NCJ Number
216225
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 73 Issue: 10 Dated: October 2006 Pages: 62-64,66,68,70,72
Date Published
October 2006
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Based on the U.S. Justice Department's most recent available data (Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics Program), this article examines changes in State and local law enforcement staffing over the 12-month period ending June 30, 2003, including new hirings, lateral hirings, resignations, dismissals, retirements, and those called up from law enforcement duties to be full-time military reservists.
Abstract
During this period, the number of full-time sworn officers increased by approximately 2,600 (0.4 percent). This compares with an annual average growth rate since 1990 of approximately 1.5 percent per year. This is evidence of a hiring decline. The net gain of 2,600 officers was partially offset by an estimated 11,380 officer reservists who were called up to active duty during the 1-year period, making them unavailable to perform local law enforcement duties. These call-ups compose approximately 2 percent of the sworn personnel in local law enforcement. The monetary cost to law enforcement is estimated to be between $0.4 and $1.2 billion annually. Although costs to communities served by smaller departments that are experiencing personnel loss are difficult to estimate, anecdotal evidence suggests that small communities may be significantly affected; for example, the Pottsville Police Department (Pennsylvania) had 2 of 24 officers from its patrol division called to active duty in 2003. This significantly impacted the department's ability to provide quality service. The New York City Police Department, on the other hand, had 410 reservists called to active duty in the year studied. It can absorb this loss of little more than 1 percent of its personnel. In calculating employee turnover and the percentage of possible positions to be filled in the near future, police executives must include a determination of the proportion of full-time sworn personnel who are military reservists. A plan should exist for handling mass call-ups. 4 tables and 8 notes