Police Allocation Models Limitations

The first limitation of modern police allocation models is the data used to allocate the required number of police officers in order to effectively meet the desired objectives. If the data used from calls for service, response times, and administrative times are calculated incorrectly, then the number of required officers allocated for a given area or time period will not be appropriate. Second, police allocation models provide an estimate for the required number of officer needed based on the desired objectives input. Therefore, if police administrators’ do not take into account all of the known objectives into the model the number of officers required could again be inaccurate. Third, allocation models contain error since they cannot account for all variables that may or may not impact patrol allocations. Additionally, not all variables can be accounted for such as patrol speed. To compensate for this error police administrators’ must use historical data that may be inaccurate, however, this still introduces error into the model. Fourth, as previously mentioned, much of the data used, regardless of which model, is from the previous year’s number of calls for service. This introduces a significant variable to the model, because the previous year’s number of calls for service may have been affected by a number of issues such as time …show more content…
The most challenging problem to account for is the human factor. The limitation that can probably be controlled for most is the role of the police administrator’s. The police administrator must accurately account for the departments desired objectives and goals. If a police administrator clearly understands those, then he or she can accurately input and translate objectives into the appropriate allocation