Detectives Per Case -

[Sassy]

Hello All -

I have had an off the wall type request from a detective. I get calls on a daily basis to locate subjects, but this is a little out of the realm of what an intelligence unit does. The detective was asked by her Capt. to find out the national average of detectives assigned per case.

I have googled and also searched several sites with no luck. Can anyone help point me in the right direction or start a poll?

Thank you in advance!

[MOCOP]

That would depend on several things. Type of case, size of Dept. , Case load.etc.

[Gooch]

That's kind of a weird question to ask because it's like asking what the average amout of officers per shift is. The answer really varies from agency to agency. It depends on the type of case, caseload, how many detectives on the department, how big the agency is. Some departments don't even have full time detectives.

When in doubt, just bullsh*t. What is the average number of detectives assigned to ask you to do their research for them? ;)

[Sassy]

I did tell her on the phone, "Well, that would depend on the agency and what type of case it is." I thought that was a great and accurate statement. Her Capt. said he read it in a magazine somewhere a few years back, so I told her to check a few of those magazines out or even contact the magazine companies about it or look at some annual reports. So, here I am.

I thought I would give it a shot, but I completely agree with what you all have answered back.

Usually, I don't have to do this type of research. It's mainly running NCIC, getting DL photos, Employment, Addresses, etc. - and sometimes have to research Gangs and information on Drugs - but this was a weird request and just a little out of my realm.

Thank you for your quick replies, I appreciate it.

[Sassy]

What is the average number of detectives assigned to ask you to do their research for them? ;)

Let's just say A LOT! ;) But, I don't mind. I love doing what I can to help officers apprehend their subjects. Just some requests are - a little beyond what I can do. It does feel good to know they can call me and have a bit of hope on a dead end case. And in this situation - a very weird question.

Thank you again!

[MOCOP]

This could just be my take on it but. Sounds to me like the detectives were cryin to Cap about their case loads. So Cap told em "Fine go get me a national average on defectives err detectives per case"

So your detective went to you to do her research. Cuz she couldn't find an article they may or may not exsist. ;)

[cecilVA]

Maybe the FBI or IACP did some kind of study to determine that magical number? Sounds like something bean counters in DC would do when they are bored.

[rdp]

Depending upon what detail you work, you could get 250 cases a month per detective.

Seems like a strange inadequately formed question......way too many variables.

[Sleuth]

At the time we married, my wife was with another Federal Agency as a Special Agent. They were expected to carry 6 cases per agent per yaer, while we averaged around 22 cases per agent all the time (around 150 cases per year). It varied from year to year, and varied widely from office to office. Just call her back and say (in your deepest lawyerlike tone): "It all depends!"

[Old Trooper]

Suddenly, I am confused- was the question "detectives per case" or "Cases per detective"???

[Sassy]

I called her back a few minutes ago and basically said:

"Depending on the size of your agency, the amount of cases you have per month, and the type of cases you have - it just really depends and varies from agency to agency."

It seems as if the response would be unanimous for anyone who's asked that question.

Thanks for the help!

[Sassy]

It was detectives per case.

[SeVere]

Detectives per case ONE!

[oscarmitre]

Anything useful here? http://www.ncjrs.org/

[Old Trooper]

I agree that generally, ONE detective per case is the rule. The exception would be very high profile cases.