« Community Oriented Policing

Traditionally, police have been viewed as the "front end of the criminal justice system, aloof from the citizens and communities they policed, and accountable not to citizens but to the principles of their profession." They cruise the streets in their patrol cars looking for criminal activity and respond to emergency calls received from citizens and dispatched through their radios. In the past, police departments have done little to prevent crime. They focused their energy and expertise on solving crimes and catching the perpetrators.

This traditional approach to policing fits the job term "law enforcement" with precision, however, falls short of meeting community needs because it does little to prevent crimes from occurring. Certainly the typical citizen is happy when a bad guy is caught and incarcerated, but they would be happier if the crime had never occurred.

As our society has become more complex, the approach to policing has gradually changed. Today, police departments across the country are moving toward what is called Community Oriented Policing (COP). This approach is based on two fundamental assumptions:

• Many crimes can be prevented; and
• Policing is the responsibility of the entire community.

"COP is the merging of two different policing philosophies: Problem Oriented Policing and Response to Incidents. Problem Oriented Policing uses problem solving to proactively address the causes of crime rather than dealing with the results of crime. Response to Incidents, on the other hand, places an emphasis on responding to calls for service. [...]both components of this integrated philosophy are important. [The] goal is to respond to calls for service in a quick and professional manner, and to determine what steps can be taken to reduce the need for future police responses."

With COP, the primary goal of policing moves from making the most arrests to minimizing the number of crimes. Working closely with the community, the police work to identify crime targets and facilitate preventative actions.

Traditional Policing, in some ways, is like an occupying army and relies on what is commonly referred to as hard skills, such as the use of a nightstick and accuracy with firearms. COP, on the other hand, requires the addition of soft skills. Officers must learn techniques on how to analyze facts, develop working relationships with the community, find resources, and develop strategic plans to accomplish crime prevention goals.

COP is unique in that the community must in part, tailor it. "...if we are to address the crime problem in ways that affect the lives of citizens in their communities, we must do so with a strategy and set of tactics that respond to citizen priorities." Every community is different. The demographics, education, economics, location and density are some of the important factors used in defining what type of policing is best suited for a community. Residents, business owners and other citizens in the community must help the police to define their goals and to identify where problems exist. This must be an ongoing commitment from the community.

In addition to the Police Department, other City departments must be committed to COP for it to be effective. Personnel from Housing, Code Enforcement, Planning, Public Works, and Recreation Departments are sources of information for the police planning, and offer many of the resources needed to prevent crimes.

On a larger scale, the economic development of a community is even part of COP. "If a window in a building is broken and is left unrepaired, all the rest of the windows will soon be broken...[O]ne unrepaired broken window is a signal that no one cares, and so breaking more windows costs nothing." When a neighborhood is run down, the signal is even stronger.

Leadership is the key to success. The Mayor and City Council must be firmly committed to COP and provide direction that ensures its implementation. As a community moves toward COP, the City Council must set the tone that ensures cooperation between departments and they must establish the standards that will measure success.

COP is not merely putting officers on foot patrol or sending officers to neighborhood association meetings, nor is it a public relations strategy. "In reality, community policing is nothing less than a completely new paradigm, in which a focus on crime prevention replaces the old reactive policing model."

Within the Police Department, implementation of COP likewise requires strong leadership. The challenge is to move the Department into using a new policing philosophy, while maintaining quality-service during the transition. The police administrators must lead the department through such things as:

• Training of COP skills to officers;
• Overcoming officer resistance;
• Balancing Problem Oriented Policing and Response to Incidents;
• Nurturing relationships with other City Departments;
• Identifying and establishing strong relationships with other resources outside of the City's jurisdiction, such as Park and Fire Personnel and adjoining police agencies;
• Developing new personnel measurement standards; and
• Restructuring of the Department, its processes and personnel assignments, as required, to address the desires and concerns of the community.

As with any organizational changes of this magnitude, the police management implementing COP must:

• Make sure that everyone understands the vital nature of the proposed change;
• Provide an understandable vision that promises realistic solutions to problems;
• Itemize the steps that will be taken to attain the vision;
• Describe the benefits that the organization and the individuals will gain from the change; and
• Demonstrate a firm commitment to the change.

Implementation of COP is a major undertaking, but does not require massive, simultaneous changes. Each community can evolve into this new approach at a pace that fits the community's needs. The transition does, however, require the participation of all parts of the community. "While COP could not succeed without a strong commitment from the Department, we also [need] a similar commitment from the other City agencies and from the community at large."

Meeting the overall goal of breaking the cycle of criminal patterns is sufficient reward for the effort required to move to COP.

Over the past ten years, Takoma Park has experienced some of the same problems of larger urban areas dealing with violence outbreaks, youth crime and different trends of drug use.

Our Police Department has the training, structure, intelligence and informant networks that ensure a high probability that anyone committing a series of crimes in Takoma Park and surrounding jurisdictions will likely be caught.

Around 1991 the Takoma Park Police began using some Problem Oriented Policing approaches. They moved to restructure the department to better meet the community needs and searched for resources. During that time period juvenile crime involving drugs, drive-by shootings and similar crimes began to increase. The Takoma Park Police applied for a grant and hired an officer to work with the Recreation Department to reach out to city youth in an attempt to steer them away from criminal activity. Occasionally, when a young person was arrested this youth officer would develop a specific plan to work with the child and his/her parents to prevent future involvement.

Several youth programs sprang from this outreach work. Recreation and Police Department employees took many youths on trips to Camp Letts and the Hemlock Overlook confidence course. They held job fairs for the youth, acted as liaisons with the courts, and had more interactions with the schools and particularly the children themselves.

By the early 1990's, there was an increase in the number of legal and illegal immigrants settling in Langley Park. Some of the new settlers had no skills. They could not read or write, even in their own language. Soon, the Takoma Park Police found they were arresting members of this community for selling drugs and stealing cars to support themselves and their families.

Using the Problem Oriented Policing approach, Takoma Park had their new immigrant outreach officer work with the children from different countries and their families. They organized health fairs and job fairs, helped people find work, and turned to the Hispanic Catholic center, Casa De Maryland, and TESS for assistance in helping the community. The Police also worked with businesses in Takoma Park soliciting donations of excess food for the community on the theory that many people might be stealing just to keep their families fed.

The overall effort was to help the new arrivals settle in the area. These programs helped to reduce crime from this population segment in Takoma Park.

This type of crime prevention orientation continued to grow in usage in Takoma Park for about four years. Then, as personnel changed and different management philosophies were implemented, crime prevention was de-emphasized. Today, the Takoma Park Police use this approach on a limited basis. Where used, it is frequently successful.