On September 17, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) marked its 30th anniversary with a celebration at the Great Hall of the Robert F. Kennedy Building. Several key figures from the DOJ were in attendance, including Attorney General Merrick B. Garland; Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco; Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer; Rosie Hidalgo, Director for the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW); and Brent Cohen, Acting Assistant Attorney for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

Reflecting on 30 Years

The program began with remarks from COPS Office Director Hugh T. Clements, Jr., who thanked the attendees for the roles they have played in helping the office reach its numerous milestones during the past three decades. As he addressed the crowd, Clements acknowledged the office’s many partners and stakeholders for their continuous support of the office’s mission and hard work to advance community policing.

Director Clements also thanked former COPS Office directors Joseph E. Brann, Carl R. Peed, Ronald L. Davis, and Phil Keith—who were honored with certificates acknowledging their significant leadership contributions—and current and former COPS Office staff for their work to advance the office’s mission.

Following Director Clements’s remarks, Deputy Attorney General Monaco credited the COPS Office as a major factor in today’s decreasing crime rate, explaining that its work to advance community policing during the past 30 years has resulted in remarkable change in the nation’s public safety landscape. “When I meet with federal, state, local, and Tribal partners across this country, I hear a common refrain: that the COPS Office is crucial in the effort to keep our communities safe,” she said. “But through it all, COPS’ purpose has remained constant: to help communities build public safety capacity—and as importantly, to help law enforcement professionals build resilience.”

Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Mizer echoed Deputy Attorney General Monaco’s sentiments, noting that the past 30 years have seen “tremendous changes in policing,” but that the COPS Office “has been at the forefront of many of those changes, working alongside its law enforcement and community partners to transform policing in America.”

He continued, “And, at all times, the office has worked to make sure that the community is at the table.” Finally, he applauded the COPS Office on its hallmarks—adaptability, innovation, and responsiveness to challenges—as he believes that the COPS Office has “consistently been a leader in driving positive change in law enforcement.”

As Attorney General Garland addressed the audience, he remarked that the COPS Office has been a leader in community-oriented policing, which is not just a phrase or slogan but “the foundation of public safety.” He continued, “but the COPS Office mission is more expansive than just hitting a target.

“Because of so many of you in this room, and so many who came before you, I am pleased to say that the COPS Office has more than lived up our expectations in 1994.”

Working in the Field and Beyond

Attorney General Garland also spoke on the office’s role in the hiring of law enforcement officers to work on critical missions like community outreach, co-responder teams, and mental health crises. He highlighted the COPS Office’s work on the front lines of the opioid epidemic and explained how COPS Office grants have been instrumental in the seizures of heroin and fentanyl. Not only that, but the office’s technical assistance programs have been vital in helping law enforcement officers receive quality training on topics like de-escalation, officer safety and wellness, and building trust in their communities.

When discussing the office’s efforts to undertake a Critical Incident Review of the law enforcement response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Attorney General Garland noted that the COPS Office supports “communities during some of their most difficult times” and emphasized how its Critical Incident Review allowed him to engage with Uvalde community members in a way they deserved, with the information from the investigation being crucial to that engagement.

“I was able to do this because for over a year, the professionals of the COPS Office worked tirelessly to conduct a review that prioritized honoring the Uvalde community and the memories of those whose loved ones were taken from them.” He continued, “the COPS Office also showed the Uvalde community that they were not alone. The United States Justice Department saw them and the horror that they went through.

“The dedication that the COPS Office showed in Uvalde and in the days after in helping many, many other police organizations learn new strategies is emblematic of the way the office does everything: with care, compassion, and a clear-eyed understanding of the importance of community policing.”

Panel Discussion: COPS Office Directors

From left to right: COPS Office Directors Phil Keith, Ronald L. Davis, Carl R. Peed,
Joseph E. Brann and Hugh T. Clements, Jr. at the COPS Office 30th Anniversary Celebration

Later in the program, Director Clements moderated a discussion with former COPS Office directors in which they were asked to reflect on the past, examine the present, and share advice for the future.

As a former COPS Director, hindsight is 20/20. What is the one word that you hope will be part of the COPS Office legacy lexicon over the next 30 years?

Director Brann—who led the office from its inception in 1994 to 1999—stated that transformation is a key to the office’s legacy. He explained the COPS Office’s role in transforming the field of law enforcement through community policing and the culture of federal grant-making.

Director Peed (2001–2009) described the importance of remaining relevant to conversations regarding important public safety issues and challenges being faced by the nation. In a similar vein, Director Davis (2013–2017) applauded the COPS Office’s ability to remain responsive to the needs of the field and communities nationwide and emphasized the importance of maintaining that ability.

