Content provided in partnership with
Government Industry
Section VI: law enforcement personnel
Uniform Crime Reports: Crime in the United States, Annual, 2001
The requirements for law enforcement service vary greatly from one locale to another based upon each jurisdiction's unique demographic traits and characteristics. A small community situated between two large cities, for example, may require a greater number of law enforcement personnel than a community of the same size that has no urban center nearby. Similarly, the needs of a community having a highly mobile or seasonal population may be very different from those of a city with a relatively stable population. A community that incorporates legal gambling establishments will have different law enforcement challenges than one in which the presence of a large military base is the dominant influence, just as a small college town will have different needs than one comprised predominantly of retirees.
- Most Popular Articles in News
- The Ten Best Laptop bags
- Tata plans cheapest-ever car for Indian market
- GLOBALIZATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF UNDERDEVELOPMENT OF THE THIRD WORLD
- Corn is good for you; Corn is not only a tasty treat, but also a cereal that ...
- THE 50 BEST STYLISH HANDBAGS TO CARRY
- More »
The functions of law enforcement are also significantly diverse throughout the Nation. The responsibilities of state police and highway patrol agencies vary considerably from one jurisdiction to another. Their duties range from traffic enforcement on state highways and interstate roadways to major investigative responsibilities for all violent crimes committed statewide. In certain areas, sheriffs' responsibilities are limited exclusively to civil functions, sole enforcement for state and local courts and/ or the administration of the county jail facilities. In others, the sheriffs may be the only law enforcement presence in remote locations covering large geographical zones. Nationally, the overall role of law enforcement continues to be expanded and redefined in light of the constant threat from international and domestic terrorism. When attempting any comparison of law enforcement employee rates, the data user must consider these differing service requirements and responsibilities.
The data presented in the following tables represent national, regional, and state averages; they should be viewed as guides or indicators, not as recommended or preferred police staffing levels. Adequate personnel for a specific locale can be determined only after careful study and analysis of the various conditions affecting service requirements in that jurisdiction.
This edition of Crime in the United States contains a new table, Law Enforcement Employees as of October 31, 2001, by Other Agencies by State. Table 82 supplies employee data for 171 law enforcement agencies charged with serving a broad range of specific organizations/ entities. These county and state agencies serve the Nation's transit systems, parks and forests, tribal reservations, hospitals, and school districts (including educational institutions not categorized as colleges or universities). Drug and narcotics units and task forces are included in Table 82, along with county detectives and prosecutorial law enforcement staff. Collectively, 26.9 percent of the agencies listed serve some form of mass transit (airports, seaports, railways) and 25.7 percent are associated with schools or school districts. The majority of these agencies have concurrent jurisdiction with local law enforcement; therefore, no population is assigned to them.
Law Enforcement Rate
A national average of 2.5 full-time officers were employed for every 1,000 inhabitants in the United States as of October 31, 2001. Including full-time civilian employees, the overall law enforcement rate was 3.5 per 1,000 inhabitants. (Based on Table 74). The 13,530 city, county, and state police agencies reporting in 2001 collectively employed 659,104 officers and 279,926 civilian employees and provided law enforcement service to approximately 268 million of the Nation's inhabitants. (See Table 74.) A listing of reported full-time law enforcement officers and civilian employees by state is provided in Table 77.
The Nation's cities collectively reported an average of 3.1 law enforcement employees per 1,000 inhabitants. Cities with populations of 1 million and over had the highest rate with 4.7 employees per 1,000. Suburban and rural counties had rates of 4.4 and 4.2 employees per 1,000 population, respectively. (Based on Table 74.)
Regionally, the city law enforcement employee rate was 3.6 per 1,000 inhabitants in the Northeast, 3.5 in the South, 2.8 in the Midwest, and 2.4 in the West. (See Table 70.)
Sworn Personnel
The national rate for all cities, based solely on sworn law enforcement personnel (excluding civilians), was 2.4 officers per 1,000 inhabitants. By city population grouping, the rates ranged from 3.5 officers per 1,000 inhabitants for cities with populations of 1 million and over to 1.8 in cities with 25,000 to 99,999 inhabitants. Suburban and rural counties had rates of 2.7 and 2.5 officers per 1,000 in population, respectively. (Based on Table 74.) By region, cities in the North had the highest rate of sworn officers to population, 2.8 per 1,000 followed by cities in the South with 2.7, the Midwest cities with 2.2, and the West with 1.7 officers per 1,000 inhabitants. (See Table 71.)
Both nationally and in cities, males made up 88.8 percent of all sworn officers. Males accounted for 91.9 percent of sworn officers in rural counties and 87.1 percent in suburban counties. (See Table 74.)
