How many Billy Badasses we got here?

[Danny]

The solution is simple: require higher education for police on the personnel side and put funding into community-policing programs. Education is the best thing for police. In many places, continuing education is discouraged (though often not in so many words), and that is simply because there's a portion of society that is afraid of a better educated policing system. There are arguments that go both ways, for sure, but I believe that higher education and community involvement is the future for policing. The best way to fully integrate the police with the communities they serve is by making the two accountable to each other.

Danny, I'm not sure what your background is, but there's tons of literature on the subject that supports the idea of higher education standards across the board, and there are several really meaty case studies and comparative policing models that support a community policing approach. Robbie Friedman is a great author to look at for more information. Hope that helps!

Appreciate the info, maybe im being foolish. But lets take APD for example, a PD that suffers from under staffing and officer turn around every few years. Im jsut not sure how raising the standards, would alleviate the problem at hand while not creating a bigger problem: even more understaffed than current conditions.

Your probably right, I should read into it a little more. But the fundamentals dont make sense to me.

edit: HPD has a 60 semester hour minimum for any officer. And they are understaffed tremendously from what I hear. Thier recruiting offers in 2008 are helping fix this problem. But they are throwing tons of money at new recruits. So i am not entirely confident its the long time solution.