharing
between law enforcement agencies
 National Crime Information Center (NCIC) of
the FBI
 Global Justice XML Data Model (GJXDM)
 Allows criminal justice agencies to maintain their
information in a standardized language
 Automated Regional Justice Information
System (ARJIS)
 Increased effectiveness and job performance at the
San Diego sheriff’s department
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5. Technologically Advanced
Weapons

Taser: An acronym for Tom Swift’s Electric Rifle.
 Introduced in early 1975, designed as a non-lethal
weapon resembling a handgun.
 Once the trigger is depressed, two small barbed
contacts trailing fine conducting wires are shot from
one of the cassettes along the line of aim into the
target.
 The dart-like contacts need not actually touch the
skin. If the darts are imbedded in clothing, the
electrical charge is capable of reaching the body,
since the Taser provides a 1½-inch spark from its
high-voltage power supply.
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6. Crime Analysis

Functions
 Collect, Analyze,
Disseminate CrimeRelated Data
 Identify crime-suspect
correlations
 Support Patrol Officers
 Assist Investigations
 Identify conditions that
facilitate crime and
incivility

Types
 Tactical Crime Analysis
• Involves identification of
specific crime problems in
particular geographic areas
 Strategic Crime Analysis
• Focuses on long-term crime
trends
 Administrative
• Provides summary statistics
and data to police
managers
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7. Crime Mapping
 Permits analysts to identify spatial
patterns and hot spots for different types
of crime
 About 13% of police departments use crime
mapping
 The Department of Justice (DOJ) is allocating
substantial resources toward promoting the
use of crime mapping at police agencies
around the country
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8. The Outlook for Police
Employment


Opportunities in Local, County, and State Law
Enforcement
Local, County, and State Salaries
 Average annual salary of $49,980 in 2010
 Detectives make around $68,820 annually

Opportunities in Federal Law Enforcement
 Department of Homeland Security

Federal Salaries
 FBI agents begin at $61,000-70,000 a year
 Salaries of most federal law enforcement officers is
determined by the General Schedule (GS) pay system
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9. The Future of Police Research

Research Revolution
 Product of large investment of funds, mostly from
federal government, into scientific research
 Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA)

Does Research Do Any Good?
 Yes!
 Kansas City Preventative Patrol Experiment found that
increasing level of patrol did not deter crime more
effectively than normal amount of patrol
 Rand Corporation study found that traditional detective
work did not increase number of crimes solved

The Future of Federal Funding
 Very uncertain, varies year to year
 Poses a serious threat for the future of American police
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10. Demographic Change




Immigration Trends
 Hispanics/Latinos
 Other Groups
The New Minority: Hispanic/Latino
Population
Potential Problems and Conflicts
What laws do you think should be passed?
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11. Impact of the War on Terrorism


Foreign Policy
Domestic Policy




Role Expansion
Immigration Enforcement
Racial & Ethnic Profiling
Personnel Shortages
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12. Role Expansion
 Investigating suspected terrorists
 Preparing for and responding to specific
terrorist acts
 Preparing for possible terrorist acts
involving weapons of mass destruction
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13. Racial and Ethnic Profiling
 War on terrorism
has lead to increased
stereotypes about Arab Americans
 As a result, Department of Justice created
a four-hour cultural competency course to
educate local and federal law enforcement
officers about Arab and Muslim culture
and customs
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14. Personnel Changes
 Post 9/11:
 Mobilization of National Guard and military
reserves led to loss of personnel
• Especially detrimental to small agencies
 Increasing demands to fulfill homeland
security needs
• Leading to diversion from regular patrol
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