WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is pleased to announce that the Providence Police Department (PPD) is featured as its April “Community Policing in Action” photo contest winner.

The winning photo captures a dance-off between two Providence police officers and two teens during the Summer Safety Slam in Olneyville, a Providence neighborhood. The Summer Safety Slam, Olneyville’s version of National Night Out, brings together law enforcement, community members, and local businesses and nonprofits for an evening of fun and fellowship.

To learn more about the Summer Safety Slam and the PPD’s community policing efforts, visit the COPS Office e-newsletter, the Community Policing Dispatch. To view the winning photo, visit the COPS Office website, Twitter, and Facebook pages. Photo courtesy of the Providence Police Department.

The COPS Office piloted the photo contest in 2015 to highlight positive community policing efforts across the country. After receiving an overwhelming number of submissions, the COPS Office made the photo contest an annual event. The 2017 contest garnered close to 200 photos during the one-month submission period. To learn more about the “Community Policing in Action” Photo Contest, visit https://cops.usdoj.gov/photocontest.

The COPS Office is a federal agency responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. Since 1995, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 129,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training and technical assistance. For additional information about the COPS Office, please visit www.cops.usdoj.gov.