A COLLABORATIVE PROJECT BY FUTURE OF PUBLIC SAFETY lead, and move the national conversation on WELCOME public safety forward. KAROL V. MASON Our work did not stop with the six public PRESIDENT OF JOHN JAY conversations we hosted during this series and does not stop with the issuance of today’s COLLEGE OF CRIMINAL report. Quite the contrary; we see today’s report JUSTICE as a starting point of a years—or even decades-long—project. The work must now John Jay is in a unique position to continue in communities across the country. chart the future of the country’s course on public safety. We are a majority-minority C.J. DAVIS institution and reflect the diversity of voices of IMMEDIATE PAST minority communities that need to be heard. PRESIDENT OF THE At John Jay, we educate the future leaders for NATIONAL justice, safety, and peace—whether they go on ORGANIZATION OF to run advocacy campaigns, wear a uniform, conduct research to evaluate policy or uncover BLACK LAW bias, or all of these. ENFORCEMENT Through the hard work of bringing together EXECUTIVES diverse voices, and through the conclusions At this moment in our nation’s history, as we and roadmap we present in this report, we hope continue to witness tragic encounters between to break the binary mindset that characterizes police and the communities we serve, we must so much of the national conversation on public ask ourselves what has happened to cause safety: “us vs. them;” “law and order vs. Black such division and chaos in our profession, law Lives Matter.” enforcement—a profession that should As we say later in this report, ultimately, we all represent the best of who we are expected to want the same thing: to live in communities in be: guardians of nobility, integrity, and honor. which everybody has an opportunity to thrive While most police oficers serve with dignity and be successful. We started this project, in and honor, we know that building trust and large part, to unearth and highlight our charting a clear path towards re-imagining considerable areas of agreement around this public safety—and the role of policing within point. that—will be a daunting task. As the first woman and first person of color to Undoubtedly, the need for change is clear. And lead John Jay, I personally feel the weight of where we go from here begins with each and the current national reckoning with race. I am every one of us joining together as we discuss honored that we could partner with NOBLE to policy recommendations and how we rebuild develop this important series and excited to trust in marginalized communities who are release this culminating report to help disproportionately impacted by law communities map out the future of public enforcement. safety. Given the current climate, we at John Jay welcome the opportunity to be bold, to December 2020 1 FUTURE OF PUBLIC SAFETY Society has efectively criminalized EXECUTIVE 6 mental illness, homelessness, and substance abuse, in part by assigning SUMMARY police as the public agents most often John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the responding to incidents of substance National Organization of Black Law abuse and psychiatric episodes. Enforcement Executives partnered together on Trauma, specifically in poor the “Future of Public Safety” series, which 7 communities and communities of color, resulted in this report. In the series, we brought caused by negative interactions with together 38 individuals representing a diverse police, food insecurity, unavailability of range of voices for “dialogue across quality housing, and interpersonal diferences.” Through everyone’s points of violence is prevalent across the healthy disagreement, we identified nine core country. It becomes a fundamental points of consensus that guided our work and aspect of how people approach their are the framework for the roadmap we provide interactions with law enforcement. Law communities: enforcement, political leaders, Everybody wants the same thing: to be community leaders, health 1 safe. That looks and feels like what professionals, educators, and others predominantly white and suburban must work together to address various communities enjoy every single day. forms of trauma across the country and look to address their root causes. 2 Beyond the police, other institutions and public servants must play a role in Society must address how police delivering public safety services. 8 departments think about and address issues of race, racial animus, and Healthy communities are safer 3 implicit bias. Neither police leadership, communities. Public resources must be nor community members, should have invested in the areas that are most any tolerance for law enforcement likely to create healthy communities. oficers with a history of or tie to racism Community voices—particularly those and injustice. 4 of young people—need to be included Police departments and oficers must and respected in the process of 9 view themselves as, and act as, defining public safety. Members of the guardians of the community, not community should be given space to be warriors against crime. real partners in public safety. Grounded in these points of consensus, we laid Less wealthy, and most often Black, out a roadmap for the public to follow in crafting indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) 5 a more just future of public safety. Our roadmap neighborhoods, are often over-policed begins by identifying a series of data points when it comes to investigating communities should gather about public safety presumed criminal activity and under- and social services. We then recommend a resourced when it comes to addressing series of steps that, grounded in those data, and preventing emergency situations. communities should follow with the goal of 2 FUTURE OF PUBLIC SAFETY fostering: more public/private partnership; more services, public administration, research, and collaboration between the public, government, policy. and others; better transparency in government; John Jay is home to faculty and research and smarter law enforcement priorities that best centers at the forefront of researching and keep communities safe in the most cost- advancing criminal and social justice reform. efective and racially just manner. The College is renowned for bringing together leading scholars and practitioners to address the most intractable social justice issues facing INTRODUCTION our communities. As a top-flight research institution with a long-standing commitment to “Our goal is to lead our country to a practice, particularly in policing, John Jay is place where communities of color and uniquely positioned to help integrate research, police trust each other, and partner with application, and practice to reimagine the future each other in building communities of public safety. where everyone feels safe and has the Since 1976, The National Organization of Black opportunity to thrive.” Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) has John Jay President Karol V. Mason served as the conscience of law enforcement. JOHN JAY COLLEGE OF NOBLE’s founders recognized that Black law enforcement executives could have a CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND significantly more efective impact upon the NOBLE criminal justice system through a unified voice. Founded in 1964, John Jay College of Criminal The organization started by raising relevant Justice—a senior college of The City University questions about topics such as fairness in the of New York, the largest urban university in the administration of justice, police-community world—continues its legacy of preparing the relations, the hiring and promotion of Black next generation of law enforcement leaders, police oficers, and the unique problems faced and has evolved into the preeminent by the Black police executive. international leader in educating for justice in its Today, NOBLE’s mission is to serve equity in many dimensions. the administration of justice and in the As a Hispanic-serving institution and Minority- provision of public service to all communities. serving institution with over 15,000 Its goal is to be recognized as a highly undergraduate and graduate students, John competent public service organization at the Jay is recognized for educating a diverse forefront of providing solutions to law student body to become fierce advocates for enforcement issues and concerns, as well as to justice. The College is ranked as a top ten the ever-changing needs of our communities. institution for promoting student social mobility. NOBLE today has nearly 60 chapters and Nearly half of its graduates pursue careers in represents over 3,000 members worldwide, public service, working in government, including chief executive oficers and nonprofit organizations, and in every segment command-level law enforcement oficials from of the criminal justice system, including law federal, state, county, and municipal law enforcement, the legal profession, social 3 FUTURE OF PUBLIC SAFETY enforcement agencies, as well as criminal ● Defining Public Safety, on September justice practitioners. 15, 2020 THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC ● Public Safety Beyond the Police Station, SAFETY SERIES on September 17, 2020 In coming together, John Jay and NOBLE ● Public Health and Welfare, on sought not just to observe and diagnose what September 22, 2020 ails policing and public safety, but to chart a ● Investing in Safer Communities, on positive path forward for safe communities. September 24, 2020 We set out to create a roadmap for ● Recruiting, Skills, and Training, on governments, community members, law October 1, 2020 enforcement, businesses, philanthropic