Policy 300 - Operational Responsibilities

Policy 300Irvine Police Department Policies Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2020/12/31, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Irvine Police DepartmentOperational Responsibilities - 1Operational Responsibilities 300.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE Communications within the Irvine Police Department shall generally flow throughout the chain of command for the sake of consistency and uniformity. Sergeants and other supervisory personnel shall keep command staff informed of significant events related to department operations. 300.2 POLICY Supervisory personnel are expected to reinforce the concept of the "Chain of Command" with subordinate personnel. There are occasions when subordinates (at any level) will seek out supervisors for a favorable response or opinion. Supervisors are expected to direct the employee to his or her immediate supervisor or approach that supervisor on behalf of the employee. 300.3 WATCH COMMANDER The “watch commander” is generally responsible for overall department patrol operations. The watch commander will typically be one of the on-duty Operations Lieutenant(s) or command staff member, but may be delegated to an on-duty patrol sergeant if an Operations Lieutenant is unavailable or not assigned. Personnel serving a watch commander assignment shall be responsible for: (a)General supervision of active police operations and facility operations (b)Security of the Civic Center Complex (c)Approval of all arrest reports submitted during the shift (d)Receiving and processing of citizen complaints (e)Affecting the Command Notification Protocol (f)Oversight of the custody facility (g)Coordination and management of major field incidents 300.4 POLICE OPERATIONS COMMANDER The Police Operations Commander shall: (a)Provide full-time attention to crime and quality of life issues in the assigned geographic areas. (b)Identify crime trends and sprees, and coordinating the appropriate resources to effectively address these issues. (c)Attend community events and meetings as a representative of the Police Department. (d)Work in conjunction with the other division commanders and the Assistant Chief to ensure consistent application of policies and procedures that transcend the geographic areas. (e)Provide direct supervision of Operations Lieutenants. Irvine Police Department Policies Operational Responsibilities Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2020/12/31, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Irvine Police DepartmentOperational Responsibilities - 2(f)Communicate with the Assistant Chief regarding significant events. (g)Handle personnel complaints as appropriate and in accordance with department policy. (h)In the absence of an Operations Lieutenant, serve as the on-duty Command Duty Officer. In this capacity: 1.Be available to on-duty supervisors for guidance and support 2.Answer the watch commander’s line when able 3.Monitor field activity and make proper notifications regarding significant events 4.Serve as incident commander for significant field operations 300.5 LIEUTENANT Lieutenants have a vital role in the daily management and oversight of all department operations. Personnel assigned to these positions: (a)Report to the appropriate Division Commander, but may take direction from the other Division Commanders, on issues related to their specific areas of responsibility. (b)Exercise functional responsibility for the overall public safety operation during their shift, unless relieved by a Division Commander, the Assistant Chief or Chief of Police. In addition, each will have responsibilities for specific division operations functions. (c)Will, in conjunction with the Division Commanders and/or Assistant Chief, develop selective enforcement and task-force approaches to key problem areas. (d)Are responsible for the management of specific field services shifts as assigned, although the lieutenant’s shifts may not correspond to a standard patrol shift. Operations Lieutenants work schedules that are coordinated to maximize the management of the patrol shifts during the 24/7 operation. (e)Serve as the watch commander during their shift. When unavailable for a period of time, the lieutenant will delegate the watch commander responsibility to the patrol sergeants. Once notified by the lieutenant, the shift sergeants will share this responsibility until relieved by the lieutenant or other command level officer. (f)Will closely monitor the performance of field sergeants during their shift. They will ensure the sergeants provide quality briefings, training and conduct periodic uniform and equipment inspections. (g)Will work in the field and maintain familiarity with changes in the city’s topography and population demographics. (h)Will review and provide input in supervisory matters of the sergeants on their shifts and their subordinates. In the event a sergeant issues a supervisor’s observation of a positive or negative nature to a subordinate, the Operations Lieutenant who was on-duty at the time of the related incident will review the supervisor’s observation. The lieutenant will make relevant notations on the document, citing agreement or disagreement with the content, and then forward the document to the Division Irvine Police Department Policies Operational Responsibilities Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2020/12/31, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Irvine Police DepartmentOperational Responsibilities - 3Commander of the affected employee (see related procedure – Verbal Counseling & Supervisors’ Observations). (i)Will review and approve reports. They will continually monitor field activities, calls for service and pending calls. Each has the responsibility to ensure that sergeants adequately review written police reports and that reports are written when necessary. (j)In addition to the general responsibilities above, each of the Operations Lieutenants shall have specific responsibilities as assigned. (k)Participate in patrol briefings when available. (l)Serve as a department liaison to other municipal departments within the City, community organizations and events, and outside government organizations. 300.6 FIELD SUPERVISOR (SERGEANT) Field supervisors are expected to