Just need to fix the mistakes

Running Head: Policy Development: Draft 0

Policy Development

Jasonus Tillery

Liberty University Online

Policy Development Draft

Social media began to evolve in 2003 and nearly eight years after its creation it is taking the Internet by storm. Almost every business, person, and organization has some sort of social media page. In fact, it is getting to the point now where people are not even asking for the number of the person or business in which they would like to contact, but rather their Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram information (Waters, 2012). Social media definitely has its benefits as it can keep families who are apart connected, reunite lost friends, or even promote someone’s business. It can also help law enforcement officers to connect with their communities and help keep the people in their town informed. There are many law enforcement organizations that have Facebook accounts associated with their organization’s website. The social media sites in these cases can actually raise public awareness of what each town’s law enforcement agency is doing. (Caldwell, 2010). The feedback from the community of those law enforcement organizations who have social media sites is quite positive. However, social media can have a negative effect on the image of law enforcement officers if the officers post pictures of themselves in uniform, or with the criminals/suspects they arrest. Since there are positives and negatives for the use of social media networks by law enforcement officers, there needs to be policies created by the law enforcement managers or organizations to ensure that if they choose to use social media sites for their organizations that their officers will be safe. In order to create a good policy, it is imperative that the law enforcement managers know the positives and negatives of the use of social media and law enforcement agencies. Therefore, prior to the creation of the policy the positives and negatives of the use of social media and law enforcement will be discussed.

Positive effects for the use of social media and law enforcement organizations

There are many law enforcement offices around the United States that have used social media networks and have had positive results. There are four main police departments whom have had great success with using the networks. Fairfax County Police Department created a Facebook page for their department and they were really pleased with the results. The members of the Fairfax community became “friends” of the police department and even posted positive comments when a Fairfax County officer was able to help them in their time of need. The page created a culture of engagement with the community that the officers did not have prior to the creation of the page (Caldwell, 2010).

The police department of Boise, Idaho also had positive results from the use of social media. The department began using social media in 2009 as a part of their communication strategy between the law enforcement officers and the people of Boise. The officers currently use their Facebook page to help raise awareness in the community and to recruit future law enforcement officers (Hightower, 2010).

The Dunwoody Police Department of the Atlanta, GA had the most positive results from the use of social media than the two departments discussed above. The department uses the top 3 social media sites of Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube to increase communication with the businesses, organizations, and people of Atlanta. The department keeps their webpages on the sites updated regularly and the community has responded positively, stating that they feel as if they are able to trust the members of the Dunwoody Police Department (Grogan, 2010). The DPD has also used Twitter to help their community members safe. A shooting occurred in the town and the department was able to warn its followers about the shooting and informed the followers to stay inside their homes (Grogan, 2010). This obviously is one of the best uses of social media as the community is able to use the Tweets by the DPD to remain safe.

Negative effects for the use of social media and law enforcement organizations

Although there are many positive effects of law enforcement organizations using social media, the effects can also be negative. Being a law enforcement officer is a dangerous profession because the officers risk their lives to separate themselves from society and criminals (Waters, 2012). Prior to the wide use of social media, police officers were able to protect themselves and their loved ones from the extra risks and threats. The threats and risks used to be physical, but social media now allows the opportunity for the credibility, integrity, and career of the law enforcement officer to be destroyed. “Constraints do not exist for social media. Anyone can post or look up anything online with little fear of repercussion” (Waters, 2012). The use of social media sites like Facebook enables individuals to learn private and intimate facts about the police officers and their families that the officers post on the site in innocence. The fact that many young law enforcement officers post pictures of themselves in their uniforms or list “police officer” as their job on their profiles makes them easy targets for criminals (Womack, 2011). Social media can also enable criminals to easily attack the character of a police officer. If the character or integrity of a police officer is compromised, then courtroom testimony or investigations are severely at risk (Womack, 2011). Many police officers are now focusing on being careful about what they post on Facebook. However, Facebook is not the only site that the officers have to be cautious with. There have been incidences where law enforcement officers were seen on YouTube doing questionable activities or acts in which proved financially rewarding to criminals who filed lawsuits or claims. Cop bating is also prevalent due to the quick uploads of videos via YouTube or Instagram. Criminals can antagonize or bait the officers into acting out of character. They then can load the video on the social media sites to destroy the credibility and lives of unsuspecting officers.

