Criminalization of mental illness
In 1940, there were 223 state and county mental hospitals in the United States with some 420,000 patients. By 1955, the resident population had increased to 559,000 inpatients. Since then, […] Read More
Robert Spinks
’Tis the season: Resolutions from a police chief
The holiday season is upon us! Family get-togethers, giving thanks, fresh-baked cookies, holiday shopping and cups of pumpkin spice lattes abound. First responders enjoy all of this, but it is […] Read More
What is an enforcement tolerance, anyway?
Police discretion is one of the most valuable assets that individual officers and deputies are granted — the ability to look at the totality of each given call or situation […] Read More
Executive leadership in social media and press relations
Law enforcement agencies across the nation face increased media scrutiny, community turmoil, reduced funding and many demands during this new era of policing. It’s no surprise that many government organizations […] Read More
Enforcing little laws prevents big crimes
Crime prevention, deterrence and displacement sound like great theories in a college class. How can patrol officers and deputies turn those theories into something useful? When you talk crime prevention, […] Read More
School resource officer programs
Path to arrests or reform?
Prior to the 1950s, the concept of a school resource officer (SRO) was not widely heard of. Most educational interactions between schools and local law enforcement were done on an […] Read More
