NCJ Number
89213
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 31 Issue: 5 Dated: (May 1983) Pages: 18-41
Date Published
1983
Length
21 pages
Annotation
Six articles on police administration focus on the desirability of making first-line supervisors a part of police management, the design of data collection forms in one police agency, quality control for report writing, police resource allocation, disputes over police promotions, and a system for reducing police time in traffic court.
Abstract
One article suggests that to build an effective management team which includes police sergeants, police agencies should promote equality among command officers, give authority to first-line supervisors, provide training, give supervisors influence with their superiors, make appropriate supervisory assigments, and build a team spirit. Another describes the automated information system developed by the sheriff's department in Clackamas County (Oregon) based on well-designed input forms. Police agencies need procedures for reviewing written reports. Another article suggests how police administrators can allocate resources using one of several proportionate needs methods, which improve on the equal staffing method. Rulings by the Supreme Court to make police promotions more equable have resulted in further litigation and complications for police administrators. A final paper shows how a Traffic Trial Commissioner project serving three cities in California has reduced the amount of time that police officers spend waiting in traffic courtrooms. The project shows how simple procedural changes can produce substantial cost savings. No references are given.