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Relational Policing at an Inflection Point: A Need for Police Leaders as Thinkers

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Abstract

The current state of relational policing in the United States is at an inflection point. Mobile phones, viral videos, and social media platforms have allowed us to watch police officers assault law-abiding people, witness the murder of an unarmed citizen like George Floyd, and become aware of the death of Breonna Taylor – all due to the actions and inactions of police officers. These localized and isolated events are often generalized across jurisdictions, departments, and the profession. The blue suit generalization phenomenon (Williams 1998), in which the public paints all police personnel with a broad brush, has divided communities, impacted police morale, and affected public trust and confidence in law enforcement. Furthermore, as a possible consequence, retaliatory actions on the parts of residents are a reality and have resulted in the deaths of police officers like George Gonzalez, William Evans, and Dylan Harrison. These dystopian scenarios with deadly results have occurred in cities, towns, rural communities, and college campuses across the United States. As such, they reflect a clear and present danger to American democracy – the disconnect and distrust between citizens and their governing institutions.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    A. Francis Turner was the first African American patrolman and Dr. Lee Patrick Brown’s predecessor. Brown credits Mr. Turner for paving the way for him. “I think it’s important to mention that Francis Turner...made it easier for me,” Brown recounted in an interview. “And I’m sure it wasn’t [easy] for him, ‘cause it wasn’t easy for me being the...second black.” Out of the 30 police sergeants to receive OLEA grants in Brown’s cohort, the two San Jose police officers were the only ones not relieved from their duty to attend classes. CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 9, The Honorable Lee P. Brown remembers becoming a police officer and his continued education.

  2. 2.

    CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 2, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his PhD in criminology from the University of California, Berkeley.

  3. 3.

    CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 9, The Honorable Lee P. Brown remembers becoming a police officer and his continued education.

  4. 4.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 2, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his PhD in criminology from the University of California, Berkeley.

  5. 5.

    Brown was one of 30 police sergeants nationwide to receive a fellowship from the US Department of Justice’s Office of Law Enforcement Assistance. CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 9, The Honorable Lee P. Brown remembers becoming a police officer and his continued education.

  6. 6.

    Although the community policing boom at the dawn of the twenty-first century is commonly attributed to Clinton era policies enacted in the 1990s, such as the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, PCR special units actually originated almost three decades earlier. Brown and his team conducted a series of interviews with East San Jose residents and proposed the following ten recommendations: (1) “The City of San Jose should immediately establish a Community Service Center in San Jose. (2) The Police Department should establish a Police-Community Relations Unit within the Department. (3) The existing Youth Protection Unit should be expanded to include programs in elementary schools. (4) The Youth Protection Unit and the Police-Community Relations Unit should act as a discovery and referral agency for children with problems of a non-criminal nature. (5) The Police-Community Relations Unit, in conjunction with other local agencies, should sponsor human relations seminars. (6) Methods should be devised to recruit more minority police officers. (7) Liaison should be established between the Police Department and various homeowners associations in the city. (8) A strong in-service training program in human relations should be initiated within the Police Department. (9) Plans should be made for the future implementation of a Police Athletic League. (10) Members of the Police-Community Relations Unit should participate in the planning meetings of the Police Department in order to keep the superior officers abreast of current community attitudes toward the Department.” CITE Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pgs. 146–147.

  7. 7.

    Brown explained, “since part of the Police-Community Relations Unit’s responsibility was to review the departmental policies as they related to community relations, the Unit reviewed the department’s complaint procedures in January of 1966 and found them inadequate. As a result, we recommended to the Police Chief that the department establish an Internal Affairs Unit.” Fortunately, the chief agreed with their assessment. CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 125.

  8. 8.

    Prior to his appointment, Brown explicitly requested direct access to the San Jose police chief to boost the efficacy of the PCR unit. CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 120. CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 1, The Honorable Lee P. Brown recalls his fellowship from the US Department of Justice.

  9. 9.

    CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 11, The Honorable Lee P. Brown remembers his treatment as the second African American police officer hired in San Jose, California.

  10. 10.

    The PCR’s primary objections, as espoused by Dr. Brown, “were to actively strive to obtain the highest degree of cooperation between citizens and the police department, and actively promote an understanding of the police function among the citizens.” Furthermore, he argued, “this can be done by building citizens’ confidence in the police department, gaining support for the police department’s programs and objectives, which would include compliance with laws, assistance in investigations and cooperation with special programs.” CITE Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 120.

  11. 11.

    CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 121.

  12. 12.

    CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 125.

  13. 13.

    CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 125.

  14. 14.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 3, The Honorable Lee P. Brown reflects upon the African American presence in police departments and the criminal justice system.

  15. 15.

    CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 3, The Honorable Lee P. Brown reflects upon the African American presence in police departments and the criminal justice system.

  16. 16.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 2, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his PhD in criminology from University of California, Berkeley.

  17. 17.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970.

  18. 18.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 202.

  19. 19.

    “Presently,” Brown ascertained in 1970, “police departments are evaluating their community relations programs in the same manner they evaluate other police functions, vis-a-vis, the computation of statistics.” Furthermore, he elaborated, “our research has shown that, in general, the police have not gone beyond this traditional reliance on statistical data for evaluating (and justifying) their community relations programs.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 200.

  20. 20.

    According to Brown, “the criteria for determining the effectiveness of a police-community relations program must be directly related to the goals of the program.” In order to address the “criteria problem and attempt to identify a meaningful means of evaluation that will stimulate additional efforts on the part of those concerned with the analytical side of police-community relations,” he argued, “we must stress the point that considerably more effort must be addressed to the problem of program analyses of individual police community relations components.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pgs. 202, 220.

  21. 21.

    Brown proposed a three-pronged process for PCR program evaluation in 1970: (A) Describe the problem which the program is designed to attack, (B) establish quantifiable police-community relations goals and quantitative objectives of the various program components established to achieve the goals, and (C) determine the goal achievement by assessing the program results. CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 223.

  22. 22.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 226.

  23. 23.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 1.

  24. 24.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 213.

  25. 25.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 214.

  26. 26.

    Brown offered a 13-point list of objectives for PCR training programs. “Some of the objectives of a police-community relations training program should be: (1) To develop in police officers an awareness of citizens as people not symbols. (2) To provide police officers with the mechanism whereby they become sensitive to the problems, needs, and attitudes of the community. (3) To develop in police officers an appreciation and respect for the rights of individuals. (4) To develop in police officers an understanding and appreciation for the history and culture of minority groups and their contribution to the development of American society. (5) To develop in police officers an understanding of the vast dimensions of human life so they can conduct themselves in the manner dictated by the courts, the legislature and the people. (6) To develop in police officers an understanding of the philosophy of dissent and why conflict is generally necessary to bring about change. (7) To provide police officers with an understanding of the history of law enforcement and the reasons certain enclaves within the society are demanding changes. (8) To provide police officers with an understanding of the behavioral effects of prejudice. (9) To develop in police officers an understanding of how their words and actions can trigger a negative response from others. (10) To develop in police officers the capability of coping with stressful situations without over-reacting. (11) To develop in police officers an understanding of the police mission, with emphasis being placed on community service as the legitimate police mission. (12) To develop in police officers an understanding of the inequities in the criminal justice process and how a double standard of enforcement of the law serves to destroy respect for law and law enforcement officers. (13) To develop in police officers an appreciation of the need for good relationships with the community, especially the minority communities.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pgs. 215–216.

  27. 27.

    CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pgs. 215–216.

  28. 28.

    Brown’s dissertation included an outline of a particular PCR program that he crafted for an unnamed “municipal police agency with a large Black community.” Most notably, his outline featured course content on the Civil Rights Movement; Black and white militancy; the NAACP, Urban League, Black Panthers, and Nation of Islam; Race and Crime; the Psychology of Human Development; Mechanism of Prejudice; Professionalism and Ethics; and Practical Police Problems. CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pgs. 216–218.

  29. 29.

    According to Brown, “public relations can be likened to a one-way street whereby the police department attempts to project a good image to the public. It carries with it the inherent hazard of becoming a ‘selling job’ that may sometimes reflect to the public a false image. Police-community relations, on the other hand, is like a telephone, not a broadcasting system — it is a means for two-way communication.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 21.

  30. 30.

    “Public relations, from the standpoint of private enterprise, is a method of selling a product,” Brown explained. “From the standpoint of police, public relations is a method of selling the police image. Consequently, it is logical to assume that anything the police do from a public relations standpoint will be done to enhance their image.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 21.

  31. 31.

    For Brown, the ultimate goal ought to be the full integration of “total community relations in all aspects of police work.” CITE Ibid. Lee Patrick Brown, “EVALUATION OF POLICE-COMMUNITY RELATIONS PROGRAMS,” University of California, Berkeley, Doctorate in Criminology Dissertation, 1970, pg. 213.

