Police Lieutenant Promotional cheat sheet

Span of control: a first-line supervisor typically directs 6-10 subordinates; beyond roughly 12, communication and oversight degrade and a new layer is warranted.

Situational leadership model: match style to follower readiness - directing (low readiness), coaching, supporting, delegating (high readiness); style is task/direction versus relationship/support behavior.

Maslow hierarchy (bottom-up): physiological, safety, social, esteem, self-actualization; lower needs must be substantially met before higher needs motivate.

Herzberg two-factor theory: hygiene factors (pay, policy, working conditions) prevent dissatisfaction but do not motivate; motivators (recognition, responsibility, advancement) drive performance.

Grievance timeline anchors: most collective bargaining agreements require the employee to file within a short window (often 5-10 working days) and each step to be answered within a set number of days; missed deadlines can waive the grievance.

Progressive discipline sequence: documented verbal counseling, written reprimand, suspension, demotion, termination; each step requires notice of the deficiency, a standard, and an opportunity to correct.

Just-cause (Seven Tests) elements: reasonable rule, notice of rule, investigation before discipline, fair and objective investigation, proof of violation, consistent application, and penalty proportional to the offense.

Weingarten rule: a union employee may request union representation during an investigatory interview the employee reasonably believes may lead to discipline; the interview must then stop or proceed without discipline.

FLSA: non-exempt employees earn overtime at 1.5x the regular rate beyond 40 hours in a workweek; exempt status requires salary basis plus duties test - rank alone does not confer exemption.

Incident Command System (ICS) is built on unity of command, span of control (3-7, optimal 5), management by objectives, and modular organization that expands or contracts with the incident.

ICS general staff: Operations (tactical), Planning (situation/resource status, Incident Action Plan), Logistics (resources/support), Finance/Administration (cost, time, compensation). Command staff: Public Information Officer, Safety Officer, Liaison Officer.

Incident Action Plan (IAP) covers one operational period; the planning cycle (Planning P) begins with the current situation and ends with the tactics meeting and IAP approval before the next operational period.

NIMS typed resources: Type I is most capable and least available; Type IV is least capable and most readily available - order the type required by the incident, not the most capable.

Active shooter doctrine: the first arriving officers form a contact team (typically 3-5) and move to neutralize the threat; contain-and-wait is superseded once lives are at imminent risk.

Perimeter geometry: inner perimeter isolates the immediate scene, outer perimeter controls access and traffic; establish command post and staging outside the outer perimeter where feasible.

Use-of-force standard (Graham v. Connor): objective reasonableness judged from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, considering severity of crime, immediate threat, and active resistance or flight.

Ten deadly errors include failure to handcuff, failure to search, failure to maintain contact/cover, and relaxed vigilance after the encounter appears over.

Traffic incident management: establish advance warning, position vehicles to protect the scene (blocker/fend-off), and never turn your back on moving traffic; move vehicles from lanes when there is no injury and no hazard.

Fourth Amendment: a seizure of a person occurs when a reasonable person would not feel free to leave; an investigatory (Terry) stop requires reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, and a frisk requires reasonable suspicion the person is armed and dangerous.

Search warrant exceptions: consent (voluntary, scope-limited, revocable), search incident to lawful arrest (person and immediate grabbing area), automobile (probable cause plus readily mobile), exigent circumstances, plain view, inventory, and protective sweep.

Miranda custody test: custody (would a reasonable person feel free to leave) plus interrogation (words or actions reasonably likely to elicit an incriminating response); public safety exception permits unwarned questioning about an imminent threat.

Sixth Amendment right to counsel attaches at formal charging (indictment, information, arraignment); once attached, it applies to all critical stages and police may not initiate interrogation without counsel.

Fifth Amendment: no person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself; silence alone cannot be used as substantive evidence of guilt, and invocation must be honored (Davis: unambiguous invocation required).

Exclusionary rule: evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment is generally suppressed; exceptions include inevitable discovery, independent source, attenuation, and good faith.

