Will People Stop Calling as Police Response Times Increase Dramatically?

Will People Stop Calling as Police Response Times Increase Dramatically?
By: Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr.

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The dynamics of response times have real implications for law enforcement policy. Community-based policing is promoted in just about every research study to improve relations and crime control.

But where is the time for officers to walk the streets or to have meaningful conversations with community members or the space that allows police officers to calm participants and de-escalate troublesome situations? At what point do poor response times impact crime reporting? “People have stopped calling the police because they end up on hold.”

With data and media reports stating that thousands of police officers are quitting and with violence rising in urban areas, it seems inevitable that police response times would decline. The examples below suggest some calls now take hours to respond to. There is data indicating that “reported” crime could decrease significantly because callers are not willing to wait for officers to respond.

In New Orleans, for example, a report from AH Analytics commissioned by the New Orleans City Council found it takes an average of 2½ hours for police to respond to a 911 call.

“The average response time has tripled between 2019 and 2022 for non-emergency calls for service and it has doubled for emergency calls for service over that span,” reads an information presentation of the research submitted to the City Council July 28. For comparison, Little Rock, Ark. averages a 20-minute response time; Cincinnati, Ohio’s is 22 minutes; New York City’s is 30 minutes, and San Francisco’s is 76 minutes, or about an hour and a half.

Perhaps explaining why emergency response times have increased so dramatically, departments have struggled with retention over the same time period. And with longer response times, residents aren’t receiving the help they need.

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA

The share of “gone on arrival” calls has jumped from 19 percent in 2019 to 32 percent this year. Long waits for police to arrive — along with extended 911 hold times — have been a well-documented issue in Oakland over the past few years, but the latest data shows the problem is only getting worse as the city continues to struggle with crime and residents are increasingly vocal about fears for their safety and property. Between 2018 and 2022, the time between when residents called 911 to report high-priority incidents — which include imminent physical danger and violent crimes involving weapons — and when police showed up went from an average of 12.7 minutes to 19.1 minutes, a more than 50% increase.

Response times to calls reporting in-progress misdemeanors, disputes with the potential to get violent and stolen vehicles more than tripled, going from an already-long average of 1 hour and 25 minutes in 2018 to 4 hours and 24 minutes last year. Response times for the lowest priority calls also saw huge increases in the five-year time span.

Compounding the problem is the hold time just to speak to a 911 dispatcher.

The police department’s stated goal is to respond to all 911 calls within 15 seconds. In 2021, only about 60% of calls were answered in 15 seconds.

It has been said that people have stopped calling the police because they end up on hold.

Several past analyses — the latest in 2020 — primarily laid the blame for long hold and response times on three issues: high call volume; staffing issues related to a burdensome hiring process and comparatively low pay; and police responding to too many low-priority calls.

The Oakland Police Department said it was unable to respond to a request for comment by deadline. However, the head of the Oakland police union, Barry Donelan, said the number of calls for service in the past year has “continued to cascade.”

URBAN PREDICAMENT

Urban crime has increased considerably, with a 50 percent increase in homicides and a 36 percent increase in aggravated assaults. Responding to calls for violence takes time.

Tens of thousands of police officers are quitting. There are fewer officers to respond to calls.

Newly recruited police officers are not as qualified as veteran cops who know how to process multiple calls effectively in the least amount of time.

Calls for a police response can be dangerous requiring backup, especially during times of harsh criticism of police operations. Police officers know that many they encounter are under the influence of drugs and alcohol, making any stop perilous. If backup is unavailable because so many officers are leaving, response time can be jeopardized. 323 police officers were shot in 2022 with 60,000 assaulted per the FBI.

There are competing requirements for law enforcement agencies. Police officers are being asked to do more with fewer officers. Examples include the enforcement of red flag laws to combat shootings, increased coverage of schools, churches, and synagogues plus the growing enforcement of juvenile curfew laws.

Mayors are demanding more arrests (national arrests have fallen considerably) to control urban crime. The process of making an arrest is time-consuming.

Search for “police response times” and you will find numerous cities claiming dramatic increases. The cities mentioned above are just the tip of the iceberg.

Quality policing requires time but it’s obvious that in many cities, officers are running from one call to another. What’s lost in this equation is citizen and officer satisfaction. It takes time to look for lost children. It takes time to de-escalate potentially dangerous situations.

All this is done within the context of citizens complaining that their wait times are taking too long or that people officers encounter have mental health issues or are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. It’s obvious that thousands of police officers are quitting and there are questions about the quality of police officers replacing them.

Within the context of rising urban violence and sometimes contentious relations with community members and government demanding that police officers do more with less (police officers in schools and places of religion or red flag laws or efforts to stop mass shooters), do we continue to ask too much of cops, resulting in more leaving the job?

Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr.is a retired federal senior spokesperson. A former Adjunct Associate Professor of Criminology and Public Affairs - University of Maryland. Former advisor to the “McGruff-Take a Bite Out of Crime” national media campaign. Past police officer. Aspiring drummer. Operator of CrimeinAmerica.net. His book based on thirty-five years of criminal justice public relations,” Success with the Media: Everything You Need to Survive Reporters and Your Organization” is available at Amazon and additional booksellers. He can also be found @ leonardsipes.com