The conduct of each employee reflects on the department as a whole; therefore, the responsibility for achieving our community relations objectives is shared by all personnel.
Rationale:
The Saint Paul Police Department, recognizing that a viable and effective community relations program is an essential ingredient in achieving cohesive and harmonious interaction with the community, has established a community relations function.
Commitment to Community Relations:
- The department is committed to establishing close ties with and responding to the needs of the community.
- The department is strongly committed to correcting actions, practices and attitudes that may contribute to community tensions and grievances.
Responsibility:
The authority and responsibility for developing and coordinating the departments community-relations function is vested in the public information officer.
The role of district commanders is also vital and essential to the success of the departments community-relations efforts. District commanders are required to be actively involved in interaction with the district councils and all active community organizations within their jurisdictions. Additionally, during the exercise of their routine activities they shall become aware of areas of concern to community residents and of situations that could develop into problems affecting law enforcement in the community.
All department employees are encouraged to use community and volunteer services personnel as a primary resource when interacting with community groups and organizations.
Community Input for Police Policies:
Input from the community in the development or revision of department policies can help ensure that they reflect the needs of the community.
Revised July 1, 2011