Specialization Within a Police Department
- The U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics acknowledges that specialization on police forces includes "chemical and microscopic analysis, training and firearms instruction, or handwriting and fingerprint identification, and special units relating to horses, bicycles, motorcycles, harbor patrol, canines, special weapons and special weapons and tactics (SWAT)." Another commonly recognized area of specialization among sheriffs' departments is the service of civil process.
- Martinez noted that most law enforcement agencies divide detective teams into two groups: one that targets violent crimes against people and another focusing on crimes against property.
- He believes that specialization allows for the development of more experienced individuals within a police force. In his opinion, "allowing officers or support staff to specialize in certain areas allows them to quality for and take advantage of special training opportunities. Specialization simply allows departments to better manage a key resource."
- Martinez pointed out that drug-related crimes are a category that can be dealt with more effectively by assigning a team that has experience with gangs and property crimes. He added that property crimes are frequently attributable to thefts by drug users who steal to support their drug use and that drug trafficking is also inevitably tied to gang activity.
. - Stressing that no law enforcement agency is too small to benefit from some type of specialization among its patrol or support staffs, Martinez urged that small departments start by "picking out the best of what they have" and build upon it.