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Police Policy Development is Key
Policy development and review/revision is essential to a well managed police department. Any attorney and/or expert witness representing an agency in a lawsuit against the police will explain that in addition to the police report of an incident, among the first items they request are; 1) training records of all involved, 2) equipment inspection records, and 3) relevant department policies.
Police department policies must be current and based on defensible models. Equally important is a review system of existing department policies. All existing department policies should be reviewed and updated as necessary, at least every three years. The high liability policies should be reviewed at least once every two years - some agencies do this annually. Whenever a new policy is instituted or an existing policy is revised, mandatory training on the new policy should occur before implementation.
The challenge of staying current with police policy is by far the most difficult task for smaller police departments. This is a detail-oriented task that requires a true commitment by the chief and his/her staff. A policy failure could compromise the safety of the officer(s) and result in a poor outcome for subsequent lawsuits, a bad image for the agency, and a reduced tenure for the chief.
A Policy Review Committee is a crucial step in the effort to stay current with department policies. Generally, the goal of issuing/revising one general order per month is desirable for a smaller police department. There are many excellent resources available to the department member responsible for developing department policy. Two excellent tools for policy development are IACP NET and the IACP National Policy Center. It would be wise, if possible, for department members with this area of responsibility to become familiar with and to use these management tools.
After the department initiates a policy review, suggests changes, or determines that a new policy is required, it is essential to have a supervisor and/or command officer review the policy. It is important to have a thorough review from all segments of the department, but not to the extent of causing “analysis paralysis.“ Timely review, comment and approval are essential if the policy review process is to be successful.
An environment of accountability is created through identifying and training on liability, equipment inspection, and policy development/revision. Smaller Agencies who focus on these activities will experience the benefits of managing liability, which will be reflected in the department’s level of professionalism and service.
For help with your egency’s policies and procedures, contact AMLJIA’s law enforcement range rider, Greg Russell, at police@amljia.org.
Excerpted from “Liability Management in Smaller Police Departments,” by Director Paul Schultz, Colorado Peace Officer Standards and Training, Denver, CO; Chief of Police (Ret.); Big Ideas for Smaller Law Enforcement Agencies, Winter 2010.
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