Positive Relationship With Community Oriented Policing (COP)

There is a growing need to have specialized units implemented in local police departments that can aid in gathering intelligence and ensure that valuable information is sent to surrounding police departments and to proper investigating agencies such as the FBI. Community Oriented Policing (COP) has been around for many years and is an excellent strategy for creating a positive relationship with members of the communities. Therefore, when a COP unit is put in place many doors open by way of working closely with citizens and community leaders of all cultures. This gives the officers an opportunity to get to know the citizens on a personal level and better understand what individuals need from their local police department. Whether it is more
The success of a COP unit will demand the officers assigned to be highly trained and skilled, including bi-lingual if possible to interact with many diverse cultures daily (Newman and Clarke, 2008). The interactions must be positive and will require time and dedication. The officers should attend community meetings of diverse cultures, particularly the Muslim communities and begin producing a strong relationship. Without the public trust, people will be hesitant to reveal information to officers that may help them with an investigation involving terrorism. The officers must invite the community members and leaders to attend workshops so that they can play a critical role in fighting terrorism, and understand what types of things they need to watch out for and report suspicious activity to the police promptly. The COP officers should also take this time to work with business owners to identify probable target areas in the business districts and develop a plan for reporting suspicious activity. The business owners should be encouraged to share information with police and communicate on a regular basis. It is critical that suspicious activity reporting (SAR) does not fall between the cracks once collected. A police department must have a reporting system that is designed to support SAR and ensure that the reports are
If the department is smaller in size it may not be possible to assign several officers, however, it is important to have at least one officer allocated full time if achievable. When officers are assigned as a part-time asset there is a strong possibility that they will be pulled in multiple directions and will not be allowed to focus and devote the adequate time and effort to their assignment. They must be able to partake on a regular basis. After the terrorist attacks on 9/11, the FBI has changed their philosophy on sharing sensitive information and has taken the approach to include all first responders with the war on terror (Davis, K., 2015). Officers assigned to the JTTF will work closely with the FBI as a task force officer and will receive superior training involving domestic and international terrorism. The Task Force Officer(s) (TFO) can provide his/her primary police department with essential information involving terrorist organizations and will act as a department liaison. The TFO will prove to be an important asset, and when asked, he/she should educate other members of the police department, including sworn and civilian, and citizens of the community about terrorism and how they can each be successful in the prevention and preparation of terrorism.