Capacity and Leadership Part II

In part II of the previous episode's discussion on policing capacity, today, the panel questions whether the traditional expectations of police officers, including being armed and having the power to detain, are appropriate for all aspects of their work. They explore the idea that sworn officers may not always be necessary to provide protection when responding to traffic accidents, mental health crises, overdose calls, etc. Throughout the episode, the panel considers alternative solutions to these calls and discusses the potential need for new roles within police departments. With the evolving expectations of modern policing, they also explore the roles of victim advocates, forensic interviewers, crime scene technicians, school resource officers, and store security as well as the type of training these roles should undergo.

Topics Covered:

• The situations that will always need a police presence
• The importance of victim advocates in reducing investigators' workload
• Why professionalizing crime scene search with civilians improves its quality
• Understanding responsibilities of crime analysts and the resources they should have access to
• Debating if the police should be involved in school monitoring, traffic accidents, and suicide calls
• The training that is necessary to respond to the most high volume types of calls