Introduction:
This semester I chose the Atlanta Police Department as my agency to conduct research on. I chose this agency because I was interested in how the department was ran, what it is exactly that they do to help the city besides protect and serve, and how they are able to take great control over such a huge city as Atlanta, Georgia.
Descriptive Narrative: In 1846 a small town known as Marthesville was renamed to Atlanta with only 9,000 citizens and 20 police officers. Over fifty years the city of Atlanta underwent many changes and grew to over 70,000 citizens and had over five different chief of police. Over another fifty years, a juvenile court and separate juvenile facilities were established. In 1917, Atlanta experienced the Great Fire which destroyed nearly 300 acres ($5.5 million in losses). The Atlanta Police Department also sent forty-five of its one hundred and twenty nine officers to serve in World War II and only experienced two fatalities. The chief of the Atlanta Police Department is George N. Turner who has served in many different roles in this department in his 29 years of service before becoming the chief. Turner is responsible for a 17% reduction in overall crime during a two year command of the Zone One Precinct. Turner has received numerous commendations and awards for his faithful service and work from important agencies such as the Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Atlanta Police Department is divided into six divisions including: The Chief of Staff, the Field Operations Division, the Criminal Investigations Divisions, Support Services, Community Services, and the Strategy and Special Projects division. The most important division is the Field Operations Division which divides the city into six different zones that all have their own mini precincts throughout the patrol zone. The Criminal Investigations