APD To Host Meet and Greet With New Community Officers

The Atlanta Police Department is giving residents the opportunity to meet and talk with new police offers that will make up the Community Oriented Policing Section.

On Saturday, March 19, the department will host an all-day meet and greet at Woodruff Park in Downtown Atlanta.

According to Carlos Campos, spokesman for the Atlanta Police Department, six new officers from the Community Oriented Policing Section have been assigned to each police zone.

“We expect COPS officers to be able to dedicate the time to strategize and follow up with our communities more closely than patrol officers are currently able to due to their busy workloads,” Chief George Turner said in a press release. “While every officer’s job is to work diligently to fight crime in concert with our communities, I believe these officers truly are uniquely positioned to make a difference.”

The department received an $11.2 million federal grant in 2009 to hire 50 new police officers for three years. Campos told Patch that most of the hiring is complete, but not all 50 positions have been filled.

The event Saturday will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Turner and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed plan to speak around 2:30 p.m.

Members of the department’s Mounted Patrol, Motors Unit, Air Unit and SWAT team also will attend.