The Caln Police Department will not fill two positions in 2011, meaning its 20-person staff will be reduced by 10 percent as of July.
According to Police Chief Brian Byerly, the Caln Police Department responded to 17,965 events in 2010. With that number of calls for service, a formula used by the International Association of Chiefs of Police to recommend staffing levels shows that the Caln Police Department should have about 25 patrol officers.

The formula is based on the fact that it takes 2,920 hours to continuously staff one eight-hour post, but it takes more than one officer to fill a post. It also accounts for the number of calls for service in a given area.

According to one study by the Center for Governmental Research, based in New York, in most police departments that work an eight-hour schedule, it takes between 1.7 and 1.9 – effectively, two – full-time patrol officers to fill one post after sick, comp, vacation, personal, training and court time. The study, done for Westhampton Beach in August 2005, is available at www.cgr.org.

Figuring out the number of posts to cover is based on calls received. With an average response time range of about 30 to 50 minutes per call for service, according to the center’s study, Caln’s 17,965 calls add up to about 12,000 patrol hours.

The association recommends multiplying that time by three. This “buffer time” accounts for time spent on preventive patrol, directed patrol, inspection, report writing, vehicle servicing, agency meetings, and other time demands.

That 36,000 hours of patrol time divided by 2,920 hours to continuously staff one post equals about 12.3 posts. Because it takes two officers to fill a post, that means about 25 patrol officers.

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