Joseph Finch EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The concept of safety in law enforcement is subject to political pressure, poor information, and media and special interest influence. As the work for this thesis began, law enforcement suffered the aftermath of incidents in Ferguson, Missouri; Baltimore; and New York City. Public cries of police militarization exerted pressure on elected…
CHDS Theses: Executive Summaries
A Model of Creating Inpatient Hospital Surge Capacity through Early Discharge
William Dunne EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Disasters and catastrophic mass casualty incidents continue to occur in the United States and around the globe. These events challenge their communities to preserve life and often require responders to go to extraordinary measure and utilize austere conditions to fight injury, illness, and disease. These communities are often stressed to prioritize…
The Oregon Trail: An Exploratory Case Study for Higher Education Emergency Management Programs
Kelly Dunn EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Institutions of higher education (IHEs) are key members of their communities and are considered partners in the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s “whole community” concept.[1] In times of disaster, IHEs often provide shelter, assistance, and resources to their communities. Because disasters begin and end locally, campuses must be prepared and resilient in…
DHS Acquisition Workforce: The Threat’s Not Leaving, Why Are You?
Wayne Dumais EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) faces a plethora of emerging threats from bad actors who wish to disrupt our American way of life. Frontline DHS operators depend on technology and information systems to accomplish their mission. Technologies must continually evolve to counter the emerging threats, which creates capability gaps. The…
Navigating Troubled Waters: How Leaders Can More Effectively Prepare Intelligence Enterprises for the Risks of Intelligence Efforts in Transparent Societies
Jeffrey Dambly EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Intelligence stakeholders increasingly expect intelligence officials to be more transparent in the twenty-first century.[1] Stakeholder support is important because intelligence organizations operate most effectively when they have the support of their respective stakeholders, including legislative bodies who give intelligence organizations their authorities, the courts who often review intelligence activities, the media…
Measuring State Resilience: What Actually Makes a Difference?
Jasper Cooke EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This thesis aims to answer the question: What drives resilience at the state level in the United States? Specifically, we have tried to address the lack of a clear success metric for broad goals of increasing security or resilience. Further, within the broad range of activities that states can engage in…
Facing Reality: Benefits and Challenges of Facial Recognition Technology for the NYPD
Anthony Carter EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Facial recognition technology (FRT) is a biometric technology that—if the New York City Police Department (NYPD) implements it in the New York City subway system—could have significant benefits of preventing violent crime, deterring terrorism, helping investigate past crimes, locating missing persons, providing assistance to individuals with special needs, and integrating with…
A Terrorist Story In Three Acts: Dabiq, Rumiyah, and The Hero’s Journey
Alexander Capece EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Terror does not win with strategic victories; rather, terror is in itself a strategy that can win only through the projection of a narrative and its associated stories. A successful story is compelling, powerful, and resonates with a target audience. Thus: if it is terrorism we are combating, it is the…
Civilians on Police Use-of-Force Review Boards: A Delphi Study of Six Police Departments
John Breckenridge EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Civilian involvement in the oversight of law enforcement has been debated for many years. Much of the debate surrounds the citizen complaint process and the extent to which civilian involvement improves the process and outcomes. On one side, law enforcement claims that civilians do not understand what it is like to…
Suicide in Law Enforcement: Protecting Those Who Serve
Ray Bernier EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The men and women of law enforcement are the first line of defense for the United States’ homeland security. Their mental wellbeing is essential, as they are required to make life-or-death decisions in the course of protecting the citizens they serve. Yet more than 100 law enforcement professionals take their lives…