Effective Police Operations: Patrols, Communications, Challenges & More - Research Paper

Introduction

Effective police operations refer to the responsibilities, job, as well as duties that law enforcement agents perform in their fields. Some of the effective police operations include patrolling, efficient communications, diversity challenges, as well as specialized police operations (Coomber et al., 2019). Some of the various ways that that effective police operations can be measured include crime rates and arrests in a particular period. The paper focuses on the basics behind effective police operations by focusing on types of changes and how they affect police operations, goals, and objectives as well as values in the 21st century in the United States. Besides, the paper highlights the challenge that law enforcement agents face with communication. In addition, the paper discusses the quality of life issues that permeate modern law enforcement practices.

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Technology is one of the changes introduced in police operations and has led to have, to a great extent, affected goals and objectives, as well as values and the operations of police in the US. During the 21st century, police officers have ventured into using technology to combat sophisticated crime, thus keeping the public safe and protecting human life (Kadry, 2019). For instance, some of the technological devices that the police have been using include facial recognition technologies, drones, street cameras, videos from body cameras as well as license plate readers.

The use of these technologies has made it easy for police operations such as police patrols. Besides, the use of technological devices has changed the mission of police officers, especially on how law enforcement officers investigate crimes. For instance, DNA technologies have changed the values and operations of police officers since they are able to investigate complex issues such as murder and forgery.

Standards community involvement is another type of change that has occurred within police operations in the US and has affected the mission, values operations as well as operations of law enforcement agencies. Standard community involvement is engaging and partnering with individuals with police officers to minimize crime and make their neighborhood safe (Coomber et al., 2019). Therefore, the change has simplified police operations because members of the public freely give information to the police that help in investigations.

Besides, community involvement in policing helps in preventing crime within a particular locality. Other aspects of standard community involvement in the US include a partnership with police officers as well as engaging members of the public in problem-solving. As a result, the change has changed the values and objectives of the police, where they no longer treat the public as suspects of crime but partners in securing the country.

There are various lines of communication within any given local law enforcement agency. Some of the lines of communication within the police departments may include verbal, visual, written, as well as nonverbal. Verbal communication is usually made commonly during police voice calls when police officers are communicating with one another.

One of the most common lines of communication within the law enforcement agency may include a chain of command which requires police officers to communicate directly to their seniors instead of taking their concerns to leaders within the police organization (Kadry, 2019). For instance, police officers have a mutual aid radio system that allows officers from different agencies to communicate directly with one another. The lines of communications help in better and fast service delivery as well as expediting issues within the police agency.

Some of the challenges and concerns that law enforcement may encounter with communication may include lack of appropriate feedback mechanism within the police agency, language barriers especially to people who do not speak English, device chaos, email overload as well as network challenges.

Police officers find it difficult to communicate with non-citizens who do not speak English when gathering information to help in investigations (Kadry, 2019). Also, some of the technologies the police use to communicate, such as a mutual aid radio and computers break down, thus interfering with the communication process within the police agency. Ways of mitigating the problems may include improving and creating awareness on the use of nonverbal communications among police officers, distribution of information in a uniform manner as well as ensuring that gadgets used by police officers have an efficient network to ease communications.

Police patrols aim at maintaining social order by preventing crime. Crime prevention is considered to be the forecasting of a crime, which is followed by an assessment of the risk and finally, an action to prevent the occurrence of the crime (Coomber et al., 2019). Therefore, police patrols are one of the significant roles played by police officers to help curb the occurrence of a crime. Other reasons why police patrols are important is because they help in criminal apprehension, maintenance of law, and order as well as traffic enforcement.

The various types of patrols undertaken by police officers include active patrols, random, as well as directed patrols. Police patrols help to reduce crime where it is targeted in crime hotspots as well as helps in getting a better understanding of citizen's needs and developing greater trust between members of the public and law enforcement officers.

There are the various quality of life issues that permeate modern law enforcement practices such as problems associated with bars and clubs and civil disobedience. Police find it challenging to deal with people who operate bars and clubs because the majority of the people are usually drunk and therefore act under the influence of drugs (National Institute of Justice et al., 2017). Therefore, such people commit crimes of all manners, such as creating unnecessary noise and disturbance, rape as well as operating without a license.

Other issues that police officers deal with clubs and bars is selling drugs and allowing minors in such places. Besides, people that engage in civil disobedience cause an uproar and cause disturbance to the public, and sometimes it is challenging for law enforcement agencies to control them. Police react differently to various people and places, especially when it relates to schools, homes, and workplaces (Coomber et al., 2019). For instance, police react to violence at workplaces by the use of violent means such as teargas and arrests. However, police officers react in a calm way at schools because of minors. For instance, police officers also react to violence in schools by talking to students and calming them down. Also, the police may also use violent means such as the use of rubber bullets to react to violence at homes and workplaces.

Conclusion

Some of the various ways that that effective police operations can be measured include crime rates and arrests in a particular period. The use of these technologies has made it easy for police operations such as police patrols. some of the technologies the police use to communicate, such as a mutual aid radio and computers break down, thus interfering with the communication process within the police agency. Police react to violence at workplaces by the use of violent means such as teargas and arrests. However, police officers react in a calm way at schools because of minors.

References

Coomber, R., Moyle, L., & Mahoney, M. K. (2019). Symbolic policing: situating targeted police operations/'crackdowns' on street-level drug markets. Policing and Society, 29(1), 1-17. Retrieved from https://scholar.google.com/scholar?as_ylo=2016&q=Police+operations&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5#d=gs_cit&u=%2Fscholar%3Fq%3Dinfo%3AB6IGtQUNoV4J%3Ascholar.google.com%2F%26output%3Dcite%26scirp%3D1%26hl%3

DenKadry, A. T. (2019). Practical considerations for implementing an evidence-based policing approach in police operations: a case study. Policing and Society, 1-13. Retrieved from https://scholar.google.com/scholar?as_ylo=2016&q=Police+operations&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5#d=gs_cit&u=%2Fscholar%3Fq%3Dinfo%3ASISGDULk5rUJ%3Ascholar.google.com%2F%26output%3Dcite%26scirp%3D6%26hl%3

Den (National Institute of Justice (NIJ), US Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, & United States of America. (2017). Mobile Broadband Data Access Has Positive Impact on Police Operations. Retrieved from https://scholar.google.com/scholar?as_ylo=2016&q=Police+operations&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5#d=gs_cit&u=%2Fscholar%3Fq%3Dinfo%3AyzaL8v2QEAEJ%3Ascholar.google.com%2F%26output%3Dcite%26scirp%3D9%26hl%3Den