NCJ Number
215991
Journal
Law and Order Volume: 54 Issue: 9 Dated: September 2006 Pages: 145-146,149,151
Date Published
September 2006
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article presents and discusses the findings of a survey of 30 police departments regarding their policies for employee cell-phone use.
Abstract
Only 40 percent of the respondents indicated that their departments had written cell-phone policies; however, another 10 percent reported that their departments were considering such policies. Some departments are required to comply with government-wide policies for government employee cell-phone use while at work. A concern of many of these policies is the cost of the use of phones issued by the department; the department monitors the minutes of cell-phone use by each officer issued a cell phone, and if he/she exceeds the phone contract's time limits, disciplinary action follows. Forty-eight percent of the responding departments issue cell phones to some or all of their officers; only 14 percent issue them to all officers. Employees may be responsible for any expenses the department incurs for personal calls made with a department's phone. Many departments specify that personal calls with their phones should only be made when the employee is off-duty. Seventy-five percent of the respondents reported that their agency's personnel were allowed to use cell phones while driving, in some cases at their own risk. This means that any employee who is charged with traffic violations or has a vehicle accident that results from cell-phone use will be solely responsible for all related liabilities. This may include departmental discipline and even termination. If a State's law prohibits cell-phone use while driving, respondents indicated this would also apply to their employees. Fifty-seven percent of the respondents supported a ban on cell-phone use while driving. The cell-phone policies of specific departments involved in the survey are presented.