– Statistics
What do these statistics represent?
The Upper Allen Police Department is a contributing agency to a statewide records management system known as the Crime Network, or cNET for short. We are dispatched to calls by the Cumberland County Department of Public Safety, 911 Communications. These dispatched calls are automatically transferred in to cNET and include the caller’s name, address, telephone number and the nature of the problem. They also include any other vital information provided by the caller to the 911 call-taker.
Our officers classify calls in to one of over seventy categories depending on the nature of the problem. Our detailed classification process assists us in tracking crime trends and directing patrol and investigative resources. The included charts are a simplified depiction of the total calls received and investigated by the Upper Allen Police Department. Refer to the following table for more a more precise explanation.
| Assault and Harassment | The category includes actual assaults, fights and harassing behavior including harassment by communications. |
| Assists to Other Public Safety | The category includes police dispatch to Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and fire calls as well assistance to other law enforcement agencies. |
| Domestic Related | The category includes all domestic related problems such as verbal and physical altercations between spouses and siblings, child custody disputes and child endangerment calls. |
| Drugs and Alcohol | The category includes DUI and drug arrests as well as reported drug activity and intoxicated subjects. |
| Mentally Disturbed | The category includes all contact with the emotionally or mentally disturbed where the emotional and/or mental condition is the reason for police contact. |
| False 911 Calls & Alarms | The category includes all instances where the police department responds to a 911 hang-up where no actual emergency existed. The category also includes all instances where the police department responded to an automatic burglar, fire, robbery or other alarm where it was determined there was no justifiable cause for the alarm. |
| Missing Persons | The category includes all missing person reports including runaways. |
| Thefts and Property Complaints | The category includes theft in all forms including retail theft, robbery and stolen vehicles, criminal mischief (vandalism), arson and lost property. Further the category also includes fraud, bad checks and trespassing. |
| Suspicious Activity & Disturbances | The category includes all calls regarding disturbances, suspicious persons, vehicles or activities including those complaints that are initiated by officers on patrol observing the suspicious activity for themselves. |
| Traffic Related | The category includes complaints related to road rage and/or careless driving. Also included are traffic sign and signal issues, disabled/abandoned vehicles and roadway obstructions. |
| Vehicle Crashes | The category includes all crashes investigated by the Department. |
| Local Ordinance | The category includes all Upper Allen Township Ordinance violations investigated by the Department. |
| Animal Complaints | The category includes calls where an animal is the nature of the incident. For instance, complaints regarding rabid raccoons or loose dogs. |
| Other | The category comprises miscellaneous calls such as deceased persons, police escorts, requests for extra patrol and homicides. |
Police-Citizen Contacts and Obligated Time
The statistics presented are actual Police-Citizen Contacts related to the operation of the Upper Allen Police Department.
The Police-Citizen Contact is personal or telephone contact documented by the Department. The documentation is specific to established categories as illustrated. Each contact has equal weight when compared to another contact in the same category, or any other category, when viewed in this perspective.
The time spent during a Police-Citizen Contact is only the beginning of the required duties of the Police Officer. The necessary documentation, investigative process, potential forensic applications and impending judicial proceedings generally does not expose the citizen/victim with an appreciation of the time involved in delivering a quality service to the citizens and guests of Upper Allen Township.
So how does the Department utilize statistical data to determine the manpower needs of the Department, and how does that impact on the services provided?
The formula used to determine the needs of the patrol function of the Department is exclusive of the Detective and Administrative function of the Department. This formula is based on actual workload and is an accepted police standard for accurately measuring the staffing requirements of the Department.
The formula stipulates that for every one (1) hour obligated to an existing function (Police-Citizen Contact) there must be a corresponding two (2) hour period of available patrol time for efficient police operations. To make accurate determinations, the formula is concerned with the actual time required to provide specific police services, not the raw number of Police-Citizen Contacts. The average annual hours available for normal duty per Police Officer is then calculated in to the equation.
This information is being presented so that you are aware next time you see an Upper Allen Police Officer there is, on average, a fifty percent (50%) probability he or she is already involved in a Police-Citizen Contact.
