The Eureka Police Department has been pursuing the basic principles of community policing for some time.  Over the last year, a community police specialist was to approach law enforcement from a problem solving approach rather than a traditional reactive mode of policing.  This officer was assigned to an area identified by a higher call for service demand and has made tremendous progress in improving police services to our community.

A truly successful community policing program must involve commitment and participation from the top of the organization through the command staff and into the line positions of the Department.

A primary principle of community policing requires that officers have the authority and responsibility to make decisions and solve problems in their areas without a complicated hierarchy to operate through.  The successes of the somewhat small community policing team have convinced the remainder of the Department that traditional reactive policing is no longer a viable method of law enforcement for our community.

The department has undertaken a number of methods to minimize the number of non-emergency, low priority calls that interfere with the officers daily problem-solving responsibilities.  Those efforts include the establishment of a station officer to take care of reports that are funneled through the station, telephone reporting and streamlining of report procedures.

The department started bicycle patrols to expose officers to more one on one contact with the citizens of our community, and has also enacted several programs to enhance the Community Oriented Policing program in 1996.

A computerized data base of Neighborhood Watch participants' addresses has been created by subdivision.  When a burglary, larceny, or vandalism occur, a letter is generated about the event and mailed to the entire subdivision within 24 hours of the occurrence.

Neighborhood Watch Program

The Neighborhood Watch Program is one of the most effective partnerships between the community and the Police Department.  Information provided by Neighborhood Watch members is used to solve and prevent crime.  Citizens involved in the Neighborhood Watch program take ownership of their neighborhood.

The four types of crime that Neighborhood Watch programs target are residential burglary, theft from vehicles, vandalism and auto theft.  These are four major types of crime that effect residential areas.  This is accomplished by organizing as a neighborhood, reporting suspicious activity, and identifying the area as a Neighborhood Watch neighborhood with the appropriate signing.

The police department Operation Ident requires the use of electric engravers to mark the property of the home owner with a Missouri drivers license number or other number.  This makes computer entry of stolen items and recovery possible.  It also makes returning stolen property to its original owner possible and helps with identification of recovered property.  Engravers are free to use, and available at the police department.

Citizen watch participants learn about:

Physical Security including locks (door, window), alarm systems, lighting and environmental design (improving visibility);
Personal Security (Home, Work, Street);
Learning what activity to report; and
Forming partnerships with the Police Department

Neighborhood Watch is a good example of how citizens and their police departments work together to prevent and solve crime.

For more information, or to help organize a Neighborhood Watch Group, call Chief Michael Wiegand or Officer Mike McColl at 636-938-6600.

Chief Michael A. Wiegand
Eureka Police Department
120 City Hall Drive
Eureka, Missouri 63025
(636) 938-6600
FAX:  (636) 938-6602
e-mail:  mwiegand@eureka.mo.us