Community policing provides the modern concept on how police work is done. The main focus of the community policing model is to establish a police department initiated program that is designed to offer an opportunity for the police and public agencies and members of the community to discover their common problems and responsibilities, and work together towards the solution of community problems and the formulation of positive community programs (Palmiotto, 2000). It is not merely a problem solving strategy but an initiative that aims to establish police-community collaboration in solving problems in the community and in attaining peace and order. Community policing is complementary to the traditional policing which mainly defines policing as performing the usual tasks of routine patrolling, responding to calls for service, making arrest, conducting investigations and law enforcement. Community policing promotes immersion of the police to the community and establishing better community relations instead of being on call when their services are needed and performing routinary tasks. Under the model of community policing, police officers see themselves as part of the community which empowers them to work with ordinary people in addressing their real-life problems and helping in developing meaningful public policy to provide better services to the communities (Kappeler and Gaines, 2015). This new role of police complements their traditional responsibilities as law enforcers because they are more engaged to participate in finding solutions to community problems with frequent interaction with the community members.
Considering the different roles that police undertake in community policing, it is designed not to replace the traditional police efforts. It actually reinforces the ability of the police officers to become more involved in the problem solving process of community problems through personal interaction with the community members who are in the best position in identifying major problems occurring in their neighborhood. For instance, instead of patrolling and waiting for distress calls before they can respond, the police authorities have better capabilities of learning potential threats in the community and perform preventive measures beforehand. Community policing actually widens the scope of roles and responsibilities of police in traditional policing that makes them more effective law enforcers in the community to which they are tasked to protect.
Community policing has the principle of making police work together with the community (Friedmann, 1992). By involving personal interaction with community members, it actually helps create organizational ethical behavior. The community policing model is in fact utilized as a police reform that aims to influence a change in the police culture. It re-orients the traditional police culture away from focusing too much on crime control with a broader mandate to include community service in their roles and responsibilities (Giles, 2002). The implementation of the community policing model changes the police orientation from crime prevention and control towards becoming more focused, proactive and community sensitive. It is also a good framework of engaging police officers to improve their community relations and to set broader community ideals and it breaks down the barriers that separate the law enforcers from the public (Greene, 2000). It inculcates police culture that is geared towards coordinating police services with community members in order to deliver more effective neighborhood safety.
Community policing is therefore a police reform initiative that mainly reinforces and broadens the role of police officers that complements the traditional policing for more effective law enforcement measures. Working with the community members help improve the police culture and improves the ethical behavior of the police authorities by seeing community members as partners in performing their duties and allows them to learn to exercise their problem solving skills by immersing themselves to the community and enhancing their community interaction. Collaborating with community members reinforces the police relations to the public and gives them broader avenues of performing their duties as law enforcers more effectively.
References:
Friedmann, R.R. (1992). Community Policing: Comparative Perspectives and Prospects. New
York: St. Martin's Press.
Giles, H. (2002). Law Enforcement, Communication, and Community. Philadelphia: John
Benjamins Publishing.
Greene, J.R. (2000). Community Policing in America: Changing the Nature, Structure, and
Function of the Police. Criminal Justice. 299-370.
Kappeler, V.E. and Gaines, L.K. (2015). Community Policing: A Contemporary Perspective.
Oxon: Routledge.
Palmiotto, M. (2000). Community Policing: A Policing Strategy for the 21st Century.
Maryland: Aspen Publication.
