WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) today announced the launch of the ninth annual “Community Policing in Action” Photo Contest. The contest, piloted in 2014, has received widespread support from law enforcement for providing a platform that visually demonstrates community policing and emphasizes the importance of building and maintaining relationships with community members.

Since the contest’s inception, law enforcement agencies from across the country have submitted thousands of images representing positive community engagement. The COPS Office is pleased to continue this tradition that provides agencies with the opportunity to share these impactful connections with the communities they serve.

All state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies are invited to submit one official submission of one image that reflects the agency’s community policing and trust building with community members, stakeholders, local government, and others. A submission must include the Permission and Release to Law Enforcement Agencies Form and the Privacy Consent, Waiver, and Release Authorizing Use and Disclosure of Photographic Image Form(s). Please visit the photo contest website for more information on complete submissions and the full contest rules, terms and conditions.

The COPS Office will select 12 winning photos to be featured on the COPS Office website and its Twitter and Facebook headers for one month during the 2023 calendar year. The winners will also be featured in the COPS Office newsletter, the Community Policing Dispatch, as well as in a COPS Office–issued press release. Please note that photos may be used in other COPS Office communications in the future and there is no cash award or other prize for this photo contest.

The submission deadline is Wednesday, November 2, 2022, at 8 PM ET. The complete contest rules, terms and conditions, as well as frequently asked questions, can be found on the tellcops@usdoj.gov with any questions regarding the contest.

The COPS Office is the federal component of the Department of Justice responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Department of Justice agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. 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 more than 134,000 officers.

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