Briefing Room

Community Policing

• “10-20-Life” Posters, which refer to the Florida law, which stipulates that if you use a gun during the commission of a crime you can be sentenced up to 10 years. If you fire a gun during the commission of a crime you can be sentenced up to 20 years, and if you shoot someone during the commission of a crime you can receive 25 years to life in prison.

• Alarm Reduction Program

• Bicycle Registrations (954) 828-6400, all bicycles in the City must be registered with the police department. The purpose of this program is to reduce the number of bicycles stolen and assist the police in the recovery of stolen bicycles. The cost of initial registration is one dollar. Click here to read the ordinance.

• Career Day, Fort Lauderdale Police Officers participate in the annual Career Day event in local schools. Officers discuss their experiences and the duties in different units as well as provide demonstrations with Narcotics K-9 Partners.

• Christmas Toy Drive, the Fraternal Order of Police, Community Support Division and Toys for Tots, run an annual toy drive to collect and distribute hundreds of toys to various locations throughout the City of Fort Lauderdale.

• Citizens On Patrol (COP), this program utilizes graduates of the Community Police Academy as our additional eyes and ears in the community. Volunteers patrol neighborhoods within the City and report back to the Police Department any circumstance or incident they feel needs further police attention.

• Community Police Academy (CPA), the Community Police Academy is designed to foster an active partnership with the community. Well-informed community members, who have an awareness of the mission, resources, policies and service of their Police Department, are critical to the success of this partnership. Classes include such topics as Community Policing, Officer Selection/Recruiting, Drug Enforcement, Special Investigations, Range/Firearms, Detention Tour, Communications and much more. In addition to the scheduled classes, an eight-hour “ride along” with our Patrol Officers is available. Graduates develop a new understanding and respect for what it means to be a Police Officer and how the Department operates. Code Enforcement Action

• Community Action Team (CAT) is comprised of members of Community Policing as well as other police divisions, including Patrol, Criminal Investigations Division, and Special Investigations Division, and other City departments including Code Enforcement, Community Development, Neighborhood Services, Public Services and the City Manager's Office. Monthly meetings enable the various units to exchange information and problem solving ideas, strengthen the working relationship between the various departments, and cut through red tape in order to improve living conditions in the City.

• Crime Watch is a crime prevention program designed to involve the community in combating crime. As a participant in the program, you will be demonstrating your concern about the community in which you reside, as well as your willingness to become involved with community issues that impact your quality-of-life. Contact 954-828-6400 for more information.

• Community Oriented Policing Juvenile Alternative Motivation (COPJAM) program provides for educational and recreational activities to keep youth occupied and out of trouble. It also enables youth to develop positive relationships with the police officers that provide mentoring and counseling at COPJAM. The program concludes with a picnic for all participants, at Snyder Park. Area businesses including Publix, Winn-Dixie and Smart & Final have donated provisions for the event.
  
  Community Meetings are opportunities for officers to interact with the homeowners in their assigned areas. Problems are discussed and partnerships are forged. Officers also participate in weekly crime walks and bike rides.

• Crime Prevention Program, Crime prevention officers conduct surveys, seminars, victim follow-up, DRC reviews, and CPTED in order to assist in the prevention of crime in our community. Call 954-828-6400 for more information.

• Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.), Police Officers teach a 17-week D.A.R.E. program to fifth graders at all Elementary Schools located in the City of Fort Lauderdale. The D.A.R.E. program helps build the self-esteem of students, and develops the skills they need to live drug free lives. D.A.R.E. lessons focus on four major areas:
  
  
1. Providing accurate information about alcohol, and drugs.
2. Teaching students decision-making skills, and giving them proven ways to "say no" to drugs.
3. Giving the students ideas for alternatives to drug use.
4. Showing them how to resist peer pressure.

By educating and motivating this generation of young people, we hope to significantly reduce the demand for illegal substances. Parental involvement is a key component in the battle to keep kids off drugs. By reinforcing the D.A.R.E. message at home, parents can help support their child's decision to remain drug free.



• Graffiti Hotline (954) 828-6402, the Anti-Graffiti Hotline allows residents to call in information anonymously on “taggers,” also known as graffiti ‘artists’. CSD Officers work collaboratively with the Public Works Department to follow-up on tips and eradicate graffiti.

• GREAT Training (Gang Resistance Education And Training) is a nine-week curriculum on crime and gang prevention, which is taught to 7th graders all across America. GREAT is the brainchild of the Phoenix Police Dept. and shared, as a partnership, with ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) since its inception in 1991. This unique program of nine specific lessons has been fundamental in reducing crime and gang activity in several cities across America. The lessons include the following topics: Introduction to GREAT, Crimes and Victims, Cultural Sensitivity, Conflict Resolution (two parts), Meeting Basic Needs, Drugs and Neighborhoods, responsibility and goal setting. Each lesson has cooperative learning exercises that test and challenge the students to make positive choices in their lives and also to set goals for their future.

• Gunstoppers (954) 493-TIPS is a partnership project of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, Crime Stoppers and the Broward County Schools. This is an anonymous program, which promotes making our community a safer place to be in by the reporting of illegal firearms through a hotline telephone number. A $100 reward is offered if an arrest is made from information the offered.

