ABOUT

The charge of this committee will be to look at the Village of Westfield Police Department to address the particular needs of our community and promote community engagement to foster trust, fairness, and legitimacy, and address any racial bias and disproportionate policing of neighborhoods; this committee should consider evidence-based policing strategies.

State guidelines call for this collaborative process to:

• Review the needs of the community served by its police agency

• Evaluate the department's current policies and practices

• Establish policies that allow police to effectively and safely perform their duties

• Involve the entire community in the discussion

• Develop policy recommendations resulting from this review

• Offer a plan for public comment

• Present the plan to the local legislative body to ratify or adopt it