Project Charter for©

“Tribal Taskforce Initiative”

Document Control

Document Information

© / Information
Document ID / D-1000
Document Owner / Joseph Nacsa
Issue Date / 08/01/17
Last Saved Date / 08/12/17
File Name / TTI-Project Charter

Document History

Version / Issue Date / Changes©
01.01 / 08/01/17 / Section, Page(s), and Text Revised
01.02 / 08/07/17 / All Sections, All Pages and Text Revised
01.03 / 08/12/17 / All Sections, All Pages and Text Revised

Document Approvals

Role / Name© / Signature / Date
Project Sponsor / Judge (Dr.) Navin Chandra Naidu
Project Coordinator - Researcher
Sr. Prj. Manager - Researcher© / Joseph Nacsa
Quality Manager- Researcher
(if applicable)
Procurement Manager- Researcher
(if applicable)
Communications Manager- Researcher
(if applicable)
Project Office Manager- Researcher
(if applicable)

Table of Contents

Brief Overview ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 5

Executive Summary ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6

Project Definition …………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 7

Alternative Option(s) …………………………………………………………………………………………………. 10

Conducting Strategic Analysis ………………………………………………………………………………………... 11

Summary ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 13

Administrative Decisions ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 14

Brief Overview:

What Is a Project Charter?

A Project Charter is a document that outlines the purpose of the project, the structure of the project, the scope of the project and the plan for successful implementation of the project. It describes the projects:

  • Vision, scope, purpose, objectives and deliverables (i.e., what we have to achieve)
  • Stakeholders, roles, and responsibilities (i.e., who will take part in the project)
  • Resource, financial, and quality plans (i.e., how it will be undertaken) ©

The Project Charter is also known as a “Terms of Reference (TOR)” or “Project Definition Report (PDR).”

When Do I Use a Project Charter?

The Project Charter is usually presented by the senior management within the business to an identified business sponsor. It is completed after the Business Case and Feasibility Study have been approved but before the Project Team is formally appointed.

Furthermore:

  • The Project Charter defines the boundaries for the project. It describes in detail the scope within which all deliverables must be produced. Activities should be undertaken outside the defined scope of the project only if a valid “change request form” has been approved by the Project Sponsor.
  • Following approval of the Project Charter, the next stage is the formal appointment of the project team. ©

U.S. Department of Justice

Executive Summary

The Tribal Taskforce Initiative is intended to provide logistical support for the existing / new Indian Tribes

to establish the local Law Enforcement department in support of the community safety.

It will provision professional, technical and economic assistance to existing tribes to establish Tribal law enforcement departments.

The vision is for the Indian Tribes to have their own law enforcement organizations to protect the Tribal jurisdiction from unsolicited intrusions, from crimes, from violence, from abuse of children, prevent homicides and support the safety of the Indian Tribes.

Project Scope:

The following items are considered to be included in the scope of this project:

The scope of the project is to provide professional, technical, and economic assistance to existing Indian Tribes

in development of New Tribal Law Enforcement departments.

  1. Will provide a basic Law Enforcement Organization Structure
  2. The Logistics of the Law Enforcement Organization Structure
  3. Professional Project Proposal supporting document
  4. Professional Project Business Case supporting document
  5. Professional Project Feasibility Study supporting document
  6. Professional Project Charter supporting document
  7. The Tribe will be assisted by a technical team to perform an Assessment Analysis on site to understand the root cause of the problems
  8. The Technical team will assist the Tribal Chief of Police to prepare a plan that enlists all the detailed requirements to establish

a law enforcement department that can start providing service after all the elements and requirements of the Tribal law enforcement are

ready for production services.

  1. The Tribal Police Chief will be assisted to prepare the budget and submit the required documents for approval.
  2. The Tribal Police Chief will be preparing Policies to be carried out by the law enforcement officers
  3. The Tribal Chief will be responsible to define all the Law Enforcement Divisions, Subdivisions and open positions to be ready for interviewing.
  4. The Tribal Police Chief will be provided with Logistical assistance regarding the Law Enforcement structure.

