Czech Police Research Articles

Measuring the effectiveness of counter-disinformation strategies in the Czech security forces

ABSTRACT Increasingly, misinformation is a pressing security problem. Different types of counter-disinformation strategies have been proposed and tested in a growing number of studies. The findings from these studies, however, are limited to predominantly North American and Western European contexts where ordinary people are recipients of mis- or disinformation. There is a considerable gap in our understanding of the susceptibility to false information in closed communities like state security forces. To remedy this problem, the aim of this study is twofold: (1) examine the susceptibility of Czech members of armed security forces to misinformation and (2) in this context, test the effectiveness of two types of counter-disinformation strategies: prebunking and persuasive communication. We present a survey experiment of 618 officers from the Czech police and army. While we do not find support for the effect of persuasion or prebunking on perceived information accuracy, we show that the use of positive persuasion creates a gap in how police and army officers evaluate false and biased statements. The results offer an evaluation of the resilience of the Czech security forces to mis- and disinformation and suggest developing tailored approaches to counter disinformation in Czechia and elsewhere.

Ungulate-vehicle crashes peak a month earlier than 38 years ago due to global warming

Global change has manifested itself as climate warming in Central Europe in recent decades. Average daily air temperatures increased by an average of 2 °C between 1982 and 2018. Air temperature changes have affected the timing of the vegetation periods (phenophases) and have also influenced the behaviour of animals. We worked with data on wildlife-vehicle crashes (WVC) recorded by the Czech Police in the period 1982–2019. Three peaks can usually be observed (spring, summer, and autumn) in the WVC time series. Eighty percent of these records involved roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). Such a high ratio allowed us to assume that any significant changes detected in WVC will be predominantly related to roe deer. We discovered that roe deer mortality on roads occurs earlier at present in the spring than in the past. The spring peak has shifted almost a month to the beginning of the year compared to the situation 38 years ago. The changes in the respective summer and autumn peaks were not statistically significant. The results suggest the effect of climate change on roe deer behaviour through increasing air temperatures and shifting vegetation phenophases. Thus, an earlier onset of deer activity associated with territory delineation and expected higher movement activity can be indirectly determined by the analysis of the WVC time series. The observed shift in the spring WVC peak in the roe deer model reveals a shift in ungulate behavioural patterns that is not evident from other biological data and thus surprisingly offers a suitable study framework for determining the impacts of environmental change on animals.

The versatility of the XRPD for the drug detection

The increasing prevalence of New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) on the drug market exerts considerable pressure on the development of novel detection techniques, especially those suitable for analyses directly on a crime scene. Raman and IR spectroscopy usually fulfil such needs; however, they have limitations (e.g. fluorescence in Raman and sometimes both Raman and IR have difficulties with identifying compounds in certain mixtures). For this reasons, we investigated the potential of X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) for the identification of drug samples. Beyond identifying the actual controlled substances, this technique might also be very useful in identification of either organic or inorganic cutting agents. The sample crystals were crushed and flattened on the silicon pod to create a planar surface. Bruker D2 Phaser powder diffractometer with parafocusing Bragg–Brentano geometry using CuKα radiation (λ=1.5418 Å) was used for the measurement. The data were collected by an ultrafast LYNXEYE XE detector and subsequently evaluated using HighScore Plus 3.0e software. First, a series of 8 NPS standards was used to verify whether XRPD can distinguish between substances with similar chemical structures. The obtained XRPD patterns confirmed this ability. Subsequently, to verify the ability of XRPD to identify substances in real samples, a series of seized samples provided by Czech police was analysed by XRPD. The comparison of the obtained diffraction data with the patterns of the respective standards enabled their identification. Moreover, results from the analyses of cocaine street samples showed that XRPD might be able to detect not only the cocaine itself, but also the present cutting agents in a single run analysis. With respect to the physical basis of how the XRPD works, in case of mixtures, some signals in the diffraction pattern may overlap. However, if the overlap is only partial, identification of compounds in the unknown sample might still be possible with a proper database. XRPD was able to distinguish all the NPS despite their similar molecular structures and to identify each of the seized substances. Furthermore, XRPD was able to identify the main cutting agent in several samples of seized cocaine. These results show that XRPD could be a valuable analytical tool for the detection of both the unknown compounds and cutting agents in illicit drug samples.

