BS Criminology

COURSE CODE: LEA 1

LAW ENFORCEMENT ORGANIZATION WITH INTER-AGENCY
APPROACH

Handout # 2
GUIDE IN ORGANIZING EFFECTIVE POLICE SERVICE

 Organization is an association or group of individuals with a common goal.

It is the structuring of individuals and functions into productive
relationships. It is either formal or informal organization.
 Police Organization is a structured group of trained personnel dealt with
achieving the following goals:
 Goals: (1) To ensure public safety; (2) To protect lives and properties;
and (3) To maintain peace and order.
 Police Administration means “Police in Action”. The cooperative human
effort to achieve the purposes of the CJS. It also refers to the study of the
processes and conditions of LE as a pillar in the CJS. It embraces 8 functions
– POSDCCoRB.

FUNCTIONS OF POLICE ADMINISTRATION (POSDCCoRB)

 Planning involves the determination of what to do, when will it to be done,

who will do it, and how will it to be done.
 Organizing is the process of identifying and grouping of work
 Staffing is the proper choosing of men.

Two (2) different Staffing Activities:

1. Recruitment- refers to the set of activities and processes used to legally
obtain a sufficient number of right people for specific positions.
2. Selection- in the process of choosing among the candidates the most
suitable person for the current position or for future position.

 Directing is the way commander issues orders and instructions to his

subordinates.
 Coordinating is the integration of all details necessary for accomplishment
of the objectives of organization.
 Controlling is the way or process of organizing.
 Reporting visualizes the agency’s accomplishment and other vital matters.
 Budgeting refers to the allocation of funds.

FUNDAMENTAL PURPOSE OF POLICE SERVICE

1. MAJOR CRIMES- Homicide, murder, rape, robbery, robbery, arson,

kidnapping and other heinous crimes.
2. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC MORALS- vices, gambling, prohibited drugs,
etc.;
3. THOSE RELATED TO MAINTENANCE OF PEACE AND ORDER; illegal
possession of weapons, vagrancy, trespassing, assaults, etc.

DIFFERENT POLICE ACTIVITIES (PRASIP)

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 1. PREVENTION OF CRIMINALITY- addressing the root causes of the
criminality or criminal tendencies in community.
2. REPPRESSION OF CRIME- includes adequate patrolling plus continuous
efforts toward eliminating or reducing the opportunities for criminal
activities.
3. APPREHENDING OF OFFENDERS- includes the taking of custody of
offenders. Together with punishment, the discourages would be
criminals. It also restrains the offenders from committing other offenses.
4. CONDUCT SEARCH AND SEIZURE;
5. INVESTIGATION OF CRIME; AND
6. PROTECTION OF LIVES AND PROPERTY

FUNDAMENTAL THEORIES OF THE POLICE SERVICE

1. CONTINENTAL THEORY- Police officers are regarded as servants of

higher authorities and the people have little or no share in their law
enforcement duties, nor any direct connection with them. This is
prevalent in continental countries like France, Italy, and Spain where
centralized government is the dominant government structure.

2. HOME RULE THEORY- Police officers are regarded as servants of the

community rather than the higher authorities. The effectiveness of the
Police in performing their functions is dependent upon the express
wishes of the people. This theory supports that police men are civil
employees whose primary duty is to preserve the public peace and
security. This is commonly practice in countries having decentralized
governmental structure such as in England, United States and other
democratic countries like the Philippines.

CONCEPT OF POLICE SERVICE

1. OLD CONCEPT- public look at policemen to be more effective if they

conduct numerous arrests and put behind bars what they have arrested.
The yardstick of measurement of police efficiency was the greater
number of arrests.

2. MODERN CONCEPT- public look at policemen as more effective in the

absence of crime. The yardstick or measurement of police efficiency here
is absence of crime.

CRITICISMS OF THE POLICE

1. Lack of educational qualifications
2. Lack of training as well as training equipment and training facilities.
3. Low salary as compared to other professions hence, highly qualified
applicants are not attracted to the law enforcement profession.
4. Limited territorial jurisdictions preventing them from effective pursuit of
criminals.

BASIC TERMINOLOGIES IN RELATION TO POLICE PLANNING

1. AUTHORITY- right to command and control behavior.

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 2. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY- act of a person, higher in authority,
conferring power, authority, duty or responsibility to the lower
authority.
3. MANAGE- to manage is to direct or conduct the affairs or interests of
various units.
4. ORGANIZING- act of systematically arranging different units in
hierarchical order in order to perform specific functions in achieving
specific objectives.
5. ORGANIZATION- is an association of human beings to attain a specific
goal or objective.
6. POLICE ACCOUNTABILITY- inherent responsibility of a police
organization to be answerable for the misconducts committed by its
members.
7. POLICE ADMINISTRATION- is an organizational process concerned with
the determination of the objectives and plans, and internal operating
efficiency of the police organization.
8. POLICE FUNCTIONS- refer to the duties and responsibilities carried out
by the police agencies concerning public order and public safety.
9. POLICE MANAGEMENT- act of administering, controlling or handling
various aspects of police organization.
10.POLICE ORGANIZATION- number of police units systematically arranged
for some purpose or objective.
11.POLICE POWER- inherent power of the government to impose
reasonable restrictions on the liberties of its citizens for the
maintenance of public order and safety.

