DESCRIPTIVE PROFILE OF THE - Arkansas Democrat-Gazette



Management and Operations Study of the Police DepartmentCITY OF SPRINGDALE, ARKANSASFINAL REPORT201 San Antonio Circle, Suite 148Mountain View, CA 94040650.858.0507August 28, 2012TABLE OF CONTENTSAugust 28, 20121EXECUTIVE SUMMARY12OVERVIEW OF GENERAL FUNCTIONS AND MANAGEMENT OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT33EVALUATION OF THE PATROL DIVISION194EVALUATION OF THE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS DIVISION655EVALUATION OF THE SERVICES DIVISION726EVALUATION OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION78APPENDIX A – PROFILE OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT86APPENDIX B – SUMMARY OF THE EMPLOYEE SURVEY1011. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In March 2012 the Matrix Consulting Group began the project to evaluate the Springdale Police Department and the Fire Department (evaluated in a separate report). Introductory meetings and most of the interviews, data collection, employee surveys and analysis was conducted from March through May 2012. The project team conducted interviews of over 40 members of the Department and collected data relevant to this study to analyze the major service areas and Department tasks. In this report recommendations are only made for areas the project team has identified as areas where a change should be made to improve function, practice or efficiency (either cost efficiency or process efficiency). This report is divided into the following chapters: ?Overview of General Functions and Management of the Police Department ?Evaluation of the Patrol Division?Evaluation of the Criminal Investigations Division?Evaluation of the Services Division?Evaluation of the Administrative DivisionSeveral recommendations and/or improvement opportunities are provided at the end of the sections within the chapters; all of these recommendations are summarized in the following table. RecommendationsChapter 2 – Overview of General Functions and Management of the Police DepartmentReview the Department’s mission, vision and values statement within the next 18 months, using a representative cross-section of Department employees. Page 8Each Department manager should hold regular (weekly, bi-monthly) staff meetings with his/her direct reports. Page 8Establish the compensation for Police Department employees at or above the average pay rates of the three surrounding Cities in an effort to keep a high quality workforce and reduce the attrition rate. Page 16Review the Officer, Dispatcher and Jailer positions to determine specific steps that can improve retaining high quality employees in these positions. Page 16Establish pay equity between Police Department positions and Fire Department positions based on job function and responsibility; Police Sergeants to Fire Captains; Police Lieutenants to Fire Battalion Chiefs; and Police Captains to Fire Division Chiefs. Page 16Chapter 3 – Patrol DivisionEliminate the “points” system for Patrol Officers as it currently exists. Page 40Establish a City goal of an overall average time ratio of 60% committed and 40% uncommitted time for field Patrol services. Page 60Establish a Department goal to maintain a minimum 30% uncommitted time percentage for each four hour time period of the day. Page 60Semi-annually review patrol staff workload for each four hour time block to determine if some patrol staff should be redeployed to busier hours of the day; or if resources from other work units should be redeployed to Patrol. Page 60Adopt a process to enhance delivery of patrol services during the periods when uncommitted time is available. The Captain, Lieutenants and Sergeants should coordinate the development of plans that identify specific tasks/projects that can be worked on or accomplished when uncommitted time is available during a shift. Page 60Provide Patrol field supervision of two Sergeants per shift. Page 61End the practice of providing funeral or business escorts. Page 64Use the CAD system, or develop another methodology, to track Traffic Officer and Traffic Accident Investigators’ assignments. Page 64Chapter 5 – Services DivisionAdd two-three Jailer positions to adequately staff the Jail with two Jailers 24/7. Page 78Conduct sample audits of the property/evidence room annually or every six months. Page 78Convert the Fleet Sergeant position to a civilian staff position. Page 78Chapter 6 – Administrative DivisionAdd three Dispatcher positions to adequately staff the Dispatch Center with four positions 24/7. Page 82The recommendations have greater detail provided within the specific Chapter of the report. 2.OVERVIEW OF GENERAL FUNCTIONS AND MANAGEMENT OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENTThe Springdale Police Department provides a wide range of law enforcement services for approximately 70,000 residents, covering approximately 42 square miles. From 2000 to 2010 Springdale’s population grew from 45,798 to 69,797 according to the U.S. Census Bureau, an increase of 52% in the ten year span. To provide law enforcement services in Springdale, the Police Department managers share responsibilities for field patrol services, investigations, support services and administrative services between the four Captains. The following sections provide a summary of the organization, patrol, and staffing levels of the SPD.The police department has a total of 125 sworn and 48 civilian positions authorized and budgeted positions (full-time equivalents or FTEs). Employees are deployed in the following areas as shown below:Division Authorized PositionsVacant PositionsSwornCivilianSwornCivilianOffice of the Chief11Administration11243Service418Patrol8433C.I.D. (Investigations)252Total1254833 The Springdale Police Department has 173 budgeted “Full Time Equivalent” (FTE) positions – this includes 125 regular sworn positions and 48 civilian personnel. The vacant positions are three Officers in Patrol and three Dispatchers.(1)Service Level to the Community.This project is evaluating the calendar year 2011 data, workload, staffing and accomplishments. Subsequent sections in this report will analyze and discuss in detail the workload and performance accomplishments of the Department but at the beginning of this report there are several accomplishments to comment on and highlight. The Springdale Police Department has the largest amount of resources assigned to the Patrol Division and related field services that provide responses to the community generated calls for service and also pro-active patrol activities. The overall average response time (from receipt of call to arrival at the scene) to all community generated calls for service was an impressive 12.9 minutes, and 6.1 minutes to emergency calls for service. Springdale PD has several specific community outreach efforts such as conducting various crime prevention presentations, providing public information at local events/festivals, National Night Out community events, Neighborhood Watch meetings, participation/presentations (e.g. Leadership Springdale and “Santa Cop”) and partnering with the school districts to provide School Resource Officers in the schools. Additionally the Lieutenant participates in these and other community events and pro-actively provides members of the media with information about SPD programs/events; in addition to regular contact with reporters and press releases. These efforts are commendable and also fairly typical in police agencies that desire to develop and maintain a good relationship with the local community.The number of vacancies in Dispatch has been reduced from six a year ago to having a fully trained staff in the spring of 2012. This is an achievement that takes significant resources to accomplish. However, with the high attrition rate in Dispatch this is an area (discussed in a later section) that requires continuing attention to ensure a sufficient staffing level.In 2011, and implementation continuing in 2012, the Department dedicated resources to additional areas to improve efficiency: steps were taken to form an “in-house” narcotics unit to provide specific enforcement services in Springdale, an Officer was assigned to serve backlogged Springdale arrest warrants, and additional staff for patrol and dispatch were hired and trained. Another significant positive aspect is the number of in-service and special skills training hours received by Officers and Sergeants – it is higher than normally seen in most police departments and clear evidence that the Department is committed to providing high quality training and skills improvement for employees. SPD supervisors and managers assign staff to attend and also seek to accommodate employees who desire to avail themselves of training opportunities. Overall, SPD line level employees and managers alike expressed and exhibited a high level of commitment to the organization and service to the public. The day to day dedication of all employees to their job is the primary factor in providing high quality services to the community. (2)Management Team, Operations and Organizational Challenges.The Department is managed by the Police Chief and four Captains; each Captain is in charge of one of the four Divisions – Patrol Operations, Criminal Investigations, Services and Administration.The current police chief assumed command of the Department in December 2005. One of the steps taken during her first year was to identify the Departments mission and values, they are: ?Mission – We improve the quality of life by building relationships to solve problems and safeguard our community.?Vision – To be recognized as the most professional, effective, progressive and well-equipped law enforcement agency in the region.?Values – Integrity, Professionalism, Respect, Teamwork, AccountabilityThese statements have been disseminated throughout the organization, are visible throughout the building which serve as reminders to employees and also members of the community who visit the Department. Clear, succinct and expressed organizational goals such as these are an important factor in identifying a focus and direction of the Department to the community and also to employees. The process of identifying and choosing the goals is just as important as the goals – SPD correctly included a cross-section of the organization to include all work groups in the process so that the goals truly reflect all levels of the Department. It has been approximately six years since these statements were developed and employees hired since that time did not participate in their development and may not fully accept them as their own or understand their relevance to daily operations. Additionally, just 27% of those responding to the employee survey believe that the Department has a clear direction for the future. Reviewing and updating these goals in the next 18 months or so is a step that will be important to do to maintain relevancy to current employees and those hired in the last six years. One of the items identified in the employee survey and also in over 40 individual interviews conducted in March and April 2012, is the need for increased communication within the organization. A desire for increased communication is one of the top issues in almost every study conducted by the project team as the communication of decisions and general information easily breaks down in a multi-layered organization and may not reach everyone. In Springdale, only 37% of those responding to the employee survey agreed that they are kept informed of the decisions that affect them. One of the significant issues that directly relates to communication was identified in the employee interviews is a lack of cooperation and communication among a few members of the command staff. It was identified as one of the issues that has resulted in a lack of knowledge at the line level of decisions that have been made; and that the process of making decisions about minor or significant items can take a longer to accomplish, or sometimes not resolved, because of a lack of cooperation. Specific examples were only sometimes mentioned (and not solicited) but this issue was mentioned frequently. The project team believes this is a current issue and one of the significant organizational challenges needing additional improvement. In addition to increased cooperation, one of the ways to improve communication is for command staff to frequently and clearly communicate with their “direct reports” and require the same of them regarding all organizational issues. Communicating effectively in police organizations (particularly due to the 24/7 work schedules) takes a significant amount of time and diligence to keep all employees reasonably informed in a timely manner of organizational decisions and general information. Recommendations:Review the Department’s mission, vision and values statement within the next 18 months, using a representative cross-section of Department employees.Each Department manager should hold regular (weekly, bi-monthly) staff meetings with his/her direct reports.(3)Springdale Has a High Attrition Rate for Some Positions and Additional Strategies Should be Developed to Maintain a High Quality Workforce.One of the significant factors in the health of an organization is the number of employees who leave the organization to work elsewhere. A low employee attrition rate is one indicator that employees are receiving fair compensation, the organization is well managed and of the general health of the organization. The attrition rate is the percentage of employees who separate from city employment for any reason (retirement, resignation, termination, etc.). Organizations typically will be more productive and efficient when they are able maintain their high quality employees. A “normal” amount of turnover, or attrition, is healthy for an organization but excessive attrition over consecutive years is a drain on resources and an indication that improvements are needed. Police organizations that successfully train their new employees and also have a low attrition rate will have more resources that can focus on service delivery rather than in hiring and training new employees. It can also result in a higher average staffing level in field services work units, as these units are typically the ones whose staffing level is reduced when an employee leaves the Department. The next several paragraphs will present the 2009 – 2011 attrition for three key line level positions – Police Officer, Dispatcher and Jailer. All organizations, public or private, experience attrition and even very good organizations at times may have a high level of attrition; the goal is to keep the attrition rate reasonably low over the long term. The attrition rate is one of the two primary factors that reduce staffing in field services and the skill level of the employees that are providing the services from the authorized level to the “actual” level – the employee attrition rate and employee leave time. The following table shows the number of sworn employees who have separated from Springdale the PD over the last three years.Police Officer Attrition 2009 - 2011Calendar YearNumberAttrition Rate20091310.4%201064.8%201143.2%Total23Annual Average7.76.1%A total of 23 sworn employees separated from the PD. The attrition rate in 2009 of 10.4% is high and at this rate it is difficult to maintain a “normal” staffing level without the significant use of overtime. An attrition rate at this level over consecutive years will necessarily result in higher training expenses (initial training for new Officers) and also puts a strain on existing training resources such as Field Training Officers. However, there were several unique factors in 2009 that resulted in this high rate – due to budget reductions the SPD Bomb Squad moved to Bentonville along with the two SPD Officers and one member of the Department died. The attrition rate in 2010 and 2011 was much lower and closer to a 4-6% rate that is commonly seen by the project team in police organizations. Retirements and resignations account for the greatest percentage of the attrition rate. In Springdale over this three year period the retirements averaged 1.7 sworn employees per year; the resignations varied widely – from nine in 2009 to four in 2010 and three in 2011. The following table shows the number of Dispatchers who have separated from Springdale the PD over the last three years.Dispatcher & Senior Dispatcher Attrition 2009 - 2011Calendar YearNumberAttrition Rate2009522.7%2010731.8%2011836.4%Total20Annual Average6.730.3%A total of 20 Dispatchers separated from the PD from 2009 – 2011, this is almost a 100% turnover (22 Dispatch positions) over the three year time period. This is a significant issue and one that the Department and City should evaluate and take steps to improve. An attrition rate at this level puts a severe strain on the Department to hire and train new Dispatchers and also on the remaining Dispatchers who may be required to work overtime shifts to fill vacant positions. High turnover can also reduce the quality of overall dispatching services due to employees in training and overall lack of experience after completion of the initial training program. The third position that must be filled on each shift it Jailer. The following table shows the number of Jailers who have separated from the Springdale Police Department over the last three years.Jailer Attrition 2009 - 2011Calendar YearNumberAttrition Rate2009333.3%2010222.2%2011333.3%Total8Annual Average 2.7 29.6%There are a total of 9 Jailer positions and eight Jailers have separated from the PD from 2009 – 2011, this is an 89% turnover over the three year time period. However, this position is commonly used as an entry level position by the Jailers to become an Officer – about 50% of the Jailers who “resign” do so to become SPD Officers and so remain City employees. There is a significant benefit to this as the Jailers who become Officers are already familiar with the organization, have determined that it is a good “fit” for them (and the Department also has the opportunity to evaluate their performance) and have a higher skill level in some areas than other rookie Officers. The Jailer attrition rate is should still be evaluated by the Department and City to determine if there are reasonable additional steps that can be taken to retain Jailers who do not become Officers as the high attrition rate puts a strain on the Department to hire and train new Jailers and also reduces the overall skill level of the staff. Additionally, when there is a shortage in the Jail during a shift a Patrol Officer is assigned to work in the Jail, reducing staffing on the streets. Additional details regarding the recommended staffing level for Police Officer, Dispatcher and Jailer will be presented in subsequent chapters in this report that evaluate the Division where these positions are assigned.Maintaining an attrition rate at an annual 4-6% level for sworn personnel and less than 15% for Dispatchers (3 separations annually) and Jailers (1-2 separations annually) will require continual effort by Department management and City management. Providing a competitive pay and benefits package to attract quality candidates and successfully assimilating them into the organization are important factors in attaining the goal of developing high quality long term quality employees. Once a new Officer or new Dispatcher’s initial training is completed and he/she completes probation then other factors such as internal working relationships, fair compensation (having sufficient money to pay monthly bills), organizational management and overall workplace environment issues become more important factors. The workplace environment includes the physical items such as the buildings, vehicles and the equipment used by employees but more importantly the intangible aspects of the job. These elements include positive working relationships with their peers, the quality of the employee’s direct supervisor and a feeling of belonging to the organization. If too many negative factors are present it can lead to serious consideration of whether or not to change employers. There are a wide variety of factors involved in keeping high quality employees; four specific employee needs have been identified and are listed here:?The need for trust – expecting that the agency will deliver on its promises, be open and honest in its communication, invest in the employee, provide fair treatment and compensation.?The need to have hope – ability to grow in the organization, develop skills and have opportunities for career progress or advancement.?The need to feel a sense of worth – the employee’s confidence that hard work, competence and commitment to the organization will lead to recognition and reward.?The need to feel competent – the expectation that an employee’s skill level will be matched to assignments that use the skills and are challenging.These factors apply equally to sworn and civilian employees. Fair compensation is one of the incentive factors for employees to stay with their current employer. In Springdale, the compensation offered to employees for most of the sworn line level positions is lower than that of other agencies in the immediate area. Compensation at the top pay rate for Police Officer, Master Police Officer or Police Officer II, Corporal and Sergeant were obtained for Springdale and the other three municipal police agencies in the Northwest Arkansas region and are provided in the following table. SpringdaleRogersBentonvilleFayettevilleOther Cities Avg.