Problem Orientated Policing is the operational aspect of community policing and the next logical step in the evolution of community policing. Problem Solving becomes a department wide philosophy, and is incorporated into every officers thought process of handling problems within his or her assignment. The underlying principle of Problem Orientated Policing is that recurring incidents must be thoughtfully analyzed to understand why they continue to happen. Problem Orientated Policing makes the beat officer accountable to the community he serves. A key element of Problem Orientated Policing is the POP Project.
Projects are how officers document and evaluate problems they are trying to reconcile.
Officers will document the resources used. Dates of events related to the project, and an evaluation of the project. Projects vary in nature, a project could address criminal activity or a recurring incident, such as a false alarm to a particular address. The growth in the number of projects being conducted every year is contributed to the fact that officers see the positive effects of Problem Orientated Policing. Problem Orientated Policing is being embraced by more police departments every year, and our department is proud to be a leader in this approach of law enforcement.