Customer Reviews

Community Policing : A Handbook for Beat Cops and Supervisors (Criminal Justice Press Project)

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Howard Rahtz has made community policing accessible for the beat cop. His handbook cites real-world examples of how community policing works. He also cites research to back the examples, but he doesn't get bogged down in statistics or academics. This is a primer. Every new cop should read this in the police academy. Every veteran cop should too. And supervisors should refer to it regularly.
I've taught community policing classes for years. This handbook does in less than 150 pages what I've tried to get done in hours and hours of classes. This handbook explains in simple terms that community policing is a philosphy of action. It makes the SARA model of problem solving easy to understand. Howard Rahtz obviously knows his topic and he writes in easy to read, street cop language.
This book doesn't belong on the shelf. It should be on your desk, in your briefcase, or in your hands. And it should be read by every community leader, from the elected officials to those volunteers who are so vital to making community policing work.

The format of this book is extremely easy to follow. The examples, descriptions, and remedies from Mr. Rahtz are excellent. I am not in law enforcement, nor do I have a degree in Administration of Justice, but what I can offer you, concerning this book, is this: this book gives the average citizen a good look into what community oriented policing is all about. Mr. Rahtz does mention that there are other definitions and other styles of community policing that are currently being practiced by other agencies. His book is one of many, but one that should be noticed. Mr. Rahtz introduces the reader to two approaches in policing: the old way of policing, and then there's the new approach - community oriented policing. The author advocates for the new way and makes his claim that the new is more productive and shows (with examples) that it actually works. Later in the book, he gives the supervisor tips on how to effectively apply community oriented policing in the leadership role. Many police officers may think that they have a good understanding of what community policing is, or that some may be resistant to the whole idea of community policing, but these concepts and ideas, encapsulated in this short read, is a good reminder to the veteran police officer and to the skeptics that learing, training, leadership and being connected to your community is a never ending process. If you're thinking about law enforcement as a new career, if you're currently in the academy, or if you're a veteran police officer, this book is worth the money and the time to read.

As a reader who is not a policeman, I enjoyed Lt. Rahtz's book from a police story perspective. The anecdotes of the force were entertaining as well as instructive. In my humble opinion, the description of the community oriented police work probably is what most recruits believe their job will be like. Every recruit enters the force with a great attitude - gung ho and wanting to make a difference. What happens next - chasing radio and 911 calls - wears down many cops until the reasons they joined the force are forgotten.

With the recent unrest in Cincinnati, maybe the city will listen to one of its own and expand community policing.