Over the next several weeks, the International Association of Chiefs of Police will recognize the 2019 IACP Leadership Award Winners. These agencies and individuals have made meaningful contributions to their communities and the policing profession. Their achievements are representative of the incredible leadership displayed by police organizations across the globe.

This post will focus on community safety. Awards for community safety are given to agencies and individuals who not only confront criminal activity but increase the quality of life in their communities through proactive measures. These agencies and individuals promote a safe environment for people who live, work, and visit their communities by reducing crime and the fear of crime and disorder.

IACP Leadership in Civilian Law Enforcement/Military Cooperation Award

The IACP Leadership in Civilian Law Enforcement/Military Cooperation Award recognizes excellence in cooperation between civilian and military law enforcement agencies. This award highlights the development of innovative joint efforts to improve public safety for both military and civilian communities.

St. Louis, Missouri, Police Department and Missouri National Guard

In 2017, St. Louis City experienced a period of civil unrest after a not-guilty verdict in a police-involved shooting was announced. During the demonstrations and the subsequent after-action reviews, the Missouri National Guard recognized how beneficial the SLMPD’s Real Time Crime Center was for the entire St. Louis region. The two agencies met to discuss a potential partnership between the organizations. As a result, a decision was made that the Missouri National Guard would place a full-time analyst in the SLMPD’s Real Time Crime Center. This would provide the SLMPD with access to the broader intelligence community, as well as new training and educational resources. Additionally, the SLMPD would contribute to the Missouri National Guard’s Counter Drug Program; a mutually beneficial partnership. When cooperation with other military entities is necessary, access to the Missouri National Guard contacts has proven to be invaluable to the SLMPD. The Missouri National Guard analyst and the Real Time Crime Center has led to 1,756 arrests; 4,294 charges resulting from the arrest and 1,043 stolen vehicles, 243 firearms, and vast amounts of stolen property and narcotics recovered.

IACP Leadership in Community Policing Award

The IACP Leadership in Community Policing Award recognizes promising practices that utilize effective and long-lasting partnerships to make local, national, and global communities safer. This award honors agencies for programs that exemplify the principles of community policing and strengthen community trust through active and inclusive community collaboration.

Small Agency

Mansfield, Massachusetts, Police Department

Since 2013, the Mansfield Police Department has undergone a reorientation of its operations model. Prior to the change, the organization’s structure was a predominantly traditional, reactionary model that primarily measured success solely by metrics such as arrests, police reports, and citations written. The heart of the reoriented policing model aimed to shift from a reactive model to one that emphasized a total immersion program of police operations into the community. This immersion program emphasized engagement and a focus on prevention by identifying core constituencies in the community. Once the core constituencies were identified, the police department and school department worked together to create a community calendar of activities with the goal of strategically aligning organizational goals with those of the communities by emphasizing regular face-to- face contact and a prevention and problem solving focus to community quality of life issues. In doing so it represents a reorientation of police operations, emphasizing problem solving, situational crime prevention, and community engagement over outdated traditional reactionary metrics. Additionally, the official social media of the department expanded from having a “just the facts” press release approach to using the platforms as a source of engagement and interaction by utilizing humor and humanizing approaches.

Midsize Agency

Jacksonville, North Carolina, Police Department

Jacksonville, North Carolina is the principal city of Onslow County. The county population consists of 70% active-duty military personnel and their families who, on average, have less than three years of residency. They are unfamiliar with available resources and services, and they lack the support structure that established family and friends can provide. Additionally, residents not associated with the military are more likely to be economically disadvantaged and lack health insurance.

Their efforts were in collaboration with the City of Jacksonville’s the “One City, Our City, My City” campaign. The focus of “One City” is to promote respect, caring, and collaboration among all community members which results in a better Jacksonville.  Strategies were developed to counter misunderstandings about mental health and opioid abuse.  The campaign also focused on providing a variety of communication and outreach opportunities to address the lack of mental health services as well as the quality of police interaction with the community. This has resulted in the reduction of use-of-force incidents.

Large Agency

Queensland Police Service, Australia

The Queensland Police Service (QPS) wanted to find a way to connect and build strong relationships with indigenous communities in their jurisdiction. To bridge this gap, they partnered with Gilimbaa Creative and key indigenous stakeholders to create various pieces of indigenous art. These art pieces captured the QPS storyline, while ensuring cultural appropriateness to complement the engagement and reconciliation process. Under the name “Look to the Stars Initiative,” the project demonstrates, in a tangible way, the cultural importance the QPS places on partnerships with indigenous communities. Through recognizing past trauma and historical injustices from previous policing strategies towards the indigenous communities, the QPS has effectively begun reconciliation in a culturally respective and significant way.

