Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Coffee with a Cop

 The Coffee with a Cop community program for 2015 was a huge success and greatly enabled the Police Department to engage, connect and build relationships with the community.  In an effort to continue this vitally important event, the first 2016 Coffee with a Cop will be held in partnership with the Cup Up Coffee shop located at 210 East Main Street inside Audio Intersection.  The event is scheduled for Saturday, January 9, 2016, from 9:00 – 11:00 am. 

Chief Mark Mitchell stated, “Our Coffee with a Cop program this year has been very well received by our citizens and even spotlighted on CNN for how we and other departments across our country are working hard to remove physical barriers with those we serve.  Our goal for 2016 is to continue to have these monthly meetings which we strongly feel allows for relaxed, informal one-on-one interactions in a friendly atmosphere.  This will enable our residents and business owners to voice their concerns about any issues they may have and provides us with vital feedback that helps the department improve our   service to the community.” 

Chief Mitchell added, “I would like to thank Cup Up Coffee and their CEO for agreeing to host such an important event for the agency and our citizens.” 


Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Department to Implement Body Camera Program


On July 17th of this year, the Canton Police Department gained approval from City Council members to purchase Body Worn Camera (BWC) devices.   As a result, the agency purchased thirty-three (33) Watch Guard Vista body cameras for Officers in the Uniform Patrol Division, Traffic Division, and Code Enforcement.  In addition, Detectives in the Criminal Investigation Division will also have a BWC at their disposal when they are out in the field conducting case investigations.  Currently, the department is working with the City’s Information Technology Department and the BWC vendor to provide training to all Officers about the device’s nomenclature and policy that governs the use of the camera system.  

The Police Department will begin deploying the BWC devices in the aforementioned divisions after the first of the year.  They want the community to know what to expect from the new technology, including the program’s benefits and limitations before its implementation.  The BWC will be worn on the front of the Officer’s uniform; it records high definition resolution video/audio and has a wide angle field of view. 

Furthermore, video evidence of a single incident captured by the BWC will be auto linked with the Department’s in-car cameras of their police units in an effort to deliver a more accurate portrayal of events encountered by officers. 

The agency strongly feels the implementation of the BWC program will enhance its service to the community for the following reasons: 

Ø  Strengthen police accountability by documenting incidents and encounters between officers and the public;
Ø  Preventing confrontational situations by improving officer professionalism and the behavior of people being recorded;
Ø  Resolving officer-involved incidents and complaints by providing a more accurate record of events;
Ø  Improving agency transparency by allowing the public to see video evidence of police activities and encounters;
Ø  Identifying and correcting internal agency problems by revealing officers who engage in misconduct and agency-wide problems;
Ø  Strengthening officer performance by using footage for officer training and monitoring;
Ø  Improving evidence documentation for investigations and prosecutions;

With that said, the Department also realizes there are some limitations that go along with the many benefits of the program.  They include: an officer's body movement can diminish what the camera is able to record (field of view) and the body camera can record what happened at a given point in time; however, they can't account for human perception — what an officer believes they saw — or take into account what information the officer received or knew before he or she got to the scene.


Chief of Police Mark J. Mitchell stated, “We are very eager and excited to implement the Body Worn Camera System after the first of the New Year.  I want to highlight the fact that our Officers do an excellent job of professionally serving this community every day.  The addition of this program will be another added step in our desire to strengthen police accountability, improve agency transparency and continue to build the vital trust we need with our citizens, especially during this time in our nation’s history.”  



Thursday, December 17, 2015

Leaders Discuss Winter Weather Preparedness


On December 16, 2015, Police Chief Mark Mitchell, Fire Chief Dean Floyd, and other City Department Leaders, to include Information Technology, Public Works and Finance, met with City Manager, Billy Peppers, to discuss the City's winter weather preparedness plan to meet the demands of severe winter weather events.

