Chief David Gorski Brings Police Science To Grays Hall

"Thinking about crime is a lot like going for a physical or buying life insurance," Harvard's new police chief, David L. Gorski says. Gorski says his primary concern is crime prevention, and under his leadership, the Harvard University Police Force has taken on a slick, sophisticated, and highly technical look. A proponent of "security consciousness" in the community as the best deterrent to crime, he has also encouraged the development of crime detection techniques.

"In a university it's critical that we maintain an open environment, a sense of free access for members of the community," Gorski says. "But that, of course, adds another dimension to security work." With a budget of $1.4 million, 90 per cent of which is in salaries, the Harvard cops have to do their work within fairly limited means.

Gorski's major technical innovation has been the installation of the Management Information System, a computer which records and prints out all daily police activities, and is supposed to make police deployment and general crime prevention work more scientifically. "We have to equal out the work load among out personnel," says Gorski.

The computerized approach paved the way for a major change in the administrative and financial structure of the police force. Under the old system, each faculty or area of the University requested a given amount of police protection and assistance, on an annual basis, and was billed according to its request. Deployment of the force was in large part determined by laymen who were without access to any scientific means of analyzing their actual needs. Under the Gorski system, the police force assigns personnel to the departments based on statistical evidence of need, then bills them accordingly.

Gorski plans to hire a new captain to work solely in administration and records and is significantly increasing the number of police patrolling in cars, instead of on foot, in a concerted effort to improve visibility.

A key issue hanging over Gorski's head right now is the prospect of a new police contract. Although the old contract has expired, spokesmen for the University and Patrolmen's Association head Lawrence Letteri say negotiations are completely stalemated. Letteri originally demanded the addition of 12 patrolmen to the 49-member force, citing a 17 per cent increase in crime at Harvard over the last two years. Gorski, who is not in the union, acknowledges a rise in property crimes, but points to a decrease in crimes against person and adamantly opposes any jump in the size of the force.

"Twelve new employees would mean an additional expenditure of $170,000," Gorski says. "If our goal is to reduce crime, that sum of money could be far better spent, perhaps on mechanical devices such as alarms and sophisticated locks."

Gorski adds that on a year-round basis, 12 additional cops would only mean two more men on the beat each day. "It would be a sad commentary on the state of affairs here if the University had to hire more security personnel while cutting back on faculty," he says.

Perhaps the difference of opinion between Gorski and Letteri on the personnel question is indicative of a more substantive dispute. Gorski is leading the department in a new, more technically-oriented direction, which inevitably means less dependence on individual patrolmen. Although members of the force have voiced no complaints about the changes he has made, Letteri may well be voicing the concern of his union over the shifting emphasis in the police force.

In any case, it has been clear from the outset that the University has no intention of increasing the size of the force, and sources say the Patrolmen's Association is either prepared to, or has already, withdrawn the demand. The continuing negotiations, aided by a state mediator, are likely to deal solely with a salary increase.

Gorski expects that the police force policy on drugs--a kind of no policy--will remain the same. "Except for cases of sale of narcotics, in which we have no choice but to take action, our attitude has obviously been pretty relaxed," he says.

When Harvard police make an arrest, the suspect is booked in Cambridge city jail. Cambridge police are also called in for all crimes against person, and in the past, the dependence of the Harvard force on Cambridge for investigative work has been almost complete. Although Gorski knows that this dependence will have to continue in part, he is trying to bring some of those investigative skills to Harvard.

The coming academic year, Gorski's first full one as police chief, will be something of a test of the applicability of sophisticated police science to security work at Harvard. Gorski seems confident.