Elements that are not part of the Scope: are:

  1. Provide full time on site technical resource for the Tribe.

There are certain decisions thatthe community is presented with and will need to be address to develop a successful

Law Enforcement organization:

Project Definition:

The Vision:

Establish a professional Law Enforcement Taskforce controlled by the Tribal organization, to serve and protect the safety of the Tribal members within the jurisdiction of the Tribal land.

It is imperative as a tribe, to secure sovereignty and autonomous self-governance.

Scope & Objective:

Createan organization that will be responsible for providing special services that will guarantee the safety and security of the Tribal community.

Purpose:

Section#1, - “Conduct a Strategic Assessment,” assuming there isa strong interest in the objective.

Examine closely the issues involved instarting a Tribal Law Enforcement department.

For example:

  1. What kind of information do you need to make an informeddecision?
  2. Who should gather and analyze the information?
  3. Why is it important to involve citizens in the process, and
  4. Whatare the effective ways to do that?

Section#2, “Laying the Groundwork,” is to havecompleted the assessments and a decision has been made to move forward

with starting a new Police department. At this stage, some of the questionsto answer include the following:

  1. What types of services can the department reasonably beexpected to provide?
  2. Can you afford enough officers to schedule a 24 hrs.per day,7 days a week to respond to calls and provide patrol coverage?
  3. IfNOT, who will provide these basic services in the off hours?
  4. How will you handle complex investigations and other policefunctions?
  5. How will the Tribal Law Enforcement respond to critical incidents and providepublic safety at special events?
  6. Will your officers have time to do proactive work with youth andother community members to prevent crime and solve problems?
  7. Is the Tribe ready to hire the police officers?
  8. Is the community prepared to give thechief enough time—usually at least 6 months—to get ready toopen the doors?

Section#3, “Handling the Details,”

This chapter covers the transition periodbetween hiring the chief and starting patrol operations.

  1. It reviewsthe details the chief will need to address—from major policy
  2. Hiring decisions to relatively minor ones like where to purchaseoffice supplies.
  3. It also suggests continuing roles for legal, financial,and other experts, as well as citizens.

Example:

  1. Which policies and procedures must the chief develop beforepatrol service can begin (e.g., a use-of-force policy)?
  2. Which onescan wait until later?
  3. Will citizens be involved in the policy development process?
  4. How the officer hiring process would be performed.
  5. Would there be a job definition for each opening prior to start interviewing

Section#4, “Summary Checklist,”

1. Conduct a Strategic Assessment

a. The process of carefully documenting community needs should bethe first step in deciding to create a new department.

b. Whatare the crime problems and public safety needs of the community?

c. Are they changing?

d. Has the local Tribe experienced anincrease in population, or is it planning to incorporate as a new in the near future?

e. The strategic assessment should also include citizeninput through community meetings, focus groups, or surveys.

2. Review Existing Service Plan(….only if such plan exists)

3. Hire a Chief

a. The chief will provide valuable assistance with the missionstatement, policies, procedures, equipment procurement, officerhiring,

and budgets.

b. Having the chief on board early will help thecommunity avoid major pitfalls in the planning process, particularly

in how the police department should operate day to day andwhat is needed to ensure that the department can sustain itself.

4. Prepare the Budget

a. The Technical expert team should provide assistance with budget development by identifying a comprehensive list of all

the necessary items, equipment, training required for a Law Enforcement to be able to operate effectively and the chief

to know wat scope of service is expected for initial start-up and for the first year of operation. The chief however should review

and refinethe plan, also set priorities and anticipate important issues.

5. Negotiate Agreements with neighboring Tribes(…..only if such opportunity exist)

The new department may providecomprehensive patrol services, for example, but agreements areneeded for other services such as:

i.Dispatching,

ii.Investigative support,

iii.Crime scene processing,

iv.Training.

v.Public and officer safety to have agreements in place that ensureappropriate coverage for both planned special events (e.g., large

festivals) and unplanned events (e.g., hostage situations, naturaldisasters).

