Oakland police department

Name

Professor

Course

Date

Escalation of crime in various parts of the world has made it necessary to form law enforcement agencies to check the rate of the rise in crime. In the United States of America many states have formed different security agencies to ensure the security of not only the people living within the states but also the visitors. Some of the security agencies belong to the state while others are community based. The paper will look at the Oakland police department.

Research method and design

The town of Oakland found in the State of California in the United States of America was founded in the year 1852. It is a port town on the west and one of the busiest port towns. My research will focus on the Oakland police department the number of employees, both sworn and Civilian, Accreditation, recruitment, and the jurisdiction of the department. So as to carry out the research I had to make use of the Departments official website.

The police department of Oakland is situated at 455 7th St Oakland, CA 94607. It is currently being headed by the interim chief of police Sean Whent. The police department was founded by the Oakland Housing Department so as to help maintain law and order within the housing estates in Oakland. The department currently has about 790 sworn police officers It has a further 350 civilian employees who help in the smooth running of the department (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

The Oakland police department was accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies or the (C.A.L.E.A.) in March, 1999. It was reaccredited also in the years 2002, 2005 and the year 2008. The Oakland police department is responsible for the safety of about 401,000 residents and also the numerous tourists who visit Oakland. The area of jurisdiction of the Oakland police department is about 163,693 square miles, of this residential areas takes up about 40% and the business areas covers the remaining 60 %. The police department has special people that are mainly policed which are the small children and the youth. (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

In the quest to maintain law and order the police department of Oakland conducts regular recruitments. Persons interested in joining the Oakland police department can call 1-888-OPD-JOBS. One can also visit the recruitment office situated close to the city hall at 250 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite D, Oakland, CA 94612. There are some mandatory tests that a person willing to join the Oakland police force has to pass before being enlisted, this include passing the POST mandated exams. Due to the demanding nature of the job, any person willing to join the force must be physically fit, one has to be able to run 1.5 miles within 14: 36, to do28 push-ups 28 non stop, and lastly do 35 sit-ups within a minute (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

So as to maintain the physical fitness of the recruits after graduation, the Oakland has some in-service refresher courses to help keep the officers in top notch shape. The refresher courses takes up to 24 hours every year, they include Physical techniques of handling violent suspects, firearm handling which includes operation of various firearms, and police vehicle operation (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

The Oakland police Department is a community policing agency, thus most of its operations (about 90 %) involves the local community. To promote security within the community the police department has put in place various strategies such as foot patrols which is a bit cumbersome to the police officers but very efficient in fighting crime. Assignment is issued depending on ranks; junior officers are assigned specific areas or zones, while the senior officer such as the sergeant covers a district. One unique name used by the officers to refer to the bay area is the Gate. The other strategy is encouragement of neighbors to know one another this is done through organisation of an event known as the “NATIONAL NIGHT OUT”. The event involves neighbors coming out and having a block party or any social event, in so doing the neighbors are able to familiarize with one another (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

Oakland is also attracts many tourists’, some of the major attractions in Oakland include the, Peralta Hacienda Historical Park on 2465 34th Ave, the Paramount theatre 2025 Broadway. Others include, the African American Museum & Library at Oakland, Children’s Fairyland, Dunsmuir-Hellman Historic Estate, Jack London Square Aquatic Center, and The Gardens at Lake Merritt among many others (http://www.oaklandnet.com).

Findings

The Oakland police Department has evolved very much from community base policing agency to an internationally recognized police agency. The agency has problems getting new recruits because many people are not willing to join the force. At times the department has recruited people but ended up sacking them due to lack of enough funds.

Discussion and conclusion

Even though the department has difficulties like many police agencies in the United States it has done a commendable in fighting crime in the whole of Oakland. The Oakland police department is one of the best among the best in the United States of America.

Reference

http://www.oaklandnet.com