COURSE SYLLABUS
AJ160
POLICE ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION
Winter 2016 Section 3016
Instructor: Nate Banry
Office hours: Tuesday 6:40pm to 7:30pm in room #2001 of the Instructional Center, or by appointment.
Class hours: Tuesday 3:30pm to 6:40pm, Instructional Center room #2001
E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 661-412-2679
Handouts can be obtained on my faculty webpage at the Administration of Justice program
website www.lamission.edu/aj
Last date to add: September 9
Last date to drop: September 11
Description: Historical and modern policing approaches; effect of organizational structure and
administrative procedure on the police function; assessment of decision-making processes, policecommunity relations, and misconduct.
Student Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: 1.)
Identify key influences and components of historical and modern police practices. 2.) Apply principles and
concepts to real world situations and problems police encounter. 3.) Appreciate the role of the police from
both the police and community perspectives.
Textbook: Introduction to Policing: 3rd edition. Cox, Marchionna and Fitch.
Attendance: Regular attendance is the only way to properly satisfy the course requirements.
Attendance will be taken throughout the semester. More than 3 absences during the semester may result
in a reduced grade or being dropped from the class. Students are expected to arrive for class on time.
You are required to make up missing lectures/discussions/class notes by contacting another student in
the class and getting his/her notes.
Cell phones/Electronic devices: All electronic devices WILL be turned off during class hours, although
computers can be used for taking notes.
Cheating: Plagiarism, unauthorized material during an examination, changing answers after work has
been graded, taking an exam for another student, forging or altering attendance sheets or other
documents, are all considered cheating. Any student caught cheating will be dealt with harshly. Refer to
the College catalog.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is defined as the act of using ideas, words, or work of another person or persons
as if they were your own, without giving proper credit to the original sources.
The following examples of plagiarism are intended to be representative, but not all-inclusive:
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Failing to give credit via proper citations for others' ideas and concepts, data and information,
statements and phrases, and/or interpretations and conclusions
Failing to use quotation marks when quoting directly from another, whether it be a paragraph, a
sentence, or a part thereof
Paraphrasing the expressions of thought by others without appropriate quotation marks or
attribution
Assembling parts from various works and submitting the synthesis or single paper as one's own
creation
Representing another's artistic/scholarly works, such as musical compositions, computer
programs, photographs, paintings, drawings, sculptures, or similar works as one's own.
Grading:
2 Quizzes
Mid Term
Analytic Memo
Profile paper
Ethical dilemma paper
Final Exam
Total
20pts each
100pts
100pts
30pts
30pts
100pts
400pts
Extra credit
15pts
100-90= A
89-80=B
79-70=C
69-60=D
59 or Below=F
*Note: There is a total of 390 points possible for this class. To calculate your grade, add up the
total points you receive and divide that by 390. No make up exams will be given.
If you are a student with a disability and require classroom accommodations, please see me to discuss
arrangements. The sooner I am aware that you are eligible for accommodations, the quicker I can provide
them. If you have not done so already, you may also wish to contact the DSP&S Office in Instruction
Building 1018 (phone # 818.364.7732/TTD 818.364.7861) and bring a letter stating the accommodations
that are needed.
Course Schedule
Session
Date
Session Topic
Readings and Assignments
1
8/30
Course Introduction/Course survey/Policing Chapter 1
2
9/6
History of policing
Chapter 2 – Weekly Assignment: Quiz
(Chap. 1-2)
3
9/13
Police Organization and Administration
Chapter 3 – Weekly Assignment: Short
Essay
4
9/20
Graded Quiz/Group exercise/Police
Recruitment and Selection
Chapter 4 – Graded Quiz (Chap. 1-3)
5
9/27
Police Training and Education/ Strategies
in Policing
Chapter 5 & 7 – Weekly Assignment:
Short Essay
6
10/4
Police work, Operations and Functions/
Community Policing
Chapter 6 – Weekly Assignment: Quiz
(Chap. 4-7)
7
10/11
Midterm Exam review/ Jeopardy game
Profile paper due
– Midterm Prep/Profile paper due
8
10/18
Midterm Exam
Chapters 1 through 7 and class notes
9
10/25
NO CLASS/Ethical paper due
– Weekly Assignment: Ethical paper due
(Email to me)
10
11/1
Police culture and Stress
Chapter 8 – Weekly Assignment: Quiz
(Chap. 8)
11
11/8
Law, Court decisions and the Police/Use of Chapter 9 – Weekly Assignment: Short
Force
Essay
Session
Date
Session Topic
Readings and Assignments
12
11/15
Discretion and Ethics/Diversity
Chapter 10 & 12 – Weekly Assignment:
Quiz (Chap. 9, 10, & 12)
13
11/22
Graded Quiz/Police Misconduct/Civil
Liability
Chapter 11 – Graded Quiz (Chap. 8, 9,
10 & 12)
14
11/29
Police Technology/Future of Policing/Group Chapter 13 & 16 – Weekly Assignment:
exercise
Short Essay
15
12/6
Final exam review/Jeopardy game/Class
video on LAPD
– Weekly Assignment: Final Prep (Review
Chap. 11, 13 & 16)
Chapters 8 through 16 and class
notes/Memo paper/extra credit due
*Tasks and timelines subject to change. Any changes will be announced ahead of time in class.
