Use of facial composite systems in US law enforcement agencies

Abstract

Facial composite images are often used in the criminal investigation process to facilitate the search for and identification of someone who has committed a crime. Since the use of facial composite images is sometimes relied upon as an integral part of an investigation, it is important to ascertain information about the various decisions made and procedures implemented by law enforcement regarding the use of composites. A 39-item survey was developed to examine the prevalence of a number of procedures related to composite production, including the systems implemented, criteria for selecting systems, law enforcement training, satisfaction with systems, legal challenges, and procedural issues with respect to interviewing multiple witnesses and the distribution of composite images. Surveys were distributed to 1637 city, state and county law enforcement agencies nationwide; 163 completed surveys were returned. This paper summarizes our survey results and discusses the implications for investigative procedures, law enforcement training, and future research needs.     

无缝隙政府理论视野下的社区警务室建设——以A社区警务室为例

拉塞尔·M·林登在20世纪90年代提出了无缝隙政府理论。它以满足顾客无缝隙的需要为目标,以顾客、竞争和结果为导向,是一种面向未来的公共机构自我改革的模式,也是一种为顾客提供无缝隙的公共产品和公共服务的方式。Z市Z区S派出所A社区警务室创建的"一警为主,多警联动"的"一站式"模式,其职能的相互交叉、配合与一步到位服务的提供,是无缝隙政府理论的有效实现形式之一。但当前A社区警务室的建设与无缝隙政府理论的改革要求还有一定差距,要不断完善,防止流于形式。     

社区警务建设论略

社区警务是和谐社会的时代主题在警务实践中的折射。社区警务体制以和谐警民关系为内核,要求警察主动依靠民众、服务社区、提前预防犯罪。当前的社区警务实践中还存在一些弊端,社区警务理念与实践脱节、体制上存在欠缺等。在社区警务建设的渐次推进过程中,须培育起全警警务理念、主动警务理念和民生警务理念,并着力解决警种联动、警社合作和目标管理考核问题。社区警务建设离不开警察职业素养和执法权威的内质支撑,须以民为本,型塑警察职业素养,提升警察责任心和使命感;培育社区民众的认同感和信任感,重建警察执法权威。     

Community policing in indigenous societies – Venezuela: a country profile

In this paper we examine how local citizens and community organizations together have helped shape policing in their neighborhoods, providing new insights into how community policing operates in Venezuela. We also emphasize the unique attributes of policing practice and the current challenges of communal policing.     

Community hierarchy of needs and policing models: toward a new theory of police organizational behavior

This study explains the influences of environmental variables on the emergence of varying policing models. It empirically tests a new perspective on the influences of community variations to police organizational behaviours and practices among local police departments in the U.S. Using the U.S. Census, the Uniform Crime Reports and the Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics data, the study tests a perspective suggesting that community hierarchy of needs influences the degree level of the implementation of different models of policing, particularly community policing. The study presents constructs to operationalize hierarchy of needs. Multiple regression analyses were used to examine the relationships of hierarchy of needs, organizational factors, and other control variables to police departments’ pursuit of different policing models. Findings suggest that community hierarchy of needs and organizational factors significantly constrain the departments’ implementation of policing models. Lower hierarchy of needs tends to be associated with pursuit of traditional policing while a community with higher level needs tend to pursue community policing. Similarly, organizational complexities influence the implementation of different policing models.     

Hispanic Perceptions of Community Policing

Abstract

The two core elements of community policing are community partnership and problem solving (Rosenbaum, 1994). A major challenge that continues for proponents of community policing is developing and evaluating programs in areas with diverse ethnic groups. While many agencies have successfully developed community policing programs, empirical evaluations of community policing are scarce in areas that include a variety of minority groups. This research explores the effectiveness of community policing by examining citizen satisfaction with local police. Analyses are conducted with data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics on Criminal Victimization and Perceptions of Community Safety in 12 United States cities. The results indicate that Whites and Hispanics have the most positive perceptions of police, while Blacks, Eskimos, Asians, and Pacific Islanders have negative perceptions of police.     

The maturity model in practice: chaos,reaction, evolution,and inclusion in law enforcement analytic models

This article discusses the analytic maturity model that was developed by the Vancouver Police Department. The maturity model was developed to self-asses the agency’s analytic process and determine to what degree it was operating. The article explores the various stages of the analytic model and applies them to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and FUSION CENTERS in an attempt to show how the maturity model can be utilized by other agencies as well in self-assessing their analytic process. The article concludes by suggesting best practices which are to be utilized in conjunction with the maturity model.     

Police officers’ perceptions of organizational justice and their trust in the public

Research in organizational psychology has consistently demonstrated that employee perceptions of organizational justice have significant effects on employee attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. Similar studies utilizing the organizational justice model in policing have also noted these effects, including the relationship of justice perceptions with officer attitudes toward the public. Recent theoretical developments in policing contend that the association between internal perceptions of justice and external attitudes may be the result of organizational and supervisory practices that ‘trickle-down’ into the police-community relationship. This paper explores this association by assessing the effects of officer perceptions of organizational justice on officer trust in the public. A sample of patrol division police officers were surveyed using measures taken from the organizational justice literature and Mayer, Davis, and Schoorman’s model of organizational trust. Results show a strong relationship between perceptions of organizational justice and trust in the public even when other relevant predictors are controlled.     