IACP/ecoATM Leadership in Crime Prevention Award

The IACP/ecoATM Leadership in Crime Prevention Award recognizes innovative, data-driven, low-cost, and high-impact crime prevention programs. Programs recognized for this award exemplify effective crime reduction strategies and specific measures of success. Agencies must demonstrate how their crime prevention program builds community trust and increases community engagement. Learn more about ecoATM.

Round Rock, Texas, Police Department

With a heavy increase in online shopping, homes with packages out front have become readily available and easy targets for thieves. The Round Rock Police Department (RRPD) has come up with a unique way to combat this issue, Operation Front Porch, providing the community with an option to ship packages to the police department. Because of the way the program was organized, the day-to-day operations of the program required minimal work for the department’s civilian staff and no work for sworn officers. Instead, the department relied heavily on volunteers to log and distribute packages. In Round Rock, reports of package theft in December rose each year from 2014 (4) to 2015 (8) to 2016 (13). In 2017, the first year of the program, thefts decreased to four. In 2017, approximately 30 packages were delivered during the 22 days RRPD ran the program. In 2018, the community’s use of the program grew to more than 300 packages over 52 days. Watch the video.

IACP/Security Industry Association Michael Shanahan Leadership in Public/Private Cooperation Award

The IACP/Security Industry Association (SIA) Michael Shanahan Leadership in Public/Private Cooperation Award, in honor of the late Chief Michael Shanahan, who served the University of Washington Police Department for 24 years before retiring in 1995 and served as the founding chair of the IACP Private Sector Liaison Committee, seeks to recognize outstanding achievement in the development and implementation of public/private cooperation in public safety. The IACP/SIA Michael Shanahan Leadership in Public/Private Cooperation Award recognizes partnerships between law enforcement agencies and private industries that have collaborated to build community trust and enhance public safety. Learn more about the Security Industry Association.

Morris County Sheriff’s Office, Morris County, New Jersey

The Morris County Sheriff’s Office and multiple partner agencies developed a mobile outreach program called Hope One to reverse overdoses. Vehicles are staffed with a sheriff’s officer, licensed clinician, and a certified peer recovery specialist, who understand the needs of those suffering with addiction. The van stops in communities where drug sales and opioid overdoses occur. At the time of application for this award CPRSs had contacted 6,643 individuals, trained 1,714 people in the administration of Narcan, and handed out free kits. The philosophy is a stigma-free attitude to everyone. The van parks outside community soup kitchens, churches, motels, train stations, shopping centers, or areas where homeless and at-risk individuals congregate. Using this strategy, teams make a new contact every 10.8 minutes. Watch the video.

IACP Leadership in Victim Services Award

The IACP Leadership in Victim Services Award recognizes agencies that best exemplify an organizational philosophy of placing victims at the center of their problem-solving efforts by utilizing effective partnerships, training methods, and performance monitoring tools to enhance law enforcement response to victims of crime. Nominees should demonstrate an innovative approach to meeting the needs of crime victims within their communities and showcase a program that has been fully implemented or is in the process of being fully implemented into their agency.

Midsize Agency

Saginaw, Michigan, Police Department

In 2015, the Saginaw Police Department (SPD) pursued innovative approaches to address staffing issues while simultaneously promoting community strength and support. In order to lay a new foundation to build upon, the SPD began to update departmental policies and develop a strong mission, vision, and values statement. Initial phases of implementing a victim-centered, trauma-focused, Victim Services Unit began. The organizational philosophy of the Saginaw Police Department was beginning to evolve, focusing on victim services and the importance of utilizing effective community partnerships. With the implementation and expansion of the Victim Services Unit, the SPD conducted department-wide training, developed community outreach and awareness programs, developed strong working relationships with various community agencies, and engaged in positive interactions with victims.

Large Agency

Ajman Police General Headquarters, United Arab Emirates

In 2011, the Ajman Police established the Social Support and Victim Service Program. The program was established as a response to the emergence of serious crimes violating human rights, especially regarding victims of crimes such as women, children, families, and victims of human trafficking. The Social Support and Victim Service Program features rapid communication channels between the victim and police. Buildings are designated as safe areas for victims to report incidents and crime cases. Diverse employees are trained and qualified in providing victim care services, classifying cases so that resources are allocated and dispensed appropriately, and conducting home visits to better understand victims’ needs. Since its establishment in 2011, the community’s trust in police has increased from 85.6% to 96.8% and the sense of security has increased from 85.3% to 97.8%.