Organization of Police Department

Organization of Police Department

Organization of Police Department

Brandon Walsh

CJS/210 Fundamentals of Policing

May 19, 2009

Steve Sanders

Overview

Police Departments hold a responsibility of investigating and preventing crimes; therefore, maintaining effective organization is vital in a police department. Police officers have discretion to detain individuals suspected of criminal behavior within constitutional limits. Police departments use specific tools that benefit the department’s goals; for example, time management, area management, and the police department’s sole purpose.

Police Department Organization by Area

Area management plays a key role in the effectiveness of police department organization. The concept of area management is to assign police officers to designated areas, while providing needed support to one another. All employees of a police department have his or her designated position and duties; therefore, the police department can control the separation of jurisdictions to assign police officers to the community’s needs. According to Gill (2010), the San Antonio Police Department uses districts to separate the officers; for example, to allow for effective organization, the San Antonio Police Department has six patrol substations, which are patrolled by police officers and managed by a designated detective. The police department also employs civilian staff to provide support to the community and the police officers.

The area of coverage for each law enforcement department can vary; for example, the Estes Park Police Department has a geographical area of 6.0 square miles, while the Larimer County Sheriff’s Department has a geographical area of 2,640 square miles (Compass of Larimer County, 2011). Even though each department has its own jurisdiction, they can still work together if an emergency arises.

Police Department Time Management

Time management is an important tool that...