Police essay
Today the issues concerning financing play a significant role in any organization or agency, including law enforcement. The budget money is not enough to provide the effective police work and to guarantee the police officers a decent salary. This paper discusses some challenges currently facing the police of the city N., which include the challenges of financing police services and the possibility of outsourcing. The author of the report pays special attention to crime strategies, community policing, and actual trends in violence in the city N. In addition, the author discusses the balance of costs of policing versus the value and defines the mission of the police. Moreover, there are some recommendations which should be taken into consideration by the Police Authorities of the city N.
INTRODUCTION
It is known that today there are many different challenges currently facing law enforcement in the United States. One of the legal problems of policing is focused on the methods to regulate police authority and to allow the police officers to enforce law while also protecting the liberty of the US citizens (Harmon, 2012, p.761). It means that one of the major problems in policing is the problem of regulation. However, this problem can be easily solved by means of proper rules and regulations, discipline, and moral and ethical education. In this case, it is necessary to use legislation, administrative and judicial tools. The police officers must be knowledgeable in order to perform their duties within the limits set by the US Constitution. What is more important for the US law enforcement in today’s environment is financing. It is known that the police personnel works under the state budget. Of course, this money is not enough for successful development of the police services. These problems can be found practically in any region of the country. The major goal of this paper is to discuss two issues currently facing law enforcement: the challenges of financing police services and the possibility of outsourcing. The report will be done for a city N which faces a hard choice in relation to law enforcement.
- ANALYSIS OF THE ISSUES CURRENTLY FACING LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE CITY N
It is found that the city N which is located in one of the industrious areas of the United States has a rather high crime rate. However, the police services are well-organized and the police officers do everything possible to reduce the crime rate in the city. Nevertheless, there are a number of issues currently facing law enforcement. The most important issues are financing and the possibility of outsourcing.
- Challenges of financing police services
As a consultant, I have found a number of challenges in financing police services in the city N. Today the police services should be of high quality because there are many new technologies which facilitate the work of the police in the city. However, the money provided by the government is not enough. There are many unsettled issues in terms of financing in the city N. First of all, the police department does not have enough computers and other types of office equipment, including printers, scanners, etc. Secondly, there is no enough money to pay benefits to the police officers. According to Wang (2006), paying benefits can help to reduce the employees’ dissatisfaction with their job, “while designing motivating work is the only approach to promoting job satisfaction” (p.70). In addition, pay and recognition, and promotion of the staff is of great importance.
- The possibility of outsourcing
It is found that outsourcing can play a significant role in law enforcement. Outsourcing can be defined as a legal arrangement in which one company can provide certain services for another company. Today outsourcing is becoming more and more common in information technology industry and other industries of services. As a rule, outsourcing is focused on the entire information management of the organization, which include planning or business analysis, management or servicing of the network and so on. In law enforcement, outsourcing can help to cut costs. Besides, outsourcing will give an opportunity to increase the time the police officers spend on the frontline. As a consultant, I am sure that outsourcing will be an effective strategy to save money in the city of N law enforcement. One of the examples of successful application of this strategy is the effect of outsourcing in Lincolnshire Police in the UK. It is known that “two-thirds of the civilian staff working for Lincolnshire Police have transferred employment to a private security company” (Lincolnshire Police staff transfer to security firm G4S, 2012, para.1). Today many police authorities are interested in outsourcing.
- Crime strategies
It is known that crime strategies should be effectively used in law enforcement. Special attention should be paid to crime statistics. As a rule, crime statistics is focused on incidence of crime, prevalence and concentration. According to Michelle Rogerson (2008), “the concentration of criminal victimization is a phenomenon of which most police officers, crime-practitioners and academic criminologists are all too aware”(p.434). High crime rate in the city N can be explained by high proportion of households, properties and individuals that can be victimized. In most cases, the individuals in the community are repeatedly targeted.
Community Policing
Community policing in the city N is well developed. The police officers participate in community policing programs, which help to motivate officers at work in line with the appropriate theories of management. According to Yumin Wang (2006), “community policing is nonetheless a work design strategy suitable for officers of different role orientation and growth need strength”(p.67). Community policing in the city N is the best option for police administrators to motivate officers. One of the main features of community policing programs in the city N is decentralization of command. It is found that decentralization of command promotes the diversity of police practice and guarantees an improvement in the relationships between the community and the police. Special attention is paid to the role of culture in community policing. Culture is focused on the shared values of the staff, the major function of which is “to think and act in the same manner” (Wang, 2006, p.68). The police officers pay more attention to community serving than to fighting the crime rate. In addition, police organizations are structures in a pyramidal style. The managers above the rank of sergeant are resistant to the structural changes of shared decision making process.
