Madison Police Department Chief Mike Koval wants people to have a more positive and inviting view of local police. He took time during a Monday press conference to explain his targeted approach to make that happen.
In response to what the police chief said was a stereotypical mistrust of local officers, several neighborhoods within Madison will now have new neighborhood resource officers, characterized by Koval as the “centerpiece” for future initiatives in 2015.
Slightly different from typical police officers, Koval says the neighborhood resource officers are assigned specific neighborhoods, each with their own special challenges. They are tasked with taking proactive steps to finding long-term solutions to specific problems in their areas.
Officers Jeff Pharo and Shawn Kelly are the officers assigned to the State Street and Langdon Street areas, respectively. Both areas surround UW-Madison’s campus.
In addition to their jobs of proactive crime detection and prevention, the neighborhood resource officers would become more involved within the individual communities. They will participate in local activities like coaching teams and creating community gardens, according to Koval.
Officer Dave Dexheimer described the role of police as not just call and response, but “more a matter of community building” and “developing a relationship on an intimate and [at a] day-to-day level with people who live there.”
