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Gongwer: Peters Introduces Community Policing Proposal

U.S. Sen. Gary Peters said this week a good way to improve trust between members of law enforcement and those in the communities they serve is to have them work in the very communities in which they live.

With that in mind, Mr. Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) introduced Wednesday a bill that he said would encourage law enforcement recruits to work in the communities they live in through grants.

The proposed legislation, called the Strong Communities Act, would provide federal grants to law enforcement agencies to recruit and retain officers who enter into agreements to attend a school or academy and then serve with the department of agency within their community.

"We need to work to address the lack of trust between law enforcement and the communities they are sworn to protect," Mr. Peters said in a statement, adding the bill would promote better local relationships between officers and the public.

Grants through the proposed legislation would come from the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services program.

The grants are meant to lower the cost on departments for education and training of recruits. Those who are recruited under the bill would be required to remain in employment for four years with the department in their community being within five miles of their residence.

For cities of 100,000 or more in population the term of service would be five years and the department for which they work would have to be within 20 miles of their residence.