Community Policing (Volunteerism)

Community Policing

Essential and Necessary

Bill Heckel AJ 105

By : Renee Novinger

Executive Summary

Former President George H . W . Bush in the State of The Union Address on January 29 , 1991 stated , The strength of a democracy is not in bureaucracy it is in the people and their communities . In everything we do , let us unleash the potential of our most precious resource - our citizens

Volunteerism in policing or community policing is vital . It allows members of police services and members of the surrounding community the opportunity to

bridge and form trusting and lasting relationships that affect and cause positive effects in the surrounding community

Community members learn first-hand what policing involves , and how difficult it is at times to enforce . Police services get to know those who they serve . Community policing is not a panacea . Power struggles - who 's really in control and members of police services refusing to work with volunteers , plague community policing . However regardless of these issues it is clear that community policing has decreased crime in neighborhoods where it has been instituted and has enriched the lives of the people that community policing serves

Volunteerism is the willingness of people to work on behalf of others without the expectation of pay or other tangible gain (http /en .wikipedia .org /wiki /Volunteerism , date accessed 12 November 2006

Volunteering at police headquarters involves primarily a willingness to give your time , effort and resources . The duties can vary . A volunteer may shadow an officer in their daily duties by responding to calls filling out work help investigate a case , providing traffic direction , directing crowds and crowd control . The amount of duties that a volunteer has is only limited by the amount of responsibility a volunteer wants

Community policing in most areas requires the volunteer to undergo much of the training , purchasing of uniforms and other costs at their own expense (Rahtz , 2001 pp . 36-55 . The requirements are the same for becoming a volunteer as becoming a fully armed and designated police officer . That is a criminal , psychiatric and medical background check is mandatory (Friedman , pp . 263-269 . The difference between the patrol officer and the volunteer is that the volunteer does not carry a weapon In fact this is an area that has created a large rift in those that want to perform duties as volunteer police and those officers who are officially trained (Rahtz , 2001

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Community policing provides the following benefits

economic : activities undertaken by volunteers would otherwise have to be funded by the state or by private capital , so volunteering adds to the overall economic output of a country and reduces the burden on government spending

social : volunteering helps to build more cohesive communities , fostering greater trust between citizens , and developing norms of solidarity and reciprocity which are essential to stable communities ( HYPERLINK "http /en .wikipedia .org /wiki /Volunteerism http /en .wikipedia .org /wiki /Volunteerism , date accessed 12 November 2006

The tangible benefits of community policing are embraced by middle-class and affluent communities . The...