NCJ Number
182969
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 67 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2000 Pages: 33-44
Editor(s)
Charles E. Higginbotham
Date Published
2000
Length
9 pages
Annotation
The Beaufort, South Carolina, Police Department took steps to implement community policing in 1994, and the entire structure of the police department had changed by 1996.
Abstract
The move to community policing resulted in positive changes related to quality of life, total quality management, and team policing. The entire police department was involved in an incremental step process to change from traditional to community policing. Recognizing the shift to community policing would require training, flexibility, and commitment from all participants, the police department initiated a process of team building that used proven techniques developed by consultants from the business management field. A community policing shift matrix schedule was designed to ensure that the responsibility for community policing projects did not rest on a single shift or individual police officer. An environment was created that allowed for various approaches to problemsolving. In particular, the process action team approach was employed to identify and analyze problems, implement solutions, and evaluate results. The Victims Assistance Office of the police department was expanded in 1998, community involvement in crime prevention was encouraged, a Public Safety Advisory Council was established, and volunteers helped identify problem neighborhoods and community needs. The Beaufort Citizens Police Academy promoted police-community interaction by helping the community understand the functions and services of the police department. Further, a 20-block area in downtown Beaufort with the highest crime was targeted to reduce crime and drug activity, to enhance police enforcement efforts, to send a clear message that citizens were joining police officers in a proactive approach to crime, to improve the appearance of the community, and to communicate with young people. Other police-community initiatives focused on the city's drug market, block associations, and trespass enforcement. The effectiveness of Beaufort's approach to community policing is discussed. 1 photograph