The discussion included an After Action brief in reference to what they had learned from previous year’s winter storms which will greatly assist the response to any impending weather the City may face this year.  The leadership team discussed emergency operations plans, staffing, plowing of roadways, salting, staging areas for material, and readiness of equipment.  In addition, they also talked about incident documentation and enhanced ways on how to keep citizens informed about the effects of the winter weather on the community. 

City Manager Billy Peppers stated, “It is easy to forget that we are nearing winter when we are in the midst of 70 degree December days, but being prepared for cold weather and potential ice and snow days ahead is something our Canton team is committed to achieving.  Public safety is the top job of a City and our City is dedicated to the mission of meeting any threat head on with a spirit of teamwork across many different departments, getting the job done in a timely and efficient manner.”


Chief Mark Mitchell added, “We have developed a very good unified team with all of our City departments which allows for each of us to be on the same page in response to these types of serious events.  Our collective goal is to keep our roadways clear, be able to quickly respond and serve those in need, and to keep our citizens updated on the quickly changing conditions that inherently come with Georgia’s winter weather events.”    


Monday, December 14, 2015

Person Injured Update

Chris Wayne Hulsey, 46 years old from Cleveland Ga died on Saturday, December 12, 2015, from his injuries he sustained from a fall that occurred December 10, 2015.  The fall occurred while he was performing construction work on storage tanks near Lower Scott Mill Rd and Hickory Flat Highway.


Previous Press Release (December 10, 2015):

On December 10, 2015 at approximately 4:00 PM a 46 year old male fell approximately 16 feet from a storage tank while performing construction work. The incident occurred near Lower Scott Mill Road and Hickory Flat Highway. The individual sustained severe injuries and was transported by ambulance to Kennestone Hospital. The individual’s condition is currently unknown at the time of this release. Canton Police and Fire Department are currently investigating the incident to see what exactly occurred.

Friday, December 11, 2015

Missing Juvenile Located

UPDATE: We are glad to report the missing juvenile has been located in Houston, Texas with family members. Her family here in Canton is currently working with those in Houston to get her home safe and sound. Thank you for sharing this post and as always, we appreciate your valued support!

Thursday, December 10, 2015

Person Injured

On December 10, 2015 at approximately 4:00 PM a 46 year old male fell approximately 16 feet from a storage tank while performing construction work. The incident occurred near Lower Scott Mill Road and Hickory Flat Highway. The individual sustained severe injuries and was transported by ambulance to Kennestone Hospital. The individual’s condition is currently unknown at the time of this release. Canton Police and Fire Department are currently investigating the incident to see what exactly occurred.


Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Vehicle Break-in Investigation

The Police Department is seeking help from the community to identify who is responsible for making entry into multiple vehicles during the early morning hours of November 30, 2015.  Just after 1:30 am., Officers were dispatched to the report of an entering auto in progress in the River Ridge Apartment complex which is located off Reinhardt College Parkway.
 
As units responded, the caller advised a young black male wearing a light in color hooded sweatshirt was in her vehicle.  Upon arrival, Officers were told by the victim that she yelled at the individual who fled the scene before Officers arrived.  Throughout the day, Officers took additional entering auto reports in the River Ridge complex and in the area of Oakside Drive which is located adjacent to the aforementioned apartments.
 
Public Information Officer Pacer Cordry stated, “Our Detectives are currently in the field canvassing the areas and speaking to residents in an effort to generate solid leads in these cases.”  He added, “We have also increased Officer Patrols in these locations and we are asking for any citizen who has information in regard to these crimes to come forward and contact the department.” 

Officer Cordry also advised, “The agency urges citizens to make sure to lock your vehicles and to refrain from leaving any belongings such as currency, wallets, purses, guns, computers, GPS devices, etc  in your vehicle during the overnight hours.

Anyone with information in connection with this investigation is asked to contact Criminal Investigation Division Detective Drew Henson at 770-720-7883 or via e-mail at drew.henson@canton-georgia.com.