Neighborhood Watch can deter crime and help make your community safer.
The Monroe Police Department is looking for concerned citizens in each community who wish to build upon the common goal of reducing criminal activity by developing a watch program that is customized for each neighborhood.
In the traditional format, citizens were typically organized by blocks, with block ‘captains’ that maintained a roster of residents who participate in the program. These people would walk in groups or drive through their area, all the while looking for any suspicious behavior that might be criminal activity, and report this to police by calling officers to respond to the area.
These vigilant persons kept their neighborhood safe and secure by watching everything that occurred as they patrolled through each street or block, writing down license tags or vehicle descriptions, or any other identifiable information about clothing or personal characteristics that could assist police in locating people responsible for criminal activity.
In today’s society, the cellular telephone has become something that most people have at their side, and this can be the link to keeping crime down your neighborhood as you take out the trash, sit on your porch, or drive to and from your house.
The Monroe Police Department is blending the elements of the basic Neighborhood Watch Program from what was done before, with today’s communication methods of cellular telephones, email, and social media networks, to create a multi-faceted attack on crime. By making each of these contact methods available, you and your neighbors can strike out against crime, often without too much interruption in your normal activity.
If you are interested in organizing a group in your neighborhood, please contact the MPD coordinator by calling (318) 329-2588, or sending an email to neighborhoodwatch@monroepd.com.
