Criminal Justice Case Study

Searching the Cushions
for Change

Read the following scenario and
answer the five questions that follow using APA style formatting where
appropriate. Provide sufficient detail in your responses to demonstrate a good
understanding of the material in the textbook regarding the philosophy of and
management approach to community policing.

Case Study

Captain Jones is responsible for
preparing the budget for the Greenfield Police Department. The new chief has
asked her to review the entire budget and find long-term and short-term cost
reductions. He wants to shift some resources to community policing projects and
would like to create an undercover drug unit. He encourages her to be creative
and bold because he does not anticipate any increases in the budget during the
next few years.

The Greenfield Police Department is
a medium-sized suburban department. Three neighboring cities have comparable
departments performing similar functions. Each of the four departments has their
own booking and short-term holding facility and their own dispatch center. The
county sheriff’s department operates a detention center for felons and long-term
prisoners. Arresting officers transport their prisoners to the county facility
and are often out of service for several hours during this process. Each city
has its own SWAT team. The teams’ equipment was purchased through a federal
grant, but the personnel costs are each department’s responsibility. The teams
train frequently, but the county sheriff’s department also has a SWAT team that
responds when requested by local police departments. None of the departments has
an undercover drug unit. They

refer drug cases to state and
federal agencies, but those agencies are often too busy for a timely response. A
review of the Greenfield Police Department activity logs reveals that officers
spend considerable time standing by for vehicle tows, directing traffic at civic
functions and delivering documents to city council members.

Questions

• What creative ideas could Captain Jones recommend for consideration in the
  upcoming budget?
• Assuming that the Greenfield officers are still relying on preventative
  patrol, how could a change in strategy benefit the budget?
• Suggest some long-term cost savings Captain Jones could consider regarding
  dispatch and booking services.
• Is the continued support of a seldom-used SWAT team a good use of Greenfield
  Police Department resources?
• What other sources of creative funding may be available to support a drug
  unit?

Write a 2-3 page APA formatted paper including an abstract page which must include at least 2 references.