At this meeting, discussions among attending practitioners to define a "midsize" law enforcement agency were interesting and enlightening, but ultimately unsuccessful. Discussions on this issue continued at the IACP annual conference. Although a firm definition continues to remain elusive, a definition began to take shape. The Mid-Size City Chiefs Advisory Committee, which was formed at the initial meeting and then reconvened at the IACP annual conference in October 2009, agreed that a midsize city, whether at 75,000 population or 300,000, is any city that feels it lacks a voice or representation. This booklet advises that in order to build a body of knowledge and a tailored portfolio of best practices, it is necessary to isolate the characteristics and conditions that define and differentiate the policing environments of subgroups (classes) of cities. Accordingly, those in criminal justice must produce a typology built with and from policing requirements. The participants at the initial meeting attempted to identify ways in which midsize police agencies are similar to and different from agencies of other classes and sizes. Since the chiefs at the meeting frequently referenced major city agencies as the reference point for comparing and contrasting their own situation, it may be useful to think about midsize agencies as "smaller major agencies" rather than "larger small agencies." This booklet lists the ways in which midsize departments are similar to and different from large departments. The booklet concludes with a discussion of the pattern of violent crime, which appears to be increasing in midsize cities.
Out of the Shadows: Policy Research for Midsize Law Enforcement Agencies: A Call to Action
NCJ Number
232361
Date Published
March 2010
Length
26 pages
Annotation
This booklet summarizes the proceedings of "A Mid-Size Department Initiative: Design Meeting One," which was held at the headquarters of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) in May 2009, to focus on an agenda for addressing the distinctive interests and needs of mid-size police departments.
Abstract