Fresno Chaffee Zoo
21st Century Knowledge and Skills
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As law enforcement leaders, we must possess a varied and changing skillset to succeed in the 21st Century. Some of those skillsets should include creating and modifying department policy according to the community's changing needs, engaging in Community Policing and Crime Reduction, and utilizing crime statistics to report accurate crime trends.
Fresno Police Department Pillar 2: Policy and Oversight, is part of a community report created at the direction of the Chief of Police. The paper introduces Policy and Oversight by explaining to our community that our agency understands the importance of creating policies that promote the public and officers' safety. The report explains that department policy changes continuously as the needs of our community change. It also identifies some department policies, including the use of force policy and policies prohibiting racial and bias-based policing. The paper also informs the community that the agency does not require officers to issue a predetermined number of arrests, tickets, or citations to avoid noble cause corruption. Continual change in Policy and Oversight is one-way law enforcement agencies can provide accountability to their communities and prove they are committed to ensuring policies mirror the community's changing needs. In my second paper, Fresno Police Department Pillar 4: Community Policing and Crime Reduction, I refer to the Fresno Police Department's long-standing philosophy and commitment to on-going community policing. The paper identifies crime reduction as a team effort. It explains the Fresno Police Department prides itself on having Neighborhood Watch programs that educate citizens by providing crime trends and crime prevention tips to decrease their likelihood of becoming victims. Other community policing programs, including Resilience in Student Education (RISE) program, Ride Along program, and School Resource Officers, are additional programs presented and explained in the paper. Community Policing and Crime Reduction are crucial components of the skillset law enforcement leaders in the 21st Century must possess, master, and model for their community. In my third paper, Conflict Resolution Strategies, I highlighted several active listening skills I would utilize to prepare for a hypothetical town hall meeting with the family of a subject by the name of John Doe that was deceased as a result of an Officer-Involved Shooting. The paper's purpose was to highlight that a tragic situation can be an unexpected opportunity for law enforcement agencies and the community to come together. In the paper, I highlighted multiple active listening skills I would utilize to communicate and collaborate with Doe's parents, including putting aside my ideas, role, and agenda and really "hear" what the Doe's parents had to say. I also planned on communicating openly with Doe's parents during the meeting. Looking for a deeper meaning in John's parents' words would help me garner a genuine understanding of what they are trying to convey and help rebuild the cohesion the community lost after the Officer Involved Shooting. Lastly, I planned to invite collaboration from Doe's parents, not only during the town hall meeting but also after the meeting's conclusion. Law enforcement leaders in the 21st Century must be well adept in utilizing active listening skills when communicating with the community, especially when dealing with high profile situations like Officer Involved Shootings. Active listening and collaboration skills can help de-escalate situations and, in turn, make all parties active participants in building a better community. |
"Decades of research and practice support the premise that people are more likely to obey the law when they believe that those who are enforcing it have the legitimate authority to tell them what to do. But the public confers legitimacy only on those whom they believe are acting in procedurally just ways." |
| FresnoPoliceDepartmentPillar2PolicyandOversight.pdf |
| FresnoPoliceDepartmentPillar4CommunityPolicingandCrimeReduction.pdf |
| ConflictResolutionStrategies.pdf |