% Above SpringdaleOfficer – Entry30,09031,17932,26134,85732,7669%Officer – Top Rate43,28037,17047,77847,26744,0722%Master PO or PO II – Lowestna39,39535,464Na37,430naMaster PO or PO II – Highestna54,22652,541Na53,383naCorporal - Lowestna35,00639,02143,05339,027naCorporal – Highestna55,30757,80353,10555,405naSergeant – Lowest37,02548,17342,91045,39945,49423%Sergeant - Highest55,53859,11463,56561,47661,38511%The average pay rate for entry level Officer for the three other surveyed cities is 9% above Springdale’s pay rate and the average highest pay rate is 2% above the highest Springdale Officer pay. However, Officer’s pay must also be compared to the pay for Master Police Officer and Police Officer II pay rates. A Master Police Officer or Police Officer II classification is offered in Rogers and Bentonville – these positions provide higher pay rates for Officers who have obtained a specified number of years on the job, passing a written test, training certification and/or serving as a Field Training Officer. Bentonville Officers must have two years on the job, possess their “Intermediate Certificate” and serve as a Field Training Officer. In Rogers, the only requirements are that an Officer must have four years on the job and pass a written test (almost all Officers with more than four years on the job are Master Police Officers). These positions provide the opportunity for tenured Officers to increase their pay without promoting to a higher level position and should be used for comparison with Officer’s pay rates in Springdale and Fayetteville. The average Sergeants’ pay rate in the three comparison cities (using the highest pay rate) is approximately 11% above that of Springdale Sergeants.Bentonville and Rogers do not have fixed pay “steps” for employees but have entry level pay rates and subsequent to that entry level, either Council approved pay increases or cost of living adjustments – similar to Springdale. Employees who are in one classification for many years will continue to receive pay increases and cost of living adjustments when they are approved by the City Council. This system also means that an employee in a new position (e.g. new Officer, newly promoted Sergeant) will not receive the four or five “step” increases every year (typically 5%) as occurs in other Cities that have this type of pay compensation system and will remain at their initial pay level unless increases to pay are approved. The result is that an Officer with three years experience (and City-wide pay “freezes” during that time) will be making the same hourly wage as newly hired Officers.Each pay system has its advantages and disadvantages and it is important for managers and City Administrators to be aware of the impact on their employees and possible effect on the attrition rate. The economic downturn of the last several years have had a significant negative effect on City revenue which has resulted in budget reductions, pay freezes and other changes in the workplace. During difficult economic times it is important clearly communicate the need for freezes or reductions and when City revenues increase to reward employees with reasonable pay increases.Another significant pay issue is parity between positions in the Police Department and Fire Department with similar job functions, roles and responsibility. The first level of comparison is the first line supervisor – Sergeants in the Police Department and Captains in the Fire Department. In Springdale, typical of most Cities, Sergeants supervise a crew of Officers and all or a portion of the City (frequently all of the City in Springdale); and Fire Captains provide supervision for a Fire Station based crew (typically one Fire Apparatus) and a “first in” District. It is common for Cities to pay their Fire Captains and Police Sergeants the same rate of pay based on the similar job functions. Pay equity is also recommended for Police Lieutenant to Fire Battalion Chief, and Police Captain to Fire Division Chief or Assistant Chief based on the same criteria. Currently Fire Captains are paid 15.8% higher than Police Sergeants, Fire Battalion Chiefs are paid 18.2% higher than Police Lieutenants and the Fire Assistant Chief is paid 10.3% higher than Police Captains. It is common and reasonable for these positions to be paid equitably.The major focus on the attrition rate in an organization should be on the line level positions and with employees with less than five years of service – for both sworn and civilian positions. These positions and employees have fewer ties to a specific organization and more willing to consider the benefits of moving to another agency. Long term employees or those who have been promoted to higher level positions are less likely to leave the organization. Because of this a significant focus should be on providing a similar pay and benefits and workplace environment as other agencies in the region. The overall goal should be to provide a fair compensation package and workplace environment for all employees with a specific focus on line level personnel as their attrition rate has the most significant impact on an organization. City and Department managers should establish an attrition rate goal and track it quarterly; and if the rate trends upward for six or more months steps should be taken to take appropriate steps to address it.Recommendations: Establish the compensation for Police Department employees at or above the average pay rates of the three surrounding Cities in an effort to keep a high quality workforce and reduce the attrition rate.Review the Officer, Dispatcher and Jailer positions to determine specific steps that reasonably can be taken to improve retaining high quality employees in these positions.Establish pay equity between Police Department positions and Fire Department positions based on job function and responsibility; Police Sergeants to Fire Captains; Police Lieutenants to Fire Battalion Chiefs; and Police Captains to Fire Division Chiefs.(4)Use of Technology in the Department.Modern technology can provide significant benefits for a City and police department and over the last several decades many police departments across the United States have invested significant resources and time to plan and implement the latest technology. Frequently the technology is CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) integrated with the RMS (Records Management System) and electronic field report writing; other systems are the MVAR (Mobile Video/Audio Recording) system and AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location) systems. Frequently, the successful implementation of these systems has taken more resources and more time than was stated by the vendor and anticipated by the police agency. Notwithstanding these impediments, over the last 10 years many technology projects have been successfully implemented in police departments throughout the United States. The goal of all of these projects is to enhance the ability of PD employees to accomplish their jobs and to improve the policing provided to a community.Springdale has successfully implemented several technology projects that enhance the ability of staff to perform their jobs. These projects include the installation of an MVAR system and MDCs (Mobile Data Computers) and AVL (Automatic Vehicle Locators) in all police vehicles and crime mapping system for the Department. The MDCs allow Officers to obtain wanted persons, drivers’ license and registration information from the MDC and write their reports in the field, rather than requiring a trip to headquarters to write their reports. This helps Officers to remain in the field and thereby can facilitate quicker responses to calls for service. The AVL project is scheduled to be completed in 2012 and when implemented will provide an electronic display of field Officers’ locations to identify the closest unit to the reported call for service, again with a goal of improving response times to incidents. The crime mapping project will help the Department to more quickly identify crime and possible crime trends that may develop. This information will be used internally to enhance the SPD’s ability to apprehend criminals and also to provide appropriate information to the public. (5)Police Department Facility.A few other sections of the report may make mention of a specific work area of the PD facility but it is important to provide a general overview and evaluation. The main facility on Spring Street is usable but substandard for functionality and adequate space for today’s operational needs, examples of this include: ?The lack of adequate space led to the Criminal Investigations Division renting a building several years ago for their operations, in 2012 they will be moving closer to headquarters but still are off-site. ?The Jail does not meet current code for a Jail facility and if it is remodeled will need significant work to bring it up to today’s standards. ?The report writing “room” is actually a frequently used main hallway in the building and is not conducive to report writing?Several former closets or storage rooms are now used for offices.?Several mobile trailers have been erected on the grounds to house an investigative task force because space in the building was unavailable.Overall, the Department has made best use of their headquarters but plans should be made to upgrade and expand it within the next five years.3. PATROL OPERATIONS DIVISION.This section provides information regarding the current organization and operations of the Patrol Division of the Springdale Police Department. The information was developed through interviews of SPD management and personnel, review of documents, call for service data and other data provided to the project team. This section provides an overview of the Division, the current staffing levels, a detailed analysis of workload and staffing needed to provide service to the community.1.PATROL SHIFT OPERATIONS.The following information was obtained through interviews with SPD personnel, electronic data via the CAD, RMS, and case management systems, as well as any relevant documents associated with patrol (i.e., statistical reports, training records, leave time records, budgets, etc.).The project team collected extensive information regarding the SPD workload activities relating to field patrol personnel (i.e., Patrol Officers and Sergeants). Specifically, this involved the raw data set that captured all dispatch communication activity for the Springdale Police Department in calendar year (CY) 2011 and included the following types of information:?Call or Event Number?Date and Time of Initial Creation of the CAD Case?Location of Call?Type of Call?Priority of Call (“Response” in Springdale CAD Data)?Time of Unit(s) Dispatch?Time of Unit(s) In-route?Time of Unit(s) On-Scene Arrival?Time of Unit(s) Clearance?Beat Unit Identifiers (e.g., unit numbers) for all responding units?Incident Disposition (e.g., report taken, arrest, citation, etc.)This information serves as the context for analyzing patrol’s staffing needs and estimating workload activity, including the identification of community-generated calls for service, as well as Officer initiated activity. This summary description of SPD patrol services is organized as follows:?Patrol unit scheduled deployment?Patrol officer availability?Total calls for service ?Calls for service by priority?Calls for service response and handling time?Calls for service dispositions?Officer initiated activity and handling timeThe first section provides the current patrol unit deployment, showing by time of day the number of patrol units scheduled. (1)Patrol Work Schedule and Officer Availability.Patrol Sergeants and Officers in the Springdale Police Department work eight hour shifts five days a week. The Department does not use a “team concept” where Sergeants and Officers work with the same people each day but have different days off during the week to provide a consistent level of staffing. However, Sergeants and Officers do work the same eight hour shift so will frequently work the same day and therefore supervised by the same Sergeant. As of April 2012 the authorized Patrol staffing is 3 Lieutenants, 6 Sergeants, 65 Officers and 2 Traffic Accident Investigators (civilian positions). Personnel are assigned to three shifts to provide 24/7 coverage. Each Patrol Shift staffed with one Lieutenant, two Sergeants and 16-21 Officers (April 2012); plus two Officers assigned to traffic safety on Shift A. Patrol works the following schedule: ?Shift A hours are 0600-1400 ?Shift B hours are 1400-2200?Shift C hours are 2200-0600The shifts do not overlap so if a call for service that requires an immediate response occurs, one or more Officers will leave briefing and respond to the call. Street staffing is provided from two additional sources:?Traffic Accident Investigators (2 civilian positions) whose primary responsibility is to respond to traffic accidents, traffic hazards, parking problems and related low risk field incidents. They relieve Officers from responding to over 2,500 calls for service in 2011.?The Crime Suppression Unit (1 Sergeant and 6 Officers) works Tuesday – Friday from 1300-2300 hours and is frequently on the streets working proactively on crime problems but also can respond to calls for service if needed.The table on the following page lists the authorized number of Officers assigned to patrol services to show a graphical depiction of patrol officer staffing over a 24 hour day. These Officers’ primary duty is to respond to calls for service. A Lieutenant and Sergeants are also deployed on every shift for supervision and overall management of patrol services. Patrol Sergeants in Springdale also respond to calls for service and sometimes handle calls for service as the primary unit, notwithstanding their main role as a supervisor; Sergeants are not included in this analysis due to their primary role as supervisors. These numbers do not include the Traffic Officers or the Officers assigned to the Crime Suppression Unit.Authorized Patrol Staffing for 2012HourA Shift 0600-1400B Shift 1400-2200C Shift 2200-0600Average Staffing is the Shift Staffing000011.411.4010011.411.4020011.411.4030011.411.4040011.411.4050011.411.4060012.912.9070012.912.9080012.912.9090012.912.9100012.912.9110012.912.9120012.912.9130012.912.9140015.015.0150015.015.0160015.015.0170015.015.0180015.015.0190015.015.0200015.015.0210015.015.0220011.411.4230011.411.4The above table depicts the authorized number of Patrol Officers when all of the Officers assigned to the shift actually work their shift. This equals a total of approximately 314 hours per day of patrol staffing. There is not a specific minimum staffing level on patrol but generally a supervisor will call in someone to work overtime when the staffing level falls below eight Officers. The actual staffing level is often lower than the authorized level due to officers off on leave, on a training assignment or other reasons. The following section shows the number of leave hours and training hours taken by Officers assigned to the Patrol Division in 2011 and the resulting actual staffing level. (2)Leave Hours for Patrol Division Officers.There are two primary factors that reduce staffing from the authorized level to the “actual” level – the employee attrition rate (discussed in the previous chapter) and employee leave time. An employee is scheduled to work 2080 hours in a year (260 eight hour shifts). The total number of hours actually worked on their patrol shift is reduced by leave hours used, in-service training and other assigned tasks. The project team used personnel leave data obtained from the PD to determine the number of leave hours for patrol personnel for calendar years 2010 and 2011. The number of training hours was determined from records provided by SPD staff. Training records did not show the number of hours that were assigned as part of their regular work hours and the hours that were paid as OT. An estimate of 75% on duty hours and 25% off duty (OT) hours was used to determine the average number of annual training hours for Patrol Officers. Additionally, Officers in their first year were excluded from the calculations due to the significant training that occurs during the first year of employment.Officers also perform a variety of administrative tasks during their work shifts – such as shift briefing, meal breaks, meetings during the shift, etc. The project team used an average of 45 minutes per shift for the actual number of work shifts they worked after deducting leave hours and training hours. The following table summarizes the availability of Patrol Officers after deducting leaves taken (vacation, injury, sick, compensatory time off, military, funeral and suspension), training hours and also the on-duty administrative tasks. Average of 2010 & 2011 HoursWork Hours for Patrol Officers & SergeantsTotal Paid Annual Work Hours2,080Average Leave Usage261Average In-Service / Special Skills Training55Total Unavailable Hours316Net Work Hours1,763% Annual Availability84.8%??Administrative Time (45 Min. x 224 Shifts)220Net Available Work Hours1,543% Annual Availability74.2%The following points summarize the data above:?Patrol Officers averaged 261 hours of leave usage annually for the two year period. The sample includes all Patrol Officers who worked during the year. This includes time off for vacation, sick, comp time, injury, military leave, etc. The project team typically sees average leave hour usage higher than the number of leave hours used by Springdale employees, indicating a relatively young work force (who may not have accumulated and/or do not use a significant number of vacation hours) but also a dedicated work force that does not use very many sick leave hours.?Springdale PD Officers attended an estimated average of 55 training hours on duty or as part of their 2080 straight time hours – either as part of their regular work schedule or adjusted straight time schedule. These classes were to meet Department training requirements or develop special skills.?This equates to a total of 1,763 hours, or approximately 85% of the time that a patrol officer is present at work and working a patrol shift.?During their work shift Officers attending briefing, take meal breaks, attend court, refuel and check their vehicle, etc. These tasks are defined as “administrative time” and take an estimated 45 minutes per shift or 220 hours annually. This is on duty time but normally needed for these routine tasks so not counted as “available” time, however, a Patrol Officer is almost always available to respond to emergency calls for service while performing these administrative tasks. In total, a Springdale PD Officer is available to provide patrol services for approximately 1,763 hours per year but after deducting administrative tasks during the shift the average Officer is working approximately 1,543 hours per year. This is a higher number of hours that employees are “present and working” than the project team typically sees in police department studies. It is a significant positive factor for the City of Springdale as it reduces overall staffing costs due to fewer shifts requiring overtime to backfill patrol shifts.The table below shows the reduction in the staffing level as a result of Officers being off on leave or away at training – the “actual” staffing level for 2011, as compared to the “authorized” Patrol staffing level shown previously. As is true for all organizations, the “actual” staffing level is lower than the “authorized” staffing level. The project team used the monthly patrol rosters (months of February, May, August and November) to estimate the actual number of Officers working on a shift. This numbers do not include the one Station Officer staffed by each shift or those assigned to the Crime Suppression Unit.Actual Patrol Staffing for 2011HourA Shift 0600-1400B Shift 1400-2200C Shift 2200-0600Average StaffingAuthorized StaffingDifference in Staffing Level00007.27.27.27.211.401007.27.27.27.211.402007.27.27.27.211.403007.27.27.27.211.404007.27.27.27.211.405007.27.27.27.211.406008.98.98.98.912.907008.98.98.98.912.908008.98.98.98.912.909008.98.98.98.912.910008.98.98.98.912.911008.98.98.98.912.912008.98.98.98.912.913008.98.98.98.912.9140010.310.310.310.315.0150010.310.310.310.315.0160010.310.310.310.315.0170010.310.310.310.315.0180010.310.310.310.315.0190010.310.310.310.315.0200010.310.310.310.315.0210010.310.310.310.315.022007.27.27.27.211.423007.27.27.27.211.4The above table depicts the total number of Patrol Officers for the different hours of the day that actually worked an assigned shift on the streets in 2011 – this level equals a total of approximately 212 hours per day of patrol staffing. This actual staffing level reflects the “net” hours worked compared to the “authorized” staffing level. The actual staffing level deducts the hours for employees who were off on various types of leave or at a training course that is part of their normal work hours (or adjusted work hours).2.CALLS FOR SERVICE WORKLOADS.The table on the following page shows the total number of community generated calls for service (CFS) by time of day and day of week for CY 2011. The project team defined a community generated call for service as a call where at least one SPD sworn officer provided the primary response to an incident. The CAD system data was used to determine the number of CFS. It does not include the 2,644 CFS handled by the two civilian Traffic Accident Investigators nor the 58,553 incidents of Officer initiated munity Generated Calls for Service by Day & Hour – Calendar Year 2011HourSunMonTueWedThuFriSatTotal0000277951021221171332111,057010020887104102781061788630200201706460587717370303001815257475257114560040011538374545538441705001034142434740673830600556373736758644530700761291461111101419680908001101612081741701951661,18409001362021641811791631701,19510001652202111971842072021,38611001862031722081932142311,40712002032072062101921972291,44413001812142081892291872201,42814001932352442222022392171,55215001922652652452433202511,78116001933133232923353152622,03317001992963182732843112751,95618002602552772802652982701,90519002502502242652402582521,73920002232492092532322652711,70221001892231871911972693111,56722002041851871701752623221,50523001611471491401592313101,297Total4,2614,2004,1774,0934,0534,5964,94630,326Ave/day82818079788895SPD responded to 30,326 community generated calls for service, approximately 83 per day, where a SPD unit provided the primary response. The busiest days of the week were Friday and Saturday