LEA 4 - LAW ENFORCEMENT OPERATIONS AND

PLANNING W/CRIME MAPPING

CHAPTER 4

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES (SOPs)

Standard Operating Procedures or SOPs are products of police operational planning
adopted by the police organization to guide the police officers in the conduct of their duties
and functions, especially during field operations.

CATEGORIES OF POLICE OPERATIONS

Patrol Operations. The most basic police function and known as the backbone of policing.

Law Enforcement Operations. Include service of warrant of arrest, implementation of

search warrant, enforcement of visitorial powers of the Chiefs of Police, and other anti-
criminality operations.

Internal Security Operations. Include counterterrorism operations and similar operations

against other threat groups that are conducted to ensure internal security.

Public Safety Operations. Include critical incident management procedures, search, rescue
and retrieval operations, hostage situation, civil disturbance management operation,
management of health hazards and other operations that promote public safety.

Special Police Operations. Include high-risk checkpoint and roadblock operation, police
assistance in the implementation of order from the court and other quasi-judicial bodies,
security to major and special events, aircraft hijacking operations, visit, board, search and
seizure of marine vessels, and similar police operations that are conducted by police units
with specialized training on the peculiarity of the mission or purpose.

Investigation Operations. Include investigation of crime incident, Scene of the Crime

Operations (SOCO), administrative investigation and other investigative work necessary to
determine facts and circumstances for filing cases criminally or administratively.

Police Community Relations. Include three interrelated dimensions to accomplish its

mission namely: community affairs and development, public information, and information
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development operations to forge partnership and strengthen collaboration and linkages with
the community.

REQUIREMENTS OF POLICE OPERATION BASIC REQUIREMENTS.

Police operations such as but not limited to arrest, search and seizure, checkpoint,
roadblocks, and civil disturbance management shall, whenever applicable and practicable, be
conducted as follows:
a. With marked police vehicle;
b. Led by a Police Commissioned Officer (PCO) or the most senior Police Non-
Commissioned Officer (PNCO) in the absence or unavailability of a PCO; and
c. With personnel in prescribed police uniform except for covert operatives when
serving warrant of arrest provided personnel in uniform shall be present during the arrest
d. With the use of Body Worn Cameras (BWCs) and/or Alternative Recording
Devices (ARDs) during the conduct of searches and arrests.

USE OF FORCE POLICY

In the lawful performance of duty, a police officer shall use necessary and reasonable
force to accomplish his or her mandated task of enforcing the law and maintaining peace and
order.
However, a police officer is not required to afford the offender/s attacking him/her the
opportunity for a fair or equal struggle.
The necessity and the reasonableness of the force employed will depend upon the
following (POP Manual, 2021, section 2-4)
1. the number of aggressor,
2. Nature and characteristic of the weapon used,
3. Physical condition,
4. Size and other circumstances to include the place and occasion of the assault.
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THREE APPROACHES ON THE USE OF FORCE CONTINUUM

The Force Continuum is a linear- progressive decision-making process which
displays the array of police reasonable responses commensurate to the level of suspect/law
offender's resistance to effect compliance, arrest and other law enforcement actions.
Allows police officer responses to be flexible and/or employ reasonable force in either
sequential, consecutive or combination of options against the dynamic suspect/s or law
offender/s threats or resistances. In all instances, the professional and respectful demeanor of
police as public safety servants, civil use of language, well-mannered decorum and utmost
respect for human rights shall be observed.

There are three (3) approaches on the Use of force Continuum, they are:
Non-lethal Approach - this involves the police presence in crime-prone areas and the
employment of activities or actions to persuade and/or request cooperation of people
particularly suspects and law offenders to police instructions and other control efforts.

Less Lethal Approach - this involves the employment of less equipment that does not cause
serious injury and/or dear. that less physical measures have been tried and deemed
inappropriate purposely to ensure cooperation, compliance or surrender. the age, gender and
health condition of offenders shall be considered before employment of less lethal equipment.
• Less lethal equipment includes impact weapons such as Batons, Truncheons and/or
Night stick

Lethal Approach - this involves the employment of lethal equipment usually as a last resort.
Lethal force will only be employed when all other approaches have been exhausted
and found to be insufficient to thwart the life-threatening actions or omissions posed by
armed suspect or law offender. This approach carries with it the greater responsibility as it
may result in sever injury and serious bodily harm and/or death. ASUS

USE OF FIREARM DURING POLICE OPERATIONS

Use of Firearm When Justified. The use of firearm is justified if the offender poses an
imminent danger of causing death or injury to the police officer or other persons.
The use of firearm is also justified under the doctrines of self-defense, defense of a
relative, and defense of a stranger. However, one who resorts to self-defense must face a real
threat on his/her life, and the peril sought to be avoided must be actual, imminent and real.
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Unlawful aggression should be present for self-defense to be considered as a justifying

circumstance.
The police shall not use warning shots during police operation except when the police
officer is outnumbered and overpowered, and his/her life and limb is in imminent danger.

