Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
and.want.to.understand.the.command.structure.that.resulted.
in.those.arrests.
The. ownership. and. control. of. the. information. you. are.
seeking.is.going.to.be.within.the.police.command.structure..
Because. you. are. trying. to. understand. speciic. command.
procedures,. there. will. be. documentation. of. their. standard.
operating. procedures. and. speciic. records. of. the. events. in.
question.. These. might. well. reside. in. different. repositories,.
and.it.might.be.dificult.to.get.any.assistance.or.cooperation.
from.the.police.in.discovering.those.details.
In.order.for.you.to.acquire.the.data.you.desire.access.to,.
you.might.need.to.do.research.on.your.own.to.attempt.to.dis-
cover.where.that.data.would.most.likely.reside..You.might.be.
required.to.go.through.legal.channels.to.request.that.informa-
tion.via.a.Freedom.of.Information.Act.(FOIA).request.
If.you.discover.that.the.information.about.standard.oper-
ating.procedures.resides.in.a.speciic.department.or.division.
of. the. police. organization,. there. will. probably. be. a. public.
relations.or.liaison.oficer.to.whom.you.might.address.your.
request..That.person.will.no.doubt.report.to.a.captain,.who.
might.report.to.an.assistant.chief,.and.on.up.the.chain.of.com-
mand.. Before. they. are. allowed. to. respond. to. your. request,.
they.may.well.be.required.to.go.up.that.chain.of.command.
authority.for.permission.
Sometimes. knowing. or. having. access. to. the. top. of. that.
chain.of.command.might.expedite.your.request.for.informa-
tion.. Because. of. the. way. these. organizations. work. (and. in.
truth.the.same.might.be.said.for.any.organization),.starting.at.
the.top.of.the.chain.can.make.things.happen.more.eficiently.
However,.that.is.not.always.possible.and.in.fact.might.be.
counterproductive.if.your.actions.are.construed.as.unethical.
or.even.simply.as.not.following.correct.procedures..In.those.
cases.you.may.end.up.losing.more.time.than.you.might.have.
gained.because.you.have.to.go.back.and.follow.procedures.
and.now.the.people.you.went.around.are.unhappy.and.less.
likely.to.be.cooperative.