with an average of 88 and 95 CFS respectively. Of the total number of calls, A Shift units (days) handled 10,858 calls (36%), B Shift units (afternoon/evening) handled 12,683 calls (42%) and C Shift units (nights) handled 6,785 calls for service (22%). The table on the following page shows all of the types of calls for service that generated over 500 incidents during 2011:Type of Call# of Calls% of TotalDisturbances3,07610.1%Alarm2,2087.3%Suspicious Person/Vehicle/Activity1,5885.2%Welfare Check1,3944.6%Accident1,1883.9%Theft1,1643.8%Stalled Vehicle1,0353.4%Domestic Disturbance8382.8%911 Hang-up7482.5%Reckless6902.3%Criminal Mischief6142.0%Burglary5661.9%Shoplifting5461.8%DWI Driver5361.8%Breaking Or Entering5181.7%Intoxicated Subject5161.7%All Other Types13,10143.2%Total30,326100.0%The “other” types of calls include assisting the Fire Department or another police agency, traffic hazards, juvenile mischief, attempt to contact, etc. As shown above, the 10 most frequent calls for service account for 13,929 calls, almost 46% of the total number of calls during the year.The following table shows the breakdown by priority of the type of call for service, which is typically the final priority (if it changed from the initial call received by Dispatch). The call priority definitions are listed below along with the most common calls for service in that priority type:?Priority 1 – “Emergency” response (e.g. shooting, major injury accident)?Priority 2 – “Immediate”, a high priority response (e.g. family fight, 911 call-unknown nature, “in progress” calls, burglary or robbery alarm)?Priority 3 – “Routine” response (e.g. suspicious vehicle, person or circumstances; disturbance, loud noise or music, possible mentally ill person)?Priority 4 – “It Can Wait” response (petty theft, meet person in lobby; auto burglary, property damage accident; patrol check)CFS PriorityNumber% of Total13,34511.0%211,41037.6%38,94529.5%46,62621.8%Total30,326100%As shown above, 11% of the calls for service in CY 2011 were Priority 1 calls, about 37.6% were Priority 2 and 29.5% were Priority 3 calls. (1)Average Times for Response and Handling of Calls for Service in 2011.The response to and handling of community generated calls for service is one of the primary tasks of any municipal police agency and on that frequently is the subject of inquiry from city leaders and members of the community. The project team calculated the average times using all of the calls for service reported to the Springdale Police Department in 2011. The following table shows three individual time components and two overall time components for a community generated call for service: ?Call processing time – from the time the CAD event was created until the officer is dispatched. The initial seconds that a Dispatcher is talking to the reporting party before the CAD case was generated is not tracked so cannot be included in the call processing time; additionally, if the call is not immediately dispatched to an officer (e.g. because none are available) this time is included in the “call processing” time even though the Dispatcher has completed his/her information gathering and CAD entry. ?Travel time – from the time the call was dispatched to an officer until the arrival of the first police unit (the difference between the “dispatch time” and the “on scene time” for the first arriving unit).?Overall call “response” time – the call process time + travel time. This is the time citizens are most often interested in – from the time they call 9-1-1 until an officer arrives at the scene of the reported incident (shaded box).?On scene time – from the time of arrival to the time the officer cleared the call. ?Overall call handling time – the total of the travel time and on scene time (shaded box).The times are shown for the different types of priority calls for service and the overall total for all calls for service. Final PriorityCFS by PriorityCall ProcessingTravelResponse (Processing + Travel)On SceneCall Handling (Travel + On Scene)13,3451.64.56.124.529.0211,4103.25.58.716.221.738,9459.37.116.415.322.446,62613.76.820.511.318.1All30,3266.96.012.915.821.8Total Officer Hours Required to Handle Calls for Service11,018As shown above, the average “Call Processing” time for Priority 1 calls is 1.6 minutes and the average “Travel” time is 4.5 minutes. This equals an average “Response” time for the first SPD unit to arrive at the scene of a Priority 1 call for service of 6.1 minutes, 8.7 minutes for Priority 2 calls and 16.4 minutes for Priority 3 calls.The average “On Scene” time for the different types of priority calls ranged from 24.5 minutes for Priority 1 calls to 11.3 minutes for Priority 4 calls. The overall average “Call Handling” time of 21.8 minutes is lower than the average time of approximately 30 minutes per call for service commonly seen by the project team in other police department studies throughout the United States. The total Officer time required to handle community generated calls for service in 2011 was 11,018 hours (30,326 CFS x 21.8 minutes per call).The following table shows the percentage of calls for service that were responded to within various time ranges. CFS by Priority TypeTravel Time in MinutesTotal #Total %0:00–4:595:00–6:597:00–9:59Above 10:00No Time Stamps12,1545553291531543,34511.0%25,4461,8011,3991,0371,72711,41037.6%32,6611,0151,0171,1343,1188,94529.5%42,1077667558172,1816,62621.8%Total12,3684,1373,5003,1417,18030,326100%% of CFS40.8%13.6%11.5%10.4%23.7%100.0%The times listed above were separated by the Priority type for each call for service. The calls listed as “no time stamps” are the calls that either a dispatch time or arrival time was listed in the CAD record. The most common reason for this is for Officers who are dispatched to a call but cancelled while “in route” to the call – an “arrival” time stamp is appropriately not entered for his/her response. There are also additional reasons for missing CAD data that include Officer, Dispatcher or equipment error in not recording it. As the above table shows, from the time an Officer receives the call, SPD units responded to all community generated calls for service within 5 minutes approximately 41% of the time, and within 7 minutes for 54% of all calls for service.(2)Disposition of Calls for Service.The result of the service provided by the PD is typically a few word “disposition” that is listed in the CAD system, such as reporting party contacted, quiet on departure, person gone on arrival, arrest made, citation issued, etc. In Springdale the disposition is only listed that a report was filed which does not provide any information out of the CAD system for what happened on the calls for service. There were 3 types of report dispositions, listed in the table below.Disposition# of CFS% of CFSReport Filed24,79681.7%Accident Report Filed5,51418.2%Fire Report160.1%Total30,326100%(3)Officer “Back-Up” Time.Officers also respond as backup units to assist the primary officer on many calls for service. The CAD system used by Springdale PD captures the number of calls where officers respond as a back-up officer and also the amount of time officers spend as a back-up officer. The CAD data showed that one back-up officer responded to assist the primary officer on 8,864 calls (14%) and two or more back up officers responded to assist the primary unit on 23,985 (38%) of the CFS in 2011. This equals a 52% “back-up” rate where more than one officer arrived on the scene to handle the call. This rate is within the 40% - 60% range commonly seen by the project team has seen in other police departments. The total hours of backup officers’ time are used when calculating total committed time. (4)Additional Workload – Report Writing and Bookings.In addition to the time required to handle CFS, Officers perform tasks associated with the calls such as report writing and booking persons arrested at the incident. SPD Officers wrote a total of 8,302 reports in 2011. Almost all agencies, including Springdale, are not able to track the amount of time taken by Officers to write reports. The project team uses an average of 45 minutes for each report written by Officers, totaling 6,227 hours in 2011.SPD Officers also arrested 5,570 people in 2011. When a person is arrested in Springdale most of the time he/she will be transported to the Springdale PD headquarters where there is a jail holding facility. Springdale has civilian Jailer positions that assist officers in booking their prisoners. The prisoner is either housed at the Springdale Jail or transported to a County Jail (Washington County or Benton County) after booking is completed. The CAD system tracks “prisoner” and “transport” time and this time added up to a total of 4,698 hours. This is lower than the 6,963 hours of booking and transportation time estimated by the project team (5,570 arrests x 75 minutes per incident). The higher number of 6,983 will be used in subsequent calculations. Springdale Officers also are required to provide additional transportation of prisoners to/from Washington County Jail or Benton County Jail so prisoners can make court appearances in the municipal court in Springdale. This time is tracked in CAD and is time spent in addition to the time required for initial booking and transportation of arrestees. The amount of time is shown in the following table:Type of Detail (from CAD)NumberAverage Time in MinutesTotal Time in HoursAt PD With Prisoner3,04245.72,319CID Interview, etc.59125.8254Transport2,87829.01,390Total6,51137.23,963Springdale Officers spent a total of approximately 3,963 hours on these tasks as tracked in CAD. It is almost certain that some of the hours for the CAD event code “at PD with Prisoner” are included in the estimate of 6,983 hours for initial booking and transportation; however, it is difficult to estimate how much of the 3,963 hours is included. Without a methodology to make a reasonable estimate, the project team used 50% of the time or 1,981 hours. The total number of hours for both of these tasks will be used in this report and for the staffing calculations in the final report. The table below shows the total number of staff hours committed to these tasks in 2011: NumberAverage Time in MinutesTotal Time in HoursOfficer Reports 8,302456,226Initial Booking & Transportation 5,570756,963Prisoner Transportation Tasks (50% estimate)6,51137.21,981Total Hours (estimated)15,170It is not known how many of the 5,570 arrestees were cited and released at the scene, transported to the SPD holding facility and released from that location, or transported to one of the County Jails after preliminary processing at SPD. 3.OFFICER INITIATED ACTIVITY. In addition to responding to community generated calls for service, Patrol Officers engage in a number of officer initiated activities during their work hours, such as traffic stops, pedestrian stops, security checks, etc. The number of officer initiated activities was determined by identifying the number of self-initiated events from the CAD record. The table on the following page shows the number of officer initiated incidents.Officer Initiated Activity – Calendar Year 2011HourSunMonTueWedThuFriSatTotal00004144318037377586836314,45701003714246746377126385283,98402002473363543214013433032,30503001812473653963573472102,10304001432393183193143161871,83605006410712812416511411681806001213523433181792071441,66407002344294014303743872902,54508003355826476224034633243,37609003524604994363713823122,81210001883283433212693002301,97911001692102522502232071941,50512001842723373162862041811,78013001412872902482382051201,52914002503523373282993363052,20715004665215384845074435723,53116003774774495214564655263,27117003933403564253283543342,53018002652432603032622522951,88019003192643102972723152972,07420003363653363833903934142,61721002262422562592912972761,84722002162812643073783543092,10923003235735786577355094193,794Total6,3158,3629,4389,4398,9688,5147,51758,553Ave/day121161182182172164145As shown above, Patrol Officers initiated 58,553 on-view incidents, an average of 160 events per day. Most frequently these events were vehicle stops but also included pedestrian stops, assisting outside agencies and warrant service. This is a significantly high number of officer initiated incidents, almost double that of the community generated calls for service and significantly higher than the number of Officer initiated incidents commonly seen by the project team in other police departments. The time spent by Officers on self-initiated activities was calculated using data from the CAD system. The total hours are listed in the table below.Self Initiated IncidentsResponses by Backup OfficersAverage Handling Time (Minutes)Total HoursInitiating Officer58,5539.08,7832nd Officer13,54925.75,8033rd (or more) Officers4,17154.03,754Total Hours18,340CAD showed an average time of 9.0 minutes spent by the first Officer arriving at the scene. The time spent by backup Officers was greater than the first Officer – at an average time of 25.7 minutes for the 2nd Officer and 54.0 minutes for the 3rd and any additional Officers. The chart on the following page shows the types and number of incidents for the initiating Officer.Officer Initiated Incidents – 1st Officer DataType of IncidentNumberPercentAvg. MinutesExtra Patrol-Log33,56757.3%2.0Traffic Stop12,69821.7%11.5Follow Up2,5614.4%19.3Foot Patrol1,8763.2%10.4Checking Vehicle1,6822.9%7.8Checking Subject1,2002.0%9.5Special Assignment1,0501.8%76.8Officer Busy8571.5%130.9Warrant Service-Misdemeanor6901.2%26.4Extra Patrol-Request6191.1%2.7Radar4990.9%6.2Log Vehicle @ Location3530.6%1.9Safety Check of Premises3170.5%19.5DWI Arrest2180.4%32.5Checking Building1730.3%7.5Walk Thru-Bar-Club1280.2%9.5Warrant-Felony340.1%27.7Bicycle Patrol180.03%102.8All Other130.02%12.2Total Incidents & Average Time58,553100%9.0Extra Patrol and Traffic stops were the most frequent events initiated by Officers during 2011, accounting for over 46,000 events out of the total of 58,553.It is likely the primary reason the number of “Extra Patrol-Log” events is because of the Patrol Division’s points system – where Officers are required to track their activity during the shift and obtain one point for each hour of their shift. Officers get either a point or ? point credit for a dispatched call, assisting another Officer on a call, a report, traffic stop, or making an arrest. One of the easy ways for Officers to obtain ? point is an “extra patrol” activity that they document. An extra patrol is intended to be a meaningful activity to spend from a few minutes to many minutes conducting foot patrol, or other preventive patrol activities. However, many people interviewed by the project team stated that it has become a quick way to log points for an activity that takes no more than a minute, such as driving through an intersection or an area and documenting it as an “extra patrol”. This also takes Dispatchers time to create the CAD events solely for statistical purposes.An additional unintended negative consequence that this system has had is, in some cases, made it more difficult for Sergeants to hold their Officers accountable for performing well. A Sergeant, who believes an Officer is not performing up to standards but who regularly obtains his/her points for the month, will have a difficult time making the case of poor performance. There does not appear to be a good reason to continue this system as it currently exists. However, Officers should be productive and held accountable for their work product by their supervisor and the Department; additional methods to accomplish this will be discussed in the next section. The next table shows the data for the 2nd arriving Officer to the incident. This table shows the total number of responses and the average number of minutes the 2nd Officer was at the scene. Officer Initiated Incidents – 2nd Officer DataType of IncidentNumber%Avg. MinutesTraffic Stop5,48240.5%12.3Checking Vehicle1,49511.0%9.9Checking Subject1,2229.0%9.9Special Assignment1,1908.8%69.9Follow Up1,0958.1%22.3Officer Busy1,0878.0%83.5Foot Patrol3942.9%18.7Warrant Service – Misdemeanor3542.6%15.2DWI Arrest3192.4%30.5Extra Patrol-Log2792.1%6.0Extra Patrol-Request1851.4%3.5Safety Ck Of Premises1561.2%26.4Checking Building1381.0%8.6Walk Thru-Bar-Club590.4%12.1Warrant Service – Felony560.4%25.5All Other380.03%6.6Total Incidents & Average Time13,549100%25.7Traffic stops and checking vehicles or subjects were the most frequent type of events backup Officers responded to in 2011. It is interesting to note that the overall average time for these secondary responses was higher, at 25.7 minutes, than the primary officer handling the incident (9.0 minutes average). The next table shows the time spent by the 3rd Officer (and any additional Officers) on these incidents. Officer Initiated Incidents – 3rd Officer DataType of IncidentNumber%Avg. MinutesOfficer Busy2,25354.0%69.5Special Assignment1,28530.8%36.4Traffic Stop1844.4%21.4Follow Up1353.2%39.8Checking Subject791.9%17.0DWI Arrest521.2%18.2Checking Vehicle401.0%22.5Warrant Service-Misdemeanor401.0%43.7Warrant Service – Felony380.9%37.2All Other650.02%1.4Total Incidents & Average Time4,171100%54.0“Officer Busy” (frequently indicating prisoner transportation and/or handling) and “Special Assignment” were the most frequent incident types for these backup Officers in 2011. It is interesting to note that the overall average time for these 3rd Officers again was higher, at 54.0 minutes than either the primary Officer handling the incident or the second Officer arriving on the scene. Recommendation:Eliminate the “points” system for Patrol Officers as it currently exists.4.PATROL FIELD SERVICES PRINCIPLES AND BEST PRACTICES.The orientation toward the provision of field patrol services in municipal law enforcement agencies has come full circle in the United States over the last 60 years. The historic law enforcement approach to field services involved a Police Officer who walked a particular beat or neighborhood. A traditional beat officer knew people in the area and was in a position to know potential problems before they occurred, or likely suspects for crimes committed on the Officers beat. As cities grew and metropolitan areas spread the motorized officer became the normal transportation mode to respond to calls for service. The police department’s focus changed to one of responding quickly (i.e. in a patrol car) to all types of calls in a wider geographic area and overall, fewer officers assigned to foot or vehicle patrol duties. At the same time, society at large and city residents developed rising expectations of the services that would be provided by police officers (e.g. the passage of domestic violence laws in the late 1970s and 1980s). Over time these factors resulted in a beat officer that had less local neighborhood knowledge and less frequent contact with the residents in his/her service area but with a higher expectations among the general public that they would improve the neighborhoods. Initiatives over the last four decades have attempted to once again provide policing services more tangible to the community. This law enforcement focus throughout the country has been under the general umbrella of “community policing” – a return to providing a wide range of services identified by citizens and more frequent contact with a police officer and more “proactive” law enforcement in neighborhoods and schools. Community policing has taken the form of countless initiatives and iterations throughout the country in recent years. The project team supports local community policing efforts, especially ones that involve Patrol personnel when they have uncommitted time during their shift. These efforts should also involve the active participation of supervisors, managers and other specialty units (e.g. School Resource Officers). Over the course of several hundred police department studies the Matrix Consulting Group has developed a list of key elements in the effective provision of field patrol services in a community, including the responsibility of Officers to be proactive during their shifts (to identify and resolve problems) and not just reactive in handling calls for service. These general policing elements are summarized on the next several pages.Management TaskCommentsReactive Patrol Requirements?The primary mission of any law enforcement field patrol force. Responding to citizen requests (or calls) for service is the most critical element of successful patrol services.?As staffing allows, the Department should have clearly defined areas of responsibility (beats) and should have defined how many units are assigned to respond to the different types of calls.?The Department should have clearly defined response policies in place; including prioritization of calls, response time targets for each priority and supervisor on scene policies.?This reactive workload should make up between 50% and 60% of each Officer’s net available time per shift (on average). This includes time to write reports, transport and book prisoners.Proactive Patrol Requirements?Proactive patrol time is defined as all other activity not in response to a citizen generated call; it occurs during the “uncommitted” time of a shift. It includes items such as traffic enforcement, directed patrol, bike and foot patrol.?The Department should have clearly defined uses for uncommitted time – i.e. officers should know what they are expected to do with their time when not responding to calls for service. This may include targeted preventive patrol for general visibility, traffic enforcement, developing relationships with members of the community, visiting schools or parks.?The proactive element of field patrol should make up between 40% and 50% of an officer’s day (on average).?Research and experience has shown the 40% – 50% range to be an appropriate level of uncommitted time for several reasons:-Less than 35% proactive time available to officers typically does not allow for sufficient “bundling” of available time – time comes in intervals too short to be effectively utilized by law enforcement personnel for meaningful activity.