Payne, Troy C.2018-01-162018-01-162017-10-18Payne, Troy C. (2017). "How Do You Determine the Right Size of a Police Department? Don’t Look to Crime Rates." Alaska Justice Forum 34(2) (Fall 2017, online edition).0893-8903http://hdl.handle.net/11122/8083This article also appeared on pp. 3–5 of the Fall 2017 print edition.Studies have shown that changing the number of police officers has no effect on crime rates. This article explains why and describes alternative measures. An accompanying chart compares rates of violent crime in Alaska for 1986–2015 with the number of police officers per 1,000 residents for the same period.Why might police force size be related to crime? / What do the studies say? / Does this mean we can safely reduce the number of officers? / Is crime the only concern of police departments? / What about Alaska? / Referencesen-USAnchorage, AKcrime in Alaskalaw enforcementpoliceviolent crimeArticle