Importance of Exchanging Ideas

• NCJ Number: 165193
• Journal: Police Chief Volume: 63 Issue: 8 Dated: (August 1996) Pages: 12,15
• Author(s): W B Berger; S Dembinsky; P Farquharson
• Date Published: 1996
• Length: 2 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

The exchange program between the North Miami Beach Police Department (Florida) and the Royal Bahamas Police Force has facilitated the latter force's change to community-oriented policing.

Abstract

The North Miami Beach Police Department (NMBDP) has been committed to community-oriented policing for more than 10 years. The devotion of a large portion of departmental resources to this philosophy has made the community policing unit the largest one in the department and has produced many successful programs that are improving the community's quality of life. A team from the Royal Bahamas Police Force conducted a site visit to North Miami Beach. During the visit, it became evident that both communities suffered from similar problems, including gangs, firearms, burglaries, thefts, robberies, and graffiti. NMBDP officers explained some of the department's successful efforts, and possible solutions were explored. In July 1995, under State Department sponsorship, North Miami Beach sent a team to the Bahamas for an intensive 6-day visit. Over the course of the visit, the team participated in an exchange of information with upper and mid-level supervisors in the Royal Bahamas Police Force. Team members also went into the field to observe some of the problems in Nassau's neighborhoods. Officials at the highest levels of the government showed an interest in the philosophy of community policing. Since the official inauguration for community policing in the Bahamas in May 1995, the program has enjoyed some significant successes, including community support. The citizens of the Bahamas have expressed enthusiasm and excitement over the opportunity to share the responsibility for policing their own communities and helping to create programs geared toward solving their social dilemmas. Ongoing exchange programs are critical to the ultimate success of community-oriented policing in the Bahamas. The police force intends to conduct exchanges of community policing methods and concepts of international support from the Bahama Islands' neighbors in the Caribbean and the United States, as well as in Europe.