PHILADELPHIA POLICE DEPARTMENT DIRECTIVE 4.18

Transcription

1 PHILADELPHIA POLICE DEPARTMENT DIRECTIVE 4.18 Issued Date: Effective Date: Updated Date: SUBJECT: POLICE SERVICE AREAS (PSA INTEGRITY) 1. INTRODUCTION A. The Police Service Area (PSA) is an effort to refine our foundation of delivering basic police services by police districts personnel. The districts and their personnel are given broad guidelines contained in this directive. It is their job to create and test the means and methods that will turn the PSAs from concept into reality. Through these tests we will learn what works and what does not and may discover something new. Understand and challenge what is being asked of you and then work with us to make a basic principle in policing -geographic accountability -a meaningful basis for changing the way the Philadelphia Police Department does policing. 2. POLICY A. It is the policy of the Philadelphia Police Department that personnel in the two Regional Operations Commands are geographically assigned and accountable for the policing services provided within their assigned police service area (PSA). 3. BACKGROUND A. Geographical assignment does contribute to an officers' increased knowledge of the places, activities and people who live and work in the PSA. It is this knowledge and resulting relationships that will become the basis of our continual efforts to drive down crime, neighborhood by neighborhood, by addressing the crime and disorder problems in a comprehensive way. This is a core concept of the PSA model. B. Geographical accountability is a proven principle of policing. Not long ago, patrol officers were assigned beats or sectors to patrol. Here in Philadelphia each of you at some point was assigned a sector to patrol. Today the truth is that we have too many sectors and not enough patrol Officers to maintain sector integrity. Patrol Officers often run from one end of the district to the other, driven by calls for service, with no time to do anything else. DIRECTIVE

2 C. The PSAs are a first and necessary step toward increasing geographical accountability and improving policing in Philadelphia. The PSA model fixes geographical accountability for Lieutenants, Sergeants and officers. It is based on the concept of team policing and shared responsibility for making a small part of Philadelphia safer the PSA. 4. DEFINITIONS A. Police Service Area (PSA) -The smallest geographical subdivision of a police district to which police personnel are assigned. Each pilot district is divided into two or three PSAs. B. PSA Integrity -Officers assigned to a PSA will handle the majority of the calls for service in that PSA. The goal for PSA Integrity is that, on average, between sixty and eighty percent of the calls in a PSA are responded to by an officer assigned to that PSA. There will be times when the goal for PSA Integrity may not be met due to call volume. Police Radio, PSA Lieutenants, and Sergeants are expected to work toward maintaining PSA Integrity. C. PSA Team -The Lieutenant, Sergeants, and Officers assigned to a PSA make up the PSA Team. This team is directed by the PSA Lieutenant and supervised by the PSA Sergeants. The PSA Team will work together to address crime and disorder problems on the PSA. 5. PROCEDURES A. In accordance with Directive 7.1, Police Radio the District Operations Room Supervisor (ORS) shall send an availability report to Police Radio of all district personnel working including Five and Seven squads. B. Supervisors of non-patrol units, such as Highway Patrol, the Strike Force, and other specialized units, working in a district will notify Police Radio within fifteen minutes of the start of a tour of duty of all their personnel working and provide their radio identification number, status, assignment, and district working. C. All police personnel working in a district, including non-patrol units, such as but not limited to Highway Patrol and the Strike Force, regardless of assignment will respond to dispatched calls-for-service. D. PSA Officers 1. PSA officers, unless authorized, will remain in and patrol their PSA. DIRECTIVE

3 a. When dispatched, officers will respond to calls-for-service off their PSA. b. PSA officers are authorized to respond to an Assist Officer call off their PSA. c. When zero car availability occurs in a PSA and an in progress call is broadcasted, other PSA officers who are close by may respond as back-up. Responding officers should inform Police Radio they are responding and return to their PSA as soon as possible. d. PSA officers shall respond to on-sight incidents regardless of their area of occurrence. If an incident is off their PSA, the officer may request, through Police Radio, an assigned PSA officer respond and take over the job. 2. PSA Officers will identify, on their Patrol Activity Log (75-158), the callsfor service responded to off their PSA. a. Identify the PSA assigned in the "Sector(s)" box of the Patrol Activity Log. b. Indicate on the "Location" line whether the police service provided was off their assigned PSA by writing "off". 3. When not handling calls or complaints, PSA officers shall make an effort to know the people who live and work in the PSA. 4. Share information and knowledge about their PSA with team members, Detectives and other specialized units. E. Police Radio shall: 1. List all units working in a patrol district for availability. 2. Dispatch Priority 1 and 2 calls in the following order: a. Available radio patrol car assigned to the PSA. b. Available unit assigned to the PSA, such as wagons, foot beats, and bikes. c. Any available non-psa district personnel, such as Five and Seven Squad. d. PSA Sergeant e. Any available outside unit working in the district including but not limited to Highway Patrol and the Strike Force. f. Any available radio patrol car assigned to the District DIRECTIVE

