Indisputably, these are remarkably challenging times for policing, and the eyes not only of the nation, but of the world are upon us.
Let us reflect on issues, provide solutions, and enhance our
dedication to lives of moral courage.
NYPD Graduation: A
Reflection
First, an observation from the April 24, 2023 graduation of
the newest NYPD officers.
The graduation of over 500 recruits took place in New York City
at Madison Square Garden.
Prior to graduating, the recruits were dressed impeccably
with new uniforms, complete with immaculate white dress gloves.
As memorialized on the NYPD Police Academy Twitter page, one
of their instructors thunderously shared an inspirational reminder, boldly
proclaiming the following to all:
“You are a servant to
the people that are out there, do you understand me.”
The riveting response of the recruits, who would become the
newest ethical protectors of the NYPD in a matter of minutes, was a resounding
“Yes Sir.”
The instructor continued, “You are about to become police officers, you are going to act like
it.” This direct, no-nonsense pronouncement reminded all to serve. For all embarking on the next phase of their profession,
it was emphatic. Their vocation demands high
ethical standards, and an unwavering commitment, fortitude, and discipline.
As we reflect on his words of wisdom, we proceed with reflections
that include an anthology of excerpts from articles in The Chief of Police.
It is my hope that these thoughts encourage law enforcement
to remember the dignity of their profession. This profession is vital, not only
to their communities, but to all of America.
Let Us Pause
“This year, the
names of 556 fallen officers will be added to the Memorial. 556 lives cut short
as they risked their lives, working to make things safer for the community and
people that they served. It’s a solemn reminder to the nation that each day is
fragile. Not a moment goes by where we forget our brave men and women in blue
for the ultimate sacrifice they have given. Their memory lives on.”
Marcia
Ferranto, CEO of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
The horrific acts of violence
against police demands our solemn pause and actions.
Protecting our communities is a shared responsibility. The
police and the community must be one and inseparable. We must be fully
dedicated, without compromise, to protecting one another. Problems ignite and
fester whenever the breakdown between the police and community occurs.
Every law enforcement member who died protecting and serving
our communities deserves America’s eternal gratitude, remembrance, and honor.
We must also be forever mindful of their families and
support them with unwavering compassion, respect, and dignity.
Let us honor them and forever hold their families, friends,
and law enforcement colleagues in our prayers, and take every action necessary
to reawaken the nation.
Some thoughts deserving reflection, resolve, and response:
"This past
year has been one of the most dangerous years for law enforcement in recent
history due to the increase of violence directed towards law enforcement
officers as well as the nationwide crime crisis, which has seen criminals
emboldened by the failed policies of pandering prosecutors and cynical
politicians.”
"If these
violent criminals are willing to commit brazen acts of violence against the men
and women of law enforcement, we can't begin to fathom what heinous acts they
are willing to commit against law-abiding citizens.
As crime rates
continue to rise, more citizens in this country are justifiably living in fear,
constantly wondering if they too will become a victim. Law-abiding citizens saw
the real-life consequences of what happens when elected officials embrace
pro-criminal, revolving-door policies and make decisions that put the interests
of violent offenders ahead of public safety. These decisions—failures to
prosecute violent offenders for their crimes or, even worse, releasing repeat
offenders arrested for crimes who show a propensity for escalation of
violence—make our communities less safe. These rogue prosecutors are putting
innocent lives at risk. When there are no consequences for breaking the law,
more people will break the law and crime will increase.
“I call on
Americans in every community across the country to join us in taking a stand—to
say, ‘Enough is Enough!’ Truthfully, the violence against those sworn to serve
and protect is beyond unacceptable; it’s a stain on our society, and it must
end. It is incumbent upon our elected officials and community leaders to stand
up, support our heroes, and speak out against the violence against law
enforcement officers.”
Patrick Yoes,
National President of the Fraternal Order of Police
Principles of
American Policing
Although Sir Robert Peel’s Nine Policing Principles are
timeless, contemporary issues demand principles complementing tradition while
respecting current realities.
The Principles of American Policing has
been formulated on the foundation of professionalism to enhance dialogue,
communication, and trust between police and communities:
1. Being
pro-police and pro-community is inseparable, indefatigable, and preeminent.
Police must at all times remain fully committed to protecting and serving the
public through character, ethics, and leadership that is total and
whole-hearted. Police must be guided by a moral compass that honors the
community, Constitution, and Bill of Rights.
2. Respect must be the heart of the police and
it must be unwavering for the profession, colleagues, and community. Respect
can only be earned through integrity, accountability, and transparency. These
qualities build trust, legitimacy, and collaboration.
3. Police deserve that every level of
government provide the resources necessary for proper police staffing,
training, and community service.