  32. 32.

    CITE Elizabeth Hinton and DeAnza Cook, “The Mass Criminalization of Black Americans: A Historical Overview,” Annual Review of Criminology, July 2020.

  33. 33.

    CITE Anne T. Sulton, Ph.D., J.D., Ed., African American Perspectives On: Crime Causation, Criminal Justice Administration, and Crime Prevention, (Sulton Books: Englewood, CO), 1994, pgs. 1–14.

  34. 34.

    Before becoming a sheriff in Multnomah County, Oregon, Brown moved to Portland in 1968. There, he worked at Portland State University to develop their Department of Administration of Justice. In 1972, he joined the faculty at Howard University as a professor of public administration and the director of criminal justice programs in Washington, DC.

  35. 35.

    CITE The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  36. 36.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  37. 37.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  38. 38.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  39. 39.

    The symposium dates were September 7th–9th, 1976. CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  40. 40.

    CITE Herrington J. Bryce, Ed., Black Crime: A Police View, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, United States Department of Justice (October 1977), pg. 1.

  41. 41.

    Other participating organizations included the Center for Minority Group Mental Health Programs of the National Institute of Mental Health, the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Social Programs, the National Urban League, the Community Relations Service of the US Department of Justice, the National Urban Coalition, and the United Planning Organization. CITE Ibid. Herrington J. Bryce, Ed., Black Crime: A Police View, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, United States Department of Justice (October 1977), pgs. 163–167.

  42. 42.

    CITE Ibid. Herrington J. Bryce, Ed., Black Crime: A Police View, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, United States Department of Justice (October 1977), pg. 1.

  43. 43.

    CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 8.

  44. 44.

    Ibid. CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 16.

  45. 45.

    CITE Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham and John Hope Franklin, From Slavery to Freedom: History of African Americans, 10th Edition, Preface.

  46. 46.

    CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 58.

  47. 47.

    Brown was intimately involved in all three police executive organizations: NOBLE, PERF, and the IACP. During an interview, he shared that he was one of the founders of the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) in 1976. He also served as the first Black president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) from 1990 to 1991. CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  48. 48.

    Ibid. CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 15.

  49. 49.

    CITE Ibid. The Honorable Lee P. Brown (The HistoryMakers A2004.226), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 4, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 4, The Honorable Lee P. Brown describes his affiliation with law enforcement organizations.

  50. 50.

    The NBPA’s organizational plan enumerated five goals for its newfound members: (1) to improve the relationship between the Black community and the police department; (2) to improve the professional status of black policemen, individually and collectively; (3) to encourage more Black citizens to actively apply for employment with law enforcement agencies; (4) to assist in reducing causes of crime; and (5) to encourage the further development of law enforcement as a profession. Ibid. CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 13.

  51. 51.

    Ibid. CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 13.

  52. 52.

    Ibid. CITE Justice By Action, National Black Law Enforcement Executives History Book, Turner Publishing Company (1998), pg. 15.

  53. 53.

    Their recommendations fell under four main categories: (1) causes of crime, (2) crime control, (3) police-community relations, and (4) the role of the Black police executive. Representative John Conyers Jr. authored the bill, H.R. 13636, about federal funding for police departments without affirmative action. CITE Ibid. Herrington J. Bryce, Ed., Black Crime: A Police View, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, United States Department of Justice (October 1977), pgs. 157–159.

  54. 54.

    CITE Ibid. Herrington J. Bryce, Ed., Black Crime: A Police View, National Institute of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice, Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, United States Department of Justice (October 1977), pg. 157.

  55. 55.

    Created on June 18, 1976, “the Council’s mandate [was] to provide guidance, direction, and recommendations to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Its membership [was] representative of the nation’s four majority groups: blacks, Hispanics, American Indians, and Asian-Americans. Its members [came] from all geographic sectors of the country, and their expertise [encompassed] various elements within the law enforcement system, including police, criminal justice policy leaders, community advocates, corrections, and the law.” CITE Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Preface, pg. 11.

  56. 56.

    Contrary to previous studies, the council’s report “[incorporated] the opinions of diverse minority people, along with the results of the Council’s research activities. To assess the impact on crime and each element of the criminal justice system on minorities across the nation, the Council (1) reviewed past and current criminal justice literature, (2) sponsored numerous public hearings around the nation, (3) solicited input from consultants and experts on specific issues, (4) conducted field studies and interviews with selected minority criminal justice leaders and public officials, and (5) critically analyzed criminal justice policies and programs at various governmental levels.” CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Preface, pg. 12.