As one can see the above negative effects are direct results of the mistakes that individual law enforcement officers have made with their own social media accounts. However, there are reports that some police officers have been posting inappropriate material on the police department social media sites. Last year, for example, a “Brooklyn precinct commander posted photographs of men being released from custody on a Twitter account maintained by the precinct (Homeland Security News Wire, 2013). This act does not speak well for the precinct. Therefore, it is imperative that law enforcement managers create strict policies in order to protect the officers and the credibility of their precinct.

With the information concerning the positive and negative effects of social media and law enforcement, one can see why a policy needs to be in place to ensure the safety and credibility of the law enforcement officers. Below is a policy that was drafted based on the positive and negative effects as discussed above.

Policy for Law Enforcement and Social Media Uses

1. Purpose

   1. The intended purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for the use of social media by law enforcement officers both on and off duty. It is the responsibility of the law enforcement agency managers to protect their employees from the dangers that social media sites can bring. It is also their responsibility to inform their officers of the positive effects social media can have on the agency. This policy will provide information on the allowed usage and prohibitions of social media sites and law enforcement personnel and it will affect all current and newly hired employees.

2. On the job use (IACP, 2010)

   1. Precinct social media sites

      1. Precinct websites cannot be used for personal reasons

      2. Messages, postings, or videos cannot be posted or uploaded to the company sites without approval from the policy chief first.

      3. All content must be used to provide awareness, or inform the public of police activities. This includes notification of police recruitment days.

      4. All department personnel must conduct themselves in a professional manner and abide by the department’s code of conduct.

      5. There are to be no photos, or videos of the precinct, suspects, criminals, or officers posted on the sites

      6. Officers may not under any circumstances post derogatory statements about other officers or offenders on the company sites

   2. Allowable potential uses

      1. Departmental media sites can be used to seek information that can provide tips about (IAPC, 2010):

         1. Wanted persons

         2. Cyber crimes

         3. Missing persons

         4. Gang activity

      2. Departmental media sites can also be used to notify the community of (IAPC, 2010):

         1. Special events

         2. Missing persons

         3. Adverse weather

         4. Amber alerts

3. Personal off duty use

   1. Warnings and Prohibitions

      1. Although employees are entitled to freedom of speech, they must keep in mind that they are law enforcement officers. With this in mind:

         1. Officers are not to reveal sensitive information about the precinct activities that occur during their shifts or any arrest that they may make

         2. Officers may not disclose the police affiliation on social media sites (this is for the safety of the officer)

      2. Officers may not post photos or videos of themselves or any other officer in uniform

      3. Officers shall refrain from posting obscene photos, language, or acts on any social media sites

      4. Personnel must refrain from posting any discriminatory or bias information

      5. Personnel should not participate in any online chats that would incriminate themselves or other members of the law enforcement team

Any violation of the rules and regulations of this policy subjects the law enforcement officer to disciplinary actions and possible termination.

In conclusion, social media can either be law enforcement agencies biggest ally or their worst enemy. There are many positives and negatives for the use of social media in the law enforcement world. If the managers inform their officers of the benefits and dangers of the social media sites as well as create and enforce policies then they will reap the great benefits of social media. However, if they do not address the issues, they could possibly end up losing the credibility of the agency or even worst, they could lose lives of law enforcement officers.

Caldwell, L. (2010, September 11). Fairfax, County, Va-Police Department-Facebook

Tips from the PIO. Retrieved Feburary 09, 2017, from IACP Center for Social Media:

www.iacpsocialmedia.org/resources/casestudy

Grogan, B. (2010, December 15). Dunwoody, Georgia Police Department-Tweeting from

the Start. Retrieved Feburary 09, 2017, from IACP Center for Social Media:

www.iacpsocialmedia.org/resource/casestudy

Hightower, L. (2010, September 6). Boise, Idaho, Police Department-A thoughtful

approach to social media. Retrieved Feburary 09, 2017, from IACP center for social

media: www.iacpsocialmedia.org/resource/casestudy

Homeland Security News Wire. (2013, April 4). NYPD issues strict guidelines for use of

social media by officers. Retrieved Feburary 09, 2017, from Homeland Security News

Wire: http://homelandsecuritywire.com/dr20130403

IACP. (2010, August 10). IACP-National Law Enforcement Policy Center-Social Media.

Retrieved Feburary 11, 2017, from IACP social Media: www.iacp.org

Waters, G. (2012, Novemeber 10). Social Media and Law Enforcement-Potential Risks.

Retrieved Feburary 10, 2017, from FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin:

http://www.fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/law-enforcement-bulletin

Womack, A. (2011, January 04). The Macon News. Retrieved Feburary 11,, 2017, from Law

enforcement agencies drafting social networking policies:

http://www.macon.com/2011/01/04/1397495/macon-police-draft