PRESS

RELEASE
ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA

THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA RELEASES 100-DAY REPORT CARD

The City of Alexandria Reports to Ci zens about Where We Stand on 100-Day Goals in Public Safety

March 15, 2023

—“Every ci zen has a fundamental civil right to be secure and safe. While the causes of crime may be
Alexandria, Louisiana
mul -factorial, we cannot allow violence to rule our City. Today, while it does not rule us, it controls how we feel; it
dictates our travel and recrea on decisions; and has a quality of lawlessness that must be stopped with all deliberate
speed recognizing our desire to live freely and maintain cons tu onal policing. Illegal gun use is at an intolerable level.

“It will get be er because we have a plan to work, with the best resourcing and personnel available. With these plans, we
will put our money, resources, and commi ed personnel where our mouths are; but know it will not be solved overnight
or come easy. Working with the Alexandria Police Department, and other stakeholders, the Administra on iden ed and
made these needed changes over the last 100 days to stand up and support our police department,” explained Mayor
Jacques Roy.

Previously, the City of Alexandria and the Central Louisiana Chamber of Commerce launched programs to re-invigorate
various neighborhood groups and partnerships. The purpose was to engage ci zens in the rst phase and then second
phase of SafeAlex. As a result, many more neighborhood groups and ci zens involved in numerous neighborhood
vibrancy issues were created and maintained in a very successful ecosystem. The Chamber created a standing commi ee
for public safety to address regional issues and advocate for best-prac ce programming. In the last four years, the award-
winning SafeAlex atrophied along each programming line. Not any longer! It worked before and it will work again.

Alexandria is beginning a new round of professionally led focus group study regarding the following subjects:

#1— Neighborhoods Re-Introduc on (April 2023)

#2— Judges, Prosecutors and Allied Safety Professionals (April 2023)

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 March 15, 2023

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PRESS RELEASE
ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA
THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA RELEASES 100-DAY REPORT CARD - Public Safety

#3— Judges, Prosecutors and Allied Safety Professionals Part 2

#4— Judges, Prosecutors and Allied Safety Professionals Part 3
#5— Cons tu onal Policing and Special Units (May 2023)
#6— Neighborhoods Drill-Down Discussion (May 2023)

#7— Policing and Community Media Campaign Series

• Intelligence-led and Evidence-based policing, place-based policing

and other versions of Focused Deterrence
• Mental Health and Public Safety
• Guns and Youth
• Media and Impacts on Incident Narra ves (what is stated and not
stated; implicit bias and racism; root-cause avoidance; perceived
preferences of intended audiences; and subject bias)

#8— Recrea on, Health and Children

#9— Educa on and Workforce

#10— Community Summit Wrap-Up (June/July 2023)

Where are we on our other aspects of 100-day plans in public safety?

We have adopted the following policies:

1. OVERARCHING POLICY: Community policing is the paramount goal toward true change and crime preven on.
Community policing is the only known, proven method of preven ng crime followed closely by intelligence-
led policing and data-driven outcomes measurements. This is the heart of successful policing. Alexandria will
implement all policy with the listed assump ons as founda onal guideposts along with the Philosophy.

Philosophy. As found by the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. 2015. Final Report of the President’s Task Force on 21st
Century Policing. Washington, DC: O ce of Community Oriented Policing Services (the “Report”), co-chaired by famed police
commissioner Charles Ramsey, we adopt as our overarching guidepost that of building trust and legi macy “on both sides of the police/
ci zen divide as a founda onal principle underlying the nature of rela ons between law enforcement agencies and the communi es
they serve.” We note here from that Report:

• Decades of research and prac ce support the premise that people are more likely to obey the law when they believe that
those who are enforcing it have authority that is perceived as legi mate by those subject to the authority.
• The public confers legi macy only on those whom they believe are ac ng in procedurally just ways.
• Law enforcement cannot build community trust if it is seen as an occupying force coming in from outside to impose control on
the community.
• Law enforcement culture should embrace a guardian—rather than a warrior—mindset to build trust and legi macy both
within agencies and with the public.
• Law enforcement agencies should adopt procedural jus ce as the guiding principle for internal and external policies and
prac ces to guide their interac ons with rank and le o cers and with the ci zens they serve.
• Law enforcement agencies should also establish a culture of transparency and accountability to build public trust and
legi macy. This is cri cal to ensuring decision making is understood and in accord with stated policy.

2. CRIME CREATES EXISTENTIAL CRISES TO ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT. Crime as it relates to public safety
requires this rm view: All ci zens are cons tu onally en tled to a safe city; public safety is a fundamental
civil right. Alexandria is required to provide for public safety as the principal responsibility of government. No
economic opportunity or quality of life can fairly exist in unsafe communi es.
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 March 15, 2023
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PRESS RELEASE
ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA
THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA RELEASES 100-DAY REPORT CARD - Public Safety

3. Policing complements must completely reimagine and be adap ve while maintaining the oldest truths about
community-led policing. Both ideas can and must exist at the same me. SAFEALEX will be accorded
maximum coopera on in all areas of interac on with APD.

