Criminal Justice Workplace Observation

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Criminal Justice Workplace Observation Introduction The LAPD is one of the largest departments in the nation managing nearly 10,000 sworn officers and 3,000 civilian employees while girdling an area of more than 470 square miles with an estimated populace of 4 million residents (City of Los Angeles, 2013). The department is a multi-layered agency with a quasi-military hierarchy structure that begins with the Police Commissioner, ends with the beat officer. The culture of the LAPD has a long historical tie to corruption and scandal that has caused some to describe it as a semi- dogmatic military establishment that terrorizes designated administrators without liability (Buntin, 2009). The implementation of the crime control system within the LAPD allows administrators to accurately evaluate operational performance of the department and managerial effectiveness, through the use of CompStat (Schick, 2013). To further govern and influence the activities of the LAPD the Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department is in place to utilize civilian oversight in disciplinary processes that focus on complaints of misconduct, established standards of conduct, and accountability to all levels of sworn officers (“Special Legislative Issue,” 1998). Major influential stakeholders include Community-Police Advisory Boards (C-PABs) and The Los Angeles Department of Neighborhood Empowerment (DONE) which work together to influence City wide and local decision making to improve the relationship between officers and community; bridging the gap between distrust and public safety (Murray, 2002). Leadership and System Currently the LAPD structure is similar to the military overseen by the Mayor, the Commissioner, and the Chief of Police; it is these leaders with the most influence on the department as a whole. The LAPD has a long history of indignity causing a break

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