This guide is intended to present police leaders with a framework for institutionalizing community engagement strategies to improve their personnel’s willingness to increase proactive, positive interactions with the community. It draws on the discussions from law enforcement focus groups at every rank from 14 police departments, sheriff’s offices, and state police organizations, synthesizing the results into three themes: (1) defining expectations for proactive community engagement (2) engaging leaders in proactive community engagement and (3) establishing proactive community engagement accountability. To illustrate how these concepts can be applied, the final section presents how a specific proactive community engagement strategy—community walks—can be holistically implemented in a neighborhood experiencing high victimization.
Objective Research for More Equitable Outcomes