1

CONDUCTED ENERGY DEVICE PROGRAM

PERFORMANCE AUDIT

CITY OF HOUSTONAnnise D. ParkerCity Controller

Steve SchoonoverCity Auditor

Report No. 2009-09

2

AUDIT TEAM Mir•Fox & Rodriguez, P.C. (Team Leader) University of Houston, Center for Public Policy

(Statistical Team Leader) Rice University (Mathematical Expertise) University of San Francisco (Mathematical

Expertise) Prototype, Fusion & Modeling, LLC

(Graphical Deployment Analysis) Sam Houston State University, College of Criminal

Justice (Criminology and Mathematical Expertise)

3

SCOPE PERIOD

January 1, 2000 through June 30, 2007

(CEDs issued in December 2004)

4

OBJECTIVES

Determine:• Compliance with procurement laws, ordinances, the City’s

Policies and Procedures, HPD Standard Operating Procedures, and General Orders (GOs)

• To what extent the Program objectives were being met• Effectiveness of Program Management• Compliance with Program Policies and Procedures

Compare HPD CED practices to the Police Executive Research Forum’s National Guidelines for CEDs

Perform a statistical analysis of the frequency and variables of HPD CED call for service/incident reports for any notable patterns, aberrations, and/or adverse trends

5

NOTE

The Audit did not examine the issue of whether exposure to a CED deployment (or multiple deployments) has medical implications

6

KEY TASKS PERFORMED

Performed statistical analysis of call for service/incident reports

Conducted Officer Focus Group Sessions Reviewed data management processes Analyzed CED deployments Reviewed CED related inventory Analyzed the number of CED cycles used when

deployed Reviewed Police Academy CED related training Analyzed suspect complaints related to CED

deployment

7

BACKGROUND

In November 2004, the City purchased 4,227 CEDs with accessories for $4.68 million, which included a five-year “no questions asked” replacement warranty

HPD developed a CED Program that included Policies, Procedures, and related training for all patrol officers

8

HPD CED Program Objectives:• Assist officers in securing and controlling

combative individuals• Reduce injuries to officers and suspects• Reduce financial impact of civil liability in use-of-

force calls for service/incidents• In limited situations, provide an alternative to

deadly force

BACKGROUND

9

BACKGROUND

RACE/ETHNICITYHOUSTON

2006HPD*

TOTAL INCIDENT REPORTS

CED INCIDENT REPORTS

African American 24.70% 21.00% 46.00% 66.90%Latino 41.90% 22.00% 28.20% 23.50%Anglo 27.60% 53.20% 24.40% 9.00%Other Groups 5.80% 3.80% 1.40% 0.60%

Total 100.00% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%

* Average population for the period January 1, 2005 through June 30, 2007

10

SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS

11

The CED has been a very effective intermediate weapon

HPD has been effectively managing the CED program

HPD’s CED Policies were effective in accomplishing the Program objectives

CONCLUSIONS

12

CED was NOT deployed in over 99% of the call for service/incident reports

The current structure for data management is organizationally deficient and caused issues with the following:

• Collecting data• Statistical analysis• Data quality, completeness, and consistency

CONCLUSIONS

13

The Statistical Team found that the available data contained some patterns and/or aberrations related to gender, race, and geography

CONCLUSIONS

14

SUMMARY OF ASSESSMENTS

15

Our analysis indicated that 803 officers deployed their CED 1,417 times, resulting in 1,284 call for service/incident reports as follows:

Number of Times an Officer

Deployed a CED

Total Number

of Officers

Total Number of

Deployments 1 492 492 2 156 312 3 90 270 4 26 104 5 23 115 6 7 42 7 1 7 8 4 32 9 2 18

10 0 0 11 0 0 12 1 12 13 1 13 Total 803 1,417

CED DEPLOYMENTS

16

CED was effective in controlling the subject in 77% of the call for service/incident reports

Reason for CED being ineffective

Percent of total call for

service/incidents The suspect appeared to be either under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs or experiencing some form of mental health crisis

11 % Suspect’s clothing (i.e. was too loose and/or too thick for the probes to penetrate)

4 %

One or both of the probes missed the suspect 4 % Probes hit the subject who subsequently pulled them out

2 %

CED was defective and did not fire the probes 2 % Total Percentage 23 %

CED EFFECTIVENESS

17

The number of cycles used in CED deployments are as follows:

Number of Cycles

Percent of the total reports

reviewed One cycle (the initial cycle) 38 % Two cycles 31 % Three cycles 15 % Four cycles 5 % Five cycles 3 % Six through ten cycles 5 % Greater than ten cycles 3 %

Total Percentage 100%

NUMBER OF CED CYCLES

18

55 complaints were filed pertaining to 59 different officers. The resolution of complaints are as follows:

CED Complaints Total No Disposition 12 Exonerated 13 Information 1 Never Formalized 2 Not Sustained 9 Open Case 4 Sustained 3 Unfounded 11

Total CED Complaints 55

CED COMPLAINTS

19

INJURIES TO OFFICERS

YearNumber of

ClaimsPercent of

ChangeTotal Claim

AmountPercent of

Change2000 255 Base $1,494,341 Base2001 278 109.0% 1,668,954 111.7%2002 276 108.2% 1,095,361 73.3%2003 283 111.0% 2,233,479 149.5%2004 271 106.3% 1,563,661 104.6%2005 258 101.2% 1,152,195 77.1%2006 233 91.4% 738,028 49.4%

January through June 2007 117 45.9% $105,900 7.1%Note: 2000 is the Base Year

20

The Audit Team identified the following:

According to the October 20, 2004 RCA, CEDs were “to be used as an alternative to deadly force.”

