NCJ Number
30032
Date Published
1975
Length
69 pages
Annotation
THIS REPORT REVIEWS MATHEMATICAL MODELING METHODS THAT HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED TO ASSIST POLICE DEPARTMENTS IN ALLOCATING PATROL RESOURCES.
Abstract
ISSUES DISCUSSED INCLUDE: DETERMINING THE NUMBER OF PATROL CARS TO HAVE ON DUTY BY GEOGRAPHY AND TIME OF DAY, DESIGNING PATROL BEATS, DEVELOPING POLICY FOR DISPATCHING AND REDEPLOYMENT OF PATROL CARS, SCHEDULING MANPOWER TO MATCH THE VARIATIONS IN THE NUMBER OF CARS NEEDED ON DUTY. TRADITIONAL APPROACHES TO THE FIRST ISSUE ARE BASED HAZARD FORMULAS OR WORKLOAD FORMULAS, BUT BETTER THAN EITHER OF THESE ARE COMPUTER PROGRAMS THAT CALCULATE A VARIETY OF PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND RECOMMEND ALLOCATIONS THAT MEET THE OBJECTIVES ESTABLISHED BY THE DEPARTMENT. FOR DESIGNING PATROL BEATS, TWO MODELS ARE AVAILABLE. THESE REQUIRE MUCH MORE DETAILED DATA THAN A MODEL FOR ALLOCATING PATROL UNITS AND SHOULD GENERALLY BE USED AFTER A DEPARTMENT HAS DETERMINED THE APPROPRIATE NUMBER OF UNITS TO HAVE ON DUTY. EITHER MODEL WILL GUIDE THE PLANNER TO SUBSTANTIALLY BETTER BEAT DESIGNS THAN HE CAN OBTAIN USING ONLY A MAP AND MANUAL CALCULATIONS. ISSUES OF DISPATCHING AND REDEPLOYMENT POLICY ARE BEST RESOLVED USING SIMULATION MODELS, WHICH ARE MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE AND DIFFICULT TO USE THAN EITHER ALLOCATION OR BEAT DESIGN MODELS. MOST DEPARTMENTS WOULD REQUIRE OUTSIDE ANALYTICAL ASSISTANCE TO ANALYZE SUCH ISSUES. MANPOWER SCHEDULING ISSUES ARE OF SEVERAL TYPES, AND THE CHOICE OF A SUITABLE MODEL DEPENDS ON UNDERSTANDING THE DISTINCTIONS AMONG THEM. SOME OF THESE MODELS ARE VERY FLEXIBLE, AND MOST ARE RELATIVELY EASY TO USE. THE SCHEDULES THEY GENERATE CAN BE CONSIDERABLE IMPROVEMENTS OVER THOSE NOW IN USE IN MOST DEPARTMENTS. GUIDELINES ARE PRESENTED FOR THE ORGANIZATION OF A WELL-MANAGED STUDY OF PATROL ALLOCATION. THEY DEAL WITH THE COLLECTION AND PROCESSING OF DATA, ASSEMBLING A PROJECT TEAMS, UTILIZING AVAILABLE COMPUTER PROGRAMS, AND DEVELOPING NEW POLICY. (SNI ABSTRACT)