Police Association

With any organization devoted to law enforcement, it is necessary to delegate authority in order to maintain order and a chain of command. Local and state law enforcement agencies maintain similar, military based chains of command. Those on the federal level rely on a director who is ultimately appointed by the President, while those at the local or state level are either appointed by the legislation of the area, or even elected in some cases. Regardless of the means by which the leadership is chosen, most law enforcement organizations operate under the same military model of delegation of authority and chain of command.

At the local level, city police are organized under a police commissioner who is in command of the entire police organization. Depending on the size of the police force, there will be commanders of various police entities who report directly to the commissioner and individual officers who report directly to those commanders. State police and state patrol will have similar structures. These structures will vary in size based on the mission of the state police and the size of the state and often require more levels of delegation, and lower levels of command implemented to implement command and control over more officers in a greater area

Federal law enforcement agencies are set up a bit differently. Instead of a sheriff or a commissioner, federal law enforcement agency directors are appointed by the President. Unlike local law enforcement organizations, federal agencies are not meant to deal with general crime. Instead, the agency is meant to enforce regulations and carry out a federal mission using law enforcement methods at times. Because these agencies are federal, their leaders answer to the President as part of a directed, national mission.

Modern police forces have three main responsibilities at