2 hours Ago
Like a lot of people, we are curious about the Bend Police Department. How effective is it? How proud should we be? Does it need more police officers? We have a different window into the department than some. As journalists we have been able to talk to members of the department, see officers working where other members of the public have not and even go on a ride along.
Still, we’d be fools to think we know all that much. It’s what makes the Matrix Consulting Group report on the department so interesting. It’s much more than a report showing possible staffing needs for the future.
It shows where Bend residents should be proud. For instance, the department is good at solving some crimes. The Bend Police Department investigative unit has “more than a 23% higher clearance rate for major crimes when compared to other police agencies around the country.
” It shows places where maybe the department should change. It recommends the department publish an annual report on internal affairs investigations and results. And the department told us it plans to implement an internal affairs annual report.
It shows the concerns of the department’s employees. Many of them don’t believe that the department has enough resources to properly respond to the increasing numbers of people experiencing homelessness and acute mental illness. The case the report makes for proactive policing also stands out.
Proactive policing is defined as different from when officers are dealing with the workload from responding to calls. Proactive policing is when staff take the initiative to address public safety issues. Bend is ranked relatively well compared to other departments in proactive time for its officers, according to the report.
“Lower levels of proactive time result in fewer calls being responded to within a reasonable time frame, whereas agencies with higher proactive time have better response time performance,” the report says. “This finding is backed by our work, which has used the same methodologies to calculate response time performance and proactive time for agencies nationwide.” It makes logical sense.
There is some research out there to support it. That edge Bend has in proactive policing is for now. Call volume is going to go up as this community grows.
Even with alternative strategies to deal with crime, Bend will need more officers on patrol, doing research and pursuing investigations. The Bend Police Department does not have a formal request right now for more staffing. Based on projections in the report, though, it may want to add officers every year for years to come.
That will depend on city revenues, other needs the city has and the budget choices made by the Bend City Council. The Matrix report is long. It’s dense.
It’s the kind of thing a city like Bend should have to plan for its future. And the more people who read it and better understand its argument, the better. You can find the report here: tinyurl.
com/Bendmatrix ..
