For the Milwaukee Police Department and Fire and Police Commission
Chapter 4
Community Oriented Policing Practices
Finding 12
MPD members generally do not understand their roles in community policing and rely on Community Liaison Officers (CLO) to engage in community policing activities.
MPD should inform patrol officers on the roles and responsibilities of CLOs and provide officers guidance on how to collaborate with CLOs in their collective community policing efforts.
Officers are first responders to all matters of emergencies and crisis, but are most effective when they become familiar with areas and neighborhoods and have the ability to engage in positive interactions. From individual level to the neighborhood or entire policing district, officers have regular opportunities to be problem-solvers and community partners, whether as part of standard protocol, a prescribed program or activity, or through organic interactions with the public they serve. MPD’s goal is to embed the notion of community-building into policing so that it is not just about responding to calls for service and following up with investigations, but rather partnering with communities, engaging in preventative activities and using problem solving.
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