-Proactive time of more than 50% results in less efficient use of officer resources as it is difficult to have sufficient meaningful work tasks and manage personnel whose time is so heavily weighted toward proactive activities.-Some exceptions to this latter concern are units which are dedicated to handle certain types of activity, e.g., traffic enforcement units, School Resource Officers, etc. However, it should be noted that the Officers assigned to these units should respond to any call for service when needed/required.-A level of 45% proactive time or higher is typically seen in smaller suburban or rural communities; a level of 30-40% is more common in larger cities.Problem Identification and Resolution?Effective proactive patrol for municipal law enforcement requires the rapid identification of problems and issues, the development of an action plan to address issues as they arise, implementation of the potential solution and an regular evaluations to determine if the approach successfully addressed the issue. ?This approach should be used on criminal, traffic and other quality of life problems reported to the Department or discovered by officers during the course of their patrol duties.?Officers have the primary role in accomplishing pro-active tasks, field projects (e.g. Problem Oriented Policing), etc.?Formal and informal mechanisms for capturing and evaluating information should be used. This should be primarily handled by officers and supervisors, but managers must also have involvement and oversight.Management of Patrol Resources?Patrol supervisors and managers must take an active role in management of patrol. This includes developing and utilizing management reports that accurately depict the activity, response times to calls for service and the variety of current issues and problems being handled by patrol units.?Resources must be geared to address actual workload and issues. This includes ensuring that patrol staffing is matched to workload, that patrol beats or sectors are designed to provide an even distribution of workload.?This also includes matching resources to address issues in a proactive manner. This may include shifting beats to free staff to handle special assignments, assigning officers to targeted patrols, assigning traffic enforcement issues, etc.?Staffing should be related to providing effective field response to calls for service, provision of proactive activity and ensuring officer and the safety of members of the public.?Supervisors should be both an immediate resource to field officers (for advice, training, back-up, inter-personal skills) and field managers (handling basic administrative functions).Measurement of Success and Performance?Data should be used to plan and manage work in Patrol and other field work units.?Effective field patrol should be measured in multiple ways to ensure that the Department is successful in handling multiple tasks or functions.?Examples of effective performance measurement include: response time, time on scene, number of calls handled by an officer, back-up rate and the traffic enforcement index (citations/warnings + DUI arrests divided by injury + fatality accidents), overall level of crime and clearance rate.?Managers and supervisors should track and review performance measures on a regular basis to know what level of service is being provided to the community and for use as one tool to ensure that services are effective and efficient.The matrix above summarizes the basic elements of an effective and modern patrol service in a community, providing both reactive field services (response to community generated calls for service) and proactive work by Officers assigned to field work units (i.e. Patrol Division). During these times of limited or decreasing budgetary resources it becomes critically important for managers of the patrol function to make the best use of Officer’s time to provide effective policing and meeting expectations of the community. The key elements identified above in the effective provision of field patrol services in a community are summarized below:?Effective municipal law enforcement requires a field patrol force, which is designed and managed to be flexible in providing both reactive, and proactive response to law enforcement issues in the community.?This requires that the Department balance personnel, resources and time to handle both of these types of law enforcement. Between 50% and 60% of the time in a community should be spent handling all of the elements of reactive patrol. The remaining 40% to 50% should be spent specific proactive patrol activities, other self initiated tasks or community policing activities. ?The time that each Officer has available for proactive patrol needs to be structured and should not be approached in a random way. Random patrol is not effective in addressing issues in the community – patrol should include efforts to address specific problems in pre-determined ways. This should be planned and accomplished at the Officer/Sergeant or “squad” level with oversight provided by the Lieutenant.?Any effective proactive approach to patrol requires that information be managed formally and that a formal effort be put into evaluating that information. This evaluation should lead to specific actions to address issues/problems in a community. In addition, attempts to address problems should be evaluated formally to determine if the efforts made have been effective.These basic elements represent the essential ingredients of effective and efficient municipal field law enforcement in the United States in the 21st century. Establishing a patrol pro-activity target is important for effective management and planning of a patrol operations force. Springdale’s Patrol Division “points system” was designed to provide a method to hold Patrol Officers’ accountable to be productive during their work shifts. However, it has been in existence long enough for those Officers who so desire to “beat the system” and accumulate the needed points to meet the established productivity goal. One of the concerns with the existing point system is that when a supervisor of an Officer who is “using” the system desires to hold the Officer accountable to be actually productive, not just “meeting” the points goal, the supervisor has a more difficult time taking the Officer to task as he/she is accomplishing the official productivity requirements. An alternate system, where the Lieutenant, Sergeants and Officers on a shift to determine individual productivity goals, receive regular feedback from their supervisor, and measure accomplishment of those goals throughout the year will likely have greater success in providing the desired accountability. As part of this system supervisors should be provided regular (i.e. monthly) statistical reports showing individual Officer’s productivity, such as reports written, investigations conducted, arrests made, field contacts (e.g. vehicle and pedestrian stops), citations or warnings issued, and number of calls for service handled. This information can and should be part of the information used by the supervisor to evaluate an Officer’s overall performance for the month and year. (1)Factors to Consider in Establishing Patrol Staffing Levels.The project team uses an analytical approach to determine the staffing level required in a community such as Springdale. The approach is characterized by several key factors that provide the basis for objective evaluation of a police department’s patrol force:?Staffing should be examined based on the ability of current staff to handle the calls for service generated by the community (and the related work such as report writing and processing arrestees); as well as providing sufficient time for proactive activities such as directed patrol, traffic enforcement and addressing on-going issues/problems in a neighborhood.?Staffing is dependent on the time officers are actually available to perform the work required of the patrol function. In this evaluation, leave hours usage and time dedicated to administrative functions are examined. ?Policy is made by selecting a level of proactive, or uncommitted, time that is deemed to be appropriate for the community – this can be established by the Chief, City Manager and/or elected officials. In the case of Springdale, the project team recommends a target of an overall average of 40% uncommitted time that will enable Patrol Officers to handle the community generated calls for service effectively and efficiently, engage in a variety of targeted patrol activities (ability varies depending on time of day), and provide for safety of officers. ?The project team’s analysis does not include the utilization of ratios such as “officers per thousand” because they do not account for the unique characteristics of communities (e.g. demographics, workload, unique community needs, deployment, etc.). Although these ratios are interesting, they do not provide a comprehensive measure of staffing needs for a specific community, nor should policy makers use them as a basis to make decisions regarding patrol staffing. The Project team’s approach is supported by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) that view ‘officer per thousand’ ratios as “totally inappropriate as a basis for staffing decisions”.There are other significant factors for policy makers to consider when determining staffing levels. These factors include, but are not limited to, the following:?The type, severity and volume of crime in a community.?The ability of the police department to meet response time goals to calls for service and solve crime (taken as a performance measure and not as a crime prevention/reduction measure).?The level of police department involvement in providing non-traditional police services such as neighborhood problem solving, graffiti removal, community meetings and events and teaching/role modeling in the schools.?The level of proactive efforts such as traffic safety and parking enforcement, narcotics enforcement, enforcement of vice crimes such as prostitution and liquor laws.?Providing for basic officer safety and risk management of a patrol force. In some police agencies, the uncommitted time level may not be the primary measure to determine the minimum number of Patrol Officer positions required – it may be driven by officer safety concerns. For example, a staffing level needed to meet basic officer safety concerns, may result in an uncommitted time level that is above 50%. The above factors should be used by policy makers in determining appropriate staffing levels for all functions within the police department. The goal of a patrol staffing analysis is to ensure sufficient patrol resources on duty 24 hours a day providing a high level of service to the community. The ability of the Springdale Police Department to do this depends on knowing and evaluating the community demand workload – the number of community generated calls for service, reports and bookings of arrested persons. These are the factors used by the project team to evaluate the number of patrol officers needed in a community to achieve a Patrol Officer staffing level that will provide the level of pro-activity that is desired by a community.(2)Data Used to Conduct Staffing Calculations.The Project team calculates uncommitted time in law enforcement agencies using a mixture of known data combined with several assumptions. The table below provides a brief description of the basis for this calculation for the City of Springdale.Reactive Factor in Calculation of Uncommitted TimeSummary DiscussionCalls for ServiceActual call data obtained from the SPD’s Dispatch Center’s CAD system allowed the project team to determine the number of community generated calls for service (reactive time of Patrol Officers).Call Handling TimeGenerally, an average call handling time of approximately 30 minutes is needed to efficiently and effectively handle a community generated call for service. The handling time includes an Officer’s travel time and on-scene time. A handling time that is higher than 40 minutes indicates Patrol Officers may not be timely in processing calls for service; a handling time lower than 30 minutes indicates Patrol Officers may not be providing an appropriate amount of attention to all calls for service.Back-Up Frequency / Number of Units per Call An average of 1.4 – 1.6 patrol units responding to handle a community generated call for service.Duration of Time On-Scene by Back-UpAn average of 75% (or less) of the primary/initial unit’s handling time.Number of ReportsThis number is based on the number of community-generated calls for service. For most incidents requiring a report the Officer will gather preliminary information while on-scene handling the call and spend additional time later in the shift, at the end of the shift or the next day. The project team’s experience with other municipal law enforcement has found that some type of report is written to document the incident on approximately 1/3 of the community generated calls for service.Time to Complete a ReportAn average of 45 minutes is used to determine the time required for completing incident reports resulting from a call for service or self-initiated activity; this time is included as part of reactive workload time. The actual report writing time is currently not being captured by the CAD system.Number of ArrestsThe actual number of arrests for 2011 was used.Time to Complete an ArrestAn average of the actual time it takes for an Officer to book an arrestee at the PD or a nearby jail facility. This time is included as part of reactive workload time. The project team used an average of 1.25 hours per arrest, to account for the additional travel and processing time required to book a prisoner into the County Jail.Available Time of Officers / Officers on DutyThis number used in the calculations is the average number of all leave hours (e.g. vacation, sick, long term disability, military) used by Patrol Officers deducted from the total paid hours in a year (2,080) to obtain the actual hours that an Officer is working.Availability of Supervisors to Handle Field WorkloadsThe staffing needs analysis determines the appropriate number of Officers needed to handle the community generated calls for service. Sergeants are not included as primary responders to calls for service. This is appropriate as Sergeants should primarily be responsible for supervision, oversight and other tasks; not primarily used for response to calls for service.Using this data and targets, the project team can then perform the calculation of the current uncommitted time and also a range of uncommitted times that policy makers may want to have as a desired goal. The calculation that is performed to determine uncommitted time is as follows:Uncommitted Time Percentage = All Available Time – (Reactive Workload Time + Admin. Time)Total Available TimeThe following points summarize the formula above:?“Total Available Time” is defined as the number of Officer hours actually available in a year (or other time period).?“Reactive Workload Time” is defined as the average total committed time per call for service, multiplied by the number of calls for service (for the same time period).This approach provides managers and policy makers with an easily understood (and easy to calculate) measure of the capability of the patrol workforce to provide proactive law enforcement (the time left over once calls for service and related workload, and administrative tasks have been handled). A more thorough and complete calculation of overall workload for various hours of the day is provided later in this report.This method avoids the significant problems in other comparative staffing models (e.g., “officers per thousand” ratio mentioned above) that do not take into consideration the workload for Patrol Officers that is generated by a community. This approach also provides a methodology that can easily keep pace with future growth that takes place in the city (by factoring in a percentage growth in call for service demand). Finally, this approach allows managers/policy makers to select an uncommitted time target that is desired (e.g., 40% uncommitted time level), and then basing total patrol staffing on a combination of the work that must be done (i.e., community generated calls for service) with the uncommitted time level that is desired. Here is a recap of the model’s use and key analytical points:?The model makes specific provision for uncommitted time targets.?The model can be used at any level of detail, i.e. staffing levels can be calculated for specific times of day or for specific geographical areas.?The model uses commonly available data:-Gross and net officer availability hours (uncommitted time).-Calls for service counts and the time committed to these calls.-Related additional workload, including report writing and time spent booking arrestees.-“Administrative” tasks, such as time spent in “briefing” at the beginning of a shift, breaks, vehicle maintenance, and other tasks during a shift are counted as “available” time in the project team’s staffing calculations.The project team used this approach in conducting the staffing calculations from calendar year 2011 call for service data.(3)Important Factors Regarding CAD Data and the Calculation of Committed and Uncommitted Time Levels.The use of CAD data to calculate patrol officers work tasks will not capture all of the duties and tasks done by Officers during their shifts due to human error and incomplete data in the CAD call for service records (e.g. missing time stamps, the fact that sometimes Officers do not report a task they are doing to Dispatch so it is not logged, sometimes Dispatchers do not track all patrol tasks). This is especially true in the first year of a thorough CAD call for service data analysis, and will be true for subsequent years unless the agency makes concerted and consistent efforts to improve accuracy. This is not unique to Springdale; it is common in other law enforcement agencies’ data evaluated by the project team in other studies. The project team, based on several hundred patrol staffing studies conducted throughout the United States, estimates that approximately 20 – 25% of an Officer’s time that he/she is doing job related tasks is not tracked in the CAD record (this is a general number for all police departments that is applicable to Springdale but it was not specifically derived from the Springdale CAD data). This number is important to remember as it means that a 20 – 25% “uncommitted time” level in the 2011 CAD data analysis is essentially a fully committed workforce. The following summary is provided illustrating the implications of various uncommitted time levels:?A 20 – 25% uncommitted level reflects a patrol staff that is essentially fully committed (except during the low CFS hours of the day); this is due to CAD data not capturing all committed time or tasks required/completed by Officers.?At this level, during most hours, Officers will be responding to CFS and will not have time for any consistent proactive or project oriented activity – the blocks of time are generally too short (less than 30 minutes) to allow for meaningful targeted patrol or working on beat projects or neighborhood issues.?A 40% uncommitted level is generally sufficient to provide blocks of time where Officers can conduct targeted patrol, beat projects to address community issues.?A 50% uncommitted level will afford a patrol force on most workdays to have a several hours during their shift to conduct targeted patrol, specific projects to address community issues, and other officer initiated activities.?Uncommitted levels above 50% may provide a challenge to supervisors to keep Officers busy with meaningful work and engaged in the job.Each community can choose an appropriate target of uncommitted time desired for its patrol staff, based on unique needs, available funding and policing model desired. A 40 – 50% overall average uncommitted time level is a reasonable target/goal for a community that desires a patrol force that can provide a consistent level of proactive services to the community. Policymakers should determine the policing level for their community and understand the impacts of higher and lower uncommitted time levels. Higher targeted uncommitted time levels will require more staff but also ensure that the police force is able to provide a higher level of service to the community in the form of proactive policing and will allow the Patrol Officer to be more involved in issues/problems in the neighborhoods where they serve.5.PATROL OPERATIONS COMMITTED AND UNCOMMITTED TIME IN 2011.The workload required during various hours of the day (committed time) and the resulting uncommitted time level of a patrol staff is the most significant factor in determining the staffing needed to achieve the level of service desired by a City. However, fielding a minimum number of Officers to provide for basic safety of Officers while on patrol, and the ability of the Department to handle more than one critical incident simultaneously are also significant factors to consider in deployment of police resources.It is important to have a clear understanding of what is included in the uncommitted time calculations. Uncommitted time is the amount of an Officer’s work hours remaining (expressed as a percentage of work hours) after handling the community generated workload demand, this includes the time required to handle calls for service, make arrests, book arrestees, write reports, etc.