Criminal liability: actus reus (voluntary act or omission where a duty exists) plus mens rea (intent, knowledge, recklessness, negligence); concurrence required between act and mental state.

Inchoate offenses: attempt requires intent plus a substantial step beyond preparation; conspiracy requires agreement plus intent plus (in many jurisdictions) an overt act; solicitation is complete on asking.

Burden of proof: probable cause for arrest and search; reasonable suspicion for a stop; beyond a reasonable doubt for conviction; preponderance for most civil and administrative determinations.

General orders are the agency's written directives; hierarchy is typically policy (broad intent), procedure (how-to), and rule (specific mandate); later orders supersede conflicting earlier orders to the extent of conflict.

Policy manuals are not statutes and do not create civil liability per se; however, a violation of policy may be used as evidence of negligence or to establish a standard of care.

Use-of-force reporting: any force beyond un-resisted handcuffing generally requires a written report before end of shift; deadly force and firearm discharges (including unintentional) trigger supervisory response and notification.

Pursuit policy elements: authorized initiator, supervisor authorization, termination criteria (traffic or environmental conditions, offense severity, vehicle type), and radio notification; most agencies restrict pursuits to violent felonies or imminent danger.

Body-worn camera rules: activation at the start of enforcement contact, deactivation only for privacy or victim interviews, retention periods, and chain-of-custody logging; failure to activate is a policy violation, not automatically a suppression ground.

Chain of custody: every transfer of evidence is documented with date, time, handler, and purpose; gaps create doubt as to authenticity and can defeat admissibility.

Complaint intake: any employee may receive a complaint; a supervisor must document and forward it, and complaints must be accepted regardless of the complainant's demeanor or the form of delivery.

Supervisor notification triggers: officer-involved shooting, in-custody death, serious injury, pursuit, use of deadly force, and any allegation of misconduct involving a subordinate.

Procedural justice (Tyler): four elements - voice (opportunity to be heard), neutrality (consistent, unbiased decisions), respect (dignity), and trustworthiness (benevolent motives); these predict willingness to obey the law more than outcomes do.

Legitimacy is the belief that authority is entitled to be obeyed; it is built through fair process, not through favorable outcomes alone.

Community policing has three pillars: community partnerships, organizational transformation, and problem solving (SARA: Scanning, Analysis, Response, Assessment).

Broken windows theory: visible disorder and minor offenses, if unattended, signal that serious crime will be tolerated; enforcement must be paired with community engagement to avoid alienation.

Transparency mechanisms: public data dashboards, complaint statistics, use-of-force reporting, and community advisory boards; these reduce rumor and increase perceived legitimacy.

Contact-based trust: a single negative encounter can outweigh multiple positive contacts; procedural justice in routine stops is the highest-leverage trust intervention.

Media and PIO: a single designated spokesperson delivers verified information; release only confirmed facts, never speculate on motive, and coordinate with the incident commander.

Language and cultural access: Title VI requires meaningful access for limited-English-proficiency residents; agencies provide interpreters and translated materials.

Budget cycle: preparation (department requests), executive review, legislative adoption, execution, and audit; the fiscal year and its calendar are set by statute or charter.

Zero-based budgeting: every expenditure must be justified from zero each cycle; line-item budgeting is the traditional control-oriented format; performance budgeting ties dollars to measurable outputs.

Cost formulas: overtime cost = hours x hourly rate x 1.5; fully loaded cost per officer = salary + benefits (often 30-45% of salary) + equipment + training.

Staffing formula: required officers = (annual workload hours) / (available hours per officer per year); available hours = 2,080 minus leave, training, and administrative time.

Fixed vs. variable costs: fixed costs (facilities, salaries) do not change with call volume; variable costs (overtime, fuel, supplies) do; grant funds typically cover variable or one-time costs, not recurring personnel.

Capital budget covers assets with multi-year life (vehicles, radios, facilities) and is often funded by bonds or grants; operating budget covers recurring expenses.

