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<br />Empowerment <br /> <br />It means that people in the most vulnerable populations, who have least benefited from <br />police service, will now feel protected and enfranchised. Community policing means <br />identifying and prioritizing needs of special populations and gathering their "input" so <br />they feel benefited by the relationship. Crime is a product of social conditions and cannot <br />be eliminated through police actions alone. Community engagement must take place <br />with the police serving as the catalyst; encouraging and motivating citizens to become <br />involved in the issues that affect their quality oflife. <br /> <br />Proactive Partnerships <br /> <br />To be proactive, the police department must shift away from the traditional "bean <br />counting" mentality and adopt qualitative rather than just quantitative standards to <br />determine effectiveness. Community partnerships playa significant role in this area with <br />citizens helping the department establish creative yet sensible ways to measure police <br />effectiveness and impact. Under community policing, coordination with other <br />government agencies in developing comprehensive and effective solutions is essential. <br />Encouraging citizen involvement in Neighborhood Watch, youth education and cleanup <br />programs can increase social cohesion and has been found to result in decreased fear of <br />cnme. <br /> <br />Problem Solvine: <br /> <br />Criminal justice recognizes only a handful of social problems that the police can <br />reasonably do something about. These are crime itself, the fear of crime, neighborhood <br />disorder, decay and quality of life. Community policing is not "soft" on crime and by no <br />means does it intend to circumvent statutory law or mandatory "get tough" initiatives on <br />assault, guns, drugs or juveniles. Community policing requires that the police see arrest <br />as one tool among many as they work with the community to solve problems. If a person <br />thinks that their children are growing up in a valuable, growing community and would <br />live here all over again, given the chance, this is the goal of creating long term <br />perceptions of safety, ownership and quality oflife. <br /> <br />I look forward to working with each of you to expand the police department as a leader <br />for all your public safety needs. It is the intent of this memorandum to serve as a <br />roadmap to be more participative, problem solving and accountable to all of your needs <br />as a person in our communities. <br /> <br />Please call on me or anyone in the police department for any need you have. I personally <br />believe that your involvement with the police department is necessary for community <br />safety and problem solving. <br /> <br />5 <br />