Targeted Enforcement

1. Targeted Enforcement Gary Cordner Eastern Kentucky University

2. Program Sites • Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit (NSCU) • El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative

3. Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • PURPOSE The Irving Police Department has begun focusing enforcement attention on parolees living in their jurisdiction, particularly those with outstanding warrants. Initial efforts revealed that a high percentage of parolees did have outstanding warrants, and that many could be arrested and re-incarcerated.

4. Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • PROGRAM DESCRIPTION A new strategy for the Tactical Unit which had more time as a result of declining street crime Began with enforcing outstanding county warrants Using the monthly parolee list provided by TDCJ, it was discovered that a high percentage of parolees in Irving had outstanding county and state warrants When the parolee list is received, it is checked for people with outstanding warrants For those wanted, an intelligence file is created for all known information about violators

5. Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONInformation is given to the Tactical Unit which makes a concerted effort to find those wantedRelated tactical unit strategies include…+ Surveillance of parolees suspected of being involved in current criminal activity (particularly violent crime)+ Work more closely with parole officers+ Regularly review county warrant list for familiar names and people with multiple outstanding warrants This is an offender-focused strategy supplementing their offense-focused efforts

6. Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • CRITICAL FACTORSAvailability of comprehensive information from TDCJ Ability of department to field a full force Tactical Unit (1 Lieutenant, 2 Sergeants, 12 officers--2 with K-9) The drop in street crime gave the unit more time to become involved in new, more proactive strategies Irving appears to have a disproportionately high number of parolees living in the city (particularly in the apartment complexes adjacent to Dallas)

7. Irving’s Parolee Enforcement • PROGRAM EFFECTSOver 50 parolees with outstanding were identified quickly at the start of the program+ Many were arrested within three months As an indirect measure of success, the list of wanted parolees living in Irving is 17% shorter than when the program was first implemented The program is too new to determine long-term effects or even if it is needed over the long term

8. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • SITE DESCRIPTION Six agencies participate in the NSCU…+ North Richland Hills Police Department+ Richland Hills Police Department+ Haltom City Police Department+ Watauga Department of Public Safety+ Southlake Police Department+ Tarrant County Sheriff’s Department The jurisdictions are basically located within the northeast quadrant of Tarrant County between Fort Worth and the Denton County line

9. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • PURPOSE  The participating agencies have entered into a formal agreement to staff and utilize a multi-agency street crimes unit. The unit provides three types of services within participating jurisdictions+ Immediate investigative response to major crimes+ Coordinated gang enforcement+ Targeted street crime enforcement

10. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONPurpose of creation…+ Deal with major crime problems likely involving multiple jurisdictions+ More efficient use of police resources Primarily gang enforcement, but includes other street crimes The relationship between the agencies is a formal one supported by an “interlocal agreement,” governed by a Board of Directors composed of the Chiefs of Police Each agency assigns at least one full time officer each year

11. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONThe budget is based on each city’s portion of the area population (total 1997 budget was $26,475) The unit…+ Supervised by a North Richland Hills Sergeant+ Sergeant reports to a NRHPD Captain who answers to the Board of Directors The NSCU provides three services…+ Investigative response to major crimes/incidents+ Gang intelligence and enforcement for the area+ Targeted enforcement of emerging crime problems

12. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • CRITICAL FACTORS The formal agreement between the agencies All NSCU officers have sworn authority in all participating jurisdictions Careful selection of personnel who get along well with others, who can accomplish their goals, and not act like prima donnas Explicit definition of the Unit’s mission On-going and open communications between the members of the Board of Directors

13. Tarrant Co. Multi-Agency Northeast Street Crimes Unit • PROGRAM EFFECTS For arrests made the Unit has a 100% conviction rate A number of targeted enforcement actions have led to successful apprehensions It is reported that gang members fear the Unit The Unit appears to be a logical and wise use of resources, however a formal evaluation has not been done

14. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • SITE DESCRIPTIONEl Paso has a population of approximately 614,000, covers 257 square miles, and is bordered on the south by Mexico. Together with Juarez, Mexico, it has a metropolitan region population of 2.5 million. The police department has an authorized strength of 1,182 sworn officers and 230 non-sworn positions. The department is divided into two major divisions--Operations and Administrative Services-- as well as five Regional Commands

15. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • PURPOSEA county-wide Auto Theft Task Force that responds to the high rate of auto theft in the area The problem is heavily influenced by the city’s proximity to the Mexican border  The police department has implemented several patrol and investigative tactics in an effort to reduce the problem

16. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONA grant funds 19 sworn personnel and one civilian, while the city provides 14 additional sworn officers and several more non-sworn staff.  The task force is headed by a lieutenant from the El Paso Police Department and includes three sergeants, nine investigators, 15 patrol officers, two crime prevention officers, and three officers assigned to abandoned vehicle-related duties.

17. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONThe activities of the task force fall into four areas:+Enforcement-relies on crime analysis; hot spots+Border Checkpoints-work with Customs+Investigation-organized crime; theft rings+Crime Prevention-public education

18. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • CRITICAL FACTORSDealing with the proximity to Mexico Continued grant funding from the Auto Theft Prevention authority Addressing the problem from different dimensions (e.g., enforcement, etc.) Cooperation with the Mexican police authorities (which is currently limited right now)

19. El Paso’s Auto Theft Task Force • PROGRAM EFFECTSFrom the late 1980s to now, auto thefts that were once around 5,500 per year now typically are around 4,000--better than a 25% reduction Clearance rates for auto thefts have also been improving, albeit at slower rates

20. Task Forces Enforcement Strategies

21. Auto Theft Rates 1992 1996 % Change Nationwide 632 526 -17% Average of 7 other largest states 704 569 -19% Illinois 619 490 -21% Florida 838 720 -13% Texas 822 548 -33%

22. Dallas 1919 Houston 1930 San Antonio 1950 Wichita Falls 1957 Garland 1968 Fort Worth 1970 Irving 1970 DPS 1972 Arlington 1980 N. Richland Hills 1980 Plano 1987 Pasadena 1988 Carrollton 1990 Midland 1991 Abilene 1992 Travis County 1993 Addison 1994 Auto Theft Units Year of Formation

23. Auto Theft Task Forces Year of Formation Houston 1986 Arlington 1991 Dallas Co. 1993 DPS 1993 El Paso 1993 Fort Worth 1993 Harris Co. 1993 Midland 1993 N. Richland Hills 1993 Odessa 1993 San Antonio 1993 White Settlement 1993 Dallas 1994 Texarkana 1994

24. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • SITE DESCRIPTIONSan Antonio is the third biggest city in Texas and the nation’s 10th largest city, with an estimated 1997 population of 1,115,600. It is also a city with a large geographic area--389 square miles. The police department has 1,961 sworn positions and almost 400 non-sworn, and investigated 83,571 Part I offenses in 1997. The department is organized into four main divisions— Investigations, Uniform, Support Services, and Human Resources.

25. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • PURPOSEThe San Antonio Police Department adopted an enforcement strategy targeted at gangs and guns with COPS Office funding under the Youth Firearms Violence Initiative (YFVI) The department adopted five specific enforcement tactics as well as an effort to improve information sharing between the police department and emergency trauma centers Emphasizing search warrants proved to be the most effective enforcement tactic, while bar checks were least effective

26. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • PROGRAM DESCRIPTION The primary enforcement mechanism is the WRAT (Weapons Recovery and Tracking) Task Force This is an overtime assignment where a group of officers assemble and carry out the assigned tactic in the assigned target area+ WRAT was commanded throughout the project by the same special operations lieutenant+ Specific guidelines and directions were provided daily+ Supervision, also funded by overtime pay, was provided by a fairly small group of sergeants+ A small number of officers were found to be the most productive were used most frequently.

27. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • PROGRAM DESCRIPTION Team efforts were focused on areas in the city based upon an analysis of firearms-related crime Tactics employed by the team were:+Directed patrol-relied heavily on Target Sheets provided by the Youth Crime Detail+Saturation patrol-night pairs of officers in targeted areas provided by the Youth Crime Detail+Bar checks-least productive+Knock and talk-community policing officers visiting homes of suspected gang members; request permission to search youth’s room+Search warrants-for firearms-related offenses

28. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • PROGRAM DESCRIPTION Gun tracing was also used+ Involved submitting information on each firearm to BATF and then following up on received information if appropriate+ This proved to be a cumbersome, time consuming, and unproductive process Police-Hospital Network (Cops and Docs) used dedicated fax machines for two types of notifications:+ Emergency room personnel fax a simple Firearm Injury Notification form whenever they have a gunshot patient + The police department faxes a BOLO for Possible ShootingVictim form to emergency rooms when they know of a shooting but have not been able to locate the victim

29. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • CRITICAL FACTORSThe most critical factor for the YFVI was the availability of substantial COPS Office funds for police officer overtime As funding diminished, activities have been absorbed by the department

30. San Antonio’s Youth Firearms Violence Initiative • PROGRAM EFFECTS254 firearms were seized during the course of the 14- month YFVI project In 14 months, WRAT officers…+ Made over 2,000 arrests, about half on warrants and half warrantless+ Issued over 3,000 citations+ Conducted over 1,000 field interviews An analysis of crime and call for service data in order to evaluate the overall cost-effectiveness of the program is in progress

31. Targeted Enforcement Discussion Gary Cordner Eastern Kentucky University