Police Response Time Research Articles

Police Response Time and Injury Outcomes

Abstract The delayed response of law enforcement to calls for service has become a hot button issue when evaluating police department performance. While it is often assumed that faster response times could play an important role in quelling potentially violent incidents, there is no empirical evidence to support this claim. In this paper, we measure the effect of police response time on the likelihood that an incident will result in an injury. To overcome the endogeneity of more severe calls being assigned higher priority, which requires a faster response, we take several steps. First, we focus on the subset of calls for service categorised as ‘Major Disturbance—Violence’ that all receive the same priority level. Second, we instrument for police response time with the number of vehicles within a 2.5-mile radius of the incident at the time it is received by the call centre. When controlling for beat, month and time-of-day fixed effects, this instrumenting strategy allows us to take advantage of the geographical constraints faced by a dispatcher when assigning officers to an incident. In contrast to the ordinary least squares estimates, our two-stage least squares analysis establishes a strong causal relationship whereby increasing response time increases the likelihood that an incident results in an injury. The effect is concentrated among female victims, suggesting that faster response time could potentially play an important role in reducing injuries related to domestic violence.

Revisiting the influence of police response time: Examining the effects of response time on arrest and how it varies by call type

PurposeThis study returns to one of the first operational aspects of policing ever studied – response time. After years of technological and analytical advancements, we examine the effect of response time on arrest and consider whether the influence of response time varies across precincts and crime types to inform operational strategies. MethodsWe use multilevel modeling to examine the effect of response time on arrest in 1,266,299 incidents nested within 810 police officers. ResultsWe find that response time significantly predicts arrest. However, the effect size is weak relative to other variables. Moreover, the direction of the relationship contradicts expectations. We found that every additional minute it takes for an officer to arrive at a scene corresponds to a 2% increase in the odds of arrest. Further, precinct assignment and call type significantly interact with response time, affecting the probability of arrest, though the strength and directions of these relationships vary. ConclusionThe results can inform operational policies at a time when the police are facing substantial resource challenges. If response times have a more pronounced influence on arrests for robbery, for example, dispatch priorities should emphasize faster responses to those calls to maximize the utility of response time for facilitating arrests.

On Effective Campus Attack Response: Insights from Agent-Based Simulation for Improving Emergency Information Sharing System Design and Response Strategy

Information sharing systems are a critical component of emergency response—especially in campus attack situations that unfold very rapidly. The design of effective information sharing systems is often difficult, however, due to a lack of data on these assault events. This work takes an agent-based approach to simulate three campus emergency information sharing system design alternatives in the context of a college campus knife attack, and incorporates data from on-campus student surveys and parameter tuning experiments. Alternatives are evaluated according to: (1) improved student attack response outcomes; and (2) effective institutional response to the attack. The results confirm that increased awareness supports rapid emergency reporting, but an important gap exists between students’ awareness and their ability to respond effectively, which depends on a number of campus-specific factors. A strong positive impact is seen from safe and efficient information sharing with authorities. This impact depends largely on reporting system implementation qualities, as opposed to campus-specific factors. On a campus in China, WeChat was used as a basis for messaging models. The simulation results show a 9% drop in casualties and a 22% faster police response time from a text-based reporting system using “base” WeChat features instead of traditional phone reporting. Our results also project a 30% drop in casualties and 52% faster police response time using a system designed around a WeChat Mini Program or stand-alone campus emergency reporting app. These outcomes suggest a number of recommendations for improving outdated campus emergency information-sharing systems and response strategies.

Uticaj organizacionih faktora na vreme odziva policije

Police response time is one of the most important factors in the efficiency and effectiveness of the police, especially in the segment of police handling of reports. Its role of performance management is especially important in the police organization, where it appears as a significant factor and indicator of performance. Therefore, it is necessary to define the response time and determine its structure and carriers. In addition to the above, it is very important to establish what factors, in what way and under what circumstances, have the greatest impact on the duration of the response time in order to minimize those with a negative impact and give prominence to those with a positive one. Bearing in mind that some factors are located in the police organization itself, and some outside it, they can be divided into two categories: internal and external. Internal factors arise from the organizational structure of the police organization and the job description performed by the appropriate organizational unit of the police, while external factors are based on the influence, primarily of security events, of the subjects who caused them and the persons injured. They, in accordance with their nature, affect the duration of the response time and thus, through the appropriate outcomes of police action, having in mind the social danger of the security event, have certain effects on the functioning of the community. This primarily refers to preventing or mitigating the consequences of a security event, deterring possible perpetrators of crimes and misdemeanors from their delinquent (criminal and misdemeanor) behavior, which all together leads to increased public satisfaction with the work of the police.

