Visit from Topeka

Last Wednesday, the Topeka Police Department paid us a visit with a group of police personnel and citizens, looking for some fresh ideas. If you follow The Chief's Corner, you're already aware this isn't unusual. We host site visits and exchanges with other departments with some regularity.

What was unusual about this visit was that Topeka brought along a news crew. A nice story about the visit ran on the local ABC affiliate in Topeka, asserting that there's a bit of a friendly competition between us to be "America's Safest Capital City." I think Capt. Brown and I were just kidding about that, but for the record we have an awfully big lead--not that I'm bragging or anything.

We had a far-ranging conversation, and our visitors also attended our regular ACUDAT meeting. I suspect the most salient idea the Topeka delegation took away concerned information for landlords. One of the things we've tried to do is make good current information available to property owners and managers about the police incidents occurring at their property. We do this with an instant report that they can generate 24/7/365 based on the specific address. We also provide some good advice on background checks for prospective tenants. We have some great web resources for instant access to this information.

Police department's are hampered in their ability to adapt and change by the fact that the great majority of officers work their entire career at the same agency. While this has some tremendous advantages, it also slows innovation because of the relatively rare injection of people who have other experiences and exposure to other ways of operating. That's why exchanges like these are so valuable for all involved. You can learn a lot by looking around.