Measuring double consciousness among black law enforcement officers to understand the significant role of race in law enforcement occupational cultures

The current study correlates Merton's anomie theory and W. E. B. Dubois's double-consciousness theory to measure black law enforcement officers' reactions to occupational strain resulting from officers' ethnic-identification. Measuring levels of anomic behavior provides a scale for identifying levels of risk affecting the well-being of individual officers and organizations. Testing hierarchal regression models with a national sample of black state- and federal-level law enforcement officers (n = 84) reveals a presence of double consciousness as a significant predictor for levels of anomic behavior in law enforcement occupational cultures. It also further suggests that race remains a significant factor in law enforcement organizations and cultures, whereas many police executives would prefer to believe that race issues in policing are settled.     

A Comparative Perspective of Community Policing in Taiwan and Washington State

This study explores the attitudes and behaviors of Taiwanese police officers regarding community oriented policing (COP) by comparing their attitudes and behaviors with those of officers in Washington State. Data used in the study were collected from 375 Taiwanese line officers assigned to the city of Tainan and 167 American line officers from various police and sheriffs’ departments in Washington State. The study finds that (1) Taiwanese and American officers hold similar opinions of COP’s potential to reduce crime; (2) both groups are similarly involved in implementing the various strategies of COP; yet (3) American officers are more involved in formulating (planning/devising) COP strategies; and (4) are more receptive to citizen involvement in COP; while (5) Taiwanese officers are more receptive to civilian oversight, and (6) are more amenable to applying COP outcomes for evaluative purposes than are their American counterparts. Policy implications and areas for future research are discussed.

Empirical evaluation of a technology acceptance model for mobile policing

Technology acceptance in policing is under-researched, yet mobile devices are widely implemented across UK police forces. The paper validates a mobile technology acceptance model (M-TAM) developed in a single police force. It shows that the M-TAM is transferrable to other UK police forces, and potentially worldwide. The influence of local supervision and fit of technology to roles and tasks are shown to be the most influential factors. Factors beyond the technology itself, such as the influence of peers and involvement of operational officers in technology investment decisions, must be considered to accommodate the strong cultural barriers in policing.     

Legitimacy invariance and campus crime: the impact of campus police legitimacy in different reporting contexts

ABSTRACT

This paper examines whether campus police legitimacy relevance varies across different crime contexts. 519 respondents from 31 undergraduate sections at a public university rated campus police legitimacy as well as their willingness to report a campus crime to the public safety department. Students were assigned to different crime vignettes, involving experimental manipulation of crime type: petty theft, indecent exposure, aggravated assault, and gun possession on a college campus. Results indicate general support for the procedural justice model, specifically the invariance of the influence of legitimacy on reporting. This paper argues for increased specificity in measurement of cooperation beyond general willingness to assist, or a single crime context.     

论社区警务建设的承继与创新

社区警务建设是做好公安工作的基石。在社会管理创新和构建和谐警民关系的新形势下,社区警务建设需要承继公安工作优良传统,专群结合、亲民为民,切实履行好社区民警的职责;还需要变革,不断创新社区警务的内涵、工作方法、形象和服务等。只有这样,才能筑牢维护稳定的第一道防线,服务群众的第一个平台,巩固政权的第一层基石,促进社会和谐稳定。     

The AFSP Standard - a lesson for law enforcement agencies

Compliance with the AFSP (Association of Forensic Science Providers) Standard [1] which concerns the formulation of an evaluative opinion requires consideration of the defence case. This can be problematic for forensic scientists working with or for law enforcement agencies. Among the aims of law enforcement agencies is to secure a conviction while in many jurisdictions the forensic scientist owes an overriding duty to the Court. This casework report demonstrates that early consideration of the defence case by a forensic scientist complying with the AFSP Standard may help rather than hinder the prosecution. The dichotomy as to a conflict of interest for the scientist between supporting the police/prosecutors and being scientifically objective is shown to be a false dichotomy. Compliance with the Standard ensures that science is a better servant of justice.     

Tribal law enforcement authority to enforce state laws

This paper summarizes the current status of the ability of tribal law enforcement officers to enforce state law in all states that have Indian country – defined in 18 U.S.C. § 1151 as any Indian reservation, dependent Indian communities, or Indian allotments – within their borders. It is important to understand the current status of those officers as their agencies look to improve public safety in their nations. First, for context, we provide a brief background on tribes and tribal law enforcement. Then, we present a summary of the legal jurisdictional challenges faced by tribal law enforcement. Finally, we analyze the current status of tribal law enforcement officers in each state and conclude with a summary and concluding remarks.     

The Influence of Community‐Oriented Policing on Crime‐Reporting Behavior∗

This research examines the influence of community‐oriented policing (COP) on citizens’ crime‐reporting behaviors. The study’s data consist of incidents of violence obtained from the Area‐Identified National Crime Victimization Survey that were linked to city‐level measures of police involvement in COP. Multinomial logistic regression analyses reveal that although third‐party police notification is more likely in cities with large numbers of full‐time COP officers, victims residing in such cities are significantly less likely to report to the police than they are to report to non‐police officials. However, in cities where the training of police officers in COP is relatively extensive, victims demonstrate a preference for police notification (relative to both non‐police notification and non‐reporting). Lastly, multiplicative models indicate that police involvement in COP has less of an influence on the reporting behaviors of residentially unstable victims who likely lack strong social ties to the communities in which they reside.     

社区警备工作探索

按公安部的部署,2004年社区警务工作将在全国社区全面铺开,目前大中城市的社区警务试点工作已取得许多成绩和经验。     

涉外社区警务建设探析

涉外社区是我国改革开放发展的产物。对我国境内数目庞大、日益增多的外国人实施有效监督、管理和控制,是我国社会治安工作中面临的一个新挑战。而涉外社区作为外国人的集结地,可以在外国人管理工作中发挥桥头堡和风向标的作用。因此,克服涉外社区警务建设工作存在的难点,构建涉外社区治安网络势在必行。