This research study examines the American paramilitary units know as Special Weapons and Tactics. Throughout this thesis, the fundamental and foundational research on police paramilitary units is presented and discussed. Additionally, this paper focuses on trends of militarization in American policing. Mainly, these trends are identified by the tremendous rise and normalization of American paramilitary police units since the internal societal wars of the 1970s. In this study, research is presented on Special Weapons and Tactics team deployments in the state of Maryland. Four years of data are analyzed focusing on proactive search warrant crime deployments from 2010 through 2013. Several independent variables including, violent crime rates, property crime rates, vice type crime rates and the number of sworn law enforcement officers are examined. The most important finding of this study is the inverse relationship between proactive vice type arrests and the proactive search warrant SWAT team deployments. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) officers constitute a subgroup of specialized law enforcement officers that perform a variety of tactical operations while wearing approximately 40 kg of tactical gear. Lower back pain is a prevalent musculoskeletal injury suffered by SWAT officers. Tactical gear places significant stress on the lower back. Thus, it is important to quantify the effect that tactical gear has on muscle activation levels of torso musculature while performing occupational tasks. Electromyography was evaluated on 20 male subjects (age: 34.7±4.5 yr.; height: 1.79±.10 m; body mass: 91.53±17.32 kg; mass of gear: 13.82±1.90 kg) while performing four tactical tasks (standing, rifle walk, sitting, & shield walk) with and without gear. Electromyography was evaluated bilaterally on the erector spinae, rectus abdominis, and external oblique muscles. The dominant erector spinae (mean delta: +0.16%) and external oblique (mean delta: -0.124%) demonstrated significant changes in muscle activation with the addition of gear, which may indicate increased spinal compression. There were also trends of increased co-activation of core musculature with the addition of gear. The rifle walk and shield walk task mean muscle activations were significantly higher than the standing and sitting tasks. The shield walk produced the highest mean activations for each muscle. Physical training for SWAT officers should emphasize exercises that simulate task-specific movement patterns without gear to decrease the spinal compression associated with load carriage.

A career as a police officer has served as a legitimate avenue for many Black Americans to elevate themselves from numerous low paying less prestigious jobs, to a more respectable better paying secured occupation that has a higher social economic status. The general perception related to the civil service position of a police officer, suggests that it is an occupation which should offer an environment free from discrimination and nepotism, thereby allowing fair treatment and equal access for advancement to all individuals employed within the police organization. The concept of a police organization that offers fair treatment and equal access for advancement to all of its employees in a climate that is free from discrimination and nepotism is the subject of considerable skepticism among many black police officers. Police departments throughout the United States of America have been challenged by a highly visible accusation of discrimination and nepotism in regards to the selection process and the police personnel selected to become members of elite police specialty units. This thesis traces the historical involvement of black police officers in The United States and their progression to obtain equality and fair treatment as police officers within the law enforcement community. This thesis examines the racial demographics of eighteen (18) police departments located in various sections of the United States and the racial demographics of the elite police specialty units which are incorporated within each police department. In addition, this thesis will analyze collected data from the police departments that participated in the study and determine if the minority representation within each of the police department's elite police specialty units is equal to the general population which the police departments serve and proportionate to the minority representation within the police department. Finally, this thesis will examine data identifying Black American's representation in significant areas of the criminal justice system, thus analyzing the correlation between Black American's over-representation in the criminal components of the criminal justice system and their under-representation within police departments and elite police specialty units.

Dissertation / This dissertation analyses the effectiveness of specialised units within the South African Police Services as exemplified by the Gauteng Waterwing Unit. Factors influencing the effectiveness are analysed, and the advisability of making these units permanent units within the South African Police Services structure is evaluated. Different policing styles are discussed with regard to their effectiveness in different situations and their applicability in the water policing context. Possible corrective actions to reduce the influence of factors hindering service delivery are proposed. The analyses were accomplished by examination of the literature supplemented by practical field observations and interviews. / Police Practice / M.Tech (Policing)

Dissertation / This dissertation analyses the effectiveness of specialised units within the South African Police Services as exemplified by the Gauteng Waterwing Unit. Factors influencing the effectiveness are analysed, and the advisability of making these units permanent units within the South African Police Services structure is evaluated. Different policing styles are discussed with regard to their effectiveness in different situations and their applicability in the water policing context. Possible corrective actions to reduce the influence of factors hindering service delivery are proposed. The analyses were accomplished by examination of the literature supplemented by practical field observations and interviews. / Police Practice / M.Tech (Policing)