Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 404 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: MARCH 2017 Despite cops’ pleas, COPS Office gets the axe Just when the C.O.P.S. Office is more important than ever, the feds pull the plug Editor’s note: President Trump promised that he would be a “great cheerleader for police” on the campaign trail. He said he would also be a great cheerleader for the mili- tary, the economy and many other things. From the looks of things, the support the new administration will be offering local law enforcement will be moral support as opposed to any federal funding. Below are excerpts from a letter from a police officer asking President Trump not to close the COPS Office. Dear President Trump: I wanted to reach out and tell you about the rami- fications and the impact to so many police officers around the United States if you go through with a de- cision that you apparently made. I read an article published recently in the publication “The Hill” that was writ- ten by Alexander Bolton about upcoming government spending cuts. The article stated that you intend to eliminate the Of- fice of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) which is part of the Department of Justice. I want to tell you a bit about the COPS Office, be- cause it’s a small office that you may never had even heard of. They do really good work and help cops like me do our jobs. The COPS Office is directly responsible for helping and enabling my po- lice department to create an amazing community polic- ing program called “Coffee With a Cop.” The Coffee With a Cop program has allowed officers around the United States to have positive, barrier-free contacts with community members. It has resulted in officers and community members getting to know officers in a way that has rebuilt trust that was long lost. “Coffee With a Cop” is now in 13 countries and four languages and has positively impacted police-commu- nity relationships around the world. The COPS Office funded another great program in Houston, Texas called TAP S (Teens and Po- lice Services). This wonder- ful program has created lasting bonds between teens in under- served areas and the police who work in those communi- ties. The COPS Office is the only part of the federal gov- ernment that is exclusively devoted to helping officers do the job as safely and ef- fectively as they can. COPS Office also works hard to educate communities about the difficult job that police officers have. The COPS Office has been in the forefront of pushing out “tactical medicine” to agencies nationwide which has saved countless lives. They fund and study “line of duty deaths” as well as the critical issue of officer suicide and how we can educate and help prevent such tragedies in the future. The COPS Office is supporting the “Na- tional Blue Alert” program to rapidly get information about cop killers out to the media and public to aid in the apprehen- sion of suspects. I had the plea- sure of serving as a fellow last year at the COPS Of- fice. I can tell you firsthand that the people em- ployed there are the smart- est, most dedicated people I have ever dealt with. They are forward thinkers, caring and compassionate people who believe in the mission of community polic- ing and the fact that we can affect change and increase public trust in law enforce- ment at a time when it has never been more impor- tant. The people at the COPS Office don’t just talk, they do the job. Please spare the Office of Community Policing because the benefits to police far out- weigh any minuscule savings from eliminating it. You have had great sup- port from law enforcement during the campaign. You promised to support police officers and help them do the difficult jobs they have. You said you would give them the tools that were needed to succeed. I, Ser- geant Chris Cognac, am asking you to do just that. You can follow Chris Cognac on twitter at @chriscognac. No more “Coffee with a Cop” or any of the other great stuff the COPS Office made possible. The timing couldn’t be worse, considering the growing disconnect between police and the public. Now that they killed the COPS office, law enforcement officers and their agencies can expect to do even more with even less. 2017: $0 You said you would give them the tools that were needed to succeed. I, Sergeant Chris Cognac, am asking you to do just that.