EAST HARLEM — In their quest to improve police/community relations the mayor and police commissioner announced seven steps each officer will be encouraged to follow when interacting with the public.
The steps include officers "politely introducing" themselves and providing name and rank, being "patient with the people they are serving" and "making sure every encounter ends on a 'positive note.'" Mayor Bill de Blasio made the announcement during a press conference at the 25th precinct in East Harlem Thursday — an area where officials want to improve relationships between police and the community after years of stop-and-frisk.
"The seven steps are things a lot of officers already know instinctively and practice everyday, but we want to make it the norm," de Blasio said. "We want everyone to know this is the right approach."
There are no firm plans yet on how the steps will be articulated to officers, but they will become part of the curriculum for future recruits going through the police academy, the mayor added.
"It will start with creating a new approach to how we train our new recruits," de Blasio said. "The men and women who will be both the beat cops of tomorrow and the leaders of the police force of tomorrow."
Both de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton credited good community relationships with police being able to quickly arrest the man accused of shooting a police officer in Crown Heights Wednesday.
Good Samaritans pointed responding officers toward the building where alleged shooter Rashun Robinson ran into. He was soon arrested on the fifth floor.
"You saw in the incident yesterday what it meant to have community members immediately provide information to the police," de Blasio said.
