Section II Contemporary Law Enforcement

1. Section IIContemporary Law Enforcement Chapter 5Patrol: The Backbone of Policing

2. Patrol Officer Responsibilities Assist citizens Enforce laws Investigate crimes Prevent criminal activity Keep traffic moving Maintain order Resolve conflicts

3. The Patrol Area • The beat includes • Geography • Economy • Personality • Sociology • Officers develop a personal stake in the welfare of their patrol community.

4. Three Spheres of Patrol Activity • First responders to calls for service and emergencies • Work to apprehend perpetrators of crime • Engage in strategic partnerships with the community to address problems of crime and disorder

5. Types of Patrol General patrol Random/preventive patrol Directed/aggressive patrol

6. General Patrol Challenges change constantly Random and reactive Incident-driven Focused on rapid response to calls

7. Random/Preventive Patrol • Random patrol • Detect/intercept crimes in progress • Deter crime by creating an illusion of police omnipresence • Respond to crime-in-progress calls rapidly • Preventive patrol • “Noncommitted” time • Self-initiated activities • Extra patrols used in certain areas

8. Directed/Aggressive Patrol • Focuses on high-crime areas or specific offenses • Uses crime statistics to plan shift and beat staffing • Provides more coverage during peak activity • Goes well with problem-oriented policing • Includes • Field interrogation • Aggressive traffic enforcement • Detection of environmental anomalies

9. Patrol Activities First responders Calls for service Self-initiated tasks Administrative duties

10. Methods of Patrol Foot Automobile Motorcycle Bicycle Segway Horseback Aircraft Boat Special terrain vehicles

11. Foot Patrol Addresses neighborhood problems before they become crimes May help deter burglary, robbery and muggings Decreases levels of fear Increases citizen satisfaction Increases patrol officer job satisfaction

12. Automobile Patrol • Offers greatest mobility, flexibility and convenience • Allows wide coverage and rapid response to calls • Provides means of transporting equipment and people • The modern patrol car • NCIC • GPS • Visual surveillance and imaging • Dashboard-mounted video camera • ALPR

13. Traffic Patrol Responsibilities • Primary goal • Produce voluntary compliance with traffic laws • Keep traffic moving safely and smoothly • Other responsibilities • Directing and controlling traffic • Providing directions and assistance to motorists • Enforcing traffic laws • Investigating motor vehicle crashes • Providing emergency assistance at crash scenes • Gathering information related to traffic • Writing reports

14. Selective Traffic Enforcement • Police departments cannot enforce all traffic regulations at all times. • Selective enforcement targets specific areas. • Most common violations of traffic laws: • Speeding • Red-light running • Nonuse of seat belts • Aggressive driving and road rage • DUI • Driver distraction

15. Basic Causes of Traffic Crashes Human faults and errors Violations Attitudes Road defects Vehicle defects

16. Officer Responsibilities at Crash Scenes Rendering first aid to victims Protecting victims from further harm Reducing involvement of other cars Summoning emergency services Protecting victims’ personal property Securing evidence and investigating the crash Summoning towing services Keeping traffic moving

17. Police departments personnel assignments Know key duties of Patrol Officers Know what crime mapping is Seat belt usage stats? Patrol types? Compstat? NCIC Effectiveness of preventive patrol