What is Administrative Review?

Administrative review is an intricate and vital process in criminology, serving as a watchdog to ensure that law enforcement agencies and other government organizations are executing their duties efficiently, effectively, and in compliance with established policies and procedures.

Typically, the process involves several complex steps, including identifying the scope of the review, gathering information, analyzing data, developing recommendations, and finally, implementing changes.

To begin, the first step in administrative review is to identify the specific area or issue that requires evaluation, which can vary from analyzing policies and procedures to scrutinizing personnel records or assessing data related to a particular activity or operation. The next step involves gathering information through an array of techniques such as interviewing personnel, scrutinizing documents and records, or conducting surveys or other data collection methods.

Afterward, the information collected is analyzed to identify areas that require improvement. The process might entail comparing existing practices with established standards or best practices and highlighting areas where policies and procedures are not followed as expected.

Based on the analysis, the subsequent step is to develop recommendations aimed at enhancing agency policies and procedures, including changes to training programs, revisions to use of force policies, or enhancements to internal investigations procedures.

Finally, the last stage of the administrative review process is to implement the recommended changes. This step may involve modifying policies and procedures, providing supplementary training to personnel, or allocating resources to support new initiatives.

Administrative review is crucial to promoting accountability, transparency, and public trust in the criminal justice system by ensuring that law enforcement agencies and other government organizations operate efficiently, effectively, and in accordance with established policies and procedures.