  57. 57.

    Reportedly, “prior to the creation of the Council, no process for minority input to the criminal justice issues existed on the federal level.” CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Preface, pg. 11.

  58. 58.

    CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Executive Summary, pg. 15.

  59. 59.

    CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Executive Summary, pg. 15.

  60. 60.

    The council’s primary conclusions were threefold: (1) “race is an important factor in the operation of the criminal justice system which seems to discriminate against minority racial/ethnic groups; (2) incarceration is applied primarily to the poor and minorities, while diversion, restitution, and other alternative programs are considered more appropriate for whites; (3) although minorities are more often victims of crime than white, their involvement in the criminal justice system is disproportional to their numbers in population, and they have been virtually excluded from participation in policy-making activities against crime.” CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., Abstract.

  61. 61.

    CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, Chairman, and Raymond S. Blanks, Executive Editor, “The Inequality of Justice: A Report on Crime and the Administration of Justice in the Minority Community,” National Minority Advisory Council on Criminal Justice, January 1982, Washington, D.C., pg. 425.

  62. 62.

    Brown recalled that “the final report of the Commission was never printed by the government’s printing office. Rather, a limited number of copies were duplicated by LEAA and distributed mainly to members of the Commission.” CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 48.

  63. 63.

    Brown began experimenting with community policing frameworks in Houston in 1982. Phase one of city police reform efforts centered on amplifying community problem-solving and crime prevention capacities through targeted police programming. He famously jumpstarted Houston’s novel Directed Area Responsibility Team program, also known as DART, in order to revamp the department’s personnel deployment strategies, crime analysis techniques, and community engagement protocols. With a dual goal of improving organizational efficiency and nurturing productive relationships between patrol officers and community residents, Houston’s DART program emerged as a national model for transforming an entire police district into a conduit for community-involved policing at the neighborhood level. CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. 166.

  64. 64.

    CITE Hartmann and Moore, “Executive Session,” White Paper, 1989.

  65. 65.

    Brown published his magnum opus on the past, present, and future of American policing in 2012. CITE Ibid. Dr. Lee P. Brown, Policing in the 21st Century: Community Policing, (Author House: Bloomington, IL), 2012, pg. xvii.

  66. 66.

    CITE Lee P. Brown, “Community Policing: A Practical Guide for Police Officials,” Perspectives on Policing, National Institute of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice, and the Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, No. 12, September 1989, pg. 5.

  67. 67.

    Brown noted that “power sharing means that the community is allowed to participate in the decision-making process unless the law specially grants that authority to the police alone.” CITE Ibid. Lee P. Brown, “Community Policing: A Practical Guide for Police Officials,” Perspectives on Policing, National Institute of Justice, U.S. Department of Justice, and the Program in Criminal Justice Policy and Management, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, No. 12, September 1989, pg. 5.

  68. 68.

    As Houston Police Chief, Brown ran for president of the International Association for Chiefs of Police (IACP) and won. He was the first African American police executive to hold the position.

  69. 69.

    Before his service at ONDCP, Brown was a distinguished professor at Texas Southern University and the director of the Black Male Initiative Program. After his service at ONDCP, he worked as a Radoslav A. Tsanoff Professor of Public Affairs in the Department of Sociology at Rice University and became a James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy Scholar.

  70. 70.

    In 1993, Brown was inducted into the Gallup Hall of Fame by Gallup, Inc., and he was also named the “Who’s Who in America” in 2004.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of History, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA

    DeAnza A. Cook

  2. John Glenn College of Public Affairs, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA

    Megan LePere-Schloop

  3. Chief of Police, University of Georgia Police Department Instructor, Criminal Justice Studies Program University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA

    Dan Silk

  4. Frank Batten School of Leadership & Public Policy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Brian N. Williams

Authors
  1. DeAnza A. Cook
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  2. Megan LePere-Schloop
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  3. Dan Silk
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  4. Brian N. Williams
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Correspondence to Brian N. Williams .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

    Arvind Verma

  2. Department of Criminal Justice and Law Enforcement, Coppin State University, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Dilip K. Das

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Cook, D.A., LePere-Schloop, M., Silk, D., Williams, B.N. (2023). Relational Policing at an Inflection Point: A Need for Police Leaders as Thinkers. In: Verma, A., Das, D.K. (eds) Police Leaders as Thinkers. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-19700-0_5

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