Officers get personal in police work

AUBURN, Ind. (WANE) - Police patrols just got more personal; the streets more social in Auburn.  The city’s police chief has introduced a new effort to build relationships between community members and officers.

The goal, Martin McCoy said is to establish familiarity and trust so if something comes up, neighbors might feel more comfortable going to police.

“We’ve got that small town feel and we want to keep that.  We want people to know that we’re there to help them,” Chief McCoy said. “They pay for us to do a job and we want to do that job for them; we’re here to serve.”

The police department divided the city into five sections to which officers are assigned.  Each of the agency’s 18 patrol officers will be responsible for making connections throughout their area.  McCoy has asked officers to make at least one contact a week to start.

Corporal Chad Weimer, a 20 year veteran with the department said he was eager to talk to homeowners specifically about possible drug activity.

“In the last two months, we’ve had four meth labs in four different houses in [one] area, so I think there’s a need for some community policing; get to know the neighborhoods a little better,” Weimer said.

During his first introduction with a couple out for a walk Wednesday, Weimer heard concerns about vandalism. Auburn resident Sara Cook appreciated the new effort put forth by police.

“I think it’s nice that they’re going to assign people to areas where they can look for things that are out of place… If you’re in the whole town, you’re not going to learn that nearly as quick,” Cook said.

Chief McCoy stated the idea should not be considered a program or a service but instead a tool to help the department do its job better.