As part of CED training, cadets saw a videotape where the Police Chief indicated that after the introduction of CEDs in Phoenix, officer involved shootings went down by half and CED use was an alternative to deadly force

One of the CED program objectives was “in limited situations, provide an alternative to deadly force.”

However, according to HPD GOs, CEDs are classified as intermediate weapons and are not a substitute for lethal force. HPD Management did not believe that there were any apparent inconsistencies.

CED INSTEAD OF DEADLY FORCE?

21

Among officers, there are no gender differences in the overall likelihood of using a CED

African American officers were much less likely to use a CED than Anglo or Latino officers

Latino and Anglo officers were equally likely to use a CED

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF CALL FOR SERVICE/INCIDENT REPORTS

22

African American officers were much less likely to deploy a CED than Anglo and Latino officers when a suspect was an African American

African American officers were equally likely to deploy a CED as Anglo and Latino officers when the suspect was an Anglo

African American officers were equally likely to deploy a CED as Anglo officers and somewhat less likely than Latino officers when the suspect was a Latino

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF CALL FOR SERVICE/INCIDENT REPORTS

23

Male suspects were much more likely to be involved in a CED incident than female suspects

African American suspects were much more likely to be involved in a CED incident than Anglo or Latino suspects

Latino suspects were somewhat more likely to be involved in a CED incident than Anglo suspects

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF CALL FOR SERVICE/INCIDENT REPORTS

24

CEDs were deployed on a statistically insignificant number of Asian suspects

17 CED deployments involved animals

CED incidents were much more common in Council Districts D and H than in all other Districts

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF CALL FOR SERVICE/INCIDENT REPORTS

25

Most officers indicated:

• The CED was effective and they wanted to retain it

• HPD needed to reduce the paperwork requirements

• HPD should provide more training related to call for service/incident reporting

Numerous officers appeared to need clarification on the applicable GOs for using CEDs on a fleeing suspect

Several officers want the CED to be optional for carrying, like the other intermediate weapons

OFFICER FOCUS GROUPS

26

RECOMMENDATIONS

27

POLICY

We recommend that HPD consider the following in regard to their CED policy:

Perform a detailed assessment of all incidents in which the CED is used in excess of four cycles

Require medical screening of any subject against whom a CED is deployed and the subject appears to be experiencing excited delirium

Provide for tracking of CED deployment and the number of cycles used in the HPD Early Intervention System (EIS)

28

We recommend additional training:

Realistic scenarios be included in the Field Problems Program or Simulations

Emphasize the officer’s re-evaluation of the situation after each CED deployment

TRAINING

29

TRAINING

Improve the ability of officers to determine:• When a suspect’s behavior is “actively aggressive”• When to use a CED on a fleeing subject• The risks of placing a subject in a position which impairs respiration after CED deployment

• The signs of excited delirium, and the proper steps to be taken

• When and how to transition between the levels of use-of-force

30

REPORTS

We recommend that the report form and process be revised so as to:Emphasize that the report reflect the behavior that

warranted CED deploymentProvide a drop down menu for sorting, grouping,

and filtering data, where appropriateRequire the CED download information (number

of cycles, time and date, etc.) to be incorporated into the initial report

Require the proposed HPD system have the capability of generating geo-coordinates

31

DATA MANAGEMENT PROCESSESS

We recommend that HPD consider developing an audit process that would seek to:

Identify, document, and merge efficient processes

Remove impediments to efficient processing and combine these methods with new data processing capabilities now being acquired

32

CED EQUIPMENT

We recommend that HPD consider the following areas for potential improvement:

Consider installing bar code scanners in all police stations to facilitate the recording and issuance of the CEDs, cartridges, and DPMs

Review and assess the DPM failures and the amount of time officers are expending to get them replaced

Record the serial numbers of all CEDs and cartridges upon receipt from the manufacturer

Implement a process to improve the controls over training cartridge inventory

33

GRAPHICAL DEPLOYMENT ANALYSIS

PFM created a three-dimensional interactive visualization of the HPD CED deployments during the Scope period

Deployments can be graphically displayed by Key map, City Council District, or ZIP code location

Display can be further categorized by:• HPD location• Time of day• Officer race and gender• Suspect race, gender, age, and reason for the

deployment

34

35

QUESTIONS