Exploration of the police response time to motor-vehicle crashes in Pennsylvania, USA

Introduction: After roadway crashes occur, the quick emergency response is essential for minimizing tolls and economic losses. Many studies have analyzed the post-crash emergency medical services response time, but few ones have explored the post-crash police response time. However, the presence of police is the precondition for other agencies to perform their duties safely and smoothly. Method: With Pennsylvania crash data from 2008 to 2017, this study gives an assessment of the post-crash police response time in Pennsylvania. Results: First, we demonstrate that police response time is highly correlated to crash consequences: the longer police response time is positively associated with more fatalities at both individual level and county level. Then, for fatal crashes, a negative binomial model with the police agency-level random effects is built to identify the significant factors influencing the police response time. The results indicate that day of week, illumination, weather, area, roadway type, and roadway location could significantly affect the police response time. Police respond much slower to fatal crashes occurring in rural areas, mid-blocks, turnpikes, adverse weather, on weekends, and at nighttime without streetlights. Police response time shows a decreasing trend since 2016 and varies a lot by police agencies. It is found that many police agencies affiliated to the Pennsylvania State Police, which oversees statewide law enforcement on all interstate and state highways, respond slower than other police agencies. Practical Applications: These findings are expected to provide some new insights for Pennsylvania police agencies to improve their response mechanisms to roadway crashes.

Tourniquet Application by Urban Police Officers: The Aurora, Colorado Experience.

Uncontrolled external hemorrhage is a common cause of preventable death. The Hartford Consensus recommendations presented the concept of a continuum of care, in which police officers should be considered an integral component of the emergency medical response to active shooter incidents. Recent publications have reported individual cases of tourniquet application by police officers. This report analyzed all documented cases of hemorrhage control using tourniquets applied by police officers in a single large metropolitan police department. A retrospective computerized search of all public safety communications center reports and police officer documentation for cases of tourniquet application was conducted by searching for the word "tourniquet." Each case was evaluated for indication and appropriateness using Stop The Bleed criteria for tourniquet placement. In addition, police response time was compared to emergency medical services (EMS) response time in an effort to determine if there was a time difference in response to the bleeding patient that could potentially impact patient outcomes. Forty- three cases were identified over the 6-year period ending in December 2019. The majority of cases involved gunshot wounds and most were civilian victims. Injured police officers accounted for two cases (gunshot wound and dog bite). Review of the officers' narratives indicated that most applications appeared justified using the Stop The Bleed criteria (two cases were questionable if a tourniquet was necessary and one may have been placed in an incorrect location). On average, police arrived 4 minutes sooner than EMS did. Several reports in the literature document the success of police officer application of tourniquets to control limb hemorrhage. Most of the reports involved a small number of case reports. This is the largest case series to date from a single urban police department.

An examination of organizational and community effects on police response time

PurposeThe primary objective of the current study is to examine the impact that the size of a police department and workload on a department have on response time. Secondarily, the authors look at the effect that incident-level factors such as the severity of a call for service (CFS) and community-level factors such as ethnic diversity have on police response time.Design/methodology/approachThe current study examined CFSs data collected over a three-year period and organizational information from 26 police departments in Northeast Texas, as well as community-level information. In order to measure the effect of organizational variables, community factors and incident-level variables on police response time, the authors employed the use of hierarchical linear models (HLMs).FindingsThe results of hierarchical linear modeling indicated that incident-level factors and police department size are significant predictors of response time.Research limitations/implicationsThere are two primary limitations: first, there were a lack of available organizational structure correlates such as age and differentiation. Second, the primary data set had a significant number of incomplete or repeating cases, thereby limiting the accuracy of the current study’s analysis.Originality/valueThe most unique aspect of this manuscript is that it examines how organizational factors affect police response time. Numerous studies analyzed determinants of police response time such as incident- and community-level factors, but the importance of organizational factors has not been analyzed.

Acoustic gunshot detection systems: a quasi-experimental evaluation in St. Louis, MO

The primary aim of this study is to provide an evaluation of St. Louis’ Acoustic Gunshot Detection System’s (AGDS) ability to reduce gun violence. The study design is a quasi-experimental longitudinal panel study. We measure a variety of gun-related offenses across multiple treatment and control neighborhoods using a difference-in-difference approach. Because treatment neighborhoods were added to the experiment over time, changing experimental conditions, three separate study periods were examined. Results indicate AGDS has a mixed relationship to police response time and does not significantly reduce violent crime levels in any of the study periods. We do find consistent and substantial reductions (around 30%) in citizen-initiated calls for service for shots fired, but once new calls for AGDS are added, an overall 80% increase in gunshot responses is found. Although the study is limited to one city, results indicate AGDS may be of little benefit to police agencies with a pre-existing high call volume. Our results indicate no reductions in serious violent crimes, yet AGDS increases demands on police resources.

