Study finds police are one of the most trusted groups in America

A recent study from Pew Research Center indicates that police officers are one of the most trusted authorities in America, ranking just below public school principals and ahead of the six other groups discussed in the survey, including religious leaders and journalists. Members of Congress ranked at the bottom of the list.

I think this study contradicts the national narrative that mistrust of the police is raging nationwide. The silent majority of Americans support law enforcement. According to the study, “Police officers also are viewed in a positive light by the U.S. public. More than eight-in-ten (84%) U.S. adults say police officers protect people from crime ‘all or most’ or ‘some of the time.’ Three-quarters or more also say that police officers care about people (79%), responsibly handle the resources available to them (79%) and provide fair and accurate information to the public (74%) at least some of the time.

For several years now, we have seen story after story about how confidence in law enforcement has fallen off or that trust is at an all-time low. According to the Pew study, that is not the case. The stories also say no one would want to be a police officer in times of such mistrust. That hasn’t been our experience, either. We have had a wonderful response to our recruitment efforts and get about a thousand applications for the position of police officer each year. This is a noble profession, and I am grateful that so many people want to pursue it with our agency.

This is not to say we don’t have work to do. The study also pointed out, “Opinions about police officers differ widely by racial and ethnic group, with white people holding more positive opinions about police officers than black people and Hispanics do. … Roughly seven-in-ten white Americans (72%) say police officers treat racial and ethnic groups equally at least some of the time. By way of comparison, half of Hispanics and just 33% of black adults say the same.”

This divide shows where we have work to do, and it’s something we are working tirelessly with the community to address. I believe this starts with our young people, which is why programs like the Youth Police Initiative, Teens in Transition, the KC Police Athletic League (PAL) and more are so important in building trust. Another important piece in bridging that gap is the Office of Community Complaints, which has a national reputation as a premier civilian oversight board that residents can turn to when they feel police aren’t acting in their best interest. Reflecting our community in our staffing remains an ongoing challenge, and one we will continue to pursue.

A community depends on its law enforcement and its trust of that law enforcement. I’m pleased that the Pew Center study showed police are one of the most trusted groups in America, and we have been blessed by all the support we have received and continue to receive in Kansas City. Residents and KCPD members alike want a trustworthy police department we can all be proud of.

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It takes a community

Co-authored by Mayor Sly James and Chief Smith

If you’re like both of us, you look at Kansas City’s crime statistics and wince. Maybe you get angry. Maybe you want someone or something to blame. We get it. We do, too.

But crime is complex. Criminal behavior usually isn’t driven by just one thing, and we won’t be able to bring down crime in our city with quick fixes. We believe 2018 can be the year that our neighborhoods see true relief from violence, but it will take more than anything the police or the city government alone can provide. It will take you. We need each Kansas Citian to prioritize crime reduction in our community. There is no substitute for an engaged citizenry when it comes to fighting crime.

The men and women of law enforcement rely on tips and information from members of our community to help solve crimes. If you see something, hear something or know something, do something. Both of us are powerless to help make our neighborhoods safer without your help. To that end, KCPD recently increased the TIPS hotline reward to $5,000.

While police and city government can’t fix the crime problem alone, we are doing a great deal to address it. The Kansas City No Violence Alliance (KC NoVA) has been working hard to stop the recent spate of homicides. In fact, the percentage of homicides resulting from group-related violence – KC NoVA’s focus – has dropped steadily since the group started in 2013. However, overall homicide numbers are still going up, and we’re trying a number of things to stop that.

KC NoVA is bringing all of our city’s key players to the table to address the very small percentage of people who are responsible for a lot of the violence in Kansas City. Every morning, representatives from a host of agencies meet in person and by conference call to talk about what crime happened in the last 24 hours and any intelligence that was developed. The meeting is led by KCPD’s Gang Intelligence Unit and includes a variety of internal units at the KCPD as well as our local, state and federal partners. These heavy hitters work together every day to identify the most dangerous people in our community and how we can best arrest and prosecute them.

We also work to rehabilitate those who want to leave a life of crime. NoVA client advocates presently work with more than 100 people who want to avoid criminal behavior and be productive members of society. Advocates provide everything from conflict resolution skills to substance abuse treatment to job training. NoVA partners also have made nearly 100 visits to individuals who were incarcerated as the result of NoVA enforcement and worked with them to prepare for a law-abiding life on the outside. It’s still early, but their rate of recidivism appears to be significantly lower than average.

The Ruskin area in south Kansas City had recently experienced an elevated level of violent crime and quality of life issues. NoVA partners knocked on 697 homes in the Ruskin Heights neighborhood this past year to inform hundreds of families that police presence would be increasing, violence would not be tolerated and resources were available to help families get their loved ones back on the straight and narrow. The Violent Crimes Enforcement Division along with our NoVA partners is working with community members to identify specific neighborhood problems and concerns. We have already observed a reduction in the criminal activity occurring. Each year, we examined the date range of August through December. We found that crime categories, including aggravated assault, domestic violence, armed robbery, and strong-arm robbery, collectively increased from 2014 through 2016. Crime rose 56 percent between 2014 and 2015 and another 11 percent between 2015 and 2016. However, data show a 10 percent decrease for the same date range in 2017 when compared to 2016. Police will continue to work with City Codes Enforcement Officers to address blighted homes. The goal is to improve the neighborhood, reduce criminal activity and restore resident satisfaction. We intend to replicate this geographical targeted policing into other areas of the city.