(1)Assumptions Utilized in Calculating Uncommitted Time. In the calculation and analysis of uncommitted time there are several analytical assumptions that were utilized:?Actual community generated calls for service obtained from CAD data totaled 30,326. This number excludes all Officer initiated activities (such as traffic stops); multiple unit entries, administrative activities and calls cancelled prior to an Officer being dispatched.?Meals and other breaks are taken evenly across all hours of a shift.?Personnel are available on an average hourly basis (i.e., in the model there are no heavy or light shift days). ?Officers are available for an average of 1,720 shift hours per year to provide all field services. This takes into account the various leave usages (e.g. vacation, sick) and training hours.The resulting calculation shows the average level of an Officer’s uncommitted, or discretionary, time during a shift, when they are available to handle general proactive policing efforts in the field, targeted patrol to address a specific problem, visiting schools, traffic enforcement, walking patrol in the downtown area, and other tasks initiated by the Officer or directed by the Officer’s supervisor.(2)The Percentage of Uncommitted Time Varies Throughout the Day and Should be Evaluated for Each Shift. The table on the next page shows the calculations for uncommitted patrol time in four-hour time blocks to assist in providing a more specific description of committed time and uncommitted time during various times of the day. An overall percentage of uncommitted patrol time is also shown. The average number of Officers actually on duty during a 24 hour period was taken from the “Actual Patrol Staffing” table presented earlier in this report. This table shows the time required to handle calls for service during 2011. The actual average call handling time of 21.8 minutes for the primary (1st Officer) and 30.2 minutes for the “back-up” Officer(s) were used in this calculation. It is unusual that the primary Officer’s call handling time is less than that of the back-up Officers but this time difference fits with normal patrol call handling in Springdale; staff reports that the second Officer will often stay at the scene longer than the first Officer makes an arrest he/she will often leave the scene to process the arrestee and the second Officer will remain on the scene conduct the investigation and/or waiting for a tow truck. Report writing time was estimated at 45 minutes per report and the initial booking of a prisoner at 1 hour, 15 minutes each (this does not include other prisoner transportation time).The table on the next page shows the actual available staff time in 2011 and the community generated calls for service workload (other discretionary, or Officer initiated activity is not included in this table).Officer Calls for Service Workload in 20110000 -04000400 -08000800 -12001200 -16001600 -20002000 – 2400TotalPatrol Staff Allocation13.7%15.2%16.8%18.2%19.5%16.6%100.0%Hours Staffed (ST + OT)10,54211,77012,99114,04115,08412,81377,234Administrative Time9881,1041,2181,3161,4141,2017,241Available Work Hours9,55410,66711,77312,72513,67011,61269,993Calls for Service (CFS)3,1832,0625,1726,2057,6336,07130,326% of Total CFS10.5%6.8%17.1%20.5%25.2%20.0%100%1st Officer Minutes / CFS21.821.821.821.821.821.821.81st Unit Hours1,1567491,8792,2542,7732,20611,018Back-Up Unit Responses3,4492,2355,6056,7248,2726,57932,863Back Up Minutes / CFS30.230.230.230.230.230.230.2Back Up Officer(s) Hours1,7361,1252,8213,3844,1633,31116,541Reports Written8715641,4161,6992,0901,6628,302Report Writing Hours6544231,0621,2741,5671,2466,227Bookings5853799501,1401,4021,1155,570Booking Hours7314731,1871,4251,7521,3946,963Prisoner Transport Tasks2081353384054993971,981Total Committed Hours4,4852,9057,2878,74310,7558,55442,729Total Uncommitted Hours5,0697,7624,4853,9822,9153,05827,271Committed Time46.9%27.2%61.9%68.7%78.7%73.7%61.0%Uncommitted Time53.1%72.8%38.1%31.3%21.3%26.3%39.0%The overall level of committed time in 2011 was an average of 61% that is required to handle the community generated calls for service; leaving an average uncommitted time of 39%. However, it is important to add in the estimated 20 – 25% additional of time not captured by CAD (discussed in an earlier section) into these totals – which equals an overall daily average of 81 – 86% committed time and an average uncommitted time level of 14 – 19%. During busiest hours of the day, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, the uncommitted time average falls to 29.8%; this is when almost 63% of the calls for service occur. This pattern is typical of most police departments – more calls for service during the “daytime” hours, resulting in a high level of committed time, and fewer calls during the “nighttime” hours which results in a higher level of uncommitted time. The high levels of uncommitted time from midnight to 8:00 AM are common in most police agencies. Agencies may be able to redeploy some staff to busier hours of the day but other factors may limit management’s ability to make changes. These factors include: 1) maintain sufficient staff to provide for safety of Officers, and 2) as part of management’s risk management assessment, having the ability to handle more than one critical incident with on duty staff (as during the early morning hours no other police resources such as Traffic Units or Detectives are on duty to provide additional assistance quickly).It is important to note that this is the first year that an evaluation of this type has been done for patrol workload and, as already mentioned, the CAD data does not capture all of the work done by Patrol Officers. Improvement in tracking Officers time in CAD over the next year will provide more accurate data to conduct this same workload analysis for 2012 and 2013 and have an increasing degree of confidence that the results closely reflect the actual patrol workload time commitment. The workload analysis in the second and subsequent years will also show workload trends that will assist managers in making staffing allocation decisions. 6.PERSONNEL STAFFING REQUIREMENTS FOR PATROL. The table on the next page uses current number of community generated calls for service to calculate the number of Officers required for the call for service workload in 2011. The Patrol staffing required in Springdale is driven by workload levels and the minimum staffing needed to provide for the safety of Officers.Staffing Projections at Various Uncommitted Time LevelsWorkload 20111. COMMUNITY GENERATED WORKLOADSCalls for service (one year)30,326Handling Time – 1st Unit from Dispatch until Officer clears call11,018Backup Officers16,541Number of Reports Written8,302Total Time for Report Writing @ 45 minutes each6,227Number of Bookings5,570Time to Process Bookings @ 1.25 hours each6,963Other Prisoner Transport Tasks1,981Total Time Needed to Handle Workload42,7292. Additional Hours for Preventive Patrol & Officer Initiated ActivityTo Provide 50% Uncommitted Time Level42,729To Provide 40% Uncommitted Time Level28,486To Provide 30% Uncommitted Time Level18,3123. Total Time Required for Reactive & Proactive WorkTo Provide 50% Uncommitted Time Level85,458To Provide 40% Uncommitted Time Level71,215To Provide 30% Uncommitted Time Level61,0414. Availability of StaffAnnual Paid Work Hours2,080Leave Hours (vacation, sick, WC, etc.)262Training Hours (on duty only)55Administrative Tasks – 90 min per shift (briefing, breaks, etc.)220Net Hours Worked1,5435. Officers Required to Handle Workload at Desired Policing LevelsTo Provide 50% Uncommitted Time Level55.4To Provide 40% Uncommitted Time Level46.2To Provide 30% Uncommitted Time Level39.6To provide an overall average uncommitted time level of 40 – 50% in 2011, Springdale PD needed a minimum of 47 – 56 Officers in patrol services (rounding up) This patrol workload analysis provides police managers with valuable information regarding workload demand when making staffing decisions but these calculations are only one of the items of information needed when determining the total number of staff needed and allocating staff to the different shifts – and, as pointed out in the previous section, these figures should be reviewed and calculated for several years to develop a consistent pattern and a higher level of reliability. Additionally, many other factors must also be evaluated by management when determining the number of Patrol Officers needed to effectively and safely provide patrol services in Springdale. These factors include Officer safety considerations, size and geography of patrol areas (beats), frequency of critical incidents, availability of mutual aid, Officers’ current leave usage, crime activity, additional (new) tasks required of Patrol, frequency of Patrol Officers needed to backfill as a Jailer or Bailiff, number of new Officers in FTO training, frequency of sending Patrol Officers out of the City, additional land/population annexed into the City, etc. An example of this is determining a minimum staffing level for nighttime hours: although the workload level is generally low and the uncommitted time level from midnight through 8:00 AM is fairly high (53% from 0000-0400 and 73% from 0400-0800), a minimum number of eight Patrol Officers are reasonably required to be assigned to C Shift (10 PM – 6 AM) to provide adequate coverage for the entire City area, meet Officer safety needs and have the ability to handle at least one critical incident (requiring 4-6 Officers and a Sergeant). Targeting an overall 50% uncommitted time level is recommended for Springdale as it will provide additional staff that can be assigned to the 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM work hours; which will provide the needed increase in uncommitted time that will allow more consistent periods during their shifts to accomplish proactive activities. In summary, a targeted overall higher service level (e.g. a 50% uncommitted time level) requires a higher staffing level; correspondingly, fewer staff would be needed to provide uncommitted time level at or below 40%. In Springdale, an overall target of 50% uncommitted time will allow a high amount of proactive time during the night time hours and a reasonable amount of proactive time for Patrol Officers working between 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM, in addition to providing a good service level to calls for service. It is also recommended that management re-deploy resources as needed to try and to maintain a 30% uncommitted time level within each four hour time period. In April 2012 Patrol Division had 55 Officers assigned to field services (includes any Officers that may be on light duty). This staffing level is adequate to handle the current workload, provide for officer safety and to have sufficient time for pro-active activities. This is supported by the employee survey where 85% of the staff (which included employees assigned to Patrol but also other areas of the Department) reported that they had enough time to complete their work or had busy periods but most of the time they were able to keep up with the workload. This staffing level is very close to the staffing needed from the above calculations, so any reductions to the current staffing are not recommended and as additional Officers become available, consideration should first be given to adding them to Patrol. Sergeants are a critical component of providing an effective patrol services delivery system. Currently there are only two Sergeants assigned to each shift and with their regular days off there will only be two Sergeants working the shift for three days a week. Including other leaves and training it is common to have one Sergeant per shift for six days of the week. In a City the size of Springdale, the number of Officers deployed and the call for service workload it is recommended that two Sergeants be on duty 24/7; this is in addition to the number of Officers assigned to each shift. The calculations for the number of positions required to field two Sergeants are shown in the following table.Positions RequiredHoursPositionsHours Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position8,760Average Annual Hours Worked / Employee1,763Staff Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position5.0Positions per Shift2Total Staff Required9.9A total of 10 Sergeant positions on Patrol are needed to provide 24/7 shift coverage of two Sergeants. It is reasonable to increase the number of positions to three Sergeants per shift.Recommendations: Establish a City goal of an overall average time ratio of 60% committed and 40% uncommitted time for field Patrol services.Establish a Department goal to maintain a minimum 30% uncommitted time percentage for each four hour time period of the day.Semi-annually review patrol staff workload for each four hour time block to determine if some patrol staff should be redeployed to busier hours of the day; or if resources from other work units should be redeployed to Patrol.Adopt a process to enhance delivery of patrol services during the periods when uncommitted time is available. The Captain, Lieutenants and Sergeants should coordinate the development of plans that identify specific tasks/projects that can be worked on or accomplished when uncommitted time is available during a shift.Provide Patrol field supervision of two Sergeants on duty per shift.7.TRAFFIC SAFETY OPERATIONS.Springdale PD has two Officers, assigned to dayshift, whose primary duties are to enforce traffic laws and investigate accidents. There are also two civilian Traffic Accident Investigators who handle a significant number of the traffic collisions. There is not a recommended number of dedicated Traffic Officers in a Police Department but as traffic issues and concerns are one of the most frequent types of complaints received by law enforcement, most agencies with a population the size of Springdale have dedicated traffic safety unit to handle most of the traffic accident investigations and conduct enforcement operations. The size of work units vary from one person to six or seven staff. Traffic Officers primarily work traffic safety related complaints throughout the City and conduct pro-active traffic enforcement operations. They may also assist Patrol Officers in handling calls for service when they are close to the scene of a call or during high call volume times of the day. The civilian Traffic Accident Investigators are responsible for low risk calls for service such as abandoned vehicles, traffic hazards, funeral escorts, parking problems and towing vehicles. They responded to a total of 1,773 calls for service in 2011. These are calls for service that would require a Patrol Officer to handle if the Traffic Accident Investigators are not working. The following table shows the number and type of calls for service, percentage of their CFS workload and the average number of minutes taken for each incident. Call for Service TypeNumber% of TotalAvg. MinutesAccident53530.2%33.6Stalled Vehicle1488.3%18.7Accident - Private Property1448.1%29.8Parking Violation1397.8%16.5Escort/Funeral Or Business1206.8%41.8Abandoned Vehicle925.2%19.9Follow Up724.1%24.3Accident W / Injury663.7%42.7Traffic Hazard653.7%19.1Accident Hit & Run543.0%27.2Private Prop Acc / H&R512.9%25.8All Other28716.2%NATotal Incidents & Average Time1,773100%29.3The total call for service workload for the Traffic Accident Investigators was approximately 866 hours for 2011. The Traffic Accident Investigators made an additional 871 responses to these calls for service incidents (e.g. as a second responder) for a total of 2,644 responses to incidents in 2011. Traffic Accident Investigators worked approximately 3,500 hours in 2011 and the 866 hours of activity tracked on CAD is only about 25% of their work hours. The CAD system should be used to track most of their activities. The Traffic Accident Investigators performed approximately 120 funeral or business escorts during the year. Most police agencies no longer perform escorts due to the inherent liability of facilitating the passage of a motorcade through intersections where the lights are sometimes red for the motorcade. It is recommended that Springdale no longer perform this public service.The primary workload for the Traffic Officers is enforcement of the traffic safety laws and education of the public in the contacts they have during their workday. Additionally, the Traffic Officers respond to calls for service when there is a need because beat units are not available or when the call is traffic related call and they are able to respond. The following two tables show the CFS activity and self initiated activity for the two Traffic Officers in 2011.Call TypeNumberAverage MinutesHoursAccident23436.7143Stalled Vehicle8616.323Accident - Private Property5831.831Parking Violation4115.310Abandoned Vehicle3015.98Traffic Hazard2811.15Escort/Funeral Or Business273616Accident Hit & Run2429.912P-Prop Acc/H&R2228.610Other20020 (est.)67Total750326The two Traffic Units handled 750 calls for service in 2011. The self initiated activity for these units is shown in the following table.Officer Initiated EventNumberAverage MinutesHoursTraffic Stop9657.1113Radar4465.944Extra Patrol-Log3411.710Other1432048Total1,895215These Officers worked approximately 3,500 hours in 2011 but only 541 hours, or about 15% of their work hours were captured on CAD. The CAD system should be used to track most of their activities. Efforts should be made to ensure that their time is accounting of their time.Recommendations:End the practice of providing funeral or business escorts.Use the CAD system, or develop another methodology, to track Traffic Officer and Traffic Accident Investigators’ assignments.4.CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS DIVISION (CID) OPERATIONS AND WORKLOAD.This section provides summary workload activities for investigation services. CID is staffed with one Captain, one Lieutenant, three Sergeants and 21 Detectives. Nine of the detectives, four in the Person Crimes Unit and five in the Property Crimes Unit, are considered “core” investigators – their primary job is to conduct follow-up of criminal and suspicious cases. The other 12 detectives are assigned to pro-active enforcement units, task forces, nuisance abatement or the sex registrants tracking program.The current organization structure in CID has one Captain and one Lieutenant reporting to a Captain. A one-to-one reporting relationship is not advised over the long term as the Lieutenant will become the actual leader of CID and the Captain will become less involved in daily operations (possibly having other assignments) or possibly be a “second boss” that provides different direction than the Lieutenant. Three Sergeants reporting to one Lieutenant or one Captain is a normal and viable span of control – there is not a need for a second management position in running operations. This current CID structure is intended to be temporary and it is advisable to establish a permanent and viable structure within the next year that eliminates the one-to-one reporting relationship. 1.CID WORKLOAD.The primary tasks of the Person Crimes and Property Crimes Investigators is to follow-up on crimes or serious incidents that have occurred in Springdale. Cases are screened and assigned by the Detective Sergeant and assignments given to the investigators. Any cases that have a lead that would reasonably lead to a suspect responsible for the crime are assigned to a Detective for follow-up. The table below provides the results of the project team’s “desk audit” conducted with each of the five current investigators. An Assigned Case is one that has been assigned to them by the supervisor; and Active Case is where on-going follow-up investigation is being conducted (where some investigative activity has been conducted in the past 30 days). Each Detective also has a varying number of “pending cases” where they are waiting for Crime Lab analysis, fingerprint comparison or it has been sent to the prosecutor to review for criminal charges. When information on a pending case is received it will require some additional work, become an active case again or the case will be closed. Detective Caseload in April 2012DetectiveAssigned CasesActive CasesComments188Person Crimes Detective286Person Crimes Detective355Person Crimes Detective (in transition to a new assignment)41411Property Crimes Detective52117Property Crimes DetectiveThe desk audits were completed for five of the nine person or property crimes detectives. Each investigator is typically able to begin working their cases within a few days of it being assigned and if the case is a high priority one they will begin working on it immediately. The Criminal Investigations Division provides a high service level to the community as they are well staffed. The CID staffing level allows management to assign cases to Detectives (e.g. thefts and criminal mischief) that in many cities cannot be assigned to a Detective due to the number of higher priority crimes requiring investigation. Springdale Detectives generally also have the time to quickly begin their follow-up Investigation and complete it. As mentioned above, some Detectives are assigned to specialized tasks or work units within CID or as part of a regional investigative task force. CID has one Detective assigned to monitor and ensure compliance with the law for the approximately 80 sex offender registrants in Springdale. Another Detective has just been assigned to work internet crimes to target child sexual predators.Two other Detective positions work in the SNAP group – Springdale Nuisance Abatement Program. This group conducts follow-up investigations of graffiti and other quality of life crimes in Springdale and also conducts pro-active investigations to mitigate or resolve nuisance properties (e.g. low priced motel used by prostitutes) where there are a high number of calls for service requiring a Patrol response.Other Detectives (details in Appendix A) are assigned to work with several federal enforcement efforts: the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force and the Immigration & Customs Enforcement group. Springdale also participates in the regional Drug Task Force with several other Washington and Madison County law enforcement agencies. In February 2012 Springdale also started its own two person Drug Enforcement within CID that reports to the Narcotics/Nuisance Abatement Unit Sergeant.These are worthwhile efforts in pro-actively addressing crime issues and crime trends in the northwest Arkansas region. Some of these assignments are grant funded positions so the City only has minimal financial costs for these assignments. 