Work together to reduce violence and crime

As Chief of Police, it is my privilege to work with 212 sworn officers and 110 police employees who share a common mission to ensure a safe and secure community. Every day we patrol neighborhoods, investigate crimes, and build partnerships with community members and groups.

Through Dec. 15, 2015, violent crime was down 9.6 percent in 2015 compared to the previous year. This is an encouraging trend; still, we realize that there is much more work to do to reduce crime.

We are encouraged by increased community participation. Preventing crime in any community is predicated by citizens who willingly provide information to police when they see or hear something suspicious. The 'stop the violence” rallies and think tanks are recent grass-roots efforts to get to the underlying causes of why people engage in criminal activity.

These efforts are a testament to the fact that we cannot arrest ourselves out of some societal issues, particularly those involving youth in our community. Studies indicate that violence is a learned behavior. This fact underscores why we have an increased focus on youth violence and must find innovative ways to change inappropriately learned behavior and, instead, foster hope and opportunity for tomorrow's leaders.

The Police Department wants citizens to be vigilant, but not fearful. We continue to be concerned by people who use guns to resolve conflict. Reducing the number of shots fired incidents is a priority of the department. Certainly, we have committed resources and enhanced partnerships to address this important issue. Patrol officers have seized more than 85 guns in the past year from those that couldn't lawfully possess them. Our investigators have made significant arrests in many recent high-profile violent crimes, which have been enhanced by solid relationships with county and federal prosecutors.

We have formed a Police Community Action Team, or PCAT, that will deploy in at-risk neighborhoods to address crime and quality of life issues. The goal is to be visible in the community, engaging with citizens while on foot or bicycle patrol, for example, to understand and identify root causes of neighborhood issues.

PCAT is an extension of existing efforts by police officers and their participation in various task forces. Officers are part of the Eastern Iowa Heroin Initiative and Drug Enforcement Administration task forces, which includes prevention and mitigation of heroin and narcotics activities. This is done in conjunction with the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa.

Police also partner with county, state, and federal law enforcement to combat gun violence with the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Safe Streets Task Force and United States Marshals Service Task Force. Potential threats to homeland security are the focus of the Joint Terrorism Task Force, which includes Cedar Rapids police officers. Two officers are also assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force to keep our children safe from Internet predators.

I feel it is important to communicate all of the various ways that officers are involved in making our community a safer place to live, work, or visit. These partnerships are in addition to the daily interactions by officers in our neighborhoods, in our schools, and at community events.

So, as we start a new year in our city, I want you to know that officers care about this community and we genuinely appreciate the support of so many law-abiding citizens. A great police department is always the product of a great community. You are our eyes and our ears. This is your community and we are proud to be able to protect and serve you.

' Wayne Jerman is Chief of Police for the Cedar Rapids Police Department. More information: www.cedar-rapids.org/government/departments/POLICE