Cedar Rapids police host chief meeting to discuss gun violence

CEDAR RAPIDS - Cedar Rapids is not the only community in Iowa facing gun violence.

Cedar Rapids Police Chief Wayne Jerman said he and other chiefs in Eastern Iowa have discussed issues related to gun violence in the past. Those discussions prompted Jerman to host a number of chiefs for a gun violence summit at the police department on Thursday.

'We're all seeing it,” Jerman said of gun violence throughout Iowa.

Attendees for the summit included Jerman, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa Kevin Techau, Ames Police Chief Charles Cychosz, Davenport Police Chief Paul Sikorski, Dubuque Police Chief Mark Dalsing, Fayette Police Chief Richard Pisanti, Iowa City Police Chief Sam Hargadine, and Waterloo Director of Public Safety Daniel Trelka. Jerman said the purpose of the meeting was to share strategies that departments have employed in response to gun violence and share information with one another.

'We're not just operating within the silo of Cedar Rapids,” Jerman said. 'We want to make sure we're communicating and sharing information, both regionally and statewide.”

Jerman described the meeting as 'three strong hours.” Some of his top brass, including command staff in the investigative and patrol divisions, sat in on the meeting, as well.

Among the topics discussed was the department's Police Community Action Team, or PCAT. The PCAT will be a group of officers that work outside of regular patrol beats and will be deployed to address crime and quality-of-life issues in the city as they arise.

'Everybody was really interested in our PCAT team and the concept that PCAT is going to be utilizing,” Jerman said.

Another topic was getting community support on police initiatives, something Jerman said Cedar Rapids is already succeeding at.

'I think our police department has a good relationship with the community,” he said. 'My philosophy is we're going to make that relationship stronger.”

Jerman said the chiefs walked away from the meeting hoping to come together again every other month. While the meetings could take place in other cities, Jerman said he is always willing to host.