At the start of each school year, we match up every fifth grade glass with a Healdsburg police officer. The officer introduces himself to the class and spends some time in class getting to know the kids as a group. After that initial introduction, each student will then have a chance to meet their police officer at the police department during the course of the school year. The students visit the police department in groups of 2-3 and are given a tour of the police facility and our equipment. They spend a few hours with the officer and then have lunch with the officer before being returned to school. We hope that giving fifth grade students early and positive interaction with a police officer will have a lasting impression on them about the human side of working in the policing profession and reinforce positive seeds about police officers and the law enforcement profession.

“Crime Mapping” program

During the coming year, the Healdsburg Police Department will be partnering with crimereports.com to provide crime data to the public, and help the police department track criminal activity. The program will allow any visitor to the Healdsburg Police Department website to access crime data for our city, depicted on a map. This will enable anyone to see where crime is occurring and how much crime is occurring in our city. Residents will know what is happening in their neighborhoods, and visitors will have a sense where for what the level of crime is in Healdsburg. In addition making this information available to the public, the program will also have an “in house” version that will help our patrol officers and sergeants identify crime trends and patterns with the City of Healdsburg, so that strategies for addressing that crime can be developed. The program will help make our police department and open book for the public and also help us serve the community more effectively.