Skokie Studying Police Department Staffing

Written by Pam DeFiglio

Skokie trustees on Monday approved a plan for a consultant to scrutinize what Skokie Police Department officers and employees do, then make recommendations about what the department needs to carry out its duties.

"It's a comprehensive study of the police services we provide," said Skokie Police Chief Anthony Scarpelli, adding that the consultants will look at work loads, deployments, the needs of the community and more.

The department had 109 sworn officers in the last fiscal year, and in Fiscal 2014 (which started May 1, 2013), the Skokie village board gave the department authorization for 114 sworn officers, plus 35 civilian employees, for a total of 149 employees. 

The civilian employees include dispatchers, secretaries and records clerks.

The price tag for the staffing study, which will be performed by the International City/County Management Agency's Center for Public Safety Management, is $58,000.

It's expected to take five to six months to complete. 

The consultants will come to the police station to observe and interview the department's personnel. Then they'll go on roll calls and ride-alongs, gathering information on police procedures.

"They'll provide a list of different data sets," Scarpelli said. "We'll supply that to them.

"After they have our data sets and an on-site assessment, they'll do a data analysis."

Scarpelli praised village trustees for pushing through the study in a short time frame. 

"We had the last budget meeting May 22," he said. "The village got the ball rolling (on this) in about a week and a half."

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