4. Initiatives enhancing police-community
relations must continually be implemented and include citizen appreciation
events, National Night Out, neighborhood block watches, and citizen police
academies. Programs for youth, the future of the nation, are vital. These
include school resource officers, youth police academies, character education,
and mentoring initiatives.
5. Police deserve the latest and most effective
technology to protect themselves and the public.
6. Moral courage must be encouraged, as police
must be empowered to make decisions that are legal, ethical, and moral.
7. Patriotism is mission-critical. Honoring
America, our flag, and our military personnel must be part and parcel of the
police officer’s creed and take place at every event.
8. Police interventions must always be
proportional, constitutional, and uphold quality of life issues deserved by all
communities.
9. Police require a discerning recruitment
process, education credentials, and ongoing training/certifications on issues
including constitutional policing, diversity, civil rights, race-relations,
violence prevention, community policing, crisis management, ethics, leadership,
gangs, private security, and use of force.
Ethical Policing Leadership:
World Class Certification Program
Along with protecting those who protect us, we must also
ensure they have world class training as
noted in the third principle of
American Policing.
Therefore, “21st
Century Policing: America’s Ethical Protectors” is a necessity for law
enforcement.
Ethical training, development, and certification is critical
to the entire law enforcement profession.
Law enforcement agencies nationwide require on-going ethical
policing certification programs fundamental to their mission.
Here are some pillars of a program spotlighting ethical
policing as the hallmark for professionalism.
Reasons include the following:
·
Ethical
policing certification is a proven educational model that strengthens
operational efficiency, improves morale, and increases respectability.
·
Ethics
empowers the rank-and-file of an agency with leadership skills, vigilance
enhancement, and collaborative expertise.
Ethical
Policing addresses state-of-the-art ethical principles based upon recognized
issues vital to the profession. This is the most effective way of developing,
attaining, and sustaining the vision, mission, and core values of the agency.
·
Ethical
Policing strengthens agency accountability, and improves community trust
through principles enhancing expectations, performance, and responsibility.
·
Ethical
certification assists in limiting the agency’s liability as it demonstrates
that ethical training has been conducted by an independent respected authority.
This program, which I developed and presented for a
partnership of the Bergen County Police
Chiefs Association, Bergen County Prosecutors Office, and Bergen County
Sheriff’s Office, has an agenda including the following:
·
Ethical
policing principles
·
Principles
of American Policing
·
Emotional
Intelligence
·
Cultivating
a reputation of respect
·
Building
community trust
·
Neighborhood
Policing
·
Sexual
harassment
·
Crime
prevention
·
Communication
skills
·
Mental
health and Officer Safety
·
Conflict
resolution
·
Crisis
management
It has also been my honor to present versions of this
program for the
FBI, the U.S. Postal
Inspection Service, U.S. Air Force, and the National Conference on Ethics in
America at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Parenthetically, there are also opportunities that should be
made available by law enforcement for the community relative to ethical certifications
and community trust.
These initiatives fall under Community Policing, or as the
NYPD refers to it, with some philosophical variation, Neighborhood Policing.
One such community policing initiative is a Citizen Police
Academy, one of which I myself completed 25 years ago with the Teaneck, New
Jersey Citizens Police Academy.
These bridge builders allow citizens and police to forge
trust, while understanding and enhancing an understanding of the criminal
justice system, and our shared responsibility.
American School
Violence Demands Law Enforcement Leadership
It is irrefutable that our school violence crisis demands
law enforcement leadership.
Recently, a comprehensive report
titled America’s School Violence Crisis:
A Special Report, School Violence: Toxic Personalities, Warning Signs,
Countermeasures was published by The Chief of Police.
Although an understanding of the entire report is essential,
this excerpt is directly associated with law enforcement responsibilities:
School resource
officers (SRO’s): one of the most important school violence prevention,
character education, and community policing initiatives. But to be most
effective, the SRO program demands the most qualified, trained, certified, and
dedicated police professionals available.
Qualified back-up officers must be available of assigned
SRO’s for the program to have credibility.
Additionally, school resource officers should study the
following documents:
· America’s
School Violence Crisis: A Special Report, School Violence: Toxic Personalities,
Warning Signs, Countermeasures
· Early
Warning Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools
· Practical
Information on Crisis Planning: A Guide for Safe Schools and Communities
· The Final
Report And Findings Of The Safe School Initiative: Implications For The
Prevention Of School Attacks In The United States
· Threat Assessment
in Schools: A Guide to Managing Threatening Situations and To Creating Safe
School Climates
· Averting Targeted School Violence, A U.S. Secret
Service Analysis of Plots against Schools
Ethical Responsibility
of Elected Officials
We must also demand that our elected officials, whom we have
entrusted with critical leadership roles, provide ethical leadership to enact
laws to support law enforcement and protect society.
