Citywide Atlanta City Councilman Ceasar Mitchell introduced legislation Oct. 1 that would require new police academy graduates to serve on neighborhood/precinct foot and bicycle patrol duty for six months as a crime fighting tool.
Known as the Community Policing, Training And Preparedness (CoPTAP) Program, the measure would affect academy graduates beginning with Class No. 200, set to join the police force November 14th.
The officers initially would be assigned to the two police zones which have experienced the most significant increase in the rate of crime or having the highest crime rates in the city. Currently those Zones are 3 and 4 which would see 18 new officers on foot/bike patrol beginning in November.
The officers could be deployed at the discretion of the zone commander in high-crime areas or targeted locations in order to achieve the greatest impact.
“We must work together to identify creative ways to decrease the crime rate in our city before the criminal element takes total control of our neighborhoods and streets,” said Mitchell, who hosted two public safety town hall meetings in Zone 4 – one of which was standing room only.