PATROL TACTICS AND STRATEGIES

I. The Psychology Of Omnipresence

Psychology of omnipresence as an initial police strategy is to establish the aura of police presence in the

community through uniformed foot patrol and mobile (marked and equipped) patrol cars.

Patrol officer cannot detect the thinking or desire of the criminal, yet he can destroy the opportunity to
commit

a crime by his presence, thus, it best for crime prevention.

Strategic Objectives:

a. High visibility police presence

b. Feeling of security for law abiding

c. Feeling of fear for would be criminal

d. Feeling of confidence for the public that police are constantly available

II. Proactive and Reactive Patrol

1. Proactive Patrol – it is the deployment of patrol officers in their area with prescribe objectives and
verifiable
task for the day.

- More economical alternative patrol system, it addresses crime at its very root before it can be
developed into

felonious act.

2. Reactive Patrol – it involves going around the area of responsibility waiting for something to happen
and to react

accordingly if something does happen

III. Crime Prevention and Crime Suppression

1. Crime Prevention – it involves recognition of crime risk and initiation of positive action to remove or
reduce risk

- its objective is to eliminate or reduce the desire to commit crime

2. Crime Suppression – is the actual prevention of the commission of crime

IV. High and Low Visibility

Police Visibility – not just presence of patrol officer but actual presence which involves: 1) Physical
Presence

2) Patrolling Scheme 3) Response Time – is the running time of the dispatched patrol car from his
position where
the assignment was received and the arrival at the scene (the ideal time is 5minutes)

*Critical Time – it is the time between the call of concerned individual to the police regarding crime
incident and the

arrival at the scene of patrol officer.

1. High Visibility – it is accomplished by deploying uniformed patrol officers and marked patrol cars in
the AOR

with the objective of increasing the “aura of police omnipresence”.

2. Low Visibility – a strategy wherein patrol officers are in civilian clothes or in unmarked patrol cars with
the

primary purpose of increasing the apprehension of criminal engage in street crimes and deterrence of
criminal

activity as a result of greater probability of apprehension.

V. Directed, Interactive and Aggressive Patrol

1. Directed Patrol Strategy – patrol activities designed by patrol officers are based on analysis of specific
community
problems. The emphasis is on participative decision making and sophisticated methods of crime analysis.

2. Interactive Patrol Strategy – the emphasis in on police-citizen interaction wherein the community
input is sought in

resolving patrol problems

3. Aggressive Patrol Strategy – the emphasis is on positive, target oriented activities which includes
physical security

inspection. This is effective if the information regarding identifiable crime trends is based on crime
analysis.