Teens in Transition is another program of KC NoVA. Funded by the offices of the Mayor and Jackson County Prosecutor, this program has brought 40 teens at risk for violence together each of the past three summers. Led by Michael Toombs of Arts Tech, they learn conflict resolution skills, undergo job training and art therapy. The whole time, KCPD’s school resource officers work alongside the teens to build relationships and trust. The kids who graduate from the program have significantly fewer negative contacts with police than they did before they started.

You’ll notice many of these crime-fighting efforts are less about going out and arresting people and more about giving them the resources they need to prevent them from turning to crime. One way KCPD is doing that is through a social worker embedded at Central Patrol Division. Here’s one great example: For years, officers have tried to enforce away issues with teens congregating on the Country Club Plaza in the summer and violating laws. This past summer, the social worker, Gina English, went to the Plaza and surveyed the kids about why they were there. After some citations for curfew violation the initial weekend the summer curfew went into effect, the problems on the Plaza decreased that summer. Gina identified the issues that drove idle youth to congregating and breaking laws, and those underlying issues were addressed by her social work and the responsible citizenship classes Gina taught to the children and parents who’d been cited for curfew violations. It was more effective than anything police had done to address the problem. To read more about what social work is accomplishing in Central Patrol Division, check out Chief Smith’s blog from last week. Like the client advocates at KC NoVA, social work is proving to be an innovative solution to public safety problems.

We’re about to see even more of this happen in Kansas City. The Police Department has just secured funding to embed a social worker at all six patrol division stations. More information on that will be forthcoming.

The way the police department shares and acts on crime information also has changed in a way that increases accountability. A sergeant skilled at data and intelligence analysis provides both the patrol divisions and Chief Smith with detailed weekly crime data and maps, pointing out patterns, recent parolees and concerning issues that need follow-up. Every week, officers and commanders assigned to each of the city’s six patrol divisions meet to discuss crime issues and neighborhood concerns in their area. Then every Wednesday, the commanders report how they’re working within their divisions to address those issues. They also discuss how they can partner with other internal divisions like Violent Crimes, Violent Crimes Enforcement, Special Operations, Traffic and Homeland Security and bring to bear the resources of those specialized units to stop the crime.

We understand the need for our law enforcement community to look like, and to understand, the people who live in our neighborhoods. We’re both committed to increasing the diversity of our police force. There is a KCPD recruitment fair from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday, Jan. 13, at the Hillcrest Community Center, 10401 Hillcrest Rd. Department recruiters will be on site taking information from people interested in serving with KCPD and answering questions about employment. We’d love for community members from a wide variety of backgrounds to come apply.

Striving for a diverse workforce is nothing new for KCPD, and it’s something we are always trying to enhance. In 2017, KCPD was out recruiting everywhere from urban core high schools and churches to the Bosnian Community Picnic to LGBT festivals to universities and military bases. Among a host of other diversity recruitment initiatives, KCPD has been working with Kansas City Public Schools to build a program for interested students to learn about law enforcement with the goal of having them eventually join the department. In the coming months, KCPD will be operating a career center at the Manual Career and Technical Center in downtown. The purpose is to develop and mentor young people so those students looking for jobs after they graduate from high school can pass the background examination and go into civilian positions on the KCPD (such as desk clerks, building maintenance and other spots) until they reach the age of 21 and can become police officers. KCPD also is implementing a summer youth police academy for 12- to 15-year-olds in partnership with the Parks Department. The goal is for urban core youth to have a continuum of exposure to and mentoring by police from middle school to graduation. Those young people grew up in and understand the neighborhoods that are most in need of police presence, and we need them in the department.

That’s just some of what we’re doing in terms of internal changes in working with our community and law enforcement partners to address crime in 2018. We have the bold goal of getting Kansas City off the 10 Most Dangerous Cities list and look forward to what contributions our residents can make in helping us achieve that.

We believe all Kansas Citians deserve to live in a safe and healthy environment. It takes a community to make it possible. When we work together as a community, we have the capacity to solve our city’s most complex issues. Let’s come together now.

Females comprise nearly 1/3 of graduating Academy class.

The 149^th Entrant Officer Class will graduate from the Kansas City Regional Police Academy on Thursday night, and I’m proud of the diversity it represents. Thirty-one men and women will take the oath that night to uphold the law in Kansas City.

We often talk about the necessity of a police department that reflects the community, and usually those conversations are in the context of race. That is indeed very important, but about half the community we serve is female, and our department – as well as most other law enforcement agencies – has a long way to go before we reflect that demographic.

