Police Chief Magazine|Columns|Chief's Counsel
Chief’s Counsel: IACP Policy Assists Agencies to Define Pregnancy Policies

Today’s law enforcement profession is comprised of courageous and talented men and women, with women making some special and valuable contributions. Although law enforcement is still a male-dominated profession, women are becoming police officers in greater numbers, and their contributions are being recognized. These contributions may be lost if law enforcement agencies fail to recognize that police officers are entitled to become parents, because the officers may otherwise be forced to choose between their profession and parenthood.

The job of a law enforcement officer is one that involves emotional stress, intellectual challenge, and physical demands. It is a profession that requires the talents of people whose personal resources include courage, integrity, and equilibrium. An effective law enforcement officer may be required to perform more than 600 essential functions, many of which require a high level of physical fitness.

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Chief’s Counsel: Patrolling the Digital Street

For today’s police officers, the first sign of a serious threat increasingly appears not on a street corner or in a call for service, but on a screen. Posts, comments, livestreams, group chats, and ...
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Chief’s Counsel: The Price of Readiness

The practice of placing officers "on call" raises questions concerning a municipality’s obligation to pay officers, as well as the ability to restrict such officers’ activities while on an "on-cal...
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Chief’s Counsel: Are After-Action Reports Privileged?

In 2011, this author wrote an article for the Chief’s Counsel section of Police Chief magazine titled “Critical Incident Review Board: Creation and Refinement.” The purpose of the article was ...
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Chief’s Counsel: Immigration Enforcement by Local Police

Immigration enforcement in the United States is generally a civil matter, handled exclusively by federal agents working for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Patrol....
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Chief’s Counsel: The Algorithm Trap

Imagine this: a qualified applicant submits a résumé for a position in a department. Before anyone on the team lays eyes on it, an artificial intelligence (AI) system screens them out. No interview....
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Chief’s Counsel: Beyond Law Enforcement and Guardians

Words matter. The terms used to describe police work—law enforcement, public safety, guardian, protector, or warrior—do more than signal a philosophy. They define the profession’s purpose, s...
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Chief’s Counsel: SCOTUS Affirms Totality Standard in Use-of-Force Cases

On May 15, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in Barnes v. Felix, fundamentally altering the legal evaluation of excessive force claims under the Fourth Amendment. The ruling reje...
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Chief’s Counsel: Investigating Transnational Pig Butchering

In 2025, “pig butchering” does not necessarily result in pork chops and bacon. The term now describes a sophisticated cybercrime that combines long-term psychological manipulation with fraudulent ...
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Chief’s Counsel: Challenges to DEI Programs in Policing

In light of the recent U.S. government actions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), it is important for police leaders to be mindful of their ongoing obligations to comply with state and...
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Chief’s Counsel: Going Beyond Face Value

Facial recognition technology (FRT) emerged 50 years ago from experiments that measured facial attributes to search for matches on a semi-automated system.1 Modern FRT is an electronic system that us...
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