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Patrol Force -Analysis of Data and Patrol Force Planning <br />Background -Police Patrol <br />Police departments utilize their patrol forces in two modes: reactively to respond to calls for <br />service and proactively to address crime problems as well ongoing nuisance issues. (See Figure <br />l .) Detectives provide another element of a primarily reactive force, seeking to solve crimes that <br />have already been committed. <br />Policies 8~ <br />_._._._,_,_._._._._._._._._. ..Procedures <br />Process Management <br />Continuous Improveme ' <br />Feedback Loop <br />Data Driven <br />Leverage Resources 1 <br />Flexible and Creative Resource <br />;Math Model - Allocation <br />Citizen Expectation <br />Citizen Complaints <br />Citizen Satisfaction <br />Response Time Reduction <br />~ Targeted Crime Reduction <br />Citizen Fear <br />Community Deterioration <br />Police Patrol: Reactive and Proactive <br />Reactively -citizen initiated calls <br />^ High priority calls -citizens expect extremely rapid response <br />^ Moderate Priority calls -Best practice departments manage citizens' expectation by <br />letting them know a realistic response time and then meeting or surpassing their <br />expectation. If there is an unexpected further delay, the citizen is contacted with up- <br />to-date information <br />^ Low priority calls -Best practice departments find creative strategies such as a <br />telephone crime reporting so as to free up the patrol force for either rapid response <br />to a high priority call or to continue with crime-directed activities <br />^ On-Scene handling: The manner in which a police officer handles himself or herself <br />on-scene plays a critical role in developing or discouraging citizen support for the <br />police department <br />Rapid response to the highest priority calls can sometimes mean the difference between life and <br />death but is unlikely to broadly influence the crime rate. Meeting or exceeding citizen <br />expectations reduces the number of citizen complaints and increases community support for <br />the police department. Community support is a critical element in developing a proactive crime <br />directed patrol force. With accurate and timely data, a police department can reduce <br />response time by adopting a philosophy of data driven continuous improvement that usually <br />entails first finding the multiple root causes of slow response and then changing operating <br />policies that contribute to the problem. <br />They can also reduce response time by making data driven strategic decisions that better <br />match patrol force levels with police patrol workloads. <br />Proactively -Police initiated in cooperation with citizenry <br />^ Police departments use detailed crime data to develop both short-term targeted <br />activities and long lasting strat~~ti~v~s <br />