In most occasions, a high percentage of the public deem their local law enforcement untrustworthy, and they have a poor relationship. The negative publicity that law enforcement receives have adverse effects on police. To better the relationship between the two parties, the police departments and communities develop relations programs that are police-public/community relations programs. These programs aim at creating and maintaining a productive and efficient working environment where police departments operate. Therefore, public relations programs inform the public on the works of the officers and departments; they also enhance their public image by being the first responders and helpers to the community on police operations. It is essential to examine the interaction between the public and police. This paper will discuss on how to increase public cooperation and improve relations and support for the police.

Police-Community Relations Programs

Scholars define these relations as attitudes and behaviors between the police and the communities they serve. Police-community relations are ideas borrowed from police administration that seeks to involve police and the community in the decision-making involving policies that affect both parties. Community-police relations administer and provide police services to community members with the aim of changing the views of law enforcement in the community. The programs do not change the way the community does its policing. Some of the common programs involve visiting the police headquarters, allowing community members to ride along with police, awarding good community members and police officer visiting schools. Involvement in such actions helps community members following the law, people having freedom with the police thus sharing useful information with them, and the relationship between law enforcement and minority groups improve. This essay recognizes ride along as an example of the public-community relations program.

Program Efficacy

Police-community relations programs are perceived as mechanisms of eliminating the negative relationship existing between the police and the public and achieve a democratic society. These programs have various organizational formats and use different approaches to achieve the set objectives. Poor community-police communication can lead to fear, resentment, and cynicism between the parties involves. The goal of these programs is to strengthen the relations between law enforcement and the community. They build trust and communication.

Police-Public Relations Programs

Police play an essential role in maintaining peace and order in society. However, they face various job-related challenges from the public. Public-police relation refers to the ways police or the law enforcement department behaves with the public or the involvement of police in the community affairs with the aim of bringing order and peace in the society. Police-public relations program is more complex than the police-community relations. Public relations program has information flowing towards the public only; they, therefore, have to be standardized, repetitive, agency-oriented, predictable and specialized. Examples of these programs involve; blood donation camp which is beneficial to the public or organizing police-public meetings to discuss issues related to the public.

Program Efficacy

Public relations program aims at developing and maintaining a productive working environment for police departments to operate within. The programs inform the public on the services that officers and departments provide. Police-public relations programs seek for the public to accept police departments and their doings thus promote public understanding of and cooperation with police activities.

Application of Police Public and Police Community Programs in Own Community

In many occasions, the public may seem reluctant to report a crime with the fear of receiving harassment from the police, or the police are not ready to expose crimes that are likely to affect the public negatively. There must be a qualitative awareness and transformation between the police and the public that restore their relationship on issues related to their rights and duties. The law enforcement department and community members are joining forces to prevent drug usage and alcohol prohibition. Police are focusing on enforcing drug and alcohol prohibition in the community while the public comes forward with valuable information that will reduce these crimes. Young people are likely to avoid using drugs if they receive education and treatment concerning substance usage. A police-community relation program helping with the situation involves police visiting schools and educating the youth.Roughly around half of the prison inmates in the community are high school drop-outs and are into substance abuse. If communities invest in early childhood education, they can prevent crime and substance abuse. A police-public relation program involves holding a public meeting to offer people struggling with addiction with necessary treatment. It easier for addicts to recover if there is access to treatment rather than having threats of punishment. The community, police included, directs its resources in making society stronger by helping the people.

Program Modification Recommendations or New Approaches

There are various recommendations that these programs should adapt to assist police departments and communities in developing collaborative measures that will aid with maintaining peace and order. The agencies should improve communication between community members and police force; therefore, law enforcement should involve the public in decision-making which will enhance communication between them. Notable, it is essential that the police department is visible in their communities, for example, interacting outside of out enforcement contexts. Knowing the community members helps break down personal barriers between the two, build mutual trust which is essential in addressing community problems and reducing crime.

Law enforcement agencies should equip communities and the police with new preventive tools that fight crime causes. These tools should aim at reducing the use of force and punishment on the public and increase public safety. For example, officers should implement diversion programs that improve public safety by not arresting and inflicting fear on the people but by resolving the root issues causing crimes. They should also invest in education to reduce crimes thus enabling officers to focus on severe public safety threats or establish gang intervention programming, especially in high crime neighborhoods.

Conclusion

Police even in the most democratic society face the dilemma of protecting individual rights and contributing to public safety. The key to improving public safety and law enforcement effectiveness is to reconsider the modern policing principles involving the two parties. This means the government has to work towards increasing the trust between police and community and instead of reacting to crimes, find ways of preventing crimes. Having a good police/public-community relation has its benefits such as police officers can work effectively, and deliver safer and more accessible services to the community. Also, the level of trust between the two parties improves and solving crimes becomes easier since community members are more willing to share information during such situations. If law enforcement agencies adopt the mentioned solutions; having better tools to prevent criminal acts, focusing on ensuring public safety, and directly engaging communities, it will improve the police-community relations and achieve safer place to live.

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