Problematika zpracovávání DNA pro forenzní účely z pohledu ochrany osobních údajů

The article deals with the topical issue of the current information age, related to the legal protection of genetic data as a special category of personal data. This article presents an analysis of the current legal regulation of DNA processing for forensic purposes in the context of the legal protection of genetic data. The processing of DNA profiles for forensic purposes is an issue to which the Office for Personal Data Protection has paid considerable attention, especially with regard to the constant topicality and sensitivity of this topic. Therefore, the article also focuses on the Office’s decision-making practice in matters of processing DNA profiles for forensic purposes in the light of the case law of administrative courts. The author considered both some particular consequences of the impact of current legal regulation as well as the subjective perception of these impacts. The aim of the article is to contribute to raising the awareness about the risks of the processing of DNA profiles for forensic purposes based on the current legal regulation and to contribute to explaining the importance of applying the principle of proportionality as one of the key principles of personal data protection in the processing of genetic data. Based on the analysis, the article concludes that in the case of DNA processing for forensic purposes by the Czech Police, it is therefore necessary to balance the interest of the police and the general public in clarifying crime with the right to privacy, especially personal data protection, according to which the interference with personal rights must always be in proportion to the seriousness of the committed crime or criminal accusation.

Modernisation of Regional Roads Evaluated Using Ex-Post CBA

The aim of this evaluation is to verify the telling value of the Cost and Benefits Analysis (CBA) of regional roads modernisation based on an ex-post evaluation of the investments and their impacts on the incidence of traffic accidents. A set of 144 projects were the subject of evaluation. The analysis of the actual investment costs confirmed the assumption that the majority of projects were planned with a sufficient provision. When compared with the costs foreseen for the entire set of projects, the total reduction of actual costs spent was over 11%. The investigation of project impacts on traffic accidents was based on an analysis done prior to and after construction by using the Czech Police database. The measurement results show only minimum changes in the incidence of traffic accidents in the scenario prior to and after project completion. This however strongly contradicts the project goals declared, because the projects were anticipating almost zero accidents with a fatality and a 50% reduction of accidents with health consequences. However, a slight increase in road fatalities and in light and serious injuries was measured. These facts have a significant impact on the Net Present Value (NPV) and the weighted profitability index for the entire set of projects dropped from 16.7% to −2.8%. The key recommendation is to eliminate the impact on traffic accidents in the case of project evaluations processed ex-ante for projects focused only on a reconstruction or modernisation of existing roads.

Európai rendőrségek bemeneti követelményei a szervezeti és képzési jegyek tükrében: Csehország és Málta esete

Az esettanulmány a cseh és a máltai rendőrségek szervezeti és képzési jellemzőiről, valamint a bemeneti követelményekről bemutatásáról szól. A felvázolt hipotézis szerint a bemeneti követelmények, függetlenül a szervezeti és a képzési jellemzőktől, összességében hasonlóságot mutatnak az itthon alkalmazott struktúrával, illetve ezek a kritériumok, nagyobb létszám biztosítása érdekében (szabályozott keretek között) módosulnak. A tanulmány elkészítése a rendelkezésre álló szakirodalom vizsgálatával, valamint angol nyelvű interjúk felvételével készült. A tanulmány a fenti tulajdonságok leírásával a hipotézisben foglaltakat elemzi, és a rendszerek egy-egy ismérvét hasonlítja össze. A kutatás megállapította, hogy a szervezetek sajátosságaitól függetlenül, a bemeneti követelmények alapvetően hasonló filozófia szerint épülnek fel, valamint az erős létszámigények kihatással vannak az aktuális kritériumrendszer felépítésére és működtetésére.

The System of Police Education in the Czech Republic: the Current State and the Directions of Improvement

The article describes the system of police education in the Czech Republic on the basis of the mandatory obligations that regulate it. Most importantly, it is act No. 361/2003 Coll. on Service Relationship of Members of the Security Corps, whose section 45 contains the obligation of the Security Corps’ members to educate themselves. Having described the specificity of the Czech Police in the light of the abovementioned regulations, and having depicted the educational system that prepares Czech policemen to their service, the authors follow on to the assessment of the current state of police education in Czech Republic backed up by statistic data. Finally, fact-based scenarios are presented on how the contemporary Czech police education system may be improved in the future.

Reaction time and stress tolerance of police officers in specific and non-specific tests in professional self-defence training

Introduction: The police forces performance is demanding on well-timed and quick reaction. Single reaction time and choice reaction time are crucial when the jeopardy appears. Performing under stress in life-threatening situations needs a good level of stress tolerance. In our study, we used two nonspecific, and two specific (shooting) tests to analyse the reactivity of police officer under different conditions. Material and methods: The research sample consisted of n=18 male Czech police training instructors. The group is unique as these police officers are specialised in the professional self-defence with focus on the coercive means use and shooting skills. Two standardized non-specific tests administrated with the Vienna Test System (VTS) by Schuhfried GmbH were used for data gathering. Single reaction time (SRT) was measured by the Reaction test, stress tolerance and choice reaction time (CRT) was measured by the Determination test. Two practical non-standardized shooting tests were used for the reactivity analysis in the goal oriented environment (shooting range). Results: The single reaction time among police training instructors was M=261.56±33.60 ms, which corresponds to the 66.28 percentile of age norm. Performance in the stress tolerance test also matches the average performance in population (M=45.56 percentile of correct reactions, M=61.67 percentile of incorrect reactions, M=51.44 percentile of skipped signals). According to the Pearson correlation coefficient, there is no correlation between single reaction time in the Reaction test and choice reaction time in the Determination test (r=-0.03). There is no correlation between single reaction time in the nonspecific Reaction test and performance in the specific Shooting test 1 (r=0.06) and Shooting test 2 (r=-0.01). Conclusions: There is no relation between the results in the specific and non-specific reaction tests. Nonspecific tests of single reaction time and choice reaction time are suitable for a general assessment of motor abilities. Specific tasks need specific training and specific evaluation methods.

