NCJ Number
91564
Date Published
1977
Length
132 pages
Annotation
The establishment of a team policing program in Multnomah County Oreg., in 1975 has generally produced the outcomes expected from the LEAA-funded demonstration program.
Abstract
Five patrol teams assumed responsibility for delivery of police services in the county. A detective unit formed another team. The only prominent change that occurred was an increased number of arrests and prosecutions in late 1975 and 1976, following an actual decline in arrests and prosecutions. The implementation of team policing seemed to cause a temporary period of disruption within the county's Division of Public Safety. Field deputies received more discretion about how to handle preliminary investigations of nonserious crimes and placed more emphasis on arrests and traffic citations and less emphasis on field stops. New methods of operating increased the responsibilities of both sergeants and lieutenants. Financial restrictions and other factors made the adoption of team policing difficult. So far, patrol officers do not see team policing as an effective means for change in the department. However, the system appears to have changed the way in which officers spend their time on duty. Figures, data tables, and appendixes presenting a statement of objectives and a questionnaire are provided.