Introduction
The situational report on the Courtelaney Pass police department presents a number of important issues that should be addressed by the police administration, including the Chief of Police. Racial tensions, questionable investigative and enforcement practices, poor community crime reporting, and the lack of diversity in the department are among the critical problems affecting the work of the department. The present report will seek to identify research and investigative issues and questions to be targeted in the term project.
Racial Tensions
Racial tensions are a vital concern for many police departments in the United States, as there continues to be considerable inequality in the way white people and minorities are treated by the police. The situational report indicates that residents complain of biased policing and police brutality towards minority communities. Because the municipality has significant shares of black (38%) and Hispanic (7%) populations, racial tensions influence the effectiveness of the department and could hinder its future work. The research should aim to determine practical methods for resolving racial tensions and promoting healthy relationships between the police and the local community. The research question prompted by this problem is “What are the evidence-based methods for fostering healthy relationships between the police and racial minority communities in the area?”.
Questionable Investigative and Enforcement Practices
One of the critical duties of police administrators is to ensure the ethical conduct of all employees. However, as suggested by the report, the Courtelaney Pass police department has some questionable investigative and enforcement practices, which decrease its effectiveness in reducing crime rates and protecting residents. For instance, aggressive enforcement actions of the narcotics unit triggered riots and led to the suspension of its operations in the area. The actions of officers and Dr. Elmer Clausen during the Kayla Williams investigation were also questionable, resulting in fallacious investigation results and causing outrage in the black community. The actions of workers in both cases were not only ineffective, but unethical, and thus it is critical to research ways of promoting the ethical conduct of employees. The research question for this part of the project would be “What are the effective methods of promoting the ethical conduct of police officers and other employees?”.
Poor Community Reporting
Poor community reporting is also evident in the paper, as many thefts, burglaries, and rapes go unreported. The main reason for poor reporting is that undocumented residents are afraid of being deported. Poor reporting leads to ineffective police work and growth in community crime rates, as many of the criminals remain free and face no charges. The research will focus on the issue of poor crime reporting in undocumented populations to answer the question, “What can police departments do to improve crime reporting in undocumented immigrant communities?”.
Lack of Diversity
Lastly, as shown in the report, the department lacks racial and ethnic diversity and is made up of 94% white employees. The fact that the racial makeup of the department does not mirror the local community contributes to racial tensions and creates opportunities for biased policing. The research will seek to address this problem by responding to the question, “What are the effective practices of attracting people from racial minorities to work in a police department?”.
Conclusion
All in all, the project will aim to answer four fundamental research questions prompted by the administrative issues presented in the situational report. The chosen problems are substantial in their scope and will hinder further work of the police if left unaddressed. Specifying the focus of the research will help to provide targeted solutions that can be implemented to improve the department’s internal operations, foster positive relationships with local communities, and ensure the ethical conduct of employees.