ORGANIC UNITS IN THE POLICE ORGANIZATION

1. Three Police Functions in Organization

a. Primary Functions (First Priority)
b. Auxiliary or Secondary Functions (Second Priority)
c. Administrative Functions (Management Aspect)
2. Three Organic Units that maybe assigned in the foregoing functions
a. Operational Unit (Primary functions)
b. Service Unit (Auxiliary or Secondary Functions)
c. Administrative Units (Administrative Functions)

RESPONSIBILITIES ASSIGNED IN THE THREE UNITS

1. Operational Units may include: Patrol; Investigation; Traffic; Vice Control;

and Juvenile Delinquency.
2. Service Units may include Records Section; Communication; Crime
Laboratory; and Maintenance
3. Administrative Units may include Personnel; Budget; Plans; Training; Public
Information; Intelligence

THE FUNCTIONAL UNITS OF POLICE ORGANIZATION

1. Bureau – the largest organic functional units within a large department.

2. Division – a primary subdivision of a bureau and has a department with
functions either for general police service or for specified activity.
3. Section – a functional unit within a division where specialization is noted.
4. Unit – functional group within a section when, the smallest functional
group within an organization.

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THE GEOGRAPHICAL OR TERRITORIAL UNITS OF A POLICE ORGANIZATION

1. Post – it is a fixed point or location to which an officer is assigned for duty,

such as a designated desk or office.
2. Route – a length of street or streets design for patrol purposes. It is also
known as LINE BEAT.
3. Beat – it is a territory which is an area assigned for duty patrol whether on
foot or mobile.
4. Sector – it is an area containing two or more beats, routes or post.
5. District – a geographical subdivision of a city for patrol purposes, usually
with its own station.
6. Area – a section or territorial division of a large city each comprised of
designated districts.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

 Organizational Structure is a mechanical means of depicting, by an

arrangement of symbols, the relationship that exists between individuals,
groups and functional relationships between groups and individuals are
clearly defined to ensure accountability and compliance.

TYPES OF ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

1. Line Organization
 It is a straight -line organization which is often called as
individual, military or departmental type of organization. It is
the simplest and clearest from of organization.

2. Line and Staff Organization
 Combine line units and staff (support) units so that services of
personnel performing special functions can be provided to
police officers performing line functions.

3. Functional Organization
 It is where personnel have to serve several heads.
4. Unity of Command
 Only one man be in complete command of each officer.
5. Span of Control
 The ability of one man to direct, coordinate and control
immediate subordinates.

PRINCIPLES OF POLICE ORGANIZATION

1. Principle of Unity of Objectives - It means that an organization is effective if it

enables the individuals to contribute to the organization’s objectives. All
members of the police organization aim at achieving a common objective/s.

2.Principle of Organizational Efficiency- It means that the organization is effective

if structured for the accomplishment of the organization’s objectives with a
minimum cost. This is why the PNP organizational structure is line and staff.

3. Scalar Principle – flow of authority from top to bottom describing chain of

units;

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4. Unity of Command – under one superior;
5. Span of Control – should not be more than what he can effectively direct
6. Delegation of Authority- It is the conferring of an amount of authority by a
superior onto a lower-level position.
7. Functional Principle - refers to division of work according to type, place, time
and specialization.

8.Line and Staff -implies a system of varied functions arrange into a workable
pattern. Some members are tasked for the direct accomplishment of the
organization’s objectives while the others are assigned to support them.

9.Principle of Balance -states the application of principles must be equal to

ensure the effectiveness of the structure in meeting organization’s objectives.

10.Principle of Delegation by Results Expected- states the application of

principles must be equal to ensure the effectiveness of the structure in meeting
organization’s objectives.

11.Principle of Absoluteness of Responsibility- explains that the responsibility of

the subordinates to their superior for performance is absolute and the superior
cannot escape responsibility for the organization on activities performed by their
subordinates.

12.Principle of Parity and Responsibility - responsibility for action cannot be

greater than that implied by the authority delegated nor should be less.

13. Authority Level Principle

implies that decisions within the authority of the individual commander should
be made by them and not be returned upward in the organizational structure.

14. Principle of Flexibility

It means that more flexible the organization, the more it can fulfill its purpose.

Prepared by:

Ms. Hazel Faith D. Carreon

Criminology Instructor

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