NCJ Number
124668
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 58 Issue: 6 Dated: (June 1990) Pages: 18,20,25,26,27
Date Published
1990
Length
5 pages
Annotation
A police agency risk management program complements administrative objectives by avoiding police-citizen interactions that could result in litigation.
Abstract
Risk management is concerned with basic training and the differences between sworn and certified officers. State minimum standards for police officer certification are set by individual States but may not meet the "standards of care" required by the courts in liability cases. Police policies should be incorporated into written standards that verify that wrongful actions by officers contradict established policy. The risks incurred by a municipality can extend to off-duty actions of officers, including moonlighting. In-service legal training for officers, covering court decision, statutes, and major high-risk task policies improves supervision and discipline. Finally, supervisors represent management at the operational level and need to be trained to uniformly interpret and enforce department policies. In developing a risk management plan, police administrators should entrust the project to a reliable subordinate, gather information about previous and current lawsuits, designate a departmental liaison for risk management matters, outline department needs relating to potential liability to the risk manager, react quickly to incidents which may lead to lawsuits, meet with corporation counsel and department legal counsel, undertake a comprehensive liability assessment, review high-risk/critical tasks, and consider applying for police department accreditation.