Hundreds Attend First ELPD Open House

Above: ELPD Officers Tonya Williams and Shelby Humphries and PACE Officer David Dalen (left to right) with visitors to the Open House.

In spite of the cold and snowy weather last Thursday evening, several hundred people attended the first-ever Open House by the East Lansing Police Department (ELPD). Organized by the Department’s Community Outreach Coordinator Lieutenant James Campbell, the event is estimated to have drawn around 225-275 visitors.

One of those in attendance was City Councilmember and Bailey resident Erik Altmann. Altmann tells ELi that the Open House “was well attended, with a surprising number of families with kids. A group of dispatchers from the County office turned out, to put names to faces. PACE and bike patrol and canine handlers were there, decked out.” The event also featured child car-seat installations and inspections and was broadcast live on the ELPD Facebook page.

Altmann also reports that “The chief was signing people up for Nixle. You could get a tour of the jail and the records office and have a look at the patrol cars. They basically opened the whole department.” All in all, he judged the event a “good idea, and well executed. I'd encourage people to go next time.”

According to ELPD Lieutenant Steve Gonzalez, the event was designed to have community members “coming out to meet our officers and learn more about ELPD and what we do.” It was inspired in part by the Police-Community Forum of last fall, which was aimed at improving relationships and increasing understanding between officers and non-officers in East Lansing.

Gonzalez tells ELi, “We were surprised by how enthralled people were with the department. For the officers and staff that work here, it's easy to view the department as a place we come to work day in and day out. While a police officer's job cannot be described as routine, it does become the norm for those that choose this career.”

Above: ELPD Officer Travis Bove and his K9 partner Quinn. ELi thanks the City of East Lansing for providing us images from the event.

Police Chief Jeff Murphy tells ELi the Department plans " to continue with our community outreach efforts." He says he's "not sure if we'll do the exact same thing in the future, but we'll be looking for similar opportunities going forward. We had a comment suggestion box set up [at the event] and we'll be going through that next week looking for future projects that will build community support and positive relationships between law enforcement and city residents. It's an ongoing process." 

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