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Defining Community Policing at LAPD
The Los Angeles Police Department is committed to "community
policing" ... but what exactly does that mean?
I was pleased to learn that Chief Martin Pomeroy wants to know,
too. He's asked Commander Jim McDonnell, the Special Assistant to
the Chief of Police, to put together a definition of Community Policing
... a kind of "mission statement" for Community Policing
at LAPD.
Among other duties related to FASTRACK and reporting that evaluates
command effectiveness to the Chief, McDonnell was recently assigned
as the Department’s Senior Lead Officer (SLO) program coordinator,
and the Safe Parks coordinator ... and he provides management oversight
for the Department’s Community Policing efforts and strategies.
"The Chief believes a meaningful definition for community policing
will be an important tool in helping shape the relationship between
the community and the Department as we move forward," Commander
McDonnell explained. "My staff and I are putting this together,
and have produced a working definition. But it's a work in progress
and at this point we're seeking input from the community."
I asked Commander McDonnell how soon he thought the Department would
complete the process.
"While we'd like to have a definition for the community and
for our officers as soon as possible," he said, "it's
certainly not something that should be developed in a vacuum. This
is too important to be handled like that. We'll not hurry through
this at the expense of not giving the community as well as the Department
an opportunity for input."
Commander McDonnell forwarded a copy of the working definition to
me, but again stressed this is a work in progress.
"Please help me get the word out," he said. "We're
getting a lot of positive response to this already, and we want
to make sure everyone's included."
You can contact Commander Jim McDonnell with your feedback at the
office of the Special Assistant to the Chief by calling: 213 / 485-2985
Here's the working definition so far:
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LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT
DEFINITION OF COMMUNITY POLICING
(a work in progress)
The Definition
Community Policing is both an organizational strategy and personal
philosophy that promotes police/community partnerships and proactive
problem solving along with other public service agencies and community-based
organizations to:
1. Reduce crime
2. Reduce the fear of crime
3. Improve the overall quality of life in our neighborhoods
4. Improve customer satisfaction with police service
Components of Community Policing
1. Partnership between police and community
2. Partnership between police and other community agencies/resources
3. Identifying, prioritizing, and solving problems
4. Universal participation by Department employees and our City/Government
counterparts
5. Maintenance of Public Order (Broken Window issues)
6. A commitment to the "territorial imperative" in order to build
relationships and develop trust over time
The Concept
Community Policing is a customer service-oriented approach to policing
that embodies a true partnership, one in which all stakeholders
advise, listen and learn, and the resultant strategies reflect that
input. Community Policing involves a commitment from all Department
employees at every level in the organization to work smarter in
finding creative approaches to traditional and non-traditional problems,
and to do so in an environment that recognizes and rewards integrity,
creativity, courage and commitment.
Community Policing in the Los Angeles Police Department will empower
our communities to harden their targets. Community Policing is about
information gathering, it's about talking to people, and it's about
results. As such, it is a force multiplier that causes us to look
out, proactively, for one another and make use of all available
resources. The result will be reduced crime and an improved quality
of life in our City. It is important that we treat one another and
our customers the way we would want a member of our family to be
treated. It is about viewing Los Angeles as our home, whether or
not this is the City in which we live. Through Community Policing,
we will march together toward a shared vision of our Department,
our residents, our business communities, and our visitors of making
Los Angeles the safest big city in the world.
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Contact:
Commander Jim McDonnell
Special Assistant to the Chief
213 / 485-2985
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see also:
Defining
"Community Policing" - feedback
A letter from Dr. Arthur Jones and Dr. Robin Wiseman
to friends of Community Policing:
LAPD, Police Commission, Mayor Hahn
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