2.CRIME DATA IN SPRINGDALE. Since 1929 law enforcement agencies have reported crime occurring in their City to the FBI, who collected the data nationally it a format know as the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) system. It is published and used for many purposes, including as a benchmark for Cities of similar population or location for comparison. Several years ago the FBI developed an expanded crime reporting system known as the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS). The FBI and law enforcement agencies are in a multi-year transition from the UCR system to the NIBRS. Approximately 25% of law enforcement agencies have made the transition to the NIBRS. Springdale began reporting in the NIBRS format in 2008. However, the FBI continues to publish crime and clearance data in the UCR format and it still is commonly used for comparison purposes – for historical averages within a City and also in comparison with other Cities. However, NIBRS reporting agencies crime data is converted to UCR data by the FBI and published. The reporting agency does not have direct knowledge regarding the accuracy of their converted crime statistics – this is the current situation for Springdale PD. It won’t be until after the conversion to the NIBRS is complete and several years of historical comparison. During this transition time the normal crime comparisons with other agencies will likely be unreliable. However, year to year internal comparisons can be made with reliable as the agency has the raw reporting data. For this report the project team obtained the UCR crime data for calendar years 2008 - 2011. They are listed in the following table. UCR Part I Crimes and Crime RateCrime2008200920102011% Change 2010 to 20112009-2011 AverageHomicide1001100%0.3Forcible Rape6556689743%74Robbery2125182433%22Aggravated Assault208207239231(3%)226Burglary58748637343817%432Larceny – All1,7901,8281,6312,23237%1897Motor Vehicle Theft15099125116(7%)113Arson2011714100%11Total2,8422,7122,4613,15328%2,775Violent Crime2952883253539%322Property Crime2,5272,4132,1292,78631%2,443From 2010 to 2011 the City of Springdale experienced a 9% increase in violent crime and a 31% increase in property crime. This is a significant increase in crime in a year and it is very important to monitor and evaluate monthly counts to determine if this was a one year spike in crime or a continuing trend in Springdale. If crime has continued to increase in 2012 the Department should evaluate strategies to address the increase and attempt to reduce crimes occurring. The table on the following page shows Springdale’s violent crime rate compared to the Cities of Fayetteville and Rogers (2008 – 2010 data) and also to the national average for Cities with a population between 50,000 and 100,000 residents. Violent Crime Rate Comparisons2008200920103 Year AverageSpringdale423406457429Fayetteville451433414432Rogers248310357306National Average451426395424Springdale’s violent crime rate is similar to Fayetteville and the national average. The following table shows Springdale’s violent crime rate compared to the Cities of Fayetteville and Rogers and also to the national average.Property Crime Rate Comparisons2008200920103 Year AverageSpringdale3,6223,4022.9923,339Fayetteville3,7263,8713,4663,683Rogers3,3903,6623,2943,447National Average3,5523,3363,2193,369The property crime rate for Springdale is the lowest of the three Cities and is also slightly lower than the national average.Another significant statistic is the clearance rate of crimes committed in Springdale. The number of crimes cleared is a significant measure of the effectiveness of the Criminal Investigation Division as it is their primary task to follow-up criminal cases and “clear” the case by identifying the perpetrator of the crime and making an arrest of possible. Clearance statistics are kept by the Criminal Investigations Division but in a different format than is used for reporting clearance data to the State of Arkansas Crime Information Center (who report it to the FBI). The internal clearance statistics provide valuable information of performance and effectiveness of an investigations unit. It is commonly used as a performance measure and to compare with other regional Cities. When the transition to the NIBRS is complete and national clearance rate data is published by the FBI it should be used to compare with Springdale’s crime clearance rate.3.CID CASE MANAGEMENT AND CLEARANCE RATE STATISTICS.The Lieutenant and Sergeants in CID review almost all incoming criminal cases to determine if the case has investigative leads and warrants being assigned to a Detective. Springdale uses and electronic case management system to review, assign and track cases. This is an excellent use of available technology and is an efficient way to manage the CID caseload. Investigators also use it to track their assigned cases.CID maintains statistical information on the number of cases reviewed and assigned to CID investigators. Although this data is only tracked by CID and is not to be considered official Springdale PD statistics, it does provide good and reasonably accurate information regarding case workload and resolution of CID assigned cases. The table below shows the number of cases worked and clearances made over the last three years. CID Case Investigations200920102011Reports Reviewed7,6447,3977,779Cases Assigned to Investigators2,0173,3234,549ClearancesCleared - Arrest Made235229322Cleared – Unfounded943157Cleared – Exceptional (i.e. Other)805091Turned Over To Prosecutor's Office3071,203810Total Number7161,5131,280Cases Cleared Percentage35.5%45.5%28.1%Cases Changed to Inactive (no further leads)5469942,412Still Assigned to a Detective (Active Case)852854857The total number of cases reviewed and assigned for follow-up has increased in each of the last three years while the staffing has remained approximately the same. The number of cases cleared, changed to inactive and still assigned is slightly off for the listed total number of “cases assigned” in 2009 and 2010 but totals exactly in 2011.This statistical information is helpful to provide a historical trend if it is tracked and reported the same way over multiple years. However, this does not provide as specific data of what types of cases were cleared (violent crimes, property crimes, “non-reportable” crimes, etc.) that can be used for comparison with other law enforcement agencies. This will only happen when the conversion to the NIBRS is complete and that will not likely be for another five years or more. Until then, it would be an improvement to this data to track the clearances separately into the following three categories: reportable violent crimes, reportable property crimes, and other crimes.5.SERVICES DIVISION.The Services Division has three work units – Records, Detention and Fleet. A brief description of each unit is provided below.1.RECORDS UNIT.The Records Unit is open to the public from 0800-1700 hours Monday – Friday. This Unit is staffed with one Records Clerk Office Manager and five Records Clerks who all work Monday-Friday. The Records Units answers the business phone line for the Department, 479.756.8200, and serves people at the front counter. The primary work tasks include:?Processing traffic accident reports, traffic citations, tow reports?Processing arrest reports and sends them to the Court?Sending copies of reports to Detectives (e.g. felony arrest reports)?Processing Freedom of Information requests?Processing false alarm bills ?Process Department bills, order supplies, conducting inventory?Processing taxi cab and ice cream vendor permits?Processing travel reservations for employees?Processing grant paperwork for Department grants?Assisting in the mayor’s office as neededThe Records Unit does not keep any specific workload statistics. The people working in this unit work together as a group, are familiar with aspects of each others’ specific work tasks (cross-trained) and area a well functioning work unit that provides a high level of service to the community and internal customers.2.DETENTION UNIT.This work unit is supervised by a Sergeant who oversees the Jail staff, Warrants Officer and Property/Evidence Officer. (1)Jail Staffing and Facility.The Springdale Police Department maintains its own jail facility and rents out a large portion of their jail to the Arkansas Department of Correction. The Department of Correction uses two dormitory type rooms that have 48 beds. The remaining portion of the jail is used by Springdale PD to book, process and house PD prisoners. The facility has three cells that have four bunk beds each and a drunk tank that can hold up to 25 people. It also has two small rooms that can hold females for a few hours (must be supervised). The jail does not meet current jail building standards but is able to operate under a “grandfather” clause because no significant remodeling has occurred. The Department of Correction will be relocating to another facility in the next year and then Springdale PD will have control of and responsibility for the entire facility.The Jail processes persons arrested by Springdale officers – 5,570 in 2011. Due to the location of the municipal Court in Springdale additional prisoners pass through the Springdale Jail during the day in transit from County Jail to court appearances. This increases the workload on both A and B Shifts and requires additional staffing to process the prisoners in a timely manner. People making court appearances are sometimes remanded into custody by the judge and Springdale Jailers must process them also. These additional prisoners that were booked and/or processed by Jailers in 2011 bring the overall total to 9,345 persons. The Jail also houses prisoners and over the last three years the jail prisoner population averaged 17 inmates in 2010 and 15 in 2011. Through the first three months of 2012 the prisoner population averaged 16.5 inmates per day.The jail is staffed with nine full time civilian Jailers, three per shift. This is intended to provide a staffing level of two Jailers on each of the three shifts. Additionally, if additional prisoners are housed in the Jail when DOC leaves, the current staffing level will be insufficient. The number of staff needed will be dependent upon the number of prisoners housed in the facility. Although Jailers have a high attrition rate their overall leave usage rate is low, as shown in the following table that lists the average number of leave hours taken – vacation, injury, sick, funeral and compensatory time off. Average of 2010 & 2011 HoursWork HoursTotal Paid Annual Work Hours2,080Average Leave Usage141Net Work Hours1,939% Annual Availability93.2%Over the last two years the Jailers have only used an average of 141 hours of leave, working 93% of their paid hours. This is a significantly high number of actual work hours and a significant positive factor for the City of Springdale as it reduces overall staffing costs.Springdale currently has nine Jailer positions in order to staff a minimum of two positions per shift. Using this staffing level and the current work hours per employee only nine positions are needed but because of the high attrition rate “over hire” positions should be staffed. The calculations for the number of positions required are shown in the table below.Positions RequiredHoursPositionsHours Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position8,760Average Annual Hours Worked / Employee1,939Staff Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position4.5Positions per Shift2Sub-Total of Staff Required9.0Attrition @ 29.6% (“Over hire” positions)2.7Total Staff Required11.7An additional two to three Jailer positions are needed to provide 24/7 coverage of the Jail with two Jailers. Adding the additional Jailer positions will provide a sufficient staffing at the current rate of attrition and if the attrition rate can be reduced the total number of positions needed will be less. The attrition rate of Jailers has already been mentioned earlier in this report – it is the most significant issue relating to efficient jail operations. It not only impacts the Detention Unit but impacts Patrol Division as a Patrol Officer will be assigned to staff the Jail to maintain a minimum staffing of two.(2)Evidence and Property.One employee is assigned to handle the evidence and property functions for the Department, he reports to the Detention Unit Sergeant. His primary duties include receiving all evidence booked by Officers and ensuring it is properly packaged/stored; transporting evidence requiring processing to the crime lab in Little Rock; ensuring the Mobile Video/Audio Recording (MVAR) system is uploaded from the patrol cars into the storage system; keeping related supplies stocked; purging evidence and property. One person can handle most of the day to day routine tasks but it is important for the Evidence Officer to have another person trained to fill in for him as needed. He also needs assistance whenever purging of evidence, guns and drugs is done. Routine audits of the property room are not currently conducted but should be conducted every year or every six months (checking a portion of the evidence and property, not a complete audit). The property/evidence room is alarmed and the hard keys are limited to very few people. The room is too small for the current volume of items stored – it does not have sufficient shelves for all of the boxes, requiring the Evidence Officer to frequently move items around to store new items. Additional storage space is available in the fleet garage but the security of the building is lacking as it is not alarmed nor climate controlled. (3)Warrants Officer.One Officer was assigned in February 2012 to conduct follow-up on Springdale warrants to try and have the subjects self surrender and take care of the warrant or to arrest them. This position is assisted by the Department’s Terminal Agency Coordinator in the clerical functions. In the first month 127 warrants were able to be served as the direct result of this effort.3.FLEET UNIT.This work unit is supervised by a Sergeant who oversees two staff (Fleet Manager and the Mechanic), manages the fleet/equipment for the Department, conducts other facilities related tasks and also is tasked with a variety of research projects for the Department. The tasks that take up most of the Fleet Sergeant’s time are researching vehicles to purchase and/or equipment for the vehicles or Department (e.g. light bars, radios, uniforms, weapons); assignment of fleet and take home cars; reviewing the monthly inspections of the vehicles and processing repair requests. Since the Department does not have an in-house facilities unit, the Fleet Unit has been tasked with other projects such as researching a BBQ trailer for the Department and a wash room project. This work unit accomplishes the specific tasks directly related to the fleet and equipment but also many other miscellaneous tasks. While it is helpful to have law enforcement experience as background for some of these tasks it is not mandatory and a civilian in this position would be able to accomplish the job at a lower personnel cost. Recommendations:Add two-three Jailer positions to adequately staff the Jail with two Jailers 24/7.Conduct sample audits of the property/evidence room annually or every six months.Convert the Fleet Sergeant position to a civilian staff position.6.ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION.The Dispatch Center and Records Unit provide essential field support functions and other critical tasks for the department. The Dispatch Unit is part of the Administrative Division and the Records Unit is part of the Services Division. 1.DEPARTMENT CRIME REPORTING AND DISPATCHING SERVICES.This unit is managed by Dispatch Supervisor/NIBRS Manager (National Incident Based Reporting System). The majority of this manager’s time is spent coordinating and providing quality control of the Department’s crime reporting information. The Terminal Agency Coordinator for the PD also reports to this manager.The Dispatch Center operates out of a large second floor room and provides communications services for Springdale PD and FD; it also dispatches for eight other small fire departments (Bethel Heights, Elm Springs, Lowell, Sonora, Pleasure Heights, Hickory Creek, Tonitown and Johnson).The Dispatch Center has six fully equipped work stations that can be used for either police or fire dispatching. Springdale PD has a primary radio channel (channel 1) that is used for primary dispatching of calls for service and officer self-initiated activity, a second channel for running person and vehicle want checks (channel 2) and two other dedicated frequencies available for use. The fire department has two main radio channels – channel 1 for primary use in the main geographical area of Springdale and channel 2 for the rural areas. They also have three additional “tactical” channels for emergency incidents.The primary areas of Dispatcher workload and the data for 2011 are listed below: ?Answering incoming telephone calls – 189,996 in 2011 and 21,457 of these were 9-1-1 calls. ?Processing and handling fire calls for service (including pre-arrival instructions for medical emergencies) – a total of 6,745.?Processing and handling police calls for service – 30,216 community generated calls for service and an additional 32,849 responses by other personnel.?Processing and handling 1,773 calls for service handled by the civilian Traffic Accident Investigators and an additional 871 responses by other personnel.?Processing and handling 58,586 police officer self initiated events (some of these, e.g. “extra patrol-log” may be performed by the officer using the CAD terminal in the patrol car).?Performing the additional tasks request by units in the field.The authorized Dispatch staffing is 22 – three Senior Dispatchers and 19 Dispatchers. Dispatchers work the same shift schedule as Patrol; each shift is assigned one Senior Dispatcher and six or seven Dispatchers. Both Senior Dispatchers and Dispatchers perform the same job functions but the Senior Dispatchers also are the shift supervisors and perform additional administrative tasks. Currently, Senior Dispatchers must perform these tasks while performing as a dispatcher as “administrative time” is not built into their schedule and shift staffing normally requires them to perform dispatching tasks their entire shift. Each shift is intended to be staffed with four Dispatchers (including the Senior Dispatcher), they are assigned to the following functions:?Police Channel 1 (all Patrol and Detectives) – primary task is to handle the radio traffic.?Police Channel 2 – primary task is to handle request from Patrol Officers and Detectives (e.g. registration, drivers’ license and warrant checks).?Fire Dispatcher – primary tasks are to answer incoming telephone calls and to dispatch fire calls (Springdale and the other Departments).?Fourth Dispatcher – will typically help out the Fire Dispatcher but also incoming phone calls, computer checks for Patrol, etc; also will provide relief to the other three positions for personal breaks and meal breaks.Over the last several years the normal staffing of four has been reduced to three approximately half of the time. Because of this Dispatchers frequently eat their meal at the dispatching console. As shown earlier in the report, the attrition rate has varied from a low of 23% in 2009, to 32% in 2010 and to 36% in 2011. This instability in the work force requires a significant amount of time in hiring, processing and training a new employee to meet minimum proficiency performance standards. It also requires the remaining employees to work extra hours to meet minimum staffing levels. Although Dispatchers have a high attrition rate their leave usage rate is low, as shown in the following table that lists the average number of leave hours taken – vacation, injury, sick, funeral and compensatory time off. Average of 2010 & 2011 HoursWork HoursTotal Paid Annual Work Hours2,080Average Leave Usage226Net Work Hours1,854% Annual Availability89.2%Over the last two years the Dispatchers have used an average of 226 hours of leave, working 89% of their paid hours. This is a higher number of actual work hours than typically seen in Dispatch work units and is a positive factor for the Department as it reduces overall staffing and overtime costs.The project team calculated the number of positions required to maintain the current staffing level of 22 positions (to provide four positions per shift), they are shown in the following table.Positions RequiredHoursPositionsHours Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position8,760Average Annual Hours Worked / Employee1,854Staff Required to Fill One 24 Hour Position4.7Positions per Shift4Sub-Total of Staff Required18.9Attrition @ 30.6% (“Over hire” positions)5.7Total Staff Required24.6At the current 1,854 work hours per employee only 19 positions are needed but because of the high attrition rate “over hire” positions should be staffed. An additional three Dispatcher positions are needed to provide 24/7 coverage of four dispatching positions (one Senior and three Dispatchers). Additionally, the additional Dispatchers will provide some administrative time away from the console for Senior Dispatchers to provide supervision, coaching and administrative tasks – with a Dispatch unit the size of Springdale it is reasonable to provide 25% of a Senior Dispatchers’ time (2 hours per shift) for this purpose. If the attrition rate can be reduced the total number of positions required will be correspondingly less.Recommendation:Add three Dispatcher positions to adequately staff the Dispatch Center with four positions 24/7.2.INTERNAL AFFAIRS AND TRAINING.This unit is staffed with three positions – one Lieutenant, the Training Sergeant and a Training Officer. The Lieutenant’s primary job tasks include:?Conducting internal affairs investigations as assigned.?Reviewing all defensive actions, or use of force incidents.?Input of data and monitoring of “IA Track”, a software program and early warning system; and providing quarterly reports for command staff.?Field Training Officer program management.?Training functions for firearms and defensive tactics.?Coordination of off duty security jobs such as the University of Arkansas football games.The following table lists information about the internal affairs and inquiry investigations that have been conducted over the last three years.200920102011Externally Generated711Internally Generated548Total1259Primary Allegation:Battery (3rd Degree)1Dereliction of Duty1Misconduct622Excessive Force44Harassment, Hostile Work Environment11In Custody Death1Theft of Property11Weapons Discharge1Total1259Findings on All Allegations:Administratively Closed11Exonerated11Investigation Closed1Not Sustained4Other12Sustained583Unfounded95Total20175Action Taken:No Action Necessary1529Remedial Training1Suspended23Terminated1Verbal Counseling or Reprimand3Written Reprimand212Total20516The number of complaints ranged from 5 to 12 in this three year period – they can vary widely from year to year. The number in Springdale is fairly typical for an agency the size of Springdale. The Lieutenant works closely with the Training Sergeant to plan and implement training events in the PD; however, the Sergeant has the primary responsibility for these tasks.Each year the Training Unit plans and puts on a three day in-house training course to provide perishable skills training. It is typically repeated three times (October, November and December) so that all members of the Department can be scheduled to attend. In 2011 about 99% of the sworn employees attended the course. The classes are intended to provide refresher training on basic perishable skills but also higher level classes that require special equipment, settings and/or a low instructor/student ratio (e.g. a lethal force decision making and deployment class; low light firearms class). The Training Unit also posts information for Officers about outside training classes that are available as PD management encourages Officers to apply for special skills training classes that are of interest to them and relevant to their job. When an Officer applies to go to an outside course the Training Unit facilitates the approval and paperwork. The amount and quality of training that Springdale officers receive, an average of 55 hours annually, is impressive for any agency and particularly being able to accomplish this amount of training with a small staff. The Training Unit also conducts new Officer recruiting events, the testing process and conducts the background investigations of candidates. 