Policing & Criminal Recommendations
Concern or Issue
Policing Subcommittee
There is a deep divide between Arlington ’ s youth and police .
Some Arlington police officers are not as well educated about or connected with the communities they patrol
Stress can put police officers ’ mental and emotional health at risk and therefore it may prevent them from carrying out their responsibilities as public servants and healthy citizens
APD Police Academy and In-Service Training should allow for more community input / interaction and include more training that focuses on police misconduct
An abundant amount of data that could assist in identifying racial disparities and behavioral trends of officers in policing exists , but the crime analysis unit is understaffed and unable to adequately utilize this data to enhance and / or create departmental policy that addresses these issues
Unity Council Report
Recommendation
Short term
• Expand the Police Athletic League to include sporting activities throughout the entire school year Medium term
• Build upon the police ride-along program to include students and young adults Long term
• Start a program to connect K-12 students with APD related to similar interests or hobbies
Short term
• Pair new officers with officers of a different race and background and directly engage with communities of a different race in their districts
Medium term
• Create a plan to encourage patrol officers to attend community events , patronize diverse restaurants , meet with different community leaders , and make connections with residents
Long term
• Create an immersion program for officers to connect to the communities they serve ; suggestions include having officers live in their beat for one week and connect with HOAs and other organizations that serve the area
Short term
• Revised psychological program to include racially diverse professionals ; survey APD about adequacy of current program and implement indicated changes
Medium term
• Schedule regular psychological evaluations for all officers such as an evaluation administered every 3-5 years and a mandatory evaluation after a traumatic event ; consider hiring a full time APD Chaplain as a part of this process
Short term
• Institute a review process that includes City Manager ’ s Office and APD leadership , qualified professionals and community members to review and evaluate high profile national incidents of police violence and misconduct to incorporate time sensitive changes in policy , training or other processes
Medium term
• Invite concerned members of the community to review training and add a member of the Unity Council to the Police Training Advisory Board
Long term
• Institute a bi-annual review process that includes City Manager ’ s Office , APD leadership , qualified professionals and community members to review current trends , training resources for possible inclusion into the APD training model
Short term
• Increase staff dedicated to analyzing data by hiring more in-house professionals or contracting to experts
Medium term
• Implement periodic internal and external review of analyzed data to monitor officer behavior and trends ( with respect to disparities ) and adjust policies accordingly
Long term
• Translate review into layman ’ s terms and disseminate to the public to seek feedback 85