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Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, joined by Acting Police Chief Cathy Lanier, laid out his Administration’s strategy for optimizing the city’s community policing effort on Friday, January 5, 2007.  Fenty has long believed in the intrinsic link between strong community policing and crime reduction.

“I have walked every neighborhood in this great city and there was one theme that I heard in every ward, every block, and every town hall. This theme was the need for increased community policing, the need for accessible law enforcement presence,” said Mayor Fenty. “The call for increased police visibility has been heard loud and clear. Today, we address this crucial need.”

 

During the first 100 hours of the Fenty Administration, Chief Lanier has already begun implementing plans to improve policing strategies.  In the Third District, Patrol Service Area (PSA) officers are “adopting a block” or a park or other neighborhood institution on their beats, serving as the primary public safety liaison for the area. First District patrol officers have been spending at least two hours per tour on foot patrol. The Sixth District is implementing “Back to the Beat,” where officers assigned to the evening and “power” shifts are being deployed on foot, bicycle and motorcycle patrols in 32 small, geographical beats.

 

“I envision a city in which every resident – in every neighborhood – not only feels safe, but actually is safe,” said Lanier. “Members of the Command Staff have begun to implement programs to make this a lasting reality.” 

Acting Chief Cathy Lanier has been speaking with members of the community and the Department every day to identify key concerns about their neighborhoods and the agency. This ongoing dialogue is just beginning, but it has helped to inform the Chief’s key overarching goals, and some initial steps for the first 100 days.

 

In addition, this dialogue has reinforced Chief Lanier’s commitment to principles that have guided her work and relationships with the community, colleagues, and other constituencies. These principles will help to make her vision a reality: To position MPD as an agency viewed and respected locally, nationally, and internationally as a model for how it serves the community. Chief  Lanier and her team are committed to:

• Changing the culture of the MPD from reacting to crime to building and sustaining safe neighborhoods.
• Encouraging teamwork and leadership at every level of the police department and throughout the community.
• Emphasizing that every MPD employee has the power to influence positive change – and encouraging them to improve the service they provide to both the department and community.
• Focusing the entire Department on engaging youth, an investment which will have an impact on these young people now and on the entire city in the future.
• Building on what the MPD is doing right.

Goals and Action Items

 

Goal 1:  Reduce crime & the fear of crime in the community

• Customizing Community Policing
  • Chief Lanier’s vision is to tailor the best practices in community policing to the neighborhoods in the District of Columbia, ensuring that the relationship between police and neighborhoods is paramount. MPD patrol members are already committed to community policing and practice it everyday. However, not all of the elements of the Department’s community policing template are appropriate for all communities. By February 28th, each Patrol Service Area (PSA) will work with key stakeholders—the community, elected officials, and police district staff—to establish a Customized Community Policing Plan to be launched in March.
• Ensure that officers have the tools necessary to improve efficiency and effectiveness
  • MPD will begin implementing electronic forms, so that officers will only have to enter incident data once, allowing faster processing of arrest and incident paperwork.
  • Working with the Office of the Chief Procurement Officer and the Office of the Chief Technology Officer, MPD will issue the Request for Proposal for the Law Enforcement Information Management System that will connect dozens of data sources throughout the Department to reduce redundant paperwork and enhance MPD’s ability to manage and analyze cases.
• Enhance investigations
  • To better address DC’s neighborhood-based violent crime, MPD will move to community-based homicide investigations. By assigning homicide investigations to regional teams, detectives will be able to become more familiar with the criminals, witnesses, and sources that live and work in neighborhoods plagued by homicides and other violent crimes. These teams will still operate under a centralized command, ensuring consistent standards and service.
  • MPD will reinvigorate the successful Homicide Prevention Project, which focused on long-term narcotics investigations targeting the most violent offenders involved in narcotics. By going after street-level drug-dealers who are involved in homicide cases as witnesses or suspects, MPD can build strong cases against the violent offenders and get them off the street.

• Improve officer responsiveness
• Enhance outreach efforts to connect with all segments of the community

Goal 3: Integrate homeland security and emergency preparedness practices into the MPD culture and the community without creating fear

• Partner with government agencies, the private sector, and the community to enhance awareness of emergency preparedness and terrorist activities
• Integrate homeland security and emergency preparedness into the responsibilities of all MPD employees

• The plan will consist of strategic perspectives and specific objectives to help move MPD towards improved professionalism and a higher quality of service.

Goal 5: Foster innovation in routine MPD activities while enhancing fiscal accountability