4. APD will hire compe vely and not sacri ce quality o cers for any reason.

5. Within the o ce of the Public Safety Commissioner and SAFEALEX, in partnership with our legal, police, and
re departments, there is created and further policy is to be formulated with regard to:

A. The SAFEALEX safe, healthy, and informed neighborhoods component.

B. The o ce of pretrial interven on and classi ca on.
C. The directorship of Public Safety Special Services, and
D. The directorship of Public Safety Social Services.

Based on those policies, assump ons, and our Philosophy, we already have implemented the following:

6. Leadership. We have agreed to and implemented a new leadership team on mul ple levels, top to bo om,
taking e ect now. The team is commi ed to wholesale change and accountability. We have added two
compe ve posi ons to aid in change agency and will select a chief of police, while retaining senior
leadership to maintain con nuity, capacity, and morale.

7. Equipment and Training. In the proposed budget, the Administra on as promised made record
commitments to public safety, diver ng dollars to capital and opera ng needs. We commi ed over $3.6
million in this budget to long-term capital and opera ng capital, along with $400,000-$600,000 in addi onal
capital.

8. Chief of Neighborhoods & Community Development. The posi on is a direct report to the Mayor and
council leadership on neighborhood issues, requests for assistance, blight, code enforcement assistance, and
cer fying neighborhood groups and mee ngs, including working with the Planning Division on Crime
Preven on Through Environmental Design (CPTED). The director of SafeAlex is a member of the Mayor’s
senior sta and is a do ed line to the Commissioner of Public Safety and Police Chief.

9. Director of Public Safety Special Services. As a deputy commissioner of public safety, this quali ed policing
professional will answer to the commissioner and Mayor. Within this directorship, the following o ces will
be organized:

• o ce of Gun Violence,
• o ce of Independent Audit and Internal A airs for public safety,
• o ces of Juvenile Services, Focused Deterrence, and Organized Crime, and
• increased role as a liaison to other law enforcement for op mizing interagency and interoperability
func on, most notably with crea ng the SAIIF program and Cri cal Incident Force Review &
Response program.

These intelligence-led policing ac vi es will join with community policing and the SafeAlex Chief of
Neighborhoods to increase neighborhood-led intelligence gathering, crime preven on, and
neighborhood par cipa on in the solu ons to City problems. The tracking of illegal guns, par cularly in
the hands of juveniles, is paramount to stem the epidemic of gun violence within the youth community.

Based on those policies, assump ons, and our Philosophy, we have fully commenced, adopted in policy and budget, and
are immediately comple ng the following:
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 March 15, 2023
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PRESS RELEASE
ALEXANDRIA, LOUISIANA
THE CITY OF ALEXANDRIA RELEASES 100-DAY REPORT CARD - Public Safety

10. Compensa on and Bene ts. We have added health and/or re rement bene ts for next several budgets as
part of recruitment and reten on. We will complete a professional pay plan to replace exis ng agreements
as o er to the force; this will require several approvals and modi ca ons to civil service, but will place
Alexandria within the top range for rewarding public safety.

More announcements forthcoming in our bene ts planning.

11. Director of Public Safety Social Services. As a deputy commissioner of public safety, this quali ed
professional will answer to the commissioner and Mayor. Within this directorship, the following o ces will
be organized:

• o ce of Internal A airs oversight,

• o ce of Reten on & Recruitment, and
• o ce of Policy, Future Proo ng, and Vision:
o Homeless Policy and Resource Coordinator,
o Mul -Disciplinary Mental Health Response Team (interven on teams, non-policing, trained
personnel directly countering crime with known hot spot agents)(responsible for assistance
with introduc on of controlled para-policing, controlled neighborhood assessment, safety
audi ng and documen ng, and o ender interviewing and assessing for interven on, mental
health screening, and job placement).
12. Judges, Prosecutors and Allied Public Safety Engagement. This would include the planned safety summit
ac vi es.

13. Pretrial Diversion Coordinator and Classi ca on O cer. [TBD]. “Decriminaliza on” through be er pretrial
diversion and restora ve/transforma onal jus ce at the City prosecu on level—a ec ng misdemeanor non-
violent and some less serious violent o enses—freeing space for serious o enders.
• Interoperability, and
• o ce of Reentry.

Based on those policies, assump ons, and our Philosophy, we are working on but have not completed the following:

14. Recruitment and Reten on. Execu ve orders place our commitment to topnotch policing at the hiring and
recruitment level back on top and end hiring unquali ed o cers.

15. Other: Physical and mental tness programs being implemented; interdic on in high schools and follow up
with neglec ul parents; selec ng o cer ambassadors; and o ering neighborhood grants for approved plans
to try new approaches and incubate change.

Based on needs and goals for the Fire Suppression, Preven on, and Training Department, we completed the following:

16. Early turn-in of the property insurance (PIAL) re ra ng process.

17. Establishment of the deputy re chief; study commencement of dual dispatched mental health calls.

18. The Fire Chief selec on process.

Contact (City of Alexandria): Michael Ca ery—318.449.5000

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