NCJ Number
203964
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 71 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2004 Pages: 17-23
Date Published
January 2004
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article introduces the CompStat model for managing police operations and discusses its implementation in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
Abstract
In 2002, when former New York Police Commissioner William Bratton was sworn in as chief of police for the LAPD, the LAPD was experiencing problems with community trust. Bratton quickly determined that the LAPD was operating under a risk aversion model that created performance barriers in the interest of avoiding potential problems. CompStat, short for computer statistics or comparison statistics, was introduced as the new policing model. The emphasis of the CompStat model is on proactive policing designed to address emerging crime trends. This model has a proven track record in other police departments, including the New York Police Department, which implemented the model in 1994. There are four core principles of CompStat; the first involves timely, accurate intelligence. The CompStat model is a technology-driven model that uses intelligence and computer programming to identify emerging trends in community crime. The second principle of CompStat involves the use of effective police tactics for proactively addressing emerging crime trends. Simply responding to crime after the fact is not acceptable under the CompStat model. The third core principle involves the rapid deployment of police resources to address crime trends. CompStat is able to identify problems within the community even before citizens call police to report problems; as such, law enforcement is able to use their resources to rapidly address emerging problems. The fourth core principle involves continual follow-up and assessment to assure that at every level of law enforcement, personnel is proactively addressing crime problems within the community. Soon after Chief Bratton’s appointment as Chief of the LAPD, the CompStat model was implemented in the Operations-South Bureau of the LAPD. Since its implementation, this jurisdiction, which incorporates the most violent crime area in greater Los Angeles, has experienced a 9 percent decrease in all violent crimes. In closing, the transferability of the CompStat model and its usefulness in any size organization is underscored. Tables