Sensible laws are required, without the continuous lame
excuses, outlandish interpretations of the Second Amendment and egregious misunderstandings
of “well-regulated.”
Individuals who have sinister intentions, or who are not
mentally qualified, must never be enabled to purchase weapons. Comprehensive
background checks, training, certifications, and licensing is a community
responsibility.
Our elected officials must also provide the leadership to
keep dangerous individuals in jails.
"What we got to do, if we really want to see homicides go down, is
keep bad guys with guns in jail. Because when they're in jail, they can't be in
communities shooting people. So when people talk about what are we going to do
different, or what we should do different, what we need to do different, that’s
the thing that we need to do different.
"We need to keep violent people in jail. Right now, the average
homicide suspect has been arrested eleven times prior to them committing a
homicide…That is a problem. That is a problem."
Robert J. Contee III, former Chief of the Metropolitan Police
Department.
Final Reflections
Recently, The Chief of Police published America’s Head on Collision: A Culture of Violence and Crisis of
Character.
The article pinpoints the horrific violence and character
crisis, exemplified by active shooter incidents and corruption, undermining the
moral compass of the nation.
Additionally, the FBI recently released Active Shooter Incidents in the United States in 2022. This document further highlights our violent
society, designating 50 shootings in the 2022 as active shooter incidents.
These glaringly illustrated signs of the times must not
define America. We must turn this venomous
tide with the antidote of moral leadership, building bridges of trust and
respect between the community and police.
These bridges are America’s only hope, and we must be fully
committed to a unity of effort.
About the Author
Vincent J. Bove is a national speaker and author on issues
critical to America with over 300 published works, and eighteen cover stories
for The Chief of Police.
His most recent books are Reawakening America and
Listen to Their Cries.
Bove is recipient of the FBI Director’s Community Leadership
Award, former confidant of the New York Yankees, and served as spokesperson for
a coalition of Virginia Tech tragedy victim’s families.
Note Well: this article was published in The Chief of Police, July 17, 2023 edition and distributed hardcover to law enforcement executives nationwide.
It is also published online as follows:
https://www.copmag.org/reawakening-the-nation-2/
This published work is based on a fourteen year partnership of Reawakening America LLC with the National Association of Chiefs of Police. The partnership includes 18 cover stories and 58 articles authored by Vincent Bove without interruption to quarterly magazine publications.
“We must all serve as catalysts to protect our
workplaces, schools, communities, public spaces, and houses of worship. Public safety demands leadership, vigilance,
and collaboration. Security demands
comprehensive enhancements, on-going training, effective response to warning signs,
and building bridges with law enforcement, private security, and every member
of the community.” Vincent J. Bove
www.vincentbove.com
Contact: vincent@vincentbove.com
Twitter: vincentjbove
Related:
FBI: Active Shooter Incidents in the United States in 2022
America’s Head-On Collision: A Culture of Violence and Crisis ofCharacter
America’s Active Shooter Crisis Demands Visionary Leadership
Understanding the Profession
School Violence: Toxic Personalities, Warning Signs, Countermeasures
Photos
1. NYPD
pre-graduation formation, Madison Square Garden, Apr. 24, 2023. (Credit: NYPD
Twitter Police Academy)
2. NYPD
graduates, Apr. 24, 2023. (Courtesy NYPD Twitter, Commissioner Sewell account)
3. Chicago
Police Department funeral for Officer Ella French, Badge 15013. (Credit CPD
Twitter)
4. Fraternal
Order of Police (FOP) statistics for 2022. (Credit: FOP)
5. NYPD Counterterrorism officer with canine,
Rockefeller Center. (Credit NYPD Counterterrorism Twitter
6. NYPD funeral of Officer Jason Rivera, Jan. 28, 2022, Fifth Avenue, NYC. (Credit: NYPD PALS, Twitter)
7. Robert J. Contee III, former chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.
8. FBI
Active Shooter Cover (Credit FBI)
Labels: Collaborative Policing, Community Policing, Criminal Justice, FBI, Law Enforcement, Leadership, NYPD, School Resource Officer
On July 13, 2007, I was privileged to attend the full military interment ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery of Army 1st Lt. Mark H. Dooley, 27—killed in Iraq on Sept. 19, 2005. Lt. Dooley’s assignment was in the 2nd Battalion, 172nd Infantry Regiment (Mountain), 42nd Infantry Division, Vermont Army National Guard. 
Vincent J. Bove is a national speaker and author on issues critical to America with over 300 published works, and eighteen cover stories for The Chief of Police. His most recent books are Reawakening America and Listen to Their Cries.
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