Garner Police Department 2019 Annual Report Published August 2020 | Page 8
Community Policing
COMMUNITY POLICING IS our philosophy
and organizational strategy that promotes a
partnership between citizens and their police
force, problem-solving, and crime prevention. It is
based on the premise that both the police and the
community must work together to identify, prioritize,
and solve contemporary problems such as:
Crime,
The fear of crime,
Social and physical disorder, and
Overall neighborhood decay
…With the goal of improving the overall quality
of life.
Community Policing in Garner encompasses all that we
do as law enforcement officers and employees daily—
whether we are involved in education, enforcement,
partnerships, prevention, or problem solving we are
following the community policing philosophy.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
The Garner Police Department encourages and
is committed to having our employees and our
department involved with community activities and
outreach to develop and maintain working relationships
with the people we serve.
The department was involved with the following
activities, programs, and projects during 2019:
CITIZENS POLICE ACADEMY
The Citizens’ Police Academy, a 10-week-long program,
is an opportunity for citizens to learn how our
Police Department works, to meet officers who work
in their community, and to learn more about what it
means to be a police officer in Garner today. The
Department conducted two ten-week sessions in 2019;
one in the spring and a second in the fall. Nineteen
students graduated from the spring academy while
eight students graduated from the fall academy.
The goal of the Academy is to build relationships
between officers and the community through better
understanding of our jobs and functions. It also provides
a forum for feedback and suggestions for improvement.
Each week, one or more topics are taught by members
of the Department. Citizens have opportunities for
hands-on practical exercises where appropriate. The
following classes are currently taught: Introduction
to Class/Department Overview, Communications,
Vehicle Stops, Drug Investigations/K-9, Arrest, Search
and Seizure, Domestic Violence Investigations, Use of
Force, Rapid Deployment, and Traffic Enforcement/
Crash Analysis/DWI Detection. After graduation,
students are given an opportunity to apply for the
Citizens and Police Together team (CAPT).
CITIZENS AND POLICE TOGETHER (CAPT)
Citizens and Police Together (CAPT) is a volunteer group
composed of Citizens’ Police Academy graduates who
are willing to volunteer their time to give back to their
community. The CAPT mission statement is, “The goal
of the Citizens and Police Together team is to partner
with the officers and support personnel to provide
extra assistance as needed, to be a positive influence,
and to return a service to the citizens of Garner that will
make a great community even greater”. CAPT consists
of 18 volunteers and helps with such events as Child ID
stations, the July 3rd Celebration, National Night Out,
traffic control with annual parades, and other events as
needed. In 2019, the CAPT team donated 604 hours of
their time to the Town of Garner. If you are interested
in becoming part of CAPT, please contact Sgt. Michael
Medlin ([email protected]).
ACHIEVEMENT CAMP
The Achievement Academy was originally developed
by our School Resource Officer (SRO) and DARE
officer in 1994 and was called “Challenge Camp” at
the time. The program is aimed at students, both
male and female, at our two middle schools. Students
are selected by school counselors, school resource
officers, and police officers who volunteer with the
Garner Police Athletics/Activities League (PAAL), based
on a combination of expressed interest, application
process, and staff recommendations. Those invited
to attend are selected because they have expressed
a desire to challenge themselves to overcome mental
and physical obstacles and to improve themselves,
both individually and as a team with their group.
The week-long Achievement Camp was held in July
2019. Students attended a ropes course at NC State’s
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GARNER POLICE DEPARTMENT 2019 ANNUAL REPORT