Performance Evaluation of INACT - INDECT Advanced Image Cataloguing Tool

In this article, we describe the performance evaluation of INACT tool which is developed for cataloguing of high-level and low-level metadata of the evidence material. INACT tool can be used by police forces in the cases of prosecution of such crimes as as possession and distribution of child pornography (CP). In live forensic cases, the time to first hit (time when the first image containing e.g. CP is found) is important, as then further legal actions are justified (such as arrest of the suspect and his hardware). The performance evaluation of first hit was performed on real data with the cooperation of Czech Police, Department of Internet Crime.

The police code of silence and different paths towards democratic policing

We study the contours of the code of silence among the police in two Eastern-European countries (the Czech Republic (CR) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)). These two countries have experienced relatively recent, but dramatically different paths towards democratisation of the police. We surveyed 604 Czech police officers and 451 officers in BiH regarding their willingness to report misconduct and expectations about the willingness of fellow officers to report misconduct. The results indicate that, although the code of silence is present among supervisors and line officers in both countries, the code is stronger among line officers than among supervisors. In addition, it appears that officers and supervisors in both countries have a good grasp of the extent of protection the code will actually provide. We also report that the code is more homogeneous among the line officers and supervisors in BiH than in the CR, and that tolerance of the use of excessive force is stronger in Bi than in the CR. Both of these findings may be explained by the recent war in BiH that created unique challenges for democratisation of the police.

The Contours of Police Integrity Across Eastern Europe

We study the integrity contours of two police in Eastern Europe that have experienced dramatically different democratic transitions. The democratic transition and reform of the police in the Czech Republic was largely self-imposed and occurred with relatively low levels of violence. Conversely, the experience in Bosnia and Herzegovina involved a war resulting in outside intervention and reform efforts orchestrated by the international community. The goal of this article is not only to review reforms of the Czech and Bosnian police in the context of and Kutnjak Ivković's organizational theory of police integrity but also to empirically measure the extent of integrity among the police in both countries. We survey 604 Czech police officers and 451 Bosnian police officers regarding their opinions about the seriousness of police corruption, the appropriate punishment such misconduct deserves and would receive, and their willingness to report misconduct.

Police Integrity and the Czech Police Officers1

The Velvet Revolution of 1989 ended the socialist period in former Czechoslovakia. Sixteen years after the transition toward democratic policing, we explore the integrity contours of the Czech police. In the summer of 2005, we surveyed more than 600 police officers from East Bohemia regarding their perceptions about the seriousness of police corruption, the appropriate punishment such misconduct deserves and would receive, and their willingness to report misconduct. The results indicate that the majority of the respondents correctly labeled behaviors described in our questionnaire as rule‐violating. Furthermore, with the exception of the least serious forms of corruption, they supported and expected the two most serious forms of discipline: a cut in salary and dismissal. Finally, the majority of the respondents said that they would not be willing to tolerate the most serious forms of corruption in silence.

Czech police officers

Following the velvet revolution of 1989 and the adoption of a democratic form of government, Czech policing has experienced a plethora of changes resulting in a new police force that has been understudied to date. This research seeks to address this void using an exploratory approach that utilizes survey research to gauge the attitudes of 70 Czech police officers regarding crime and criminal justice policies; police and government involvement in social and order maintenance problems; and police practices in the Czech Republic (e.g. community‐oriented policing). Several factors – historical, ideology and job tenure – are considered as potential explanations for observed trends in officer attitudes. The results indicate that there are no clear patterns to these officers' attitudes.

After the Fall: Czech Police in a Post-Communist Era

This article identifies, describes, and analyzes the changes within the Prague Police during the post-Communist period. The Prague Police are the primary law enforcement entity in the capital, which is the largest city in the Czech Republic, one of two countries that constituted the fonner state of Czechoslovakia. The article focuses on the movement of the Prague Police toward a democratic policing organizational structure, stressing the successes and failures that they have encountered. Interviews with 12 key informants, supplemented by media accounts and a variety of other sources, are utilized to explore the unique experiences encountered by that agency. Results indicate that a great deal has been accomplished by the Prague Police in their efforts to move toward what is commonly defined as a democratic style of policing.

Wire photos for Czech police

Wire photos for Czech police