6. Establish Critical Policies and Procedures

a. Policies,

b. Procedures,

c. Operating plans for daily operations areessential and must be in place at the outset so that the department

and community understand exactly what the department’s duties andresponsibilities are.

  1. The chief is a valuable asset for drafting thesepolicies and procedures and will also establish a style of policing for

the department.

  1. Resources and examples from other departmentscan be useful to assist in developing policy.
  2. It is critical that before recruitment and hiring can begin, the chiefmust create a job definition for each position in the department,

along with an organization chart and rules of conduct.

  1. Develop a hierarchy in the department

7. Hire Officers and Support Staff

a. All key personnel should be hired before operations officially begin

b. New hired officers complete the required training.

c. Allow time for the new officers to familiarize themselves with the department, with the policies and community, obtain necessary

certifications. The larger the department, the longer this recruitmentprocess may take, and it may be prudent to hire in phases.

  1. Departments need to carefully consider the qualifications thatcandidates should meet, including the particular skills needed to help

ensure the new department’s success.

  1. Adequate wages and benefitsare essential to recruit quality personnel,
  2. Inexperiencedofficers can be hired for lower wages,
  3. experienced officers requiresignificantly less training time.
  4. Thorough background checks ofall candidates must be conducted.

8. Acquire Office Space, Equipment, Vehicles, and Supplies

a. Before a new department can start patrol services, the basic requirements shouldbe in place:

i. Office space,

ii. Furniture,

iii. Telephonesystem,

iv. Office supplies,

  1. Radios,
  2. Record-keeping systems (Preliminary),
  3. Uniforms,
  4. Weapons,
  5. Computers, Networks and printers
  6. Protective vests
  7. All Tribal Members registered in Database (……I am working on that task),
  8. Patrol car(s).
  9. Equipment and supplies
  10. Body Armors (….if needed)
  11. CAD – ComputerAssisted Dispatch (…..if appropriate)
  12. RMS - Records Management Systems (…..if appropriate)
  13. …..open

Please note!....the above items are budget items not limited to the enlisted itemandshould be clearly stated as

  1. One-time, start-up expenses
  2. Ongoingexpenses.

9.Promote the Department

Once the department is ready for operations, the focus will turn toproviding police services. It is not safe to assume, however, that

all citizens either will know the department exists or support it.

Promotion is important both before and after the department beginsoperation. Officers should be visible, accessible, and work to educate

the community on the services the agency provides. Communitysupport can be encouraged through talks at schools and community

group meetings, bike and foot patrols, crime-prevention programs,and other events that provide for two-way communication. Many

of the activities that generally are grouped together as communitypolicing activities are also excellent promotional tools for a new

department.

Alternative Option(s)

10. Create a new limited-service agency.

This is often the only workable andaffordable option for communities that do not wish to pursue any of the

options described above and, instead, want to create their own stand-aloneagency.

Basic call response and crime prevention include:

  1. Responding to callsfor police service,
  2. Handling other patrol responsibilities,
  3. Conducting follow-up
  4. Investigations of minor crimes, and
  5. Providing other specialized services

11. Create a New Full-Service Agency.

For the majority of communities, it is notpractical or economically feasible to begin with a full-service agency. The staffing

and equipment costs of operating a call dispatch center alone would exceedsome local Tribal entire policing budgets.

Of course, in high-growthcommunities, a successful new local police department may evolve to takeon more responsibilities

as it increases staffing and expertise. Some growingcommunities have imposed public safety developers’ fees to fund services or

facilities (an example is Brentwood, California); and it may be possible to requirespecific public safety enhancements

with all new development (e.g., wirelessaccess points, cameras linked to wireless access points). But few departments

can afford to start out with full-service operations. Neither the expertise nor themoney is likely to be in place at start-up.

The assessment is essentially a three-stage process:

  1. Gather as muchinformation and data as possible from a variety of sources,
  2. Analyze andinterpret the information,
  3. Translate the findings into decisions aboutthe nature and scope of police services the community needs.

