WHEREAS, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) recognizes the need for law enforcement on a national level to promote transparency between law enforcement and the communities they serve; and

WHEREAS, daily, law enforcement executives must prioritize competing demands for police services and the scope of these demands continues to expand while operating costs increase and available resources diminish; and

WHEREAS, this conflict between available resources and priorities has been detrimental to both traffic law enforcement and crime prevention; and

WHEREAS, in 2015, 35,092 persons lost their lives in fatal traffic crashes in the United States; and

WHEREAS, the most successful traffic safety and crime reduction strategies incorporate community education; external partnerships and narrowly focused law enforcement action in those locations which data analysis reveals as primary traffic crash and crime attractors; and

WHEREAS, the IACP recognizes the need for law enforcement to partner with their governing bodies and/or legislature to educate the community that high visibility traffic law enforcement efforts also have a positive effect on overall crime reduction, thereby reducing social harm and improving the quality of life in all areas; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, that the IACP calls upon state and local law enforcement to use a comprehensive and collaborative communication approach, with aggressive public education messaging through social media outlets, television, radio, and other media means to both educate and inform the community at large that high visibility traffic law enforcement initiatives are designed and implemented to save lives and reduce injuries from traffic crashes, as well as reduce crime, and do not include revenue generation as a primary purpose.

Submitted by: Highway Safety Committee

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