Police Response Times and Injury Outcomes

The delayed response of law enforcement to calls for service has become a hot button issue when evaluating police department performance. While it is often assumed that faster response times could play an important role in quelling potentially violent incidents, to date there is no empirical evidence to support this claim. In this paper, we measure the effect of police response time on the likelihood that an incident results in an injury. To overcome the endogeneity between more severe calls being assigned higher priority, which requires a faster response, we take several steps. First, we focus on a subset of calls for service categorized as ``Major Disturbance - Violence that all receive the same priority level. Second, we instrument for police response time with the number of vehicles within a 2.5 mile radius of the call at the time it is received by the call center. When controlling for beat \& time of day fixed effects, this instrumenting strategy allows us to take advantage of the geographical constraints faced by a dispatcher when assigning officers to an incident. In contrast to the OLS estimates, our two-stage least squares analysis establishes a strong causal relationship whereby increasing response time increases the likelihood that an incident results in an injury. The effect is concentrated among female callers, suggesting that faster response time could potentially play an important role in reducing injuries related to domestic violence.

Do urban sports facilities have unique social costs? An analysis of event-related congestion on police response time

ABSTRACTSports facilities across the globe are increasingly being sited in the urban core. The existing literature in sports and urban affairs fails to consider that the magnitude of negative externalities attributed to sports facilities could vary by the built environment, that the social costs of locating a facility in the urban core may be greater than the social costs of locating it in more suburban areas due to the greater development density in the former. This study test this hypothesis using daily police incident-level data from Sacramento, California in 2016, when a professional basketball team moved from a more suburban arena to a new one in the city’s downtown. Using a doughnut-hole specification in a triple difference-in-difference framework, it is concluded that police response time to incidents in the immediate vicinity of the downtown arena during event periods is on average 7.4 per cent longer, or about 33 seconds. No such delay is observed for incidents near the suburban arena during event periods. Both conclusions are robust to a placebo.

See how your emergency response time measures up

Chicago and Los Angeles tied for major U.S. cities with the quickest police response time, according to research from a report released by Safe Smart Living. The data was compiled by reviewing publicly disclosed reports, but since data years differ based on when data was collected and compiled, not all major U.S. cities are included in the results. Police response time nationwide varied by type of crime reported, with more than 50 percent of police departments responding to violent crimes in 10 minutes or less.

The Effects of Automated Vehicle Locator (AVL) System on Police Response Time to In-Progress Armed Robbery

The Effects of Automated Vehicle Locator (AVL) System on Police Response Time to In-Progress Armed Robbery

Will Rogers Is Jenksing Police Response Times

Because police jurisdictions typically rely on different call classification schemes and handle a different mix of calls, it is difficult to compare multi-priority police response time distributions between two or more jurisdictions. For the same reasons, it can be challenging to compare response time trends over time, even within a given police jurisdiction. Hypothetical examples illustrate the main analytical challenges. Then, a simple clustering approach, the Jenks natural breaks method, is demonstrated. This approach can be used to objectively compare police response time distributions. The resulting comparisons remain unaffected by differences or changes in call classification rules and cannot be easily manipulated or skewed, either intentionally or inadvertently. Although the discussion is framed within a police context, the proposed analytical approach has the potential to be useful for other emergency services and benchmarking settings.

The Effect of Police Response Time on Crime Clearance Rates

Police agencies devote vast resources to minimizing the time that it takes them to attend the scene of a crime. Despite this, the long-standing consensus is that police response time has no meaningful effect on the likelihood of catching offenders. We revisit this question using a uniquely rich dataset from the Greater Manchester Police. To identify causal effects, we use a novel strategy that exploits discontinuities in distance to the response station across locations next to each other, but on different sides of division boundaries. Contrary to previous evidence, we find large and strongly significant effects: in our preferred estimate, a 10% increase in response time leads to a 4.7 percentage points decrease in the likelihood of clearing the crime. We find stronger effects for thefts than for violent offences, although the effects are large for every type of crime. We find suggestive evidence in support of two mechanisms: the likelihood of an immediate arrest and the likelihood that a suspect will be named by a victim or witness both increase as response time becomes faster. We argue that, under conservative assumptions, hiring an additional response officer would generate a benefit, in terms of future crime prevented, equivalent to 170% of her payroll cost.

What Conditions Affect Police Response Time? Examining Situational and Neighborhood Factors

Police response time to calls for service is a crucial factor in evaluation of police performance. While domestic violence is now considered serious interpersonal violence, factors associated with response time to domestic violence incidents are underexplored. Using hierarchical linear modeling, over 10,000 cases of calls for service for domestic violence across 438 census tracts in Houston, Texas, were examined. The result of multilevel analysis revealed that complainant’s race, weapon involvement, and day and time of incidents were associated with response time at the situational level. At the neighborhood level, concentrated disadvantage, immigration concentration, and residential stability were significantly associated with response time.

