You don’t need to be a technologist to lead your agency through AI adoption. But you do need a plan.

AI in law enforcement doesn’t look like science fiction. It looks like transcription software. Real-time alerting tools. Dispatch optimization. Automated web responses. Risk scoring in your analytics dashboard. You didn’t ask for AI—but your vendors already gave it to you.

If you’re a chief or deputy chief in 2025, your role isn’t to code. Your role is to govern.

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Three Things Every Chief Needs to Understand

1. AI Is Already in Your Stack

If your dispatch vendor uses “natural language processing,” that’s AI. If your RMS auto-generates reports or flags risk patterns, that’s AI. You don’t need to opt in—you're already in. The question is whether you’ve accounted for it.

2. You’re Accountable Even if the Vendor Isn’t

When AI outputs lead to bad decisions, your agency—not your vendor—takes the heat. FOIA requests, media scrutiny, lawsuits, and oversight boards will want to see the internal policy, audit logs, and decision trails. That responsibility lands at the command level.

3. You Can Delegate Tasks—Not Risk

You can assign staff to review outputs, manage vendors, and log decisions. But you can’t outsource command-level responsibility. The public expects your agency to know what systems it's using, how they’re classified, and what safeguards are in place.