There are three bureaus within the UTPD, the Administrative Bureau, the Operations Bureau, and the Staff Services Bureau. Each Bureau has two or more divisions and together the bureaus and their divisions keep the UTPD running efficiently.

Operations     K-9     Bike Patrol   Traffic     Investigations       Administration     Central Records     Communications     Staff Services

Operations

The Operations Bureau is the largest functional division with a staff of fifty-three sworn employees. The bureau consists of the Patrol division, the Investigation division, and the Traffic division.

The Patrol Division is responsible for handling calls for service, tactical response to apprehend perpetrators and thwart crimes, strategic problem solving within the community, and enforcement of traffic laws. These objectives are accomplished through many means, the foremost being through deterrent patrol efforts and response to citizen complaints. 

The public calls upon the police to handle a vast range of incidents. In 2006, patrol officers responded to or initiated 55,000 calls for service. As a result of these responses, officers reported on over 9,000 incidents involving criminal activity and traffic violations.

Directed or Tactical Patrol Response uses accurate and timely information to predict when and where crimes are likely to be committed. In cooperation with other agency divisions, analysis of reported crimes, and general intelligence gathering, patrol efforts are directed to predicted problem areas. Bike patrol and the Hotel and Motel untis are examples of tactical responses that are available. 

K-9        

The seed was planted more than 6 years ago, but it wasn't until the Citizens' Police Academy class of 2007 wanted to do something for the Union Township Police Department that it became reality.
"This canine unit has been in the planning for more than six years, when we starting seeing a consistent annual increase in service calls," said Terry Zinser, U.T.P.D. police chief. "We just didn't have it in the budget."
But all that changed, Zinser said, when the 2007 police academy graduates raised some money as a thank you to the department. After the Board of Trustees approved the lion's share of the cost, plans were finally made for the purchase and training of Daron, Union Township's newest employee.
Daron is a 15-month old German Shepherd who arrived from Germany on Jan. 22. He was purchased through Von Der Haus Gill German Shepherds Inc., in Wapakoneta, Ohio, and began a 6-week course of training at that facility with Officer Mark Stephens on March 10.
"Daron is trained to find illegal narcotics, and for police protection and building and area searches," Stephens said. "He is trained in tracking suspects and, of course, attack."
And even though the 76-pound dog is still a pup, his training was so intense that he is already contributing as a police officer.

 "We have already met with success," Zinser said. "In the first week, there were two apprehensions due to the dog's ability to track, and two drug-related arrests by detection. This is why I consider it a safety issue for everybody involved. Because of the dog's great ability to track, we don't have to expose the officers to undue risks."
Zinser said compatibility is an important aspect of assigning an officer to a dog.
"We initially posted the job, and Officer Stephens was assigned to Daron because of his desire, his strong background in caring for animals (he grew up on a horse farm), and because he is in good physical condition," Zinser said. "He lives close enough to his beat that the response times from home have been great."
Stephens has his regular duty tours, but he is always on call, because of the dog. But he said he doesn't mind that duty and, in fact, Daron has already become a part of his family.
"I have a 6-year-old daughter and am in the process of getting Daron familiar with the family," Stephens said. "My wife takes him for walks and they also are nearby when we train, so he can see them. We train and exercise every day, either with other local police K-9s or by ourselves."
And how is this training so specialized?
"He only responds to my commands and will not listen to another person," Stephens said. "He is trained so that he is not dog-aggressive, which means he will do his job in the presence of other dogs and not worry about them."
That particular training came in handy in a recent chase where the suspect led Stephens into an area with other canines, a chase which ended in the apprehension and arrest of the suspect.
Stephens said that although having Daron as a partner is a huge commitment, they are with each other all the time and it is Daron's contributions that make the job so satisfying.
And speaking of contributions, Chief Zinser said he thanks the Clermont County Sheriff's Office and the Pierce Township Police Department for their help in developing the Union Township K-9 program, as well as Mt. Carmel Kroger, which donates all Daron's food.
"I'm glad we have finally incorporated this program into our services. As I said, it's a safety issue, and that's what we're all about," Zinser said.

Bike Patrol

Officers are certified Bike officers and have attended a 40 hour Police Mountain Bike School and are members of The International Police Mountain Bike Association.

