Policy Text
TRAINING BULLETIN
Evaluation Coordinator: BFO Deputy Chief
Automatic Revision Cycle: 2 Years
partment Training Bulletins shall be used to advise members of current police techniques and
procedures and shall constitute official policy.” Index Number: III-A.5
Alpha Index: Community-Oriented Policing Effective Date
20 Aug 08
NSA Task: 47
“De
COMMUNITY-ORIENTED POLICING
Introduction
This Training Bulletin sets forth Departmental objectives and sets forth procedures to strengthen the Department’s commitment to Community Policing.
Departmental Core Values
The Department has adopted Community-Oriented Policing (COP) as its operational philosophy to
institutionalize the core values of Fairness, Integr ity, Respect, Service and Teamwork (F.I.R.S.T.).
The Philosophy of Community Policing
Community Policing is both an organizational strategy and philosophy that enhances customer
satisfaction with police services by promoting police and community partnerships. Proactive
problem solving in collaboration with other public service agencies and community-based
organizations reduces crime and the fear of crim e, and improves the overall quality of life in our
neighborhoods. Community Policing is a customer service approach to policing that embodies a
true partnership, one in which all stakeholders advise, listen and learn, and the resultant strategies
reflect that input. Community Policing involves a commitment from all Departmental employees
at every level in the organization to work smarte r in finding creative approaches to traditional and
non-traditional problems, and to do so in a manner that recognizes and rewards integrity,
creativity, courage and commitment.
Department Objectives
Community policing helps us better partner with the community to respond to problems and
significantly improve communication between residents, business owners, and the personnel working in the area and institutionali zes the philosophy at all levels so that each officer engages in
community policing and long-term problem solving efforts. The Department has set the following objectives:
• Establish a strong geographic focus for all Patr ol Officers, assigning officers to a specific
area of the City, where they spend the majority of their time responding to calls for service,
proactively addressing neighborhood problems, and interacting with the community;
• Establish clearly defined roles and accountabilities for all managers;
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Community-Oriented Policing, Index Number III-A.5
• Hold all managers accountable for the conduct and performance of their subordinates;
• Create special assignments and use speciali zed teams when the solution is beyond the
capability of existing units;
• Manage the call-for-service function so citizens know what they can expect when calling the
police for assistance;
• Deploy personnel to match call-for-service fluctuations;
• Strengthen communication between police personnel, City staff, the community, and other
governmental agencies (e.g., DEA, County Health Department, etc.); and
• Under the direction of Area Commanders, support community policing by assigning specific
problem solving responsibilities to personnel assigned to the three Areas.
Components of Community Policing
The Department's plan to expand the community-policing philosophy requires the successful
implementation of the component strategies discussed below.
Geographical Accountability
Geographical accountability is historically rooted in Oakland, where officers are familiar with
Oakland's geography, crime problems, "hot spots," and community members. The relationships that develop between officers and community members are inva luable to the successful
implementation of community-policing. Community members prefer to have their assigned police officers to remain in the neighborhood or business district. This continuity of presence provides an opportunity for daily, on-going contact and ensure s that officers are aware and informed of the
community's current priorities. In addition to community and city partnerships, officers are
encouraged to collaborate with each other and deve lop creative team approaches to problems. It
should be understood that the problems of a “community” often extend beyond the artificial
boundaries of the beat.
Requests from the Community to Meet with Members of the Department
Community members must have access to Departmental services and personnel in order to estab-lish and maintain effective communication.
Meetings with community members to share ideas and information serve everyone's interest and
give community members an opportunity to voice their concerns.
All requests for public appearances e.g., Neighborhood Watch meetings, Neighborhood Crime
Prevention Councils (NCPC) meetings, or Townhall meetings, shall be processed in accordance
with the provisions of Departmental General Order B-7, Public Appearances.
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20 Aug 08 ● Oakland Police Department
Attendance at Co mmunity Meetings
Officer attendance at community meetings is key to building relationships with the community
and identifying community concerns. Community meetings can provide of ficers with information
that assist with targeting their problem-solving efforts.
In accordance with BFO Policy and Proced ure Manual 03-03, COMMUNITY MEETINGS, all
sworn Patrol Division personnel assigned to a regular geographic area of the City, including
supervisors, Crime Reduction Teams (CRT) officer s, Problem Solving Offi cers (PSOs), and Foot
Patrol Officers, shall attend at least one (1) co mmunity meeting in their regularly assigned area
each quarter. Sworn Police Technici ans and K-9 Officers, while not mandated, are encouraged to
attend community meetings.
Crime Stop
The Department conducts bi-weekly Crime Stop meetings with all Department commanders and
managers. The meetings focus on crime reduction strategies, violence supression projects,
problem-solving projects, and management data a ssociated with areas of liability (i.e., uses of
force, citizen complaints and vehicle pursuits). Representatives of other City departments,
criminal justice system partners, community members, and representatives of community groups may attend to share information on community-polic