Police Chief Magazine|Columns|From the Director
From the Director: Partnerships and Community Policing

As we approach the 20-year anniversary of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), we’ve begun to reflect on both the numerous contributions made and the many, many changes the agency has seen. Signed into existence by President Bill Clinton in 1994, the COPS Office began under one primary charge—let’s fight crime by adding more officers to the field. But almost immediately, it became clear that the addition of personnel alone would not solve the issues plaguing so many U.S. cities. It would take the institutionalization of the philosophy that collaboration, problem-solving, and organizational change would lead to better policing and safer communities. It would take involvement from everyone–communities, law enforcement, businesses, and schools. It would mean that engagement becomes just as important as enforcement.

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From the Attorney General: Making America Safe Again

In recent years, America has experienced a troubling surge in violent crime across the country—especially in urban centers. From carjackings to retail smash-and-grabs to open-air drug markets, the h...
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From the Director: The Power of Ballistic Data

On April 21, 2024, after completing his shift, off-duty Chicago, Illinois, Police Department (CPD) Officer Luis Huesca was shot and killed during an alleged attempted carjacking. The suspect fled, tak...
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From the Director: Body Armor Standards Updated to Better Protect Those in the Line of Fire

A little over a decade ago, Officer Ann Carrizales of the Stafford Police Department in Fort Bend County, Texas, was shot in the face and chest at extremely close range by a suspect she was pursuing. ...
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From the Director: The Challenge of AI to Global Policing

As we stand at the dawn of a new era in policing, artificial intelligence (AI) presents both unprecedented opportunities and profound challenges for law enforcement agencies around the globe. The rapi...
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From the Administrator: A Shared Mission to Save Lives

Today, people in the United States are experiencing the most devastating drug crisis in U.S. history. It is like nothing we have seen before. In 2022, in the United States, 110,757 people died from a ...
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From the Director: On-the-Ground Response to Victims and Survivors of Mass Shootings

Recent massacres like those in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, leave families in grief, communities traumatized, victim service providers overwhelmed, and a nation reckoning with a sense of vuln...
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From the Principal Deputy AAG: Supporting Law Enforcement Safety and Wellness

The dangers faced by law enforcement personnel are too often reduced in the public eye to the dramatic moments of a high-risk encounter. Once the immediate physical threat has passed, officers are som...
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From the Director: Harnessing the Power of Data-Driven, Inclusive Research

“We don’t need any data. We already know all about what cops do in our community.” The woman’s words were met with nods and murmurs of agreement....
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From the Director: Going Farther Together

There is an old African proverb that states, “If you want to go fast—go alone. If you want to go far—go together.” The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) has had the great privilege and honor ...
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From the Associate Attorney General: Supporting Law Enforcement’s Anti-Human Trafficking Work

Human trafficking is a crime that exploits and endangers some of the most vulnerable members of our society and causes immeasurable physical and psychological harm. Both labor and sex trafficking i...
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