“Those closest to the challenge are closest to the solution,” said Director Davis, explaining that the COPS Office has always listened to the field, tapping into the needs of law enforcement and providing the space needed for agencies to explore creative solutions to respond to challenges within their communities.

Finally, Director Keith (2018–2021) answered that the COPS Office’s service to the field must remain a top priority and encouraged the conducting of listening sessions to better gauge the needs of those who require the office’s assistance.

When it comes to recruitment and retention, are law enforcement agencies now in search of a unique candidate to be truly reflective of communities with ever-changing needs?

According to Director Clements, the sworn officer position has transformed from what was primarily a service-oriented position to one that is all about engaging with and giving back to communities, with agencies looking for candidates with a high EQ—or emotional intelligence—and high capacity for empathy toward those they serve.

Director Davis believes that today’s candidates are also more introspective than candidates of the past. This multicultural generation asks itself, “What value can I bring to my community? How will I be treated, and what challenges may I face?” Candidates may also be paying closer attention to things like work-life balance and an agency’s leadership and organizational performance. “We have to do things differently and remain transformational, prioritizing officer wellness,” Davis said. He also suggested that agencies aim to fill various support roles, not just full-time sworn officers.

What advice would you give to those entering the law enforcement profession in the 21st century?

Director Keith answered, “law enforcement is the last stop on society’s conveyor belt.” He explained that, when other institutions fail, law enforcement is often given the responsibility to take on something that its officers are not trained to handle. So, he continued, this requires incoming law enforcement leadership to be patient, to listen to officers in the field, and to keep a pulse on underground developments taking place in their communities.

Panel Discussion: Furthering Community Policing in the Law Enforcement Field

From left to right: Michael David, Supervisory Policy Support Coordinator of the COPS Office Resources and Technical Assistance Division; Priya Sarathy Jones, Deputy Executive Director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center; Shannon Long, Assistant Director of the COPS Office Communications Division; Kym Craven, Executive Director of the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives (NAWLEE); and Lynda Schwartz, Executive Director of the National Center for Policing Innovation (NCPI).

Shannon Long, Assistant Director of the COPS Office Communications Division, moderated a panel with Michael David, Supervisory Policy Support Coordinator of the COPS Office Resources and Technical Assistance Division; Priya Sarathy Jones, Deputy Executive Director of the Fines and Fees Justice Center; Kym Craven, Executive Director of the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives (NAWLEE); and Lynda Schwartz, Executive Director of the National Center for Policing Innovation (NCPI).

When asked what they believe to be the key ingredient of community policing, each panelist offered several: leadership, community relationships, community engagement, problem solving, and partnerships.

David explained that effective leadership is vital to the success of community policing, because it “takes lofty ideals of community policing and makes it practical.” Craven praised the COPS Office’s leadership in community policing for law enforcement agencies nationwide, explaining that the office’s ability to listen to the needs of the field and deliver solutions is emblematic of community policing. Craven encouraged law enforcement to engage in this way with their communities: Listen, view issues from the perspectives of community members, and work together to create a solution.

For Sarathy Jones, the relationship between law enforcement officers and the communities they serve is essential to the enhancement of public safety. She noted that these relationships have never been more strained—especially in marginalized communities—and that this calls for a return to fundamentals.

And, according to Schwartz, returning to the fundamentals of community policing means focusing not only on foundational topics but also on specialty ones that address critical and emerging issues in public safety. She continued that the same level of attention needs to be paid to communication, leadership development, problem solving, and building and maintaining effective partnerships. “Community policing is just policing done correctly.”

Looking to the Future

Finally, Attorney General Garland, Deputy Attorney General Monaco, and Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Mizer announced more than $600 million in community policing investments that will provide funding for school safety, officer hiring and retention, de-escalation training, technical assistance, tribal resources, and the investigation of illicit activities related to the manufacture and distribution of drugs. Attorney General Garland said that the awards will allow the COPS Office to “continue to build on its extraordinary work for decades to come.” See the COPS Office Grants page.

In closing, Attorney General Garland said, “As we celebrate 30 years of the Office of Community [Oriented] Policing Services, may we all recommit ourselves to its mission, and to what brought each of us to public service in the first place: the belief that everyone in this country deserves to feel safe, and to be safe, in their communities.

“I am so proud of what the COPS Office has done over the past 30 years. I am so proud of our leader, Hugh, who’s done just a terrific job preserving and enhancing that legacy.

“May we continue to work together to make the vision of the COPS Office a reality.”

You can watch the COPS Office 30th anniversary ceremony and learn more about the COPS Office’s 30 years of advancing community policing.

Shanza Bukhari
Managing Editor
COPS Office

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