3.PUBLIC INFORMATION, COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS.This unit is staffed with seven staff positions – one Lieutenant and six School Resource Officers. The Lieutenant’s primary job tasks include:?Supervision of the School Resource Officers – contact with them and reviewing their reports; maintaining good relationships with the school administrators.?Reviewing all reports of incidents and preparing a press release if appropriate (approximately 100 annually).?Media relations – interviews, phone calls.?Coordinating with the schools for security at sporting events at the schools.?Staffing a booth to provide SPD information at special events (e.g. Cinco de Mayo, festivals); hosting outside visitors.The Lieutenant is also developing school security plans (map, photos) to assist patrol in the events of incidents at schools.The School Resource Officers are assigned to five different schools: two at the Springdale High School, one at Har-Ber High School and three at different junior high schools. The PD receives reimbursement from the schools for the SROs salary and benefits for 10 months of the year; the City pays for Officer’s equipment and training. In 2011 the Lieutenant and SROs gave a total of 32 crime prevention related presentations to various groups.APPENDIX A – POLICE DEPARTMENT STAFFING, ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESThis descriptive profile of the Springdale Police Department (SPD) Staffing Study provides information regarding the current organization and operations of the SPD using information collected in March and April 2011. The information contained in this profile was developed through interviews of SPD management and personnel, review of documents, call for service data, investigator “desk audits” and other data provided to the project team. The profile summarizes the organization’s staffing, job responsibilities, functions and statistical information about some Department functions (e.g. patrol response to calls for service). This profile is organized as follows:?Overview and Staffing Levels?Personnel Roles and Responsibilities ?Field Operations Staffing and Workload?Criminal Investigations Division Staffing and Workload?Description of Administrative and Support UnitsThe first section, which follows, provides a brief introduction and basic overview of the City of Springdale and law enforcement services. 1.OVERVIEW AND STAFFING LEVELS.The Springdale Police Department provides a wide range of law enforcement services for approximately 70,000 residents, covering 31 square miles. From 2000 to 2010 Springdale’s population grew from 45,798 to 69,797 according to the U.S. Census Bureau, an increase of 52% in the ten year span. To provide law enforcement services in Springdale, the Police Department managers share responsibilities for field patrol services, investigations, support services and administrative services between the four Captains. The following sections provide a summary of the organization, patrol, and staffing levels of the SPD.The police department has a total of 125 sworn and 48 civilian positions authorized and budgeted positions (full-time equivalents or FTEs). Employees are deployed in the following areas as shown below:Division Authorized PositionsVacant PositionsSwornCivilianSwornCivilianOffice of the Chief11Administration11243Service418Patrol8433C.I.D. (Investigations)252Total1254833The vacant positions are three Officers in Patrol and three Dispatchers. The following section lists the job responsibilities and tasks for each position in the organization.2.PERSONNEL ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESThe table below provides a summary of the primary roles and responsibilities of the personnel within the SPD:Division / FunctionClassification and Authorized StaffingKey Roles and ResponsibilitiesOffice of the ChiefChief1?Provides the overall leadership, guidance, management and administration of the Department personnel and police services.?Manages and coordinates all police services in the City to meet objectives set by the Mayor and City Council.?Develops Department policies and procedures.?Responsible for overall management of risk in the Department.?Supervises the Captains.?Develops and maintains good working relationships with other managers in the City and peers in the regional and state law enforcement community.?Develops and maintains good working relationships with local business leaders, community leaders and school officials.?Performs routine administrative functions in the day to day management of the Department.?Works dayshift hours Monday-Friday.Office of the ChiefChief’s Secretary1?Provides secretarial and office administrative assistance to the Chief of Police and Captains.?Performs a variety of office administrative tasks, including the maintenance of records and files, scheduling appointments, answering phones.?Coordinates submission of timecards to payroll.?Transcribes internal affairs reports.?Special projects as assigned.?Works 0800-1700 hours Monday-Friday.Patrol Division Criminal Investigations Division (CID)Services DivisionAdministration DivisionCaptain (one in each Division)4?Leads and manages the department to deliver police services.?Develops and implements Department policies, procedures, goals and objectives.?Works closely with the Chief to accomplish the goals of the Department.?Responsible for management of risk in the Department.?Directly supervise Lieutenants in the Division; Sergeants in the Service Division and also a Dispatch Supervisor in the Administrative Division.?Overall responsibility for the proper functioning and work output of their assigned Division.?Directly oversee activities and provide assistance as appropriate, responds to major incidents and emergencies.?Oversees and participates in the development of the annual budget; monitors expenditures.?Performs routine administrative functions, approves bill payment, equipment purchases, etc.?Conducts special projects as appropriate.?May assume command of the Department in the absence of the Chief.?Works 0800-1700 hours Monday-Friday.AdministrationLieutenant, Public Information Officer1?Reviews all reports of incidents and prepares a press release (96 in 2011).?Responds to requests from the media for information and interviews.?Supervises the School Resource Officers and their work at the schools; makes contact with school administrators to ensure their school security needs are being met.?Conducts public education and community relations events (e.g. speaks at PTA meetings; events such as Cinco de Mayo, July 4 festivals, etc.)?Coordinates security for sports events and dances.?Special projects (e.g. developing a school map to number doors and take photos of the schools to assist in emergency incidents).?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.AdministrationSchool Resources Officer6?Assigned to provide primary coverage for the high schools in Springdale. Spends most of the time at their assigned high school or junior high schools.?Provides positive police presence at the schools; handles calls for service and other incidents.?Make presentations to school classes; teach a specific “Law Academy” course at Springdale High School.?Regularly works with the school personnel to answer questions, provide information.?Assigned by CID to conduct follow-up on cases related to schools or possible student involvement.?Works 0730-1630 Monday-Friday.AdministrationLieutenant, Internal Affairs1?Supervises the Training Sergeant and has overall responsibility for training in the Department.?Reviews all PD use of force (i.e. defensive actions).?Investigates Internal Affairs cases as assigned by the Chief (approximately 60% of work hours).?Manages the FTO Program and monitors the training of new Officers.?Coordinates off duty security jobs for U of A football games and other sports events.?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.AdministrationTraining:SergeantOfficer11?Coordinates all new officer (academy liaison), in-service continual professional training conducted by the PD and all special skills training (away courses). ?Conducts recruiting and new Officer testing process; conducts all background investigations.?Coordinates 230 hours of instruction (out of 420 hours) at each new officer Academy; teaches part of those hours.?Coordinates travel arrangements for officers training courses.?Ensures paperwork for training classes is submitted to the state. ?Enters Officers’ training class records in the database. ?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.AdministrationDispatch Supervisor / NIBRS1?Management of the dispatching functions and supervision of dispatch staff.?Provides counseling and discipline as necessary.?Prepares and monitors budget for Communications.?Researches Department data and other sources to produce a wide variety of statistical and other reports requested by administration.?Major portion of the work week required to complete the Departments quality control of police incident reports for compliance with the FBI’s National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS).?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.Administration - DispatchSeniorDispatcher3?Senior Dispatchers supervise the Center and are also working dispatchers; performing all of the tasks listed below in the Dispatcher section.?Monitor and supervise Dispatchers on their shift; approve time off.?Ensure all shifts are staffed and tasks performed, maintain shift schedules and logs.?Coaches, counsels Dispatchers in their job performance; write annual evaluations.?Repairs or schedules repairs of all equipment: CAD, radio system, telephone system, etc.?Makes copies of audio recordings of radio or other communications.?Makes appropriate notifications for large scale or critical incidents.?Reports call and phone call statistics monthly.?Assists with hiring process for new dispatchers; monitors/supervises their training program.Administration - DispatchDispatcher19?Provides the call-taking and dispatching services for the City of Springdale.?Answers 9-1-1 calls (six incoming 911 lines and three incoming seven digit emergency lines) and determines appropriate response for the call.?Answers other incoming telephone lines (five non-emergency lines and five other business lines).?Uses the computer aided dispatch (CAD) system to create cases, monitor calls for service and provide appropriate disposition to all calls.?Dispatches Officers to calls for service and performs related requests by Officers. ?Uses law enforcement computer systems to provide information to Officers as appropriate.?Provides fire dispatching and communication services for Springdale FD and 8 other small or volunteer fire departments in the area. ?Performs data entry of field information cards; data entry for missing persons, stolen vehicles.?Staffs the dispatch center 24 hours a day.?Dispatchers work an 8 hours shift – same hours as the patrol schedule (0600-1400; 1400-2200 or 2200-0600).Note: 2 of the positions are vacant as of May 2012.AdministrationTerminal Agency Coordinator1?Responsible to ensure compliance with Arkansas automated state records database and criminal history files access by Springdale PD.?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.Services – RecordsRecords Clerk Office Manager1?Responsible for managing and directing all work for Records Unit. ?Manages and supervises the file maintenance system for all police records and related documents.?Ensures completion of crime report processing, data entry and distribution of reports.?Receives and processes Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.?Develops policies and procedures; plans, organizes and administers law enforcement records and information systems.?Coordinates maintenance and pays bills associated with operations.?Manages accounts payable for PD, petty cash; Department fuel cards; orders supplies.?Assists with budget preparation for Services Division.?Supervises the Records Clerks and evaluates their performance.?Performs special assignments as appropriate, such as the archiving of old files.?Works 0800-1700 hours Monday-Friday.Services – RecordsRecords Clerk 5?Front counter reception desk is open to the public from 0800-1700 Monday thru Friday and is closed on Saturdays and Sundays.?Processes all crime reports, arrest reports, citations and field interview cards written by Officers; distributes citations to the court.?Responsible for handling all in-person and requests received in the mail, processing the requests and making copies of reports for members of the public.?Receives and processes cash bonds for bail.?Receives and processes Freedom of Information (FOI) requests; background checks for military personnel, etc.?Enter data from police report and citations into the RMS computer system.?Answers main Department phone number, distributes mail coming in to the Department.?Work 0800-1700 Monday-Friday. ServicesSergeant, Detention1?Supervises Jail staff, Warrants Officer, Evidence & Property Officer.?Reviews property room and safe audits, assists with evidence destruction. ?Reviews jail video and jail logs; approves Jailer paperwork.?Handles prisoner grievances.?Updates written policies – primarily jail and evidence related.?Special projects as assigned (e.g. electronic fingerprint system).?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.ServicesJailer9?Civilian positions, report to the Detention Sergeant.?Book persons arrested by Officers.?Process “walk-in” bookings for warrants.?Maintain security of Jail and inmates; responsible for prisoner property room.?Take inmates to Court next door for appearances.?Accept persons remanded into custody by the Court.?Receives and processes cash bonds for bail.?Data entry of police officer field contact forms.?Handles the inmate work release and trustee program.?Stores and distributes inmate medication.?Each shift is assigned three Jailers; they each have different days off.Services - WarrantsOfficer1?Enters warrants into the computer system; updates PD warrant book.?Reviews warrants and makes contact with subject to self surrender; also makes arrests to serve warrants (127 served in February 2012, the first month this position has been staffed).?Transports prisoners to/from County Jail, assists as bailiff in court when assigned.?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.Services – Evidence & PropertyEvidence Technician1?Civilian position; reports to the Detention Sergeant.?Responsible for receiving, logging, classifying, storing, and maintaining the custody and control of evidence so that it can be presented in court; returned to its rightful owner; auctioned, or properly destroyed. ?Computer data entry, filing of hard copy evidence forms and processing the evidence for storage or transfer to the State Crime lab in Little Rock.?Monitors the automatic upload of Mobile Video Audio Recording (MVAR) police car video files to ensure it is completed successfully; repairs equipment if it fails.?Entry to the property room is secure and with limited access.?Orders and replenishes supplies for property and evidence packaging.?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.Services – FleetSergeantFleet ManagerPolice Mechanic111?Sergeant supervises the two fleet employees; supervises Porters (inmates providing maintenance services for City facilities).?Conducts research projects relating to vehicles and building needs; purchases vehicles for PD.?Responsible for purchases and maintenance of mobile and portable radios.?Handles auction of PD vehicles, equipment or evidence.?Reviews monthly patrol car inspection reports and coordinates needed vehicle repairs; handles any claims involved in fleet accidents.?Orders all employee’s equipment and supplies.?Coordinates permits for taxi cabs, tow trucks, ice cream vendors; the mechanic perform the vehicle inspection.?The Fleet Manager and Mechanic perform all of the routine service and many of the repairs on the PD fleet; track repairs and vehicle usage.?Perform or assist in building repair projects or other needs relating to facilities.?Work 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.PatrolLieutenantSecretary31?Serves as the Watch Commander during the work shift; ensures there is adequate staffing to handle calls in the field and dispatch center.?Responsible for and supervises Sergeants during their shift, ensure field resources are being utilized properly to address problems in the City.?Responds to major incidents and coordinates field responses as appropriate; mitigates complaints from members of the public.?Supervises the Jail and Jailers after 1700-0800 hours and on weekends.?Keeps Captains and Chief informed of significant or newsworthy incidents.?Reviews written work and reports of Sergeants and Officers.?Trains, counsels, mentors and audits Sergeants performance; takes corrective or disciplinary action as necessary.?Receives and handles complaints from members of the public.?Secretaries provide clerical support and transcription to investigations work group.?Lts. work an 8 hour shift with fixed work days; the secretary works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.PatrolSergeant6?Serves as the Watch Commander during the work shift in the absence of the Lieutenant; ensures there is adequate staffing to handle calls in the field and dispatch center.?Responsible for and supervises personnel during their shift, ensure field resources are being utilized properly to address problems in the City.?Coordinates field responses, responds to calls for service, provides back-up assistance and other field assistance as necessary, supervises and conducts field investigations, mitigates complaints from members of the public.?Keeps Lieutenant, Captain and Chief informed of significant or newsworthy incidents.?Reviews written work and reports of Officers.?Trains, counsels, mentors and audits Officers’ performance; takes corrective or disciplinary action as necessary.?Works an 8 hour shift with fixed work days.Patrol Police Officer(assigned to street patrol services)63?Respond to all calls for service in the city, including crimes against persons, property crimes, domestic disputes, traffic collisions, disturbances.?Provide direct field enforcement of all applicable laws and ordinances.?Write reports; conduct preliminary investigations of crime, conducts follow-up investigations as appropriate, book prisoners, transport prisoners.?Engage in neighborhood patrols, directed patrol, traffic enforcement and other proactive activities to reduce crime.?Respond to questions, concerns and requests from the general public and provides information and problem resolution as necessary.?Identify and address both criminal and quality of life issues on their beat.?One Officer on each shift is assigned as the Station Officer each day.Note: 2 of the positions are vacant as of May 2012.Patrol - SNAP / Crime PreventionPolice Officer2?Based in Patrol but assigned to the Narcotics/Nuisance Abatement Unit in CID and supervised by that CID Sergeant. ?Responsible for follow-up investigations of case assignments made by the Sergeant.? Conduct follow-up investigations for all assigned cases, primarily gang graffiti crimes and other related cases needing follow-up.?Other activities include serving search