4 g. Any available Sergeant h. Lieutenant. 3. Hold Priority 3 or lower priority calls for dispatch to the appropriate assigned PSA radio patrol car is available. a. Police Radio shall keep the PSA Sergeant informed of the number and type of calls being held. b. Per Directive 7.1, Police Radio patrol division officials have the authority and responsibility to hold or have calls dispatched. c. Lower priority calls may be dispatched to officers outside of the PSA with the authorization of the on-duty Lieutenant. F. PSA Sergeants: 1. Are accountable for ensuring the PSA integrity is maintained in accordance with this directive during their tour of duty. 2. Shall continuously monitor Police Radio to ensure calls are being handled in a timely manner by officers. 3. Shall take appropriate actions to prevent officers from responding unnecessarily to calls outside their PSA. 4. When a job is being handled by a unit other than a PSA unit assigned to that PSA, the Sergeant may reassign the job to a PSA unit when one becomes available. 5. Shall work with PSA officers so they can become more knowledgeable about the places, activities, and people who live and work on the PSA. 6. Review the Patrol Activity Log after each tour and report to the PSA Lieutenant the number and percent of calls handled by PSA Officers on and off their PSA. 7. Shall work with PSA officers in identifying areas of chronic crime and disorder locations and problems, and develop patrol tactics to address these areas. 8. Shall share with the PSA Officers information, crime analysis, and intelligence relevant to the PSA. G. PSA Lieutenants: 1. Are accountable for evaluating the quality of PSA operations and personnel activity, including the extent to which PSA integrity is being maintained. DIRECTIVE

5 a. Working with the District Captain, establish the minimum PSA Officer staffing for each tour of duty. b. Ensure that discretionary time off is only given after minimum staffing is met for the PSA. c. When working, ensure that every PSA has its minimum officer staffing available and responding to calls for service. When required to meet this minimum staffing, the Lieutenant shall assign Five and Seven Squad personnel to a PSA radio patrol car. Only after the minimum PSA staffing is met will tactical units operate. d. If minimum staffing is not achieved by the above actions, personnel may be detailed from one PSA to another for a tour-of-duty. e. Note on the S&R when minimum staffing is not met and the actions taken to address the staffing short-fall. 2. Identifying and resolving barriers to PSA Integrity is an essential part of the PSA Lieutenant's job. This is done by: a. Analyzing radio call data, reviewing patrol activity logs, and talking with PSA Sergeants and Officers. b. Working with PSA Sergeants to design and implement strategies to increase PSA Integrity. c. Requesting additional resources from their Commanding Officer based on analysis of workload and other factors of need. 3. Shall continuously monitor Police Radio to ensure calls are being handled. 4. Shall obtain information, crime analysis, and intelligence relevant to the PSA and ensure this information is shared with all PSA team members across all tours. 5. Shall meet regularly with PSA Sergeants and at least monthly with PSA officers to identify chronic crime and disorder problems and locations, develop patrol tactics to address these areas, and follow-up on progress and issues in addressing the problems and locations. H. District Captains: 1. Shall ensure the distribution of district resources match workload, crime patterns, and help achieve PSA Integrity. DIRECTIVE

6 2. Shall review the S&R to determine if minimum PSA staffing was met, the causes, and the appropriateness of actions taken. 3. Shall review at least monthly with PSA Lieutenants: a. PSA Integrity and barriers and solutions to achieving PSA Integrity. b. Progress of PSA Teams in addressing chronic crime and disorder problems on their PSA. c. Relevant information, such as, district goals, crime analysis and patterns, and intelligence. 4. Shall update the Divisional Inspector on the implementation of PSA Integrity; including the barriers to achieving PSA Integrity, solutions and progress in achieving PSA Integrity. 5. Shall request Departmental resources, through the Divisional Inspector, to help improve PSA Integrity and address chronic crime and disorder problems. RELATED PROCEDURES Directive 7.1, Police Radio BY COMMAND OF THE POLICE COMMISSIONER DIRECTIVE