• Halloween Haunted House, Turn Around Fort Lauderdale (TAFL) and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department sponsors an annual Halloween Haunted House for the community. This is a safe place for community residents to go to during Halloween and is also free of charge. Officers and community members volunteer their time to create the very scary Haunted House and amazing maze of horror located inside. In addition, there is music and food for everyone’s enjoyment.

• Haitian Community Partnership Project, after several meetings between the police department and the Haitian community, the Haitian Community Partnership Project was formed. Subsequently, Town Hall meetings are held every couple of months to bring the community and police together to discuss cultural issues, policing in the community, career opportunities, truancy, parental rights and drug abuse. Participants at this meeting have the opportunity to discuss their concerns with representatives of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department and representatives of the City of Fort Lauderdale. Members of this partnership project are working together on several new programs to foster better relations between the police and the growing Haitian Community. The cultural and language differences between the Haitians and the police cause communication problems and often instill fear between the two groups.

  Bilingual educational videos have been produced and distributed in the community. These videos cover topics such as traffic stops, basic driving rules, 911, and code violations. A series of videos will be produced on topics such as truancy, disciplining children, child abuse, and domestic violence and safety tips.

  Thanks to the Haitian Community Partnership Project, a new position has been created in the City of Fort Lauderdale for a Community Relations Liaison. Junia Jeantilius, the new community relations specialist, speaks Creole and English and works with the community. She works collaboratively with the police department and the community translating, answering questions and forming partnerships. Call the Haitian Hotline at 954-467-3336 for more information.

• License Plate Theft Prevention Program, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department distributes, free of charge, special screws that are created to prevent the theft of license plates. The screws are affixed with a regular screwdriver, but can only be removed with a special tool held by the Police Department. Call 954-828-6400 for more information.

• National Night Out Against Crime is an annual event that is held in communities all across the country. It takes place on the first Tuesday of August. The purpose of the evening is to send a message that we will not tolerate criminal activity in our neighborhoods. Many neighborhood associations plan special events like parades, street parties, BBQ’s and picnics to bring neighbors together for this event. Police Officers participate in as many events as possible.

• Operation Chill, throughout the year, officers reward children with donated “FREE 7-11 Slurpee” coupons. 7-11 donated these coupons to help reward good efforts from our youth. Officers distribute these coupons to youths for various reasons, including rewards for good conduct and helping Officers.

• Personal Property Inventory Program, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department provides Personal Property Inventory Forms to residents of Fort Lauderdale. The form, which lists valuables and their serial numbers, is to be completed and RETAINED by the resident in case of a loss or theft. Retaining a record of serial numbers facilitates the recovery of property stolen, as well as assists the property owner with insurance claims.
  
  
  
• Protecting Your Child On-Line seminar teaches how to limit children’s access on the Internet and how to prevent visitation of inappropriate sites and receipt of inappropriate emails. It also teaches how to prepare children against child predators on-line. Call 954-828-6428 for more information.

• Relay For Life is held annually in Fort Lauderdale to benefit the American Cancer Society. Relay for Life’s goal is to raise money for cancer research. Community Policing officers bring a mobile home and have CSD Officers manning it throughout the night. Besides participating in the event, members of the Police Department also make contributions to the American Cancer Society. The goal is to maintain a representative of each team constantly walking the track day and night from start to finish. It is a great community effort for a worthy cause.

• “Say No to Drug” Posters, the Fort Lauderdale Police Department has partnered with the Florida Marlins to create a poster promoting the abstinence of drugs. The poster says “Say NO to Drugs” and has a picture of Marlins player Kevin Millar, Fort Lauderdale Police Officers, and several D.A.R.E. students. Posters are distributed city-wide.

• School Resource Officer (SRO) Program, School Resource Officers are uniformed police officers assigned to schools for the purpose of promoting positive relationships between students and the law enforcement community. The officers utilize a number of different approaches to accomplish their goal of preventing juvenile delinquency, including:
  
  
1. Enabling the students to be associated with a police officer in the student environment rather than that of law enforcement.
2. Giving classroom instruction or counseling to students in law enforcement related topics.
3. Providing a resource to teachers, parents and students for conferences on an individual basis.
4. Assisting students to achieve a clear realization of the consequences of delinquent and criminal behavior.
5. Providing a visible law enforcement officer to deal with any law related situations or topics.

Because School Resource Officers must carry out their police duties in addition to these mentoring responsibilities, the position is very challenging and multi-faceted.

• Targeting Establishments For Alcohol Sales To Minors, Officers from the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, together with Agents from the Florida Division of Alcohol Beverages and Tobacco, conduct stings to combat illegal sales of alcohol and tobacco. During these stings, underage confidential informants are used to assist in the sting. Businesses that sell alcohol and tobacco are "visited". These “visits” usually result in arrests for illegal sales of both alcohol and tobacco. Officers also check for the sales of illegal Bidi cigarettes. These cigarettes have no tax stamp and are not approved for sale by the FL Dept. of Alcohol Beverage and Tobacco.

• Truancy Program, the purpose of this project is to reduce the number of property crimes and other criminal activities by actively seeking out youth of school age who are truant, and to provide early intervention by getting parents involved through accountability.

Briefing Room