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can there be two police chiefs at one department

Can Two Police Chiefs Run One Department?

I know what you are thinking. What in the world is he talking about? I’m not crazy.  A City government decided to split the responsibilities of the Police Chief between two people and give them two different titles. The Decision The Mayor and Chief Administrator of the City of Albuquerque recently announced after an exhaustive search, that they appointed Harold Medina to serve as the Police Chief.  Chief Medina currently serves as the Interim Chief.  However, their announcement didn’t stop there. They also appointed another candidate, Sylvester Stanley, to a newly created Superintendent of Police Reform position. Click here to read an article about these appointments. Some people were disappointed that an internal candidate, Medina, was selected. But, at the same time, other people were cautiously optimistic that the new position can create more accountability within the Albuquerque Police Department. Duties & Responsibilities If you have two Police Chiefs, how do you divide up their duties? Here is what Albuquerque did. Chief Medina will be responsible for fighting crime, the recruitment of officers, and building morale.  On the other hand, Superintendent Stanley will be responsible for the Police Academy, Internal Affairs, and will work with the Department of Justice on…

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Sir Robert Peel’s 9 Principles of Policing – Principle #9

I am continuing my series of articles about Sir Robert Peel's 9 Principles of Policing.  Today, my focus is on Principle #9. Principle #9 To recognise always that the test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, and not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with them. How do you measure how well a police department is performing?  According to Sir Robert Peel, it is by the absence of crime and disorder.   Yet this response seems overly simplistic and doesn’t take into account the many factors that influence crime. Factors That Influence Crime According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, there are various factors that influence the crime rate for any particular area.  Some of these factors include population density and the degree of urbanization, age and gender of the population, the transience of the people, poverty level, job availability, median income, modes of transportation, education level of people, family conditions, and climate. [i] Of course, this is not an exhaustive list.  Instead, it is evidence that reducing crime is a more complicated proposition than first evident. In my career, I can recall instances when crime rose despite the department's best efforts.  In other…

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Sir Robert Peel's 9 Principles of Policing

Sir Robert Peel’s 9 Principles of Policing – Principle #7

I am continuing my series of articles about Sir Robert Peel's 9 Principles of Policing.  Today, my focus is on Principle #7. Principle #7 To maintain at all times a relationship with the public that gives reality to the historic tradition that the police are the public and that the public are the police, the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full time attention to duties which are incumbent on every citizen in the interests of community welfare and existence.  Even in 1829, a relationship with the public was essential for law enforcement officers to be successful.  I’m not sure this concept was as understood back in the day as it is today.  In general, law enforcement was a thankless job that relied upon brute force to be effective.  Don’t get me wrong.  I am sure many police officers valued having a positive relationship with the community, but few likely understood how important that concept was at the time. The sentiment expressed in this principle is probably one of the most famous of all of the principles espoused by Sir Robert Peel.  The police are the public and that the public are the police.Sir…

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