Procurement controls: competitive bidding thresholds, sole-source justification, and separation of requisition, approval, and payment duties to prevent fraud.

Asset lifecycle: vehicles and equipment have planned replacement cycles (often 8-10 years for patrol vehicles); deferred replacement raises maintenance costs and failure risk.

Grant compliance: track allowable costs, match requirements, reporting deadlines, and single-audit thresholds; unallowable expenditures must be repaid.

Adult learning (andragogy): adults need relevance, problem-centered content, immediate application, and respect for prior experience; lecture-only formats underperform for skills.

Kirkpatrick four levels: reaction (satisfaction), learning (knowledge gain), behavior (on-the-job application), results (organizational outcomes); evaluation should specify the level measured.

Training needs assessment: organizational analysis (where gaps exist), task analysis (what the job requires), person analysis (who needs training); training without a needs assessment wastes resources.

Performance appraisal methods: trait-based (rating scales), behavior-based (BARS), and results-based (MBO); behavior-based scales reduce rater subjectivity.

Rater errors: halo (one trait colors all), horns (one negative colors all), central tendency (everyone rated average), leniency/severity, recency (last event dominates), and similar-to-me bias.

Documentation standard: a defensible evaluation records specific observable behavior, date, location, and impact; conclusions without examples are vulnerable on appeal.

Field training programs (FTO) use daily observation reports, standardized evaluation guidelines, and remediation plans before termination from the program.

Career development: individualized development plans, mentoring, rotational assignments, and tuition assistance; succession planning identifies and prepares candidates for key roles before vacancies occur.

Internal affairs intake: complaint logged, classified (misconduct vs. non-misconduct), assigned, investigated, and adjudicated as sustained, not sustained, exonerated, unfounded, or policy failure.

Garrity rule: a public employee may be compelled to answer job-related questions under threat of discipline, but the compelled statements cannot be used in a subsequent criminal prosecution (derivative use immunity).

Brady/Giglio: exculpatory and impeachment material must be disclosed to the prosecutor; sustained findings of dishonesty can render an officer impeachable and must be reported.

Statute of limitations for discipline is set by contract or statute (often 1-3 years); serious misconduct may be exempt; the clock generally runs from discovery of the act.

Risk management: identify, assess, control (avoid, reduce, transfer, retain), and monitor; early intervention systems flag officers with repeated complaints, uses of force, or pursuits.

Use-of-force review: supervisor reviews the report, video, and statements; findings address policy compliance, tactics, and training needs, not just whether force was lawful.

Liability theories: respondeat superior (employer liable for employee acts within scope), negligent hiring/training/supervision, and Monell municipal liability for custom or policy causing a constitutional violation.

Discipline appeal: employee is entitled to notice of charges, a hearing, the opportunity to respond, and representation; the standard of review is typically just cause or substantial evidence.

SARA model: Scanning (identify and prioritize the problem), Analysis (understand causes and conditions), Response (implement tailored action), Assessment (measure whether the problem was reduced).

Problem analysis triangle: crime requires an offender, a victim/target, and a place; intervention can target any leg, and guardianship/handlers/managers address each.

OODA loop: Observe, Orient, Decide, Act; under stress, orientation is the bottleneck, and slowing down to reassess prevents tunnel vision.

Bias traps: confirmation bias (seeking confirming evidence), anchoring (fixating on the first data point), availability (overweighting vivid cases), and groupthink (suppressing dissent).

Decision matrix: list criteria, assign weights, score options, and compute weighted totals; document the rationale so the decision is defensible on review.

Risk assessment: likelihood x consequence yields a risk score; controls reduce likelihood, consequence, or both; residual risk must be accepted by the appropriate authority.

Root cause analysis: the five-whys technique and fishbone (cause-and-effect) diagram separate symptoms from systemic causes; fixing symptoms alone allows recurrence.

Ethical decision tests: is it legal, is it consistent with policy, would I be comfortable if it were public, and does it treat the person as an end rather than a means.