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Community policing is a widely-adopted model put into practice for nearly 40 years. The concept stemmed from a desire to address community concerns about rising crime rates through increased citizen involvement. To strengthen relationships with their constituents and improve their own reputations, police officers asked for assistance in solving and preventing crimes in the area. Recent advancements in technology are altering the ways in which law enforcement agencies can incorporate community policing into their operations. By providing an easier and more efficient way for people to report crime and share information, social networks like Facebook and Twitter significantly impact how well police connect with people. Software for mobile devices facilitates and eases communication both internal and external to a department. Officers who master these digital tools may increase the effectiveness of community policing in their jurisdictions.

According to a 2010 report from a New York State Task Force, incidents of police-on-police shootings occurred 26 times between 1981 and 2009. Even with a recent line-of-duty death in San Francisco in late January, such accidental violence remains thankfully rare. Law enforcement agencies provide training to prevent these deadly events, but human error and unusual circumstances can still lead to tragedy.

Police psychologist Jack Digliani has just produced the 5th Edition of his Police and Sheriff's Peer Support Team Training Manual which he has always made available for free here on CopsAlive.com. He is also recommending that police officers agencies, and other law enforcement professionals consider doing an Annual Proactive Check-In. What is a Proactive Annual Check In? The Proactive Annual Check-In (PAC) provides police officers… and other agency employees with a confidential setting within which to share information about current life circumstances. It is a proactive program designed to offer a positive exchange thoughts, ideas, and information.

No matter the industry, your job requires you to develop a particular mindset in order to perform well. Whether you fabricate metal, perform surgery, or control operations in a large company, your mind must be focused on the task at hand. For law enforcement professionals, the right mindset necessitates some cynicism. Cynicism is an inherent part of police culture. Outside of the first responder and military network, law enforcement officers face situations unlike other professions. Officers constantly assess situations by determining the credibility and potential threat of people they encounter. In a 2012 publication, researchers Juha Kaarianen and Reino Siren noted how this practice can slip into other interactions: "The suspicious, cynical attitude of the police towards citizens is a natural consequence of their constant interactions with dangerous unreliable individuals." The cynical mind begins to diminish trust and drives constant assessment of others. Whether on- or off-duty, constant questions linger in an officer's mind: Can you trust that the person approaching you is going to simply walk by without attempting to harm you? Can you trust that the figure walking down a residential sidewalk is not looking for an easy target to attack or the next home to burglarize? A cynical mind may seem like a negative facet of police life, but the ability to carefully assess situations and react accordingly is a sign of a seasoned and well-trained officer.

"A chief of police has two important and sometimes conflicting responsibilities - his or her own officers and members of the community. He or she must, on one hand, be the leader of the police  and, at the same time, the chief of and for the community. It is in the use of deadly force that these responsibilities come into conflict. If the chief, in a questionable shooting, decides in favor of the officer, the chief must be able to demonstrate to the community and convince them that the shooting was both lawful, within the stated policy of the department, morally defensible, and consistent with training."--David Couper

The introduction of the iPhone, and with it the smartphone revolution in 2007, has been both a boon and a bane for law enforcement. While apps and constant connectivity have enhanced police officers' productivity, the legal landscape surrounding society's use of these devices continues to evolve. The resulting uncertainty occasionally leads to makeshift policies, undesirable press coverage, and lengthy court battles. As the law in this domain solidifies, departments must be quick to recognize appropriate tactics and quickly adopt effective policies. A more pronounced area of smartphone jurisprudence centers around citizens recording on-duty police officers, which is now legal in every jurisdiction of the United States. Nevertheless, misunderstandings about two-party consent laws and wiretap statutes have resulted in a substantial number of improper arrests and detentions in recent years. As a result, departments have not only been responsible for more than $1 million in related settlements over the past three years, but have also faced heavy scrutiny by the public and in the media for these events. Through proactive training, departments have an opportunity to stop the bleeding of public trust and shape perception of law enforcement for the better.

Every day, police officers encounter situations that invoke and challenge their training. As they try to adhere to department policies, a changing world tests the validity and effectiveness of those decisions. Critical attention is being paid to high-profile incidents involving use of force. Communities are demanding that law enforcement revisit their training content to find tactics that better address concerns of public safety. While that transition may be difficult, injecting technology at key points in police training and operations can help lower resistance to change. Body cameras are already having an impact on policing, and training simulators offer a safe environment in which to prepare for emerging real-world challenges. As a result, officers may be more willing to shift their routines to meet the needs of their communities without sacrificing their own safety.

