FREEHOLD – Police officers can be seen on foot patrol in the borough’s downtown area on a daily basis from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m. For some residents, however, that may not be enough.
The subject of whether police officers should be assigned foot patrol in other areas of the town was discussed at the March 11 meeting of the Human Relations Committee.
Committee member Ricky White raised the issue. He said he recalled the presence of police officers on foot in his neighborhood when he was younger. White directed his comments to Patrolman Ronnie Steppat, who is the police department’s liaison to the committee.
In addition to asking if more areas of the borough should be patrolled by officers on foot, White told Steppat, “I don’t see your young officers being very hospitable these days. I remember when I was young we had (officers) walking the beat, saying hello to us, connecting with the neighborhood, all the time. They respected us and we respected them. That love for your community seems to be diminished. Have you talked about bridging this gap?”
Steppat told White about Police Chief Mitchell Roth’s plan to focus on community relations. He said officers are showing a presence at local churches and schools. Steppat, himself, spends part of every day at one of the three borough schools as the department’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) officer.
Steppat said Roth has presented two sensitivity training sessions to date, with more possible on the horizon.
“Community relations is one of Chief Roth’s main concerns,” Steppat said. “It’s a shame that is the perception.We have a lot of good officers and this gap needs to be bridged.”
The Rev. Frederick Parrish, who chairs the committee, recalled being as- signed foot patrol duties when he was a Freehold Borough police officer in the late 1960s.
“You don’t see foot patrols so much any more,” he said. “We would say good morning to people, talk to residents, talk to the crossing guards. You just don’t see that anymore.”
Steppat explained that the foot patrol was reinstated downtown after a robbery occurred at Ballew Jewelers on West Main Street in August 2005. During the commission of that crime more than $1 million worth of jewelry was stolen.
“Downtown is not the issue,”White explained, adding that he was looking for police patrols in other neighborhoods to connect with residents on a more personal level.
Several committee members agreed that having a police presence in other areas of the borough in addition to the downtown would be a good move for the town.
Parrish said he believes that instituting a police presence in neighborhoods sooner than later would be a good thing and that the police presence might result in “less incidents.”
In a subsequent conversation with Borough Councilman Jaye Sims, who is the council’s liaison to the Human Relations Committee, Sims said he believes Roth is “doing a tremendous job” reaching out to the community.
“He has planned meetings with the Freehold ClergyAssociation to implement outreach programs. As far as getting out into the community, I feel the chief is putting the department in the right direction to bring back” the relationship between the police and the community.
Sims said Roth is “doing a top-notch job. As a council member, I stand behind what he’s done so far.”
Sims said he understood White’s comments and concerns and saidWhite’s suggestions are valid, but he believes the police exposure is there in the community.
“In a short time the gap will be bridged. It doesn’t get done overnight. He (Roth) is doing his best to mend fences in the community,” Sims said. “It takes time and patience and I think the chief is really reaching out to everyone.”