NCJ Number
58292
Date Published
1978
Length
11 pages
Annotation
TEAM-POLICING DEVELOPMENTS IN ST. LOUIS, MO., BOISE, IDAHO, AND LOS ANGELES, CALIF., ARE DESCRIBED BY PARTICIPANTS IN A WORKSHOP HELD DURING A CONFERENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE.
Abstract
A LIEUTENANT WITH THE ST. LOUIS METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT DESCRIBES HIS AGENCY'S EXPERIMENT WITH TEAM POLICING, OUTLINING THE TASK FORCE APPROACH TAKEN TO PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTING THE EXPERIMENT. CHANGES IN THE ROLES OF OFFICERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE EXPERIMENT, NEW POSITIONS CREATED (E.G., TEAM COLLATORS), THE TRAINING OF TEAM MEMBERS, AND PROCEDURES USED TO MONITOR AND EVALUATE THE UNDERTAKING ARE NOTED. THE EXPERIMENT PROVIDED THE AGENCY WITH INSIGHTS INTO ITS ORGANIZATIONAL AND OPERATIONAL PROBLEMS WITH A MINIMUM EXPENDITURE OF RESOURCES. THE BOISE POLICE CHIEF DESCRIBES HIS AGENCY'S ONGOING NEIGHBORHOOD TEAM-POLICING PROGRAM, NOTING THE FACTORS THAT ENABLED THE AGENCY TO CONVERT TO TEAM POLICING IN 6 WEEKS. EACH TEAM MEMBER'S ROLE AS A PROBLEM SOLVER IS EMPHASIZED, AS ARE INDICATORS (INCREASED CLEARANCES, POSITIVE CITIZEN RESPONSE) THAT TEAM POLICING IS FUNCTIONING WELL. NEIGHBORHOOD TEAM POLICING HAS ENABLED THE BOISE POLICE AGENCY TO PROVIDE PERSONAL 'SMALL TOWN' SERVICE WHILE CAPITALIZING ON THE ECONOMIES TO BE REALIZED FROM THE AGENCY'S SIZE. A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT EMPHASIZES THAT TEAM POLICING IN LOS ANGELES IS MORE THAN AN ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL, EMBODYING A PHILOSOPHY OF SERVICE, MODERN MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES, AND EMPHASIS ON COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT. BENEFITS THAT HAVE BEEN REALIZED THROUGH TEAM POLICING IN LOS ANGELES ARE SUMMARIZED, AS ARE CHANGES IN DECISIONMAKING PROCESSES AND MANAGEMENT STYLE THAT HAVE RESULTED FROM TEAM POLICING. (LKM)