Law Enforcement Screenings and Discussion Questions
Law Enforcement Screenings and Discussion Questions
The film Arlington, TX: A Community Policing Story can be used in an internal training seminar to initiate and sustain conversations around the prioritization of police-community trust building, the central principles of legitimacy-based policing, and the importance of internal and external procedural justice.
These film screenings should be accompanied by on-the-ground changes based on feedback from law enforcement personnel. However, considering each department’ s and community’ s differing needs, the practice of police-community trust building does not and cannot prescribe a one-size-fits-all solution for every local context; instead, departments and communities are encouraged to initiate dialogue with each other to collaboratively identify their desired objectives and how to best achieve them.
For example, a commitment to police-community trust building could involve the creation of school-based partnerships and mentoring programs to build support systems for at-risk youth, an investment in community engagement training, and clearly defined opportunities for meaningful dialogue and feedback between officers and community members.
To establish organizational commitment, consider organizing a series of film screenings throughout the agency, beginning with members of command staff who can impress the importance of the film’ s message before screenings among rank-and-file officers. The film can also be incorporated, wherever appropriate, into the curriculum delivered to new recruits at local and regional law enforcement academies.
Suggested discussion questions also depend on respective audiences; for example, members of command staff may be better positioned to address questions about high-level departmental priorities, policies, and practices, whereas rank-and-file officers may be better positioned to identify specific public safety concerns within communities.
Discussion questions should initially focus on the basic concepts presented in the film, followed by further discussion on the application of those concepts, and conclude with questions about possible next steps the audience can take:
Overview of basic concepts
◾ What kind of challenges did the police department face in the film? How did the department address these challenges under community-oriented policing?
◾ What were some examples of community partnerships and relationships in the film? In your opinion, what were the immediate and long-term benefits of these community partnerships?
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