Conducting Strategic Analysis

Surveys provided evidence that

  1. “Research and ask questions to find out what is not known.”
  2. “Obtain legal advice”before proceeding,
  3. Will need legal advice about theconditions under which a community in your Tribe can start its ownpolice department
  4. The jurisdiction that such a police department would
  5. Have. Legal advice (e.g., provided by your jurisdiction’s attorney) will be critical
  6. Liability,
  7. Employment law (……if applicable),
  8. ……..and otherissues.

It is important at an early stage for Tribal officials to understand thattaking responsibility for the actions of police officers carries the potential of

costly liability. Beyond interactions of officers with citizens, liability can reach to:

  1. The adequacy of their hiring,
  2. Training,
  3. Retention,
  4. Supervision, as well as to
  5. Departmental policies.

The assessment survey is absolutely critical in the process of decision making.

A survey of Tribal community members and businesses can be done by:

  1. Door-to-door,
  2. Telephone, or
  3. Email,

but the objective is to be as inclusive as possible.

Mail or paper surveys offer the advantage of letting people respondanonymously, but the response rate may be low.

Boost the return rate byemphasizing the importance of participating; wording the questions clearly;making the questionnaire brief; offering multiple choice, rating scales, orother no narrative response options; and including stamped, addressedreturn envelopes if chose..

The questionnaire should ask about crimes and problems of concern,experience and satisfaction with current services, changes desired, and

level/type of support the respondent might provide for a new department or other contemplated changes.

13. Response Times.

One tragic incident resulting in injury or death is all thatmost communities need to begin calling police response times into question.

Providing rapid response times to emergencies is a major logistical issue whendepartments must cover broad geographic areas with a limited number ofofficers.

The important thing to remember is toanalyze response times by type of call. True emergencies, of course, require

a rapid response (e.g., crimes in progress, accidents with injury). But citizensmust also understand that few police agencies today can afford to dispatchan officer immediately to every call, or even to every crime-related call. Forexample, a resident comes home from vacation to discover her home has beenburglarized, possibly 2 weeks earlier. Police need to follow up and take a report,but there is little to be gained by a “lights-and-siren” response. The police shouldhandle this example with an appropriate response and good communication.

Few citizens will be upset about a delayed response to a nonemergency if theyfeel their situation is being taken seriously and are informed of what response toexpect and why.

14. Crimes and Calls for Service

To identify patterns and trends in crime incidents and calls to the police, one willneed to obtain data going back at least 3 years. Key information sources includethe following:

  1. Reported crime (Uniform Crime Reports submitted to the FederalBureau of Investigation)
  2. Arrest records (number of arrests by type of charge)
  3. Calls-for-service records
  4. Interviews with experienced police personnel.

Today’s

  1. Computer-Assisted Dispatch (CAD) and
  2. Records Management Systems(RMS)

can capture a tremendous amount of data from calls for service. CAD/RMS can provide not only information about the types of calls received, but

also a great deal of detail about time, including response times (time when callcomes in, officer is dispatched, officer arrives on scene, officer clears scene)as well as time away from patrol duty because of court, meals, training, carmaintenance, community meetings, and other self-initiated activities. Theamount of detail is related to the sophistication of the CAD/RMS serving aparticular area.

Analyzing these data is not simple, which is why the assessment team shouldinclude someone with a strong knowledge of police work. Some of the issuesto keep in mind include the following:

15. Not all 911 calls to the police are about crimes.

a. Some calls (forexample, burglary alarms) may be “false” and caused by human error

or faulty equipment. But because the calls are placed to 911, theyrepresent situations on which call takers and police officers must

spend time responding in some way, whether by sending a patrolcar, taking a report over the telephone, or simply answering a routine

question..

  1. Some types of crimes go unreported. Some domestic violence andsexual assault incidents, for example, never come to police attention.
  1. Police computer call systems may not use a separatecode for domestic violence and reported incidents may be included

under “assault” or “simple assault”.