|
Community Oriented Policing System
Taken from "Moore on Crime",
written by Sgt. Scott Singer,
former spokesman
of the Moore Police Department.
Old ways and new
programs somehow seem to find each other. In many applications, new
concepts founded on old ideas, applied with recent technology are having
a positive effect on the world around us. This is the case with the U.S.
Department of Justice's "C.O.P.S." grants program. Local police agencies
benefit from funds supplied by D.O.J. to promote crime prevention
programs. One such program-Community Oriented Policing System-is
founded on the ideal that cooperation between citizens and police equals
an effective crime fighting team.
Although C.O.P.S. is relatively new, the
basic premise is not. In our world today of impersonal contact, we have
lost the importance of the human connection. Decades ago, police
patrolled many beats on foot and in doing so, created a bond with
citizens from all walks of life within their jurisdiction. Today,
officers move from call to call in patrol cars, are constantly battling
the paperwork monster and personal contacts with folks on their beat are
brief.
C.O.P.S. hopes to change the
unapproachable officer image by providing for greater ease in making
contact with officers that will be assigned to specific beats. Permanent
assignments to given patrol areas allows for the officer and citizens to
know each other as people first and partners, second. This also provides
a sense of ownership in that officers will feel their district belongs
to them and citizens will begin to accept a role in the protection of
their neighborhood.
Contact
Another feature of the program addresses the age-old problem of talking
to a person when questions arise or problems require discussion. One of
the most common complaints registered with businesses, schools or police
departments is the inability to speak with a person. Most all of us have
expressed anger at having left messages by voice mail or with other
persons that are not returned. Many low-key issues have become heated
items simply because citizens feel they are ignored or that their
problem is of little importance to whom-ever they are trying to contact.
This concern can be remedied by providing other contact options. The
communications medium has grown and with it the means exist to speak to
almost anyone, anywhere. Cell phones, pagers, and e-mail have in the
past been an untapped means of contacting your local police department.
Not anymore. Police administrators will be making use of these resources
to put officers in touch with citizens to further an effective and
cooperative communications program designed to identify the needs of the
officers patrol beat.
From call boxes
to computers
In the old days of police communications, the call box and radio were
how officers spoke with one another and the police station. The C.O.P.S.
program stresses the need for direct contact. To that end, at least
within the Moore Police Department, plans for the near future include
the ability to e-mail your district's officer. Maps with the names of
officers permanently assigned to your district will appear on the police
departments web page, allowing any citizen to e-mail their questions,
concerns or crime information to the officer responsible for their area.
During slack periods, officers will make personal contacts with
residents and business owners. These efforts will hopefully develop
trust, which in turn will develop a strong crime fighting team.
Officer O'Malley
returns
When people think of the beat cop, the swaggering, baton-swinging image
of Officer O'Malley often comes to mind. Everyone on his beat knew his
face, his name. His counsel was widely sought and shopkeepers and
residents alike felt secure. Children clung to his pants leg and
criminals knew better pickings were found on someone else's beat, in
some other town.
Copyright © 2000 by
Scott Singer. North American first serial rights reserved.
|
