ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Police Department’s partnership with the Department of Justice to address high crime rates in the city is ending. RPD was chosen to participate in the National Public Safety Partnership three years ago and since then, the feds have connected RPD with resources and training to better the force and cut down on crime.
“Our problems are not unique to Rochester but they’re not necessarily the same problems that Buffalo is having or the same problems that Syracuse is having,” says Chief David Smith of the Rochester Police Department. The partnership allowed RPD to take an outside look at their operations and make necessary changes. “PSP is really great at having someone take a look at your house and see what you can do to put things in order,” Smith says.
The Chief reorganized the department and refocused on all shootings, including non-fatal incidents. “A lot of times in non-fatal shootings, the victims aren’t necessarily cooperative so, it’s very easy for police departments to say, okay, they don’t want our help, we’re going to put this aside and move on,” Smith explains.
RPD modeled its non-fatal shootings unit after a successful program in Milwaukee. The two city departments were connected through the partnership. “We found first of all, that a lot of folks who may not necessarily want to talk to us, are more willing to talk to someone from the DA’s office,” Smith says.
RPD says it’s now closing about 40% of non-fatal shooting cases, compared to the national average of 9% and in about 90% of local cases, the DA’s office is securing a conviction.
The department also made changes to patrol, requiring officers to do 30 minutes of foot patrol each shift. “A study (we learned about) found that 15 minutes of random foot patrol at random times in any given area can significantly decrease violence,” Smith explains.
As the Public Safety Partnership comes to an end this year, RPD plans to implement one last lesson called ROC United, based on a successful program in Omaha. It brings together police, community leaders, neighbors and government leaders to meet weekly and address trends before they become crimes. “We just did a test meeting a week ago and I believe the roll out is going to be coming very soon,” Smith said.
City Hall is planning to officially launch ROC United in the coming weeks.
RPD Chief credits National Public Safety Partnership for helping department address crime challenges WHEC.com.
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