The Police Department has two officers assigned to the bike unit. The officers will log over 100 miles of bike patrol in one month depending on the month to include their logged patrol time in a police cruiser. While on bike patrol, businesses and residences are checked by officers. Patrol by bicycle lends the officer the capability to be stealthy in their approach as opposed to a marked police cruiser and has proven successful on many occasions. This double duty has resulted in many arrests which are logged in our Press Release section of the police department's web page. 

Traffic 

The agency views traffic enforcement as an important responsibility, intended to protect lives and property. Clermont County consistently ranks among the top counties in Ohio for reported traffic crashes. The majority of traffic crashes in Clermont County occur in Union and Miami townships. Union Township officers investigated over 1,800 traffic crashes last year. Traffic crashes account for 20 percent of all reports handled by Union Township officers. The agency has four officers that are certified traffice accident reconstructionists to investigate serious and fatal traffic accidents.

Investigations

 The function of the Investigation Division is to investigate criminal offenses of a major or felony nature. These include but are not limited to homicide or questionable death, felonious assault, arson, robbery, burglary, rape, suicide, major theft, worthless documents, telephone harassment, kidnapping and abduction, stalking, runaways and missing persons. The division lends expertise and assistance to Patrol Division personnel when requested.

The investigation process is one of the most important police responses to the problem of crime. The division commander's duties are to identify and determine crime trends, devise solutions to reduce specific crimes in affected areas, and to make case assignments based on specific solvability factors.

The Investigation Division has two detectives assigned to specific types of crimes. The Youth Aid detective investigates allegations of child abuse and neglect, as well as juvenile sex abuse cases. Another detective is assigned to investigate white collar crime, including fraud, bad checks, confidence schemes, and Internet fraud.

In addition, we have a Master Evidence Technician who uses the mobile crime scene unit to gather physical evidence. The department has a facility on-site where some evidence is processed.

The division attempts to take a proactive approach to identify situations or circumstances which may require police attention. Information and intelligence is provided to the Patrol Division in an effort to target problem areas and increase chances of criminal apprehensions. 

Administration

The Administrative Services Bureau is composed of three functional divisions: Staff Services, Personnel, and Public Affairs. Services such as community outreach, media relations, personnel recruitment, training, accreditation, communications, and records are handled by the Bureau's members.

The Communications Section provides police, fire, and EMS dispatch services for all of Union Township and the Village of Amelia. Staffed 24 hours per day, the section answers thousands of telephone calls each month, coordinates the response of police officers to citizen calls for service, and sends fire and EMS units to fire and medical emergencies. Section personnel monitor and answer Emergency 9-1-1 calls, often having to calm excited callers and give first-aid or CPR instructions, a difficult task to perform over the telephone. In 2005, the section handled 51,598 calls for service.

Central Records

Union Township has a records clerk on duty from 8:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Record requests such as local background checks, report requests, and vendor permits are handled by the clerk who also takes care of any other requests of walk-ins.

Web Check

Web Check is offered on Wednesdays from 10 am to 3pm.

Cost:    BCI only: $25.00

             FBI only: $35.00

             FBI/BCI: $50.00

Only cash and checks accepted for payment.

Please call records at 513-753-2222 to ensure your results are back before returning to pick up.

Records mailing address: 4312 Gleneste-withamsville Rd., Cincinnati, Ohio 45245

If a clerk is not at the walk-up window there is a phone beside the window that can be picked up and will ring immediately into the Communications Center, which is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Communications

The Communications Section provides police, fire, and EMS dispatch services for all of Union Township and the Village of Amelia. Staffed 24 hours per day, the section answers thousands of telephone calls each month, coordinates the response of police officers to citizen calls for service, and sends fire and EMS units to fire and medical emergencies. Section personnel monitor and answer Emergency 9-1-1 calls, often having to calm excited callers and give first-aid or CPR instructions, a difficult task to perform over the telephone. In 2005, the section handled 51,598 calls for service.

2009 911 Statistics

911 Dispatch Center

Staff Services

The Staff Services Bureau is responsible for the following functions: recruiting & processing of new applicants for sworn and non-sworn positions; managing and scheduling all department training; department purchasing; issuing and inventorying of all department uniforms, equipment, and agency-owned property; fleet maintenance and management; police facility maintenance; and property room supervision.

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