This department is headed by the Chief of Police, and is headquartered in the Police Station at the corner of S. College and E. Grady Streets. The department will have 63 sworn officers and 13 civilian personnel, primarily in records and dispatching, if this Budget proposal is adopted. It would increase the number of sworn officers by 1 and civilian personnel by one (a secretary in CID). The department offers a full range of policing services, including preventive patrol, traffic enforcement, criminal investigations, crime prevention, drug prevention, and a special response team to deal with unusually sensitive incidents.
The department operates under the community policing concept, which stresses involvement with the community, and placing resources where they are most needed. It also stresses trying to remove the root causes of crime and neighborhood deterioration. The department is structured with three main divisions: patrol, criminal investigations, and support.
The patrol division is responsible for preventive patrol, traffic enforcement, and response to calls for service. The division is divided into four shifts so that protection is provided 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Officers typically work a 43-hour workweek, counting time spent writing reports and attending the various courts in which their cases are presented. The division also includes two K-9 units capable of drug detection and search/rescue. In addition, this division oversees the animal control officer.
The criminal investigations division is responsible for in-depth investigations of crimes in order to build successful cases for prosecution. The division works closely with the district attorney's staff and investigators from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bulloch County Sheriff's Office, and the GSU Police Department.
The support division is responsible for dispatching, records, budget administration, vehicle and building maintenance, computer maintenance, the Emergency Response Team (special weapons and tactics unit), training, research, internal affairs investigations, and the Georgia Police Department Certification Process. The department was successful last year in its effort to become a Georgia Certified Police Department. This is based upon a thorough review of the department's standard operating procedures in comparison to nationally recognized standards for modern police departments.