Cities across America are dealing with a national police shortage, and many are turning to innovative solutions to alleviate the pressure—including sending alternate responses through tools like the Police Priority Dispatch System™ (PPDS®). PPDS® allows police departments to send civilian responders where law enforcement presence is not necessary, freeing up police time for other emergencies. Where law enforcement time is scarce, this type of solution can be invaluable.
Unfortunately, law enforcement time is stretched thin across the nation. According to a recent survey by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), the total number of sworn officers has decreased about 5% over the last few years, from 83,497 in January 2020 to 79,464 in January 2023. While hiring is up since a dip in COVID, numbers nearly mirror pre-COVID levels—which are not enough to keep up with current openings.
“Agencies are losing officers faster than they can hire new ones,” said the PERF survey, leaving departments across the nation struggling to fill vacancies.
One such city, Indianapolis, has hit a record low of officers—down nearly 300 since 2019. In response to this record low, Indianapolis is resorting to requesting that Indiana state troopers be brought into the city to aid the dwindling police force.
Said Patrick Yoes, the National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, “Across the country, what you’re seeing in Indianapolis is repeated city after city after city.” In fact, since 2019, major cities have shown gaps in the hundreds or thousands:
- San Francisco: 410 officers short
- Los Angeles: 1086 officers short
- Phoenix: 360 officers short
- Chicago: 1367 officers short
- Washington: 467 officers short
- Houston: 90 officers short
- New York: 3247 officers short
- Philadelphia: 1140 officers short
- Baltimore: 418 officers short
In small towns such as Goodhue and Morris in Minnesota as well as Washburn, Illinois, the police shortage is even causing departments to disband. This leaves local communities to rely on neighboring police departments or county sheriffs to handle law enforcement.
Shortages are caused by several issues, including changes in the public perception of police officers, long hiring times, and increased police resignations. According to PERF, police officer resignations have shot up about 47% over the last few years, with 2,838 resignations in 2019 and 4,175 resignations in 2022. Additionally, police positions are difficult to fill because of the amount of training time that is required.
One possible solution to this problem is to increase alternate police responses to lessen the load on strained forces. Alternate responses rely on civilians, social workers, behavioral specialists, and other crisis-trained personnel to respond to 911 calls instead of sending police officers.
These types of interventions can be especially useful in mental health calls where callers need specialized help rather than law enforcement. In fact, one program—the New Jersey Monitor—found that alternate responses avoided arrests or police use of force in 95% of cases. This shows that alternate responses can be effective in not only reducing the burden on local police departments, but also in creating safer communities.
The Police Priority Dispatch System™ (PPDS®)—a decision triage tool powered by ProQA® software and its police protocols developed by the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch® (IAED™)—allows Emergency Police Dispatchers (EPDs) to send these alternate responses directly from their workflow in ProQA®, a 911 calltaking solution from Priority Dispatch®, if it's determined appropriate by local police agencies. By using ProQA® police, police departments can better allocate their limited resources, ensuring that officers are available for high-priority incidents while civilian responders handle non-violent or low-risk calls. This type of innovation not only enhances efficiency but also reduces response times and helps prevent officer burnout.
With more agencies adopting systems like PPDS® and alternate responses, police departments struggling with shortages across America can receive a lifeline to some much-needed help.