Firing at Moving Vehicles is prohibited. A moving vehicle and its occupants shall not be
fired upon except when its occupants pose imminent danger of causing death or injury to the
police officer or any other person, and that the use of firearm does not create any danger to
the public and outweighs the likely benefits of its non-use.

In firing at a moving vehicle, the following parameters should be considered:

a. The intent of the suspect/s to harm the police officer or other persons;
b. The capability of the suspect/s to harm with certainty the police officer or other
persons; and
c. Accessibility or the proximity of the suspect/s from the police officer and other
persons.

Filing of an Incident Report After the Use of Firearm. A police officer who fires his/her
service firearm or weapon during a confrontation with an offender or offenders must submit
an incident report outlining the circumstances necessitating the use of his/her firearm. SUS

PROCEDURES AFTER AN ARMED CONFRONTATION. Immediately an armed

confrontation, the officer who is in charge Gre operation, when applicable, shall:
a. Secure the site of confrontation;
b. Check whether the situation still poses imminent danger;
c. Take photographs;
d. Evacuate all wounded to the nearest hospital regardless of the extent of injury;
e. Keep arrested suspects in isolation;
f. Conduct debriefing on all involved PNP operatives;
g. Submit After-Operations Report; and
h. Ensure psychological stress counselling for all involved PNP Operatives.
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PATROL OPERATIONS
Patrol Guidelines
a. Conduct briefing before and debriefing after patrol operations
b. Perform firearm and equipment check prior to dispatch.
c. Observe precautionary measures and personal safety while on patrol;
d. Plan out patrol routes based on prevailing crime trends and patterns;
e. Observe defensive driving and follow traffic rules and regulations;
f. Establish good rapport with people on your beat and be familiar with all the people
in the community;
g. Patrol members must be always on the look-out for indicate vices and other illegal
activities on their beat;
h. Patrol members must be knowledgeable of all conditions, events and details of
places on their beat;
i. Be observant of people, places, situations or conditions and develop an inquisitive
attitude especially if the subject appears to be slightly out of the ordinary;
j. Keep under close observation actions of juveniles, troublemakers / agitators and the
mentally ill/retarded persons and report information to the concerned agency for appropriate
action;
k. When requiring proof of identification from any person, let him/her hand it over to
you;
1. Patrol members must inform tactical operations center before responding to any
incident.

LAW ENFORCEMENT OPERATION

Stopping and Frisking (Pat-Down Search)

When to Stop and Frisk (Pat-Down Search)

STOPPING. The police officer may stop a person only when there is genuine reason to
believe, based on experiences and the particular circumstances that a criminal activity may be
afoot. The police officer must be able to point to specific facts that, when taken together with
rational inferences, reasonably warrant the stop. Such facts include, but not limited to the
following:
a) The person is reported to be allegedly involved in a criminal activity;
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b) The actions or demeanor of the person suggest that he/she is engaged in a criminal
activity;
c) The person is carrying something illegal or when his/her clothing bulges in a
manner that suggests he/she is carrying a weapon; and
d) The person is seen at the time and place proximate to an alleged crime incident
and/or flees at the sight of a police officer.

Procedure and guidelines:

1. When approaching the person, the police officer shall treamy identify
himself/herself and present his/her identification card.
2. Police officers shall be courteous at all times but remain cautious and vigilant.
3. Before approaching more than one person, police officers should determine
whether the circumstances warrant a request for back-up or whether the stopping should be
delayed until such back-up arrives.
4. Police officers shall confine their questions in relation to the grounds for stopping
the person. In no instance shall a police officer stop a person longer than the period
reasonably necessary.
5. Police officers are not required to inform the person of his/her right under the law
unless the person is placed under arrest.

BODY FRISKING (PAT-DOWN SEARCH). A police officer has right to perform body
frisking if the person has been stopped with genuine reason to believe that he/she carries
weapon/s and poses a threat to the police officer's or another person's safety. Circumstances
which may justify body frisking (pat-down search) include but not limited to the following:
a) Visual indication suggesting that the person is carrying a firearm or other deadly
weapon;
b) The type of crime believed to have been committed by the person, particularly
crimes of violence where the threat of use or use of deadly weapon is involved; and
c) The threatening demeanor of the person
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Procedures and guidelines:

1. Whenever possible, body frisking shall be done by at least two (2) police officers,
one to do the search while the other provides security. It shall be done with the person in a
standing position with hands raised. The police officers are permitted only to feel the outer
clothing of the person. Police officers shall not place their hands inside the pockets of the
clothing, unless they feel an object that could probably be a weapon such as a gun, knife, club
or the like.
2. If the person is carrying an object such as a handbag, suitcase, briefcase, sack or
other similar items that may conceal weapon, the police officer shall not open the item but
instead put it in a place out of the person's reach.
3. If the external patting of the person's clothing fails to disclose evidence of a
weapon, no further search may be made. If a weapon is found and the possession of which
constitutes a violation of the law, the police officer shall arrest the person and conduct a
complete search.

REFERENCE/S:
- PCol Judy S. Lopez and PCpl Thomas B Taynan, Jr. – Law Enforcement Operations
and Planning with Crime Mapping (2023)