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Unit 13: Communication and Leadership

Notes

Case Study Police Miscue Told in Bus Incident

ometimes a communication miscue not only embarrasses and inconveniences people,
it may also endanger lives. Such was the case one evening when police pulled over
Sa bus outside Chicago and stormed it, looking for a murder suspect (who wasn't on
the bus). The incident started with a tip-off from the murder victim's family that the
suspect might be travelling by bus from Chicago to Milwaukee. Chicago police issued a
warning to other local police as well as the state police that the suspect might be on the
bus, but to "let him pass." Then they notified the Milwaukee police, who were ready to
pick up the suspect as soon as he arrived. But Glencoe and state police interpreted the
message to mean that they should stop the bus and make an arrest.
"There wasn't anything ambiguous about it," declares Paul Harlow, director of public
safety in Glencoe. "The message was that you have a suspect who is wanted for homicide,
and that's probably in my understanding the highest priority message you can put out."
So passengers were filed off the bus, herded to the side of the road, frisked, and held there
for several hours. Traffic on the highway was jammed up for miles. Meanwhile, the
suspect had actually boarded another bus to Milwaukee, where he was arrested later. Law
enforcement experts claim that, had he been on the stopped bus, the situation could have
become dangerous very quickly.
What caused this communication miscue? First, there was no formal pattern of
communication leading to a clear chain of command. Second, there were errors in
perception. The message (that Chicago police intended as merely informational) was
received and interpreted by other police departments as a request for action. Third, there
was no feedback about the message from receiver to sender – instead, the bus was stormed.
The California Highway Patrol has a policy that would have prevented such a miscue: an
officer may not take action such as pulling over a bus unless he or she has received
approval from a supervisor at headquarters. "We want to make sure that someone that has
a slightly different perspective that may not be caught up in the situation can provide
guidance," explains Steve Kohler of the organisation. It is a safe bet that police departments
around Chicago are now working on improving communications.
Questions

1. What steps might state and local police take to improve communication with each
other?
2. What type of formal communication patterns might work best in a situation like
this?

3. How might non-verbal communication play a role (positively or negatively) in a
situation like this, where rapid, accurate communication is essential?
Source: Louis Carlozo and Doglas Holt, "Bus Drama Turns up Empty," Chicago Tribunal, May 21, 1994
Sec.1 page 1, 9.
13.5 Definitions and Meaning of Leadership

Researchers rarely agree on what is meant by leadership. Different investigators define it in
different ways. Although there is some consensus on general statements such as "leaders have
followers" and "effective leaders somehow get others to do things that are helpful for group
performance", exactly how and why performance increases is unclear. Some consensus, however,

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