Students are responsible for staying informed of any changes throughout the quarter.
16
12/13
Final Exam
Required Assignments
1. Profile of an admirable police officer. Select either someone you know in law enforcement or create
a fictional character. Write a one to two-page focused profile of this individual whose values, skills, and
actions you greatly admire, and that make him/her an example of a professional police officer. The
criteria used to assess or grade your paper will be based on qualities as the clarity, completeness, and
persuasiveness of the profile, not the identity of the individual chosen. Reports are to be written in word
processor format.
2. Ethical Dilemma. Paul had been a member of the Loma Prieta Police Department for almost ten
years. For three of those years, Dave had been his partner in the patrol car. The two of them worked
well together and got along well, and they both valued their partnership highly. In the last year, however,
Paul had noticed serious, negative changes in his partner’s behavior. About a year before, Dave and his
wife had been divorced. And though it had seemed to Paul a relatively “friendly” divorce, Dave clearly
took it hard. He became withdrawn and moody. Paul knew that Dave drank quite a bit from the start, but
the drinking had always been on his own time and under control. During the past year, however, Dave’s
drinking had become much heavier, and Paul knew it had begun to interfere with his performance as a
police officer. Paul had tried several times to talk with Dave about it and had been rebuffed. The last
time he suggested that Dave should talk with a professional about the drinking, Dave had accused him of
being “out to get me, like everybody else seems to be.” Paul knew that Dave was slipping and that he
needed help. At the same time, he did not want to jeopardize their partnership or add to Dave’s already
heavy burden of personal problems. So he waited. But he was constantly worried. He worried when
Dave was at the wheel. He worried when they got out of the car to check things out on patrol. And he
worried about getting into a tight spot where clear, split-second judgments matter. Dave’s problem was
becoming his problem too.
The Questions: Imagine that you are Paul. Put yourself in his place and respond.
1. You know police procedures and policy well enough. Going “by the book”, explain what you
should do in this situation and why.
2. You also have your moral compass, and know what you think is right and reasonable. Explain
what you really would do, if you were Paul, and why.
Write a one to two-page report, single spaced in word processor format explaining what you would do.
3. A Plan of Action for Transforming the Webster Police Department into a High Performance
Organization
Background
You are a Sergeant with the Webster Police Department. The department is your typical law enforcement
agency. It consists of several units and bureaus including patrol, detectives, traffic, and special units of
assignment. It has approximately 130 sworn police officers, not including administrative staff. It serves a
population of approximately 40,000 residents.
Your Chief of Police is considering a Body-Worn Camera Program for patrol officers. He has given you
the assignment to research the idea and draft a memo to him suggesting policy guidelines for its
implementation.
Assignment
Your assignment is to conduct research on the existing literature of body worn cameras for police officers
and write a memo to your Chief on what you would recommend in creating the policy. For now he is not
interested in the different types of cameras on the market. He is more interested in the many different
angles and issues, and the development of detailed policies that govern the use of these devices.
You are to write a three-page memo addressed to your police chief on what your recommendations would
be to create a Body-Worn Camera Program policy. The memo must be double spaced, using 12 size
font, Times Roman and identify at least five different areas of concern. A grading rubric for the
assignment will be posted on my Moodle page.
Extra Credit Assignments
Purpose: To provide additional opportunities for you to learn about policing.
Only one assignment per student is allowed.
Assignment one:
Police ride along
You are to arrange to go on a police ride along for at least 4 hours preferably 8. The agency must be a
department that has a uniformed patrol division. After the ride along, you are to write a short paper, two
to three pages of what you experienced. The paper must include the date, time and name of officer and
department you went with.
Assignment two:
Los Angeles Police Historical Society Museum
You are to go on a tour of the museum and learn as much as you can about the early history of policing in
Los Angeles. It is required that a photograph of you at the museum be attached to the report. No picture,
no credit. After your visit, write a two-page report of what you thought and experienced at the museum.
Check the museum for days and times of operation at www.laphs.org