Build-the-Case Doctrine

The problem

Residents want crimes solved and neighborhoods protected — but too much policing energy goes to activity that looks busy without making streets safer. When investigations stall and cases go nowhere, the community pays the price twice.

The plan

The Build-the-Case Doctrine makes evidence-led policing the department's operating model: investigations get the staffing, training and supervision they deserve, and success is measured by cases built and harm prevented.

In the first month, the Chief begins a baseline review of current investigative practice, General Orders and labor/legal requirements — so the doctrine is built on facts, not assumptions.

How you’ll know it’s working

• Completed investigative baseline published
• Updated General Orders reflecting the doctrine
• Case-clearance reporting residents can read
• Community trust survey trend

From the Blueprint

• Five-question enforcement checklist covers evidence sufficiency, prosecutorial viability, and proportionality.
• A TPD prosecutor liaison keeps standing coordination with the Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office.
• Three pilot squads switch from arrest-volume to case-quality metrics; evaluated at 90 and 180 days.
• City Attorney reviews what metric changes need bargaining versus a General Order.
• OCI publishes baseline case-quality and community trust metrics within 90 days.

Tampa's police officers will be evaluated on the quality of justice they deliver, not on the number of handcuffs they use.