Organizational Management and Operations Paper

Organizational Management and Operations

CJA/484

Organizational Management and Operations

Law enforcement in the United States is an extremely large and complex field comprising a lot f employees. The United States has different levels and organizations of law enforcement they spread out through local, state, and federal functions. The main sections of the criminal justice system are jurisdictional, which is why the system is separated by the federal, the state, and local systems from each other. Every state in the United States has their own criminal justice system and numerous of organizations within the systems that are organized at the local and state levels, and at the state and federal levels. These organizations are made up of state prisons, law enforcement crime labs, correction offices, and different federal agencies. Throughout this paper one will identify, compare, and contrast the policing function at the local, state, and federal organizational levels. Analyze how the organizational, management, administration, and operational functions at these three organizational levels are similar or different and why. Finally one will identify the leadership characteristics and responsibilities pertaining to each organizational level.

Identifying the Policing Function at the Local, State, and Federal Organizational Levels

Each state has its own police force, as well as each city and county. Even some townships have an officer or two. The law enforcement system is complex with different levels, to allow each region the independence to create laws and procedures that match local preferences. This system also creates, at times, confusion when departments attempt to or must work together. Even though department may be well-organized and effective, little is systematized, or coordinated across systems. Methods and processes for communication department organization and department names, procedures, and cooperative plans are not consistent across the different levels of law enforcement. Law Enforcement agencies function at all levels of the government: local, state, and federal with many similarities and differences in their day-to-day operations, each responsible for specific duties and functions. These agencies have the formidable task of protecting the United States from foreign threats at the federal agency level to preventing society from victimizing itself at the local and state level. Among the over 90,000 officially declared police personnel, 13% are specifically working for federal agencies, another 13% hired by special or state agencies while 74% work in the local law enforcement agencies. These law enforcement bodies are mandated with various roles and responsibilities, with the main aim of protecting the society. These responsibilities include prevention of crime, maintenance of law and order, and public service. The agencies are segmented into federal, state and local agencies. However, they operate in unison towards controlling, deterring and fighting crime, although, in certain situations, every agency may work independently from the others. It should be noted that all the levels of law enforcement are governed by outlined set of rules, responsibilities and procedures (Carter, 2004).

Local Policing

Local policing agencies are made up of the local police, sheriff’s department, campus police as well as the municipal and park police. They are all charged with the duty of protecting societal needs like patrol work, traffic duties, response to calls for service and provision of general help to the public. They are also charged with the enforcement of the laws of the particular cities or towns that they serve. Local policing may be different at each city some duties and services that are associated with any law enforcement officer. Other duties include arresting criminals, doing routine patrol, investigating crimes, enforcing traffic laws, providing crowd and traffic control during public events. There’s also the County Sheriff departments that may vary according to the size of the county. The sheriff agency has several duties of the coroners, tax assessors, and they can be executors for criminals.

State Policing

The state police agencies and their officers protect residents within their state jurisdictions. State Police Agencies are also known as specialized police, state police agencies operate at the state level. The state police just like local police also have several duties and task that they are responsible for. Such as responding to calls for service which are then backed by investigative operations. As well as administrative, training and technical duties and court related responsibilities. There are different duties that state police have to do in smaller towns where there are no local police departments, such as offering security and law enforcement services to the towns. After the 9/11 incident, potential significant consequences for the state police agencies were highlighted. All the states, the police has created some homeland security agencies that are charged with roles like advising the legislature and governor on matters of security, to oversee threat assessment of the state, infrastructure protection, receipt and distribution of DHS funds, provision of assistance and training services to local jurisdictions among others. Based on this, state police officers have assumed the duty of countering terrorism in their respective states (Whisenand, 2009). At state level, one would also find specialized police units that undertake special police functions. Such as fish and game wardens are responsible for the enforcement of fishing, hunting and boating laws. Different states have also invested in independent policing agencies like the Department of Motor Vehicles, Alcohol Beverage Control and Department of Criminal Investigations. These agencies are responsible for law enforcement and conducting investigations, which must be in accordance with the powers assigned to them by the state. In conducting their roles, they work together with other police agencies. Other special police divisions include HAZMAT, SWAT and K-9 units (Cordner & Scarborough, 2010). 

Federal Policing

The federal police are police agencies that are regularized by the federal government and are charged with the role of handling enforcement and security issues that are beyond the state boundaries and those that affect regions of the country or the whole of America. The Federal police agencies include the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration, Border Patrol and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. These agencies deal with issues related to drug sales, immigration, weapon and arms regulation, and threats to internal security like terrorism. Their jurisdiction is also above that of the local and state law enforcement agencies (Carter, 2004).

Similarities and Comparison of the Policing Function at the Local, State, and Federal Organizational Levels

The three levels of law enforcement agencies the local state and federal are the same in that they are all charged with the responsibility of protecting the rights and ensuring the safety of citizens that they serve within their areas of operations. They enforce laws, make arrests, protect and serve the citizens in the particular areas that they are assigned to work (Cordner & Scarborough, 2010). One difference between the police agencies is the way in which they hire. In many cities and towns, local police officers are appointed by their respective city governments, with methods of recruitment that are different from one city to another based on their rules and regulations. Each law enforcement agency is hired differently, the top management is often made up of political appointees, although these are handpicked from a team of experienced professionals. Middle level managers are then appointed from within the force, a process conducted by civil service or based on merit. Appointments in the federal law agencies, especially the senior management, are conducted by the president. The process must however, be done within consent and advice of the senate. The mid-level management in the federal agencies is comprised of internal officers who have been promoted on the basis of merit, or civil servants. The three agencies are also varied based on the roles that they play, and also their areas of jurisdiction as outlined in the report (Carter, 2004). There are several similarities or differences between the organizational, management, administration and operational functions at these three organizations, they all work according to the laws and regulations governing the areas in which they operate. Such as the federal agencies abide by the federal laws while state police agencies operate under the laws set out by their statutes of operations. Local agencies on the other hand, are governed by the rules of their municipalities or cities. However, state and local policing agencies are also governed by federal laws while local agencies are guided by the laws of the state government that they serve (Cordner & Scarborough, 2010).

Conclusion

The United States has different levels and organizations of law enforcement they are the local, state, and federal functions. The major sections of the criminal justice system are jurisdictional, the system is separated by the federal, the state, and local systems from each other. There are many comparisons and similarities in the policing within the local, state, and federal organizational levels but at the end they all have the same goal which is to prevent crime, maintain the law and order, public service, control, deter and fight crime, whether it is together or separated.

References

Carter, D.L. (2004). Law Enforcement Intelligence: A guide for state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies. School of Criminal Justice, Michigan State University. Retrieved on 2nd February 2014 from http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/e09042536.pdf

Cordner, G. & Scarborough, K. (2010). Information sharing: Exploring the intersection of policing with national and military intelligence. The Journal of the Naval Postgraduate School Centre for Homeland Defense and Security. 6 (1). 

Whisenand, P.M. (2009) Managing Police Organizations. Prentice Hall, Pearson Education, Inc.