We Can Make Community Policing Work

People throughout Los Angeles are frustrated with the redeployment of senior lead officers. They’re angry over losing their primary liaison with the Police Department. Their feelings are justified.

Since senior lead officers were reassigned to patrol, the community has lost its sense of involvement in its own safety. Citizens are upset that they must build new relationships with nine officers in their “basic car” area. This is a challenge when different officers, some of them new to the force and with little community knowledge, attend meetings sporadically. This frustration has caused Neighborhood Watch attendance to fall. Phone calls are lost or not returned, officer schedules are rotated, and continuity and know-how in solving problems has all but disappeared in key areas.

Senior lead officers also are frustrated. Beyond answering radio calls, many are working to maintain these important community ties on their own time. Patrol officers are discouraged because they’re expected to attend meetings and become advocates, taking the lead in community problem-solving, though most have minimal training in public speaking and community relations and no knowledge about other city departments.

Chief Bernard C. Parks redeployed senior lead officers to give communities nine lead officers instead of one. His idea was to strengthen community-police partnerships, increase police accountability and institutionalize community policing by making it the job of every officer, not just 170 senior lead ones.

This philosophy is the right idea, but you can’t change ideology without first creating a structure in which the new ideas can work.

Let’s develop this new structure. At the Police Academy, trainees receive instruction in all aspects of police work except one: interacting with the community. Public speaking, community outreach, sociology, communications, organizational dynamics and psychology classes would help our officers perform every aspect of their jobs confidently. Veteran officers need this training, too, as continuing education.

The senior lead officers have had years of training and experience, so they are now an invaluable resource. Many have called for returning these officers to their old role of primary community contact, a sole officer attending community meetings and acting as the main problem solver. This isn’t the only answer.

One idea is to blend the senior lead officer and the “basic car” models. The senior lead officer should remain the primary contact, facilitating familiarity that “basic car” officers--regular officers assigned to patrol in a specific area--have with a particular area. Officers would regularly attend community meetings and develop ties to the area. The senior lead officers would stay on patrol as training officers, with flexibility to attend meetings as needed. Yet they need time away from radio calls to handle traditional senior lead officer work, such as responding to community phone calls. This way, a community gets one primary contact and patrol officers develop territorial responsibility. The “basic car” coordinator, who oversees the senior lead officers and “basic” officers, should retain that responsibility.

A second idea is to have the senior lead officer in a roving patrol car, monitoring radio calls but without it being the highest priority. This way, the officer would be available for community liaison duty but still be a backup during peak times.

With either option, the cell phones and voice mail donated to the Police Department by AT&T; would greatly enhance communication. Another vital linkage is improved dialogue between senior lead officers, City Council district staff and the new neighborhood councils.

Further, each “basic car” officer should maintain a written record, updated regularly, so new officers can learn about the immediate community. Neighborhood updates should be essential at roll calls, with senior lead officers present. Also, officers should have up-to-date resource guides with city contacts for basic services so they can maximize assistance.

Finally, we need to measure results and ensure community input is consistently maintained. Annual resident surveys, semi-annual “State of the Community” meetings, Community Police Advisory Board meeting evaluations and other benchmarks are important tools to make community-based policing a reality citywide. Given the challenges facing our Police Department and the reforms necessary, we must focus on reinvigorating the role of senior lead officers, rebuilding our ties to the community and ensuring that community policing becomes an ideology embraced by all.