Public Safety Director Anthony F. Ambrose invites the public to attend an upcoming community meeting where their input will be sought concerning new community policing plans.
The feedback gathered from the community will be used to formulate the new Newark Police Division community policing policy.
The CommUnity & Cops meetings are designed to bridge the gap between the public’s day-to-day experiences and concerns regarding crime reduction and policing matters and to ensure their explicit contribution to NPD’s community policing policy. The meetings are part of an overarching strategy to expand collaboration between police and community groups toward solving local neighborhood problems.
According to officials, in 2017, the Newark Police Division received an award from New Jersey Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino for Outstanding Community Policing for its innovative approach to fostering relationships of collaboration, trust and understanding between police and the community. Specifically, NPD was awarded for its Clergy Patrol, a program that partners members of the city’s 100-member Clergy Alliance with police on scheduled patrols. Using friendly yellow police cruisers, Clergy Patrol members join police in visiting business owners and residents—at their homes, hospitals, shops or schools—each weekday. These volunteers also provide consolation to crime victims and witnesses as needed.
Building upon this remarkable success, Director Ambrose welcomes the public’s input and graciously solicits their ideas and opinions in devising a community policing strategy that meets their direct needs.
“I wholeheartedly believe that effective policing goes hand-in-hand with community relations that are built on trust and transparency,” he said. “These meetings empower our community members and offer them the unique opportunity to have their concerns heard and implemented based on their partnership with us to make Newark safer.”