Patrol Performance Evaluations

[PCSarge]

ARe there any agencies that use a performance eval for patrol officers that gives points for activity and more points for officer-initiated activity. For example:
-Traffic stop= 1 pt.
-Traffic stop w/citation=2 pts.
-Traffic stop w/mis. arrest=4pts
-Traffic stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.
-Dispatched report call=1 pt.
-Self initiated investigative stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.

Our agency is moving away from seniority-based shift assignments.
Any help is appreciated.

[leesrt]

I have never seen this type of eval and frankly don't like the idea. If you use points to award an officer in his eval for writing tickets it incentivizes the action.

In other words, in order for me to have more points on my eval I need to write more tickets and make more arrests. This is the wrong motive and is almost the same as having a quota except now the quota is your evaluation.

This is also a way for a supervisor to do an eval without actually being involved. He can just pull up officer activity and be done.

You evaluate an officer on the quality of his work and the way he communicates and promotes lawful behavior. An officer who communicates well and can change behavior with a warning is much more effective than one who writes a ticket and pisses off the driver with his attitude.

Productivity can be rated but it shouldn't be driven by a point system.

[OrlandoExp103]

That sounds too much like a "quota" for me

[AR-15]

That's the type of evaluation my department went to a few years ago. I have been doing this job for almost 12 years and always have had great reviews. My last review was just average. Even though I have not changed much on how I do the job. I agree, it is not a TRUE evaluation of an officer's performance. We have several officers filing grievances over their evals.

It is what it is.......

[7th District]

ARe there any agencies that use a performance eval for patrol officers that gives points for activity and more points for officer-initiated activity. For example:
-Traffic stop= 1 pt.
-Traffic stop w/citation=2 pts.
-Traffic stop w/mis. arrest=4pts
-Traffic stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.
-Dispatched report call=1 pt.
-Self initiated investigative stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.

Our agency is moving away from seniority-based shift assignments.
Any help is appreciated.

I'm guessing that your police officers don't have a union, correct? Our shift bids, vacation picks, and even worksite transfers around the state are dictated by seniority. IMO that is the only fair way to do it. Otherwise you risk turning this job into a game, a competition. Something I think this job should never be. I think we've all heard/seen stories of agencies getting into hot water for doing just such a thing.

Now we have performance evaluations, both for our patrol activity and our criminal investigative activity. Our patrols evaluations cover 12 different areas of patrol related activity. So that it is not construed as a quota, or as a ticket writting incentive, all the 12 different areas are given the same value (1 pt. per event). Therefore a OWI citation or a speeding citation is worth the same as verbal warning, as is a car assist, as is a liquor inspection, and so on. Then all of those 12 areas are added together and divided by 12 for an overall average.

Now so long as the overall average of your patrol activity is 70% of the worksite's average you are okay. If not then you can be counseled about your lack of patrol activity, first verbally and if it still doesn't improve, on paper.

[Se7en]

At our department each month they have a monthly review that is published. This covers all of the department's activity for the month, including response time, type of arrests etc etc. Also included is it shows each patrol officer and shows how many tickets, arrests, reports, accident reports and traffic stops each officer makes. All of these are added together and a number is placed next to it. Some guys don't like it, I am sure, because it shows who comes in and does absolutely nothing, but I think it's good to see and motivational.

[Nobody]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/10/15/ctw.rome.portus.coliseum/index.html

[SgtCHP]

It is unfortunate that all evaluations in LE must be done through statistical data (numbers). The numbers are not a quota, just a simple tool to see what an officer or group of officers have done to make their community safer.

A good agency will utilize that data compared to actual crime statistics and be open minded when creating a base line of comparison.

As long as the comparison is used for evaluations only there is no conflict. It is when the baseline evaluation is used as a base number of performance that raises issues.

[LINY]

I absolutely hate the points system. It takes out merit for everything they do.

Lets say Officer 1 took 9 small calls such as parking conditions that day and did horrible on every one of them attitude wise and investigative wise, Officer 1 got 9 points that day. Lets say Officer 2 took 1 long investigative call and made a felony arrest on a murder suspect. Officer 1 got 9 points, Officer 2 has 7 - on paper Officer 1 looks better when he really isn't.

[jroo21]

That's the problem with Alabama -- no unions, therefore creating situations in certain departments where seniority, evaluations, pay 'raises', and promotions become somewhat of a joke. This leads to very low morale and very high turnover rate.

[The Pike]

ARe there any agencies that use a performance eval for patrol officers that gives points for activity and more points for officer-initiated activity. For example:
-Traffic stop= 1 pt.
-Traffic stop w/citation=2 pts.
-Traffic stop w/mis. arrest=4pts
-Traffic stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.
-Dispatched report call=1 pt.
-Self initiated investigative stop w/fel. arrest=6 pts.

Our agency is moving away from seniority-based shift assignments.
Any help is appreciated.

No! No! No!
You can't put a number on good police work. It rewards people for taking an unproductive and myopic view of the job. Under the above scheme, what is the incentive for doing follow-up investigations, surveilling a possible drug house or cultivating informants? There is more to this job than traffic tickets, and besides, a felony arrest from a stop has as much to do with luck most of the time.

[stormz5192]

I help out the JR officer and the Sgt a lot while working, including some supervisory duties. None of that shows up in the #'s. I have resorted to hitting #'s and doing quick reports on my activity, so it doesn'T look like I did nothing the entire shift. The admin knows, but I feel if I don't generate some paper in a shift, I am stealing $.

The point system is a horrible idea, but great for the admin that love #'s.

[LINY]

The point system is a horrible idea, but great for the admin that love #'s.

They only reason they love it is because if they didn't have it, they would have to do actual work.

It's like that with almost all Administration.

[ateamer]

It is unfortunate that all evaluations in LE must be done through statistical data (numbers). The numbers are not a quota, just a simple tool to see what an officer or group of officers have done to make their community safer.

My agency has never used numbers to write evaluations. A good sergeant knows what his men are doing, and who is earning their keep. An officer not being active enough should have been addressed long before the evaluation comes up. If it continues to be an issue, though, you don't need numbers to back it up.

Writing lots of tickets is not necessarily evidence of making the community safer. The reduction of crime and traffic accidents is a more accurate measure.

Using stats is myopic and a shortcut to good supervision.

[Nobody]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/10/15/ctw.rome.portus.coliseum/index.html