Officer Friendly

NOPD chief Eddie Compass wants to change the way the department relates to the public.

As part of a new initiative developed by Compass and his command staff, current crime-fighting techniques they say have resulted in more headaches for citizens than hard time for criminals soon will be history.

"We've been in arrest mode for 10 years, and the murder rate hasn't changed," Compass said Thursday. There have been 13 more murders so far this year than in the same time period in 2004.

"We're changing the whole mantra of the Police Department," he said. "Service will now be our top priority."

The move, Compass said, is as much of about the quality of life for the city's residents as it is about utilizing the force's resources.

Under the initiative, police will no longer routinely enforce roadblocks, wear military-style fatigues, or focus on trying to write municipal tickets. The police roadblocks, which needed 12 to 14 officers to man, would net a few arrests but caused unnecessary frustration and inconvenience to the law-abiding residents stopped, Compass said.

While this sounds very nice, something tells me we shouldn't expect to see NOPD selling Girl Scout Cookies on the corner any time soon. But, if Compass really does want to take a step in the right direction, he can start by removing the ridiculous Orwellian surveillance cameras from my neighborhood.