San Antonio Police Department AWARDS

SAPD WINS 1998 NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIES "EXCELLENCE IN COMMUNITY POLICING AWARD"

On Thursday, January 7, 1999, San Antonio Police Chief Al A. Philippus presented to the San Antonio City Council the National League of Cities 1998 "Excellence in Community Policing Award", given to SAPD at the Annual Congress of Cities in Kansas City on December 5, 1998.

SAPD's award, in the "Community Policing in Action" category, was based on the Department's Internet Web Page and its focus on providing the community with information concerning crime in the city. NLC judges focused on the Bi-Weekly Crime Data and Maps pages, where residents can track crime in their neighborhood through internet pin maps and corresponding tables containing crime type, case number, date, time and location.

The NLC judges found that by using the internet information, residents have become better equipped to work as partners with San Antonio Fear Free Environment (SAFFE) officers to identify and solve crime problems in their neighborhoods. Citizens and SAFFE officers alike are now able to go into problem-solving strategy meetings equipped with timely data concerning types and locations of crimes. Cellular on Patrol groups have been able to focus their activities on crime clusters as illustrated by the pin maps. All groups are able to track the effects of their efforts by the decrease of dots on the maps or table listings.

1998 was the third year that the National League of Cities has sponsored the "Excellence in Community Policing" award competition. 117 cities were considered for the 1998 awards in five categories: "Community Policing and Business", Community Policing and Violence Against Women", Utilizing Volunteers in Community Policing", "Community Policing in Schools", and "Community Policing in Action" (SAPD's award for cities over 150,000 population). According to NLC President Brian O'Neill (Philadelphia), the winning programs "... embody two important concepts being advanced through the National League of Cities - one involving the idea of rethinking public safety, and the other about the importance of connecting citizens with their government."

SAPD featured its 1998 NLC Community Policing Award, along with its 1997 National Night Out Award, at the 1999 and 2000 "Showcase of City Services", held at local shopping malls between January and July each year.