Chief Bailey began by saying that he was a native of New Albany who lives on Elm St. with his family. He also expressed a great concern for the community. He has only been chief for eight weeks but he is eager to make changes.
The police force will be working in a different way from now on. They will be pro-active instead of reactive, and will also be ready and willing to listen to our concerns. The new plan is called "Problem Oriented Policing" or "POP".
There was also a slide presentation with information which is listed below:
- New policing concept designed to attack crime in problems areas of town.
- Replaces outdated process of simply responding to crime in the community.
- Will deal with quality of life issues such as loud music, code issues, juvenile problems, vandalism, thefts, graffiti and drug and alcohol matters.
- "POP' works hand in hand with "Intelligence Oriented Policing".
- Interviewing known criminals and analyzing data to pinpoint trouble and to direct strategy.
- We will seek your input and suggestions regarding some of the problems to solve.
- Police personnel will engage in "POP" activities daily beginning Jan. 1, 2011.
- Our Night Shift will implement the program with tactical operations in the SE Jones area and surrounding areas.
- Additional community problem areas and problem topics will be immediately addressed.
- ZERO TOLERANCE
This is just a part of the information on the slides. They went on to ask everyone to get involved and join neighborhood watch groups, which will be re-instated. He also gave NAPD contact information.
- Emergency 911
- Non-Emergency Dispatch 944-6411
- Non-Emergency Administration 948-5300
- CRIME LINE 948-NAPD (6273)
The crime line is for callers to leave tips, and they do not have to give their name, but it is preferable to identify yourself and be a witness in court if necessary.
The police also have a Facebook page and will soon have twitter and a web page.
Chief Bailey thinks that things don't need to be done a certain way just because that's the way things have always been done.
Building Commissioner David Brewer was also present and he is eager to make changes also. He said the previous Code Enforcement Officer only had the authority to send letters to offenders. The city council has approved the hiring of another code enforcement officer, one to handle problems in the office and another to be out looking for violations. He promised that from now on issues will be taken care of instead of just sending letters.
As I said earlier, the people in attendance were excited about making New Albany safe again. Everyone was asked to complete a short questionnaire listing problems in their neighborhood and asked to participate watch groups. I encourage everyone to help with this endeavor.