Actual trends in violence
The crime statistics gives an opportunity to evaluate the actual trends in violence that can be found in the city N. The level of homicides is not high, but the level of burglaries is the highest in the region. It is known that public opinion survey shows that violent crime is the major concern of the city residents. There are many incidents of family violence in the city. Juvenile delinquency is increasing. According to the research, the main factors that influence police decision making include offender demeanor, threat to public safety, and accessibility of community services (Benekos et al., 2011, p.139). Besides, it is found that there is racial disparity at some stages of the justice system, such as the stage of arrest and residential placement. The statistics shows that Black juveniles were more often arrested and received the disposition of placement than their White peers.
The mission of the police in the city N
The mission of The Police Department in the city N is to provide effective police services to the community members, to prevent crimes and provide security to the US citizens. The police officers are well trained and ready to take part in any operation, including tracking suspects, detecting drugs and explosives, providing search and rescue missions, etc. Moreover, the police officers should have general law enforcement duties, which include maintaining regular patrols in the city and responding to calls for service. They should investigate different crimes, such as burglary, homicide, rape, etc. In addition, the police officers should be involved in community policing. It means that the police officers should build positive relationships with the residents of local neighborhoods in order to mobilize the help of the public in fighting crime.
- RECOMMENDATIONS
The recommendations should be made in relation to current issues – challenges of financing police services and the possibility of outsourcing.
First of all, it is recommended to plan outsourcing more police work to the private sector. According to the opinion of Chris Sims, the UK Police Force’s Chief Constable, “Working with the private sector is a real opportunity to bring private sector solutions into policing to really transform the way we work, helping us to deliver improved services at lower cost. By working with a business partner we believe we will be able to improve the services we provide to the public and operate more effectively” (Police outsourcing is “fishing expedition”, 2012, para.3).
Secondly, it is recommended to implement democratic management in community policing, which will provide the increase in the officers’ job satisfaction. Community policing can be an effective and desirable strategy for further promotion of the officers’ morale. It is clear that the officers of diverse role orientation in the police department require strength to be satisfied with their job and “develop positive attitudes towards management” (Wang, 2006, p.74). It is found that the police officers in the city N believe that their role is to serve the community more than to fight the crime. That is why it will be better to change the mission of the police of the city N and include fighting the crime in the top list. It will help to attract new sponsors and to improve financing.
Thirdly, it is recommended to assess crime concentration and prevalence in a proper way as this information can be effectively used in crime prevention. It is found that the assessment of the crime prevention impact should include crime prevalence and concentration (Wang, 2006, p.435). It will help to improve the performance of the police officers. It means that more and more organizations will be ready to act as sponsors. The attraction of large sums of money in the form of sponsors’ donations can be used as a good contribution to achieving the major goals of the police agency. Of course, it will require the appropriate financial control and authority. It means that the police organization should be ready to account for all activities connected with sponsor’s donations and gifts. That is why it is very important to safeguard the staff against any malpractice in terms of financial assistance.
Fourthly, it is recommended to test the possibility of outsourcing in the police services of the city N. It will give an opportunity to save money and to provide high-quality services. Although outsourcing in law enforcement is a new method of work, it works well in practice not only in the USA, but also in the UK. Besides, outsourcing can help to improve the police work in the streets of the city. The police organization should be ready to work in partnership with local business organizations, voluntary groups, local communities, etc. in order to achieve the established shared goals, which include reduction of the crime rate in the city and improvement of public reassurance.
Fifthly, it is recommended to improve police productivity by means of changes in the procedures that will give an opportunity to make the work more effective. These methods of improvement include certain improvements in technology, data base management and record keeping. In addition, police productivity can be improved through the results of certain changes in police attitudes. In this case, it is necessary to find the appropriate sources of financing. Additional financing can be found in sponsor’s assistance. For example, sponsorship can include donations, loans and gifts. The police authorities can find sponsors among the leading business organizations which are located in the city N. The value of income that will be generated through different forms of sponsorship should not exceed a maximum value equivalent to 1% of the annual budget (Hudson & Young, 2007, p.10).
- CONCLUSION
In conclusion, it is necessary to say that the issues discussed in this report play an important role in any police organization or agency. In order to solve the financial problems in law enforcement, it is necessary to use outsourcing and attract more and more sponsors. The recommendation represented in the paper can help to improve the performance of the police in the city N.