It's a simple concept. Police and community members come together in an informal, neutral space to discuss community issues, build relationships, and drink coffee. In over 175 cities and towns in 36 states, Coffee with a Cop has done wonders for community trust, police legitimacy and partnership building. In over 175 cities and towns in 36 states, Coffee with a Cop has done wonders for community trust, police legitimacy and partnership building."

A team of heavily armed New York Police Department officers conducted a late-night drill at a closed shopping mall last month in hopes of avoiding a repeat of the chaos that accompanied the mall massacre earlier this year in Kenya, police officials said Tuesday.

State police hope to entice active military personnel, veterans and full-time cops to join its ranks by allowing them to replace college credits with work experience. Gov. Tom Corbett announced on Wednesday that, effective immediately, state police cadets can get a waiver on some, or all, of required college credits if they served in the military or law enforcement for a certain amount of time.

A new Pittsburgh police program will try to connect domestic violence victims with resources to reduce the risk of more violence, police leaders said on Friday. Beginning Monday, officers responding to intimate partner domestic violence calls will ask the victim 11 questions meant to gauge the potential for homicide or serious assaults in the future, Acting Chief Regina McDonald said at a news conference at headquarters in the North Side. Officers will use a department-provided cellphone to call the Women's Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh hot line to put the victim in touch with an advocate if they determine the victim is at a high risk of further trouble.

What each of these stories have in common is that they all arose in states-California, Massachusetts and New York-that do not have laws governing the licensing of law enforcement officers who engage in serious misconduct. Thus, it is up to each department to decide whether to apply discipline-and what kind of punishment, if any, is merited. Similarly, New Jersey, Hawaii and Rhode Island have no police licensing rules. The remainder- 44 states-do have the authority to remove the licenses of unfit police officers.

If State Police troopers want to do anything in their career, it's save a life. So when staff at Tufts Medical made the desperate call for troopers to escort Ryan Brooker's car into Boston, that his future depended on it, this became a story about State Police service, about doctors and nurses, and about a young man thankful to simply live his life again.

Over the past few months, numerous media outlets propagated the image of U.S. law enforcement officers in military-grade armor, inferring a formidable police presence and sparking national debate. Many departments cite the increasing sophistication of weapons and threats of terrorism as motivation to strengthen their resources. While U.S. lawmakers and local police departments evaluate the efficacy and appropriateness of police militarization, researchers are looking for ways to improve the communication and judgment of officers who face stressful encounters with potentially lethal threats. - See more at: http://www.envisagenow.com/clear-communication-has-more-impact-than-military-equipment/#sthash.hJkyCIaU.dpuf

The Barnstable Police Department recently received a $126,121 grant from the state Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to train and update training for 82 telecommunicators, including dispatchers, and 10 new police officers in emergency medical dispatch. Everyone currently assigned to the communications desk has had the training, Sweeney said.

In March 2011 the Hawthorne, California, Police Department Community Affairs Unit hosted their first Coffee with a Cop event. Police and community members came together in an informal, neutral space to discuss community issues, build relationships, and drink coffee. Just two years later, Coffee with a Cop events are being hosted in more than 36 states across the nation.

The switch was thrown quietly in May 2012, hidden inside a 16-page directive, "Gang Violence Reduction Strategy," and largely ignored amid a 60 percent rise in murders in the first quarter alone. With less than a year on the job, McCarthy had already disbanded two special task forces, roving teams that muscled neighborhoods into submission. Now he was betting on what he calls "the next phase of community policing in this world": an emphasis not on the traditional "hot spots" for crime, but on the "hot people" who commit most criminal acts.

Gary Sommers has over 40 years service in law enforcement first with the Prince George's Police Department and now with the Montgomery County Police Department both of which are in Maryland. It was while he was working on the Prince George's County SWAT Team in 1988 that Gary was involved in a Blue on Blue shooting that resulted in the death of his best friend and partner, Sgt. Mark Murphy.

New technology is changing the way law enforcement agencies fight crime. Wearable tech is already being tested in police departments, and the next wave of gadgets could consist of applications that predict crime before it even occurs.

Earlier this week, the New York City Police Department asked for people to share photos of themselves posing with police officers, tagging these images on Twitter with #myNYPD. Within a few hours, a stream of images depicting police brutality dominated the hashtag timeline, and the @NYPDnews account had no immediate response. While most of the morning-after media analysis focused on the online protest and questioning the initiative itself, the fate of this particular hashtag and others like it is not sealed. The most constructive reflection at present does not dwell on past mistakes, but rather accepts the challenge of an undecided future.