The Impact of Police Strength and Arrest Productivity on Fear of Crime and Subjective Assessments of the Police

We explore the effect of police strength and arrest productivity on citizens' fear of crime and perceived risk of victimization, as well as their subjective perceptions of the police including their confidence in the police and ratings of police response time. Police strength is measured as the rate of officers per 1,000 and productivity is calculated as the average number of arrests per officer; we also controlled for the crime rate using crimes reported to the police. We use nationally representative survey data (n = 1,005) and conduct a supplemental analysis of data drawn from a representative sample of urban counties (n = 1,500). Police force size and productivity have limited and inconsistent effects on fear of crime, perceived risk, and ratings of response time and no apparent effects on confidence in the police. We also find a modest yet statistically significant negative effect of police confidence on fear of crime. Our findings indicate that it is questionable whether adding more police will reduce fear or perceived risk of victimization to any measurable degree. Consequently, we suggest that rather than hiring binges and increased arrests, the focus should be instead on making positive contacts with citizens. Keywords: Fear of crime; Police strength; Arrest productivity; Confidence in police; Police response time ratings Language: en

The Effect of Police Response Time on Crime Detection

Police agencies devote vast resources to minimising the time that it takes them to attend the scene of a crime. Despite this, the long-standing consensus is that police response time has no meaningful effect on the likelihood of catching offenders. We revisit this question using a uniquely rich dataset from the Greater Manchester Police. To identify causal effects, we exploit discontinuities in distance to the response station across locations next to each other, but on different sides of division boundaries. Contrary to previous evidence, we find large and strongly significant effects: in our preferred estimate, a 10% increase in response time leads to a 4.6 percentage points decrease in the likelihood of detection. A faster response time also decreases the number of days that it takes for the police to detect a crime, conditional on eventual detection. We find stronger effects for thefts than for violent offenses, although the effects are large for every type of crime. We identify the higher likelihood that a suspect will be named by a victim or witness as an important mechanism though which response time makes a difference.

Examining the neighborhood effects on police performance to assault calls

Using agency-generated data collected from the Houston Police Department (HPD) and the 2000 census statistics, this article examines the relationship between police performance and neighborhood disorganization through an analysis of the distribution of police response to in-progress assault calls across different Houston neighborhoods. The results of multilevel analyses suggest that concentrated disadvantage, immigrant concentration, and residential stability are significantly related to the distribution of the HPD’s response time patterns. More specifically, police responses were quicker to in-progress assault calls in disorganized neighborhoods. The implications drawn from the current study’s results on police response time patterns can be useful in improving police service levels, the police–community relationship, and patrol strategies.

Social disorganization and police performance to burglary calls: a tale of two cities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the distribution of police response time to in-progress burglaries differ according to the level of social disorganization across different neighborhoods. Design/methodology/approach – Using 2006 calls for service data collected from the Dallas and Houston Police Departments and from the 2000 US Bureau of Census statistics, the effects of social disorganization on police performance were examined through multilevel analysis of the distribution of police response time patterns across different neighborhoods in Dallas and Houston. Findings – The analysis of the DPD and HPD in-progress calls produced somewhat consistent findings on the relationship between the level of social disorganization and police response time. Concentrated disadvantage, immigrant concentration, and residential stability are important predictors of the distribution of police response time patterns in Dallas and Houston. Practical implications – Neighborhood social disorganization is related to the distribution of agency response time patterns. Detailed response time analysis is crucial for agencies to improve police performance and the community-police relationship. Originality/value – In the policing literature, researchers have tended to neglect rapid response when examining many aspects of policing. The present study expands on existing research by examining the theoretical link between the level of neighborhood social disorganization with the distribution of rapid police response to in-progress burglary in two cities.

A Motorist’s Perception on How Fast Should the Police Respond to and Serve for a Traffic Accident

Using the police command center hotline 110 as a channel, this study performed a call back interview to ask the accident reporting motorists about their perceptions on the quality of police service. A concept of fuzzy logic was introduced to measure the qualitative questions characterized with fuzziness. A total of 254 accident reporting motorists in Taipei City were interviewed. The results revealed that no less than 80% of the respondents would be satisfied and no more than 20% of them would be dissatisfied if the police response time could stay within 5 to 10 minutes and service time within 20 to 35 minutes. Both satisfaction and dissatisfaction to the police service time for A2-type accident (injury) were significantly longer than that for A3-type accident (property damage). According to the findings, the current practices of police deployment and accident investigation in Taipei City should be reexamined.