You see, it may not have been illegal, but I don't think we need the law to tell us when something is unethical. It is common practice for substation leaders to post photos such as these within the walls of the building, but in this case, the commander decided to set aside precedent, (I'm sure with the best of intentions) and publicly display the photos in the sidewalk window of the substation.
The problem is not that the community substation had decided to thwart crime and thus improve the living conditions of WEB, but rather, that these individuals were not afforded the due process of the law. That is to say, few would argue with the goals of community policing-reducing crime, improving the quality of life, helping to sustain walkable neighborhoods, but one has to recall that no one should be considered guilty until proven innocent. Though, it may discomfort some, myself included (my friends were robbed within blocks of this substation), we still must remember that we are afforded very basic civil liberties in our society including the right to fair trial and presumed innocence. Therefore, it is unnecessary and unfriendly to publicly display the photos of individuals not wanted for any specific crime. Fear-mongering and profiling such as this will only create more tension in our communities.
We'll have to leave it to the ACLU lawyers to determine if anything about this incident could be considered illegal, but we should all agree that local law enforcement over-stepped their bounds on this occasion. In the meantime, lets give thanks to the community members who showed up in the cold weather yesterday to protest this incident. There message should resonate with anyone who values their community and their liberties.
If you live in this neighborhood, and care about the decisions being made on your behalf, the best thing to do is attend the Community Management Team meetings (3rd Tuesday of the Month @ 7:00pm at the substation). It is an open dialogue between community members and leaders including law enforcement. It represents a decentralized policy process and should be allowed to prosper. If you're sick of the same old guard deciding what's best for your neighborhood and you want to pitch your own ideas, this is a great place to start. In fact, invite all of your friends who live in the community with you, create a presence, show them that there are new ideas and solutions to our very old problems.
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Community Policing is a valuable resource in motivating neighborhood residents to cooperate with police in reducing crime. Although it is not a cure-all, community policing can have a positive impact by establishing a volunteer police chaplain program (at little of no cost to the PD). Assigning volunteer police chaplains to specific police sectors where their respective congregations are located accomplishes three purposes. 1) Clergy are known in the community and are privy to issues in their specific neighborhood. 2) A PD has an additional and respected voice in neighborhoods. 3) Parental control of neighborhood youth is enhanced. (What would grandma say if she knew what you are doing?) PD chaplains riding with police officers send a message to the community that the faith community is a player in reducing crime and public nuisances. “Stories of the Street: Images of the Human Condition” demonstrates the significant contribution volunteer police chaplains make in serving specific neighborhoods in a community policing module. Ref: www.strategicbookpublishing.com/StoriesOfTheStreet.html
Volunteer Police Chaplain Steve Best, (Ret.)
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