This graduating class has the highest percentage of females that anyone on the department can recall. Nearly a third – 10 out of the 31 – are women. Women bring unique strengths and perspectives that can be lacking in the male-dominated field of law enforcement, and I’m happy to see them filling our ranks.

Last year marked the first time our department ever has had two female deputy chiefs at the same time, and I am confident that a woman will be chief of the Kansas City Missouri Police Department in the not-so-distant future.

We’re not going to take a rest now and celebrate. Obviously, more work needs to be done. Fortunately, this trend is continuing. The 150^th Entrant Officer Class is in training now. Out of the 45 KCPD entrant officers, 12 are female. Our recruiters will continue to encourage females to apply, as well as a wide array of people from different races, socioeconomic backgrounds and cultural experiences.

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Women breaking ground at KCPD

Diversity means a lot more than different skin colors. It means a variety of life experiences, socioeconomic backgrounds, geography, education level and more. In a traditionally male arena like law enforcement, it also means gender.

Since I was appointed chief, I’ve recognized the importance of having women represented throughout all ranks of the police department – not as tokens but as leaders. Last fall marked the first time the KCPD ever has had two female deputy chiefs at the same time. Cheryl Rose heads up the Patrol Bureau and Patty Higgins, whom I promoted last fall, is over the Professional Development and Research Bureau. I trust these women with some of the most important functions of this department: overseeing the training of and policies for new and existing officers and directing the 900-some patrol officers who are the front lines of our police force.

Two of our other executive positions also are filled by women – General Counsel Virginia Murray and Associate General Counsel Jamie Cook. And Major Robin Houston is just the second woman on the department in my memory (and I’ve been here 26 years) who has served as commander of the Fiscal Division. She is charged with overseeing the department’s budget and expenditures.

And while women have previously broken into other male-dominated areas of the department such as Traffic Enforcement and tactical squads, another woman this year has gone where none had gone before: firearms instruction. After a successful tenure in the Homicide Unit, Detective Venasa Ray became KCPD’s first-ever female firearms instructor. She teaches recruits and officers how to handle and use their weapons, and she’s an excellent shot.

With 582 of them, females comprise 29.2 percent of KCPD employees department-wide. That includes non-sworn, civilian staff. Females comprise just 14 percent of our law enforcement officers, and we are working to increase that number.

In fact, one of my priorities is to increase diversity of all kinds throughout the department. It’s not just a men-and-women issue, nor is it just a black-and-white issue. We want department members who were raised in different ways and who know different things. They need to have a few things in common, though: be of high integrity and have a desire to serve the residents of Kansas City and keep them safe. Do you think you fit the bill? Go to the careers page on our web site and learn how to apply.

Send comments to [email protected].

New recruits reflect community

Thirty-four men and women are beginning the process today to become Kansas City Missouri Police officers. Today, they are filling out paperwork, getting their equipment issued and undergoing orientation. Tomorrow will be their first day at the Police Academy as part of our nearly eight-month training program.

This group represents the community they will serve well. A third of them are minorities (nine are black and two are Hispanic), and 20 percent of them are women. I thank our Human Resources Unit for recruiting and processing such qualified and diverse candidates.

I look forward to watching these men and women become Kansas City Police Officers.

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A police department that reflects the community

Kansas City, Mo, is a diverse place. Data from the 2010 census show 10 percent of our population are Hispanic, 30 percent are black, 2.5 percent are Asian and more than 3 percent are two or more races. As an organization charged with serving such a diverse city, the Kansas City Missouri Police Department should reflect the community it serves. But it doesn’t, and I’m not satisfied with that! It’s imperative that we improve recruitment, retention and promotion of a diverse workforce. We care about diversity on our staff, and that means diversity of education, background, culture, military experience, life experiences and more. I will make public a detailed plan in the future to increase our diversity.

You can see the full report of the racial make-up of our law enforcement staff at the link at the bottom of this post. In some areas, we’re doing well. Five of 19 majors are black, as are nearly a third of our civilian staff members. In other areas, however, we do not reflect the community adequately. KCPD has just two black captains and no Hispanic commanders (captains, majors and deputy chiefs). We also fall short in several other ranks.

We have fantastic officers who come from all types of different backgrounds. But having more police who look like the residents of Kansas City shows we desire a police department that actually reflects the community we serve and that we respect all cultures.

As I have said about many other issues in this city, the resolution to this issue won’t come from the police department alone. Although our recruiters work hard, we can’t just snap our fingers and come up with a room full of qualified police recruits. We need you to send us potential candidates who you think would reflect our community and are of good character and high integrity. Regardless of race, gender or ethnicity, we encourage everyone who has a desire to serve the residents of Kansas City to apply. You can read all about our hiring process on our Careers web site. Again, please encourage members of the community who you think would contribute to the police department’s vision to apply.

Law Enforcement by Rank/Title/Ethnic Group table

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