warrants, conducting surveillance and assisting CID Detectives as necessary.Patrol – Traffic SafetyPolice Officer 2?Responds to traffic collisions and traffic related calls for service.?Receives complaints from citizens and attempts resolution through enforcement, warnings, education; provides visibility/enforcement around schools to encourage traffic safety, DIRECTED RADAR.?Frequently responds to other calls for service to assist Patrol Officers. ?Writes reports of traffic collisions and other incidents.?Works 0600-1400; 1000-1800 Monday-Friday.PatrolTraffic Accident Investigator2?A civilian position within the Department.?Responds to traffic collisions, traffic hazards, signal problems and other low risk traffic related calls for service.?Handles handicap parking complaints and reported abandoned and attempts resolution through enforcement, warnings, education.?Conducts funeral escorts as assigned (about 10 per month). ?Writes reports of traffic collisions and other incidents.?Works 0700-1500, 1000-1800 Monday-Friday.Patrol - Crime Suppression UnitSergeantOfficer16?A primarily pro-active enforcement team.?Conducts probation/parole searches; narcotics enforcement; street surveillance work to address crime series when they occur.?Conduct follow-up criminal investigations on gang related crime. ?Maintains and updates gang and graffiti database (significant workload for the one Officer who has primary responsibility).?One Officer is assigned to the federal drug task force, the High Intensity Drug Traffic Area task force (HIDTA).?Work Tuesday – Friday 1300-2300.CIDLieutenant1?Supervise Sergeants, 3 Detectives assigned to the JTTF (FBI Terrorism Task Force – 1 Detective) and the Homeland Security Investigations Task Force (2 Detectives); and office staff (3 positions).?Review domestic violence crime reports against undocumented persons and other crime reports as necessary. ?Oversee Sergeants to ensure follow-up investigations are conducted, including homicide, robbery, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, domestic violence, burglary, major theft and fraud. ?Coordinate case management, resource needs and coordination of effort.?Works 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.CIDSergeantSecretary32?Assigned to the Persons Crimes Unit, Property Crimes Unit or Narcotics/Nuisance Abatement Unit and supervises the Detectives assigned to that unit.?Review crime reports and assign cases to investigators for follow-up.?Oversee and monitor all follow-up investigations, including homicide, robbery, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, domestic violence, burglary, major theft and fraud. ?Coordinate case management, resource needs and coordination of effort.?Tracks investigations assigned to detectives, reviews their written reports; tracks their caseloads and other assignments.?Detectives are subject to call-out on a rotating basis.?Secretaries provide clerical support and transcription to investigations work group.?Work 0800-1700 Monday-Friday.CIDDetectives (20):Persons CrimesInternet Crimes (ICAC)Property CrimesNarco/Nuisance Unit:Drug UnitSex OffendersTask Forces:Homeland Security Invest.Regional DrugDEAJTTF415312211?Assigned to the Persons Crimes Unit, Property Crimes Unit, Narcotics/Nuisance Abatement Unit or to a Task Force (off site). ?Responsible for follow-up investigations of case assignments made by the Sergeant.?Task Force assigned Detectives have a direct supervisor at the Task Force for day-to-day work and also in CID for overall supervision.? Conduct follow-up investigations for all assigned cases, both person crimes and property crimes, including: homicides, robbery, burglary, rape, sexual assaults, registering/follow-up on 290 P.C. sex registrants and related violations; missing persons, significant frauds, narcotic crimes, graffiti crimes and other cases needing follow-up.?One Detective assigned to Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) to apprehend sexual predators.?One Detective assigned primarily to monitor and follow-up on the approximately 80 sex registrants in Springdale.?Other activities include serving search warrants, conducting surveillance.? Coordinate with Patrol Officers as necessary to complete crime reports and investigations.?Detectives are subject to call-out on a rotating basis. ?Work 0800-1700 hours Monday-Friday.Total Positions173In total, the Springdale Police Department has 173 budgeted “Full Time Equivalent” (FTE) positions – this includes 125 regular sworn positions and 48 civilian personnel.APPENDIX B: SUMMARY OF THE EMPLOYEE SURVEYAs part of Springdale’s Public Safety Study of the Police and Fire Departments the project team developed and distributed a survey to the Police Department employees in April 2012. The following summary provides information regarding this survey instrument. AN ANONYMOUS SURVEY WAS CIRCULATED TO ALL POLICE DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEES.An anonymous survey was circulated to all Springdale Police Department employees to provide them with an opportunity to provide input regarding staffing, operations, and deployment practices of the department. Employees were asked to respond to a series of questions concerning service to the community, management / administration, organization, staffing, operations, quality of programs, effectiveness of programs, equipment, and facilities. Respondents provided the degree to which they either disagreed or agreed with the statement, given the following options: “No Response”, “Strongly Agree”, “Agree”, “Neutral”, “Strongly Disagree”, and “Disagree”. For discussion purposes in this document, the project team groups the “Strongly Agree” and “Agree” responses into one grouping when reporting general employee responses; the same is true for the “Strongly Disagree” and “Disagree” and the “No Response” and “Neutral” responses. Additionally, employees were asked to rate statements (using a scale of 1 to 10), ranging from Poor to Excellent, and to leave a question blank for No Opinion regarding programs / services and equipment / facilities of the Police Department.Overall 168 surveys were distributed, of which 92 responses were received, resulting in an overall response rate of 55%. The table below shows the overall breakdown of responses by current department assignment and sworn status.Department Assignment:Field Services28Administrative Services17Other7No Response40Sworn Status:Sworn 62Civilian27No Response3The sections below summarize the results of this survey. THE MAJORITY OF RESPONDENTS AGREED THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT PROVIDES HIGH LEVEL OF SERVICE BUT HAD MIXED REACTIONS REGARDING THE DEPARTMENT’S PRIORITY IN THE COMMUNITY AND THE LEVEL OF RESOURCES. Respondents were provided with statements regarding the level of service provided by the department and the level of resources / importance of the Department within the city. The survey questions in this category and their response are summarized in the table below: StatementAgreeDisagreeNeutral1. The Police Department provides a high level of service to the community.83%6%11%2. Compared to other police departments in the area, Springdale provides high level of service.71%10%19%3. City residents view our Department as a high priority.42%35%23%4. Compared to other police departments in the area, Springdale has a high amount of resources for police services.27%44%29%The following points summarize this statistical information: A majority of the respondents, 83%, agreed with question #1 “The Police Department provides a high level of service to the community.” Only 6% disagreed, and 11% remained neutral.A majority of the respondents, 71%, agreed with question #2, “Compared to other police departments in the area, Springdale provides high level of service.” About 10% disagreed, and 19% remained neutral on the subject.Respondents had a mixed response to question #3, “City residents view our Department as a high priority,” about 42% agreed, 35% disagreed, and 23% were neutral. About 44% of the respondents disagreed, 27% agreed and 29% gave neutral answers to question #4, how they thought the level of police resources in Springdale was higher compared to other police departments in the area. In summary, the majority of respondents agreed that Springdale’s Police Department provided a high level of service compared to other departments in the area. However, respondents had fairly mixed reactions regarding the residents of the city viewing the department as a high priority, and almost a majority of the respondents disagreed that Springdale had a high amount of resources compared to other departments in the area. WHILE THE MAJORITY OF RESPONDENTS AGREED THAT WORK PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS ARE CLEAR, THEY DID NOT AGREE ABOUT COMMUNICATION TO STAFF OR ACCOUNTABILITY OF STAFF.Respondents were asked several questions regarding department management, performance expectations and administrative planning of the Department. The questions in this category and their responses are summarized in the table, below: StatementAgreeDisagreeNeutral5. Our Department has a clear vision / direction for the future. 27%49%24%6. I am kept informed of Departmental information that affects me.37%57%6%7. I am able to provide input to my supervisor and management.50%33%17%8. My work performance expectations are made clear.58%17%25%9. When problems and issues arise, they are resolved in a timely manner.25%52%23%10. Staff are held accountable for their actions. 29%51%20%11. Our Department seems to be innovative and progressive. 27%52%21%12. Our Department does a good job planning and scheduling our work assignments. 46%29%25%13. Our policies and procedures are up to date and consistently followed. 27%41%32%The following points summarize the above information: Approximately 49% of the respondents disagreed with question #5, “Our Department has a clear vision / direction for the future.” About 27% agreed and 24% were neutral.A majority of respondents, 57%, disagreed with question #6, “I am kept informed of Departmental information that affects me.” While 37% agreed and only 6% remained neutral. Approximately 50% of respondents agreed with question #7, “I am able to provide input to my supervisor and management.” About 33% disagreed, and 17% were neutral on the issue.A majority of respondents, 58%, agreed with question #8, “My work performance expectations are made clear.” While 17% disagreed and 25% remained neutral. A slight majority of respondents, 52%, disagreed with question #9, “When problems and issues arise, they are resolved in a timely manner.” 25% agreed and 23% remained neutral regarding the statement. A slight majority of respondents, 51%, disagreed with question #10, “Staff are held accountable for their actions.” About 29% agreed and 20% were neutral.A slight majority of respondents, 52%, disagreed with question #11, “Our Department seems to be innovative and progressive.” 27% of the respondents agreed, and 21% chose to remain neutral. Approximately 46% of respondents agreed with question #12, “Our Department does a good job planning and scheduling our work assignments.” While 29% disagreed and 25% remained neutral. Respondents had a mixed reaction to question #13, “Our policies and procedures are up to date and consistently followed.” 27% agreed, 41% disagreed, and 32% remained neutral regarding the statement. In summary, it can be seen that the majority of respondents agree that work performance expectations are clear, but disagree with most of the other statements related to the department’s communication style with its employees. Respondents also disagree with the Department’s ability to hold staff accountable, or resolve issues in a timely manner, or that the Department seems innovative or progressive.RESPONDENTS GENERALLY AGREE THAT THEY WORK WELL WITH EACH OTHER AND CAN KEEP UP WITH THEIR WORKLOAD, BUT DO NOT BELIEVE THAT STAFFING LEVELS ARE ADEQUATE TO MEET CURRENT CITY NEEDS. Respondents were asked to respond to several statements discussing the staffing, resources, workload and operations of the Department. The survey questions in this category and their responses are summarized in the tables below: StatementAgreeDisagreeNeutral14. Staff resources are adequate to meet the current law enforcement needs of the city.26%57%17%15. We have the staff we need to perform safely and effectively during incidents.29%52%19%16. Dispatch information provided to us on incidents is accurate and timely.45%22%33%17. Our personnel work well with each other on calls for service to which they respond. 86%3%11%18. We receive the practical training we need to maintain needed skills.54%28%18%19. Describe typical day-to-day workload:% of ResponsesAbout the right balance between time available and the amount of work.13%I am always overloaded. I can never catch up.14%I could handle more work without being overloaded.8%Sometimes my workload is heavy, but most of the time I can keep up.65%The following points summarize the information from the tables above: A majority of respondents, 57%, disagreed with question #14, “Staff resources are adequate to meet the current law enforcement needs of the city.” About 26% agreed and 17% remained neutral regarding the statement. A slight majority of respondents, 52%, disagreed with question #15, “We have the staff we need to perform safely and effectively during incidents.” About 29% agreed and 19% remained neutral. Respondents had a mixed reaction to question #16, “Dispatch information provided to us on incidents is accurate and timely” about 45% agreed, 22% disagreed, and 33% were neutral. A large majority of respondents, 86%, agreed with question #17, “Our personnel work well with each other on calls for service to which they respond.” Only 3% disagreed, and 11% were neutral. A slight majority of respondents, 54%, agreed with question #18 “We receive the practical training we need to maintain needed skills.” 28% disagreed, and 18% were neutral. A majority of respondents, 65%, chose “Sometimes my workload is heavy, but most of the time I can keep up” to describe their typical day-to-day workload (#19), while only 8% chose “I could handle more work without being overloaded.” About the same percentage of respondents chose “About the right balance between time available and the amount of work.” and “I am always overloaded. I can never catch up.” 13% and 14%, respectively. In summary, a majority of the overall responses disagreed with the staffing level and resources to meet the needs of the city, but agreed that the employees work well together and receive the practical training necessary to succeed. Majority of respondents also stated that while the workload can be heavy, it is generally manageable. MAJORITY OF RESPONDENTS RANKED PROGRAMS AND SERVICES AS EITHER GOOD OR EXCELLENT. Respondents were asked to respond to a series of statements concerning the quality and effectiveness of the programs and services of the department. The survey questions in this category and their responses are summarized in the table on the next page. Programs / ServicesPoorFairGoodExcellentNo Opinion20a. Response times to calls for service.1%15%53%22%9%20b. Availability of backup for officer safety.3%23%37%27%10%20c. Department capabilities for selective enforcement of targeted problems.23%37%23%9%8%20d. Amount of proactive time in the field.9%52%20%4%15%20e. The way officers deal with citizens.1%18%46%26%9%20f. Follow-up investigations.9%28%36%15%12%20g. Coordination between investigators and patrol.35%25%24%4%12%20h. Level of traffic enforcement.9%35%37%7%12%20i. Quality of dispatch services.17%37%33%5%8%20j. Availability and content of training.25%34%24%11%6%20k. Crime analysis.25%38%18%5%14%20l. Crime prevention programming.29%32%21%4%14%The following points summarize the statistical information provided in the table above: A slight majority of the respondents, 53%, rated #20a, “Response times to calls for service” as good, while only 1% rated it as poor, 15% as fair, 22% as excellent, and 9% had no opinion. Respondents had a mixed response to #20b, “Availability of backup for officer safety.” Only 3% rated it as poor, 23% as fair, 37% as good, 27% as excellent, and 10% of the respondents were neutral. Only 9% of the respondents rated #20c, “Department capabilities for selective enforcement of targeted problems” as excellent. About 23% of the respondents chose poor, 37% fair, 23% good, and 8% remained neutral.A slight majority of respondents, 52%, rated #20d, “Amount of proactive time in the field” as fair, only 9% rated it as poor, 20% as fair, only 4% as excellent, and 15% had no opinion. Only 1% of the respondents felt that #20e, “The way officers deal with citizens” was poor. About 18% felt it was fair, 46% good, 26% excellent, and only 9% had no opinion. Approximately 36% of respondent’s ranked #20f, “Follow-up investigations” as good, 9% as poor, 28% as fair, 15% as excellent, and 12% were neutral. 35% of respondents ranked #20g, “Coordination between investigators and patrol” as poor, 25% as fair, 24% as good, only 4% as excellent, and 12% had no opinion.Respondents had varied responses to question #20h, “Level of traffic enforcement.” Only 9% marked it as poor, 35% as fair, 37% as good, only 7% as excellent, and 12% as neutral. Only 5% of respondents qualified question #20i, “Quality of dispatch services” as excellent, 17% qualified it a poor, 37% as fair, 33% as good, and only 8% remained neutral.Approximately 25% of respondents ranked #20j, “Availability and content of training” as poor, while 34% of respondents ranked it as fair, 24% as good, 11% as excellent, and 6% had no opinion. About a quarter of the respondents (25%) stated the quality of #20k, “Crime analysis” to be poor, 38% stated it to be fair, 18% as good, only 5% as excellent, and 14% remained neutral on its quality. 29% of the respondents chose to characterize #20l, “Crime prevention programming” as poor, 32% as fair, 21% as good, only 4% as excellent, and 14% had no opinion regarding the program. In summary, the majority of respondents seemed to rank most of the services and programs as either good or excellent. However, some of the programs seemed to fall more heavily into the poor and fair categories such as the department’s capabilities for selected target enforcements, coordination between investigators and patrol, the availability and content of training, and crime analysis.OTHER THAN POLICE FACILITY AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MAJORITY OF RESPONDENTS RANKED EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES AS EITHER GOOD OR EXCELLENT.Respondents were asked to respond to a series of statement to rate the quality of equipment and facilities available in the department. The table on the following page summarizes the survey questions in this category and their responses:ItemPoorFairGoodExcellentNo Opinion21a. Vehicles2%29%45%15%9%21b. Radios15%23%41%15%6%21c. Officer personal equipment11%33%35%12%9%21d. Information Technology26%43%18%8%4%21e. Police Facility36%34%24%3%3%The following points summarize the statistical information provided in the table above and on the previous page: Only 2% of the respondents rated Vehicles (#21a) as poor, 29% as fair, 45% as good, 15% as excellent, and 9% remained neutral.Approximately 41% of respondent rated the Radios (#21b) to be good, 15% as excellent, 15% as poor, 23% as fair, and only 6% had no opinion. 33% of respondents rated Officer personal equipment (#21c) as fair, 35% as good, 12% as excellent, 9% had no opinion, and 11% as poor. Only 8% of respondents qualified Information Technology (#21d) as excellent, 4% had no opinion, 26% as poor, 43% as fair, and 18% as good.Approximately 36% of respondents stated Police Facility (#21e) to be poor, 34% fair, 24% good, only 3% excellent and only 3% had no opinion.In summary, the majority of respondents rated the vehicles, radios, and officer personal equipment as either good or excellent. However, in regards to Information Technology and the Police facility, the majority of respondents chose either poor or fair.NARRATIVE SURVEY RESPONSES.In addition to the survey’s forced choice questions, respondents were asked to provide narrative responses to two open-ended questions (#8 to #9). The responses to the questions were grouped by common themes and summarized by the project team. Please indicate what you believe are the most important strengths of the Springdale Police Department: Those who chose to answer the open-ended questions stated that the greatest strength lay in the teamwork between the officers, and the high level of dedication of these officers to their job. Some of the additional common themes are summarized below: Greatest strengths of the department:Strong sense of teamworkDedication of Officers / commitment to serving the publicHigh quality equipmentStrong trainingFast response timesStrong Crime Suppression UnitIn summary, the majority of respondents stated that the strong sense of teamwork and dedication to the City are the two greatest strengths of the department. The department is highly invested in serving the public and for that reason there is emphasis on training and a faster response time.Please indicate what you believe are the most important improvement opportunities facing the Springdale Police Department:The general consensus of respondents for this question had to do mostly with increasing the low staff morale and the low salaries. The comments are summarized below. Most important opportunities for improvement: Increasing the low staff morale Increasing salaryIncreasing staffing Communication between management and staffGreater consistency in policies and proceduresEqual accountability for managers and staff personnelUpdating dispatch equipmentIn summary, the respondents stated the primary concern to be low staff morale, which stemmed from low salary, lack of communication between management and officers, and being overworked due to limited staffing. ................
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