http://www.policeone.com/news/6017729-After-firing-entire-police-force-NJ-city-adds-new-unarmed-officers/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Dozens of unarmed, uniformed civilians—without arrest powers—will be trained to collect evidence at crime scenes, respond to radio calls for nonviolent crimes, and relieve officers so they can complete reports once a scene is safe. In some cases, a civilian police aide may be the only person in uniform that victims will encounter. A handful of aides will assist in domestic violence investigations.
Some police aides will work out of the public eye and for the first time will monitor the city's matrix of 81 cameras throughout the city. Other civilians will be trained to work as crime analysts and intelligence analysts or to handle support and administrative functions.
The civilians' greater role in the new force will extend the reach of staff and free up officers to police streets, cutting costs, said Joe Cordero, a former East Orange police director and architect of the new force.
Eventually, 100 to 115 civilians will be brought on. Cordero predicted the county would save about $6.4 million annually by hiring aides instead of the higher-compensated sworn officers.
A degree in criminology or experience in law enforcement, forensics, accounting, or analyzing financial crimes could serve as valuable strengths for some of the civilian positions, Cordero said. Currently, the force employees about 45 civilians who work in administrative roles and dispatch.
County officials are particularly interested in those familiar with the city who are interested in a law enforcement career, he added.
The county has said it will not hire more than 49 percent of the current city force, in order to avoid having to comply with the terms of the union contract, which expired four years ago.
"It's forward thinking, and it's simply good common sense," said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a nonprofit think tank in Washington. "There is something here to be said for putting the right people in the right places."
"There is a role for civilians in policing," said Chief Harry Earle of Gloucester Township police department, whose agency also hired a civilian crime analyst a few months ago. "But deciding what tasks they perform must be very carefully analyzed to determine if their level of skill, experience, training is appropriate, especially when dealing with citizens."
He added: "There are some aspects of policing where the specific skills and training of an officer plays a role."
Maki Haberfeld, a professor of police science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said using civilians to perform the duties of sworn officers is never a good idea.
For instance, analyzing crime statistics requires an understanding of operational and tactical aspects that civilians may not grasp, she said.
"Someone who is looking at a second or third career is not as invested as someone whose career depends on this," she said.
East Camden resident Constance Williams, 71, a former Camden school board clerk and city recreation supervisor, said a police presence is more reassuring on 911 calls.
"They would know what to do, what to look for," she said.
Camden's move follows a continuing national trend. Cash-strapped governments—many forced to lay off officers and freeze hiring—have turned to civilians, who are paid less.
In Camden, police aides, who will make up the bulk of civilian employees, will make around $39,000, compared with patrol officers, whose pay ranges from $47,177 to $87,409. Further, the civilians will not be eligible for the state's police and fire pension system.
County officials continue to negotiate with Gov. Christie's office to pay the force's projected $5 million to $6.5 million in start-up costs.
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