Police Enforcement And Community Policing

The third and present day era of policing is Community Policing. Community policing is an organization-wide philosophy and management approach that promotes community, government and police partnerships; proactive problem solving; and community engagement to address the causes of crime, fear of crime and other community issues (Hess, Wrobleski pg. 10). Community policing goes beyond the traditional policing from the previous eras. Officers are assigned to designated areas, in which they get to know the citizens of the neighborhoods they are assigned. They use a more effective means of patrol such as foot patrol, and bicycle patrol. They do not just patrol around in vehicles, and respond to service calls. This goes back to one of Peel’s principles, “Police must secure the willing co-operation of the public in voluntary observance of the law to be able to secure and maintain the respect of the public. The police must obtain a more involved relationship with the citizen of a community in order for the community to help the police with their patrolling to deter crime.

In a community policing environment, emphasis is placed on decentralization, a recognition that crime control is only one function of law enforcement, and on the development, through police–community engagement, of a more intimate relationship between the police and the public (Ortmeier 144). Community policing is vital to the success of a police department. The concept allows officers to get out and interact with those whom they serve. It enables police officers to make the community feel safe by having their presence always be felt and known. While it is met with both negative and positive feelings throughout the law enforcement community the benefits of it cannot be overlooked.

Community policing is explained as a collaboration of community and the police working together to help identify and solve criminal activities. Additionally, the whole concept behind it is to promote public safety and to enhance the quality of life within the neighborhoods in which we reside in. Community policing is composed of two major components which are community partnership and problem solving. Community policing is a program that was initially started in the 1940’s. All of the support that was released for this program was materialized actually in the 1980’s. One of the main goals if not the most important goal was to bring in the law enforcement closer to their local public to help

The Community Policing era has been one of the contemporary police activities in the last 30 years. It is more of a decentralized approach to reducing crime by involving the same officer in the same community on a long term basis, so residents will develop trust and then provide information and assistance to the officer. Community Policing does not replace motorized patrol or other police tactics but instead compliments them with community partnership and problem solving (Bailey, 2011).

Law Enforcement officers have one of the most critical jobs in the United States. Their lives are always on the line and they are of high regards. This means they cannot fail! The results of their jobs do not only depend on their actions but also on the people. What this means is the community has a huge role when it comes to solving crime. Though many people may not believe it, they are the key to a successful crime prevention community. The people of the United States don’t really understand both the positive and negative effects that community policing actually brings. Some may say it is very dangerous based on their experiences. Others may say it’s the best way to do away with crime. Today the two will be compared and put to test by true officers serving our country. The facts will be stated and questions will be answered. Let’s take a look at what community policing is really all about!

Community policing was defined as “police officers working with community members to address the causes of crime and to prevent crimes from occurring, rather than just responding to crimes after they have occurred.” Officers and the community benefitted with improved attitudes

Community policing techniques may vary from suburban communities and inner cities because of the demographics of the regions. Community policing in suburban communities can certainly contribute to a greater decrease in crime because of the close quarters police officers have with the members of the community. Community policing is designed as a proactive approach in reducing crime in the community. A collaborative relationship between law enforcement and individuals only strengthens the trust with the police. Indeed this relationship is embedded in suburban areas because policer officers are constantly personalizing their response calls. In addition, Law enforcement agencies in suburban community may rely on more financial base resources in contributing to the infrastructure of neighborhoods. For example, policies are implemented in renovating after school programs for the better of the community. Many police officers

Recent incidents of police brutality have brought up critical discussions on policing and law enforcement across the country. The nation seems to have come into a consensus about police reforms, and find an alternative way to fight crimes while assuring the safety of the public . At a time where unarmed black teenagers are being gunned down by police officers who were there to protect, and police departments are more militarized than ever; one wonders about the legitimacy of the police system that is in place. The mistrust of the public on police, and the costly militarization of police are the results of “aggressive” policing approach that has been practiced for years. An alternative way of policing, community policing, has been recommended and put in place in some parts of the country. Community policing mainly focuses on preventing crimes by working first hand with communities and change the dynamic of power by having communities actively engaged to work for their safety. Community policing is not a new method, it has been discussed by scholars since the late 1980’s and is now getting more attention than ever with recent protests on police brutality. Unlike standard policing, community policing is economically efficient, and has proven to be effective in reducing crimes.

Community policing encompasses two-way communication between the local population and the police. Main concerns are defined by the community, and the community plays a crucial part in the modeling and executing locally appropriate and acceptable solutions to its problems within the community. Community policing is basically non police officers or civilians that monitor and voice concerns about neighborhood crime. They talk about public safety issues such as crime, social disorder, and fear of crime. Joint partnerships between the police and the community they serve to develop solutions to problems and increase trust in police. Community policing, knowing that police rarely can solve public safety problems alone, boosts interactive partnerships with relevant stakeholders. The range of prospective partners is great and these partnerships can be used to reach the two combined goals of developing answers to problems through joint problem solving and improving public trust. The public should play a vital role in arranging public safety problems.

Having validated my plan to implement formal community oriented policing the department conducted research into various programs that have been implemented in police departments across the United States. Based on information obtained, it was decided the department would use a portion of the program developed by the Chicago Police Department. Although this department is much larger, there are strategies that can be utilized in our community.

The standards set forth by community policing consist of quality of service, resident-based satisfaction, being sensitive to the diversity of cultures, and impartiality to community defined concerns. CPOs have the means and opportunity to spend more time working with citizens to get to the root causes of criminal activity and maintain order. By improving the communication among officers and residents, it makes it easier share and distribute information regarding crimes with the general public more efficient, (Community Policing: A Contemporary Perspective...,pg.62-73,74-123). This creates bipartisan relations and officers can direct people with the correct public, as well as private agencies that can best attend to the concerns of the people

Community policing is a policy and a strategy aimed at achieving more effective and efficient crime control, reduced fear of crime, improved quality of life, improved police services and police legitimacy, through a proactive reliance on community resources that seeks to change crime causing conditions. This assumes a need for greater accountability of police, greater public share in decision-making and greater concern for civil rights and liberties.

What is community policing? Particularly, community policing is a strategy employed by numerous departments in order to establish and cultivate a relationship between the law enforcement agency and the community being patrolled. Moreover, community policing is composed of three analytical components; community partnerships, organizational transformation, and problem solving (Gardiner, 154, 2016). Notably, community partnerships are essential in community policing since they increase public trust and generate an enhanced relationship in law enforcement agencies better serving the community (Gardiner, 87, 2016). These community partnerships offer public input as well as encourage the public to cooperate with their local law enforcement agencies in order to minimize crime within their community (Gardiner, 88, 2016). Different from the traditional strategies of policing, community oriented policing has been adopted by two-thirds of agencies in order to enhance public safety and control crime. (Gardiner, 148, 2016).

Approaches of both community policing and traditional policing models differ in a variety of ways. The characteristics of the policing models are quite different from each other, and community based policing was considered laughable when suggested for the new approach in the early 1970s. Due to community policing’s new operating beliefs, new and unfamiliar expected officer behaviors, and that officers were being held legally responsible for their actions and inactions; the idea and implementation wasn’t widely accepted until 1980’s. Traditional policing was primarily dominated by rampant corruption and lawlessness that affected all levels of the police administration; therefore citizens had little trust if any, in the police officers of the time.

For the purpose of this research paper and methods, the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office’s definition of police-community approaches or community policing is used. The COPS Office defines police-community approaches as the police and communities collaborating