North Kent News

From February 21, 2023

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Today at the Grand Rapids’ City Commission’s Committee of the Whole and Public Safety Committee meetings, Chief Eric Winstrom presented updates to the Grand Rapids Police Department Strategic Plan. The finalized plan will be made available publicly in the coming days. Originally produced in 2020, the plan clarified the department’s mission, vision, and values; identified strategic outcomes; and attached accountability metrics to those outcomes. 

The 2023 update leans heavily on community and employee feedback Chief Winstrom heard during his first year leading the department, in conjunction with his comprehensive review of the department’s policies and procedures, training, deployment and use of resources, and the role of police in the community.

“My goal is to provide the people of Grand Rapids the most professional, compassionate, and effective police department possible. We are committed to continuous learning, constant improvement, policing in a manner embraced by our community, and which recognizes the Constitution as the foundation for policing and our success,” Winstrom said. “Our police department and community have encountered significant challenges in the recent past. Building trust, recruiting and retaining exceptional personnel, reducing crime, and seeking justice for victims is our focus.”

Key updates to the Grand Rapids Police Department Strategic Plan 2023 - 2026 include:

• Prioritize building a police and community partnership founded on trust
• Seek full staffing, recognizing the need for diversity, to ensure optimum public safety for the people of Grand Rapids
• Focus on crime prevention and reducing violent acts throughout the community in creative and innovative ways
• Educate, engage, and communicate how GRPD services and enforcement are delivered; provide ongoing, meaningful opportunities for community dialogue as policing practices evolve
• Ensure transparency and accountability
• Partner with crisis intervention, mental health, housing and healthcare specialists to better match resources with calls for service to improve outcomes for those in crisis and help keep the focus of patrol officers on crime response, proactive policing tactics and community engagement
• Increase youth outreach
• Focus training for new and veteran officers on de-escalation techniques, recognizing and overcoming implicit biases and understanding cultural differences that can impact police interactions
• Increase efficiency and processes to optimize neighborhood policing strategies and provide cost-effective service delivery

The livestream of Chief Winstrom’s presentation at the Committee of the Whole meeting is available on the City’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. The Chief’s PowerPoint presentation can be downloaded HERE.

Original source can be found here.