THE FOUR OBSTACLES THAT "ARREST" POLICE IMPROVEMENT...
“TODAY, I CAN LOOK BACK over a half-century of experience working closely with people. I see police continuing to struggle with four recurring and major obstacles which have literally ‘arrested’ their development:
· Anti-intellectualism · Violence · Corruption · Discourtesy “Quite frankly, if these obstacles aren’t overcome, we are going to experience serious trouble controlling our police. In this book, I specifically identify what’s wrong with police today. I also provide an overview of police history and my time in Madison. I believe police can change and I provide seven absolutely necessary steps that they need to take in order to improve…” |
The seven steps police MUST TAKE to improve...
Step One: Envision: Police leaders must cast a bold and breathtaking vision to ensure a distinguished future for policing… Step Two: Select: Police must encourage and select the finest and the brightest to serve as police officers… Step Three: Listen: Police leaders must intently listen to their officers and members of the community… Step Four: Train and Lead: Police leaders must implement professional training and a collaborative leadership style… Step Five: Improve Continuously: Police must unceasingly improve the systems in which they work--everything they do… Step Six: Evaluate: Police must be able to critically assess, or have assessed, the crucial tasks and functions they are expected to perform… Step Seven: Sustain: Police leaders must be able to maintain and continue improvements to their organizations… |
About David Couper...
David Couper came to Madison, Wisc. in 1972 as their new chief of police. He was 34 years of age at the time. Prior to coming to Madison he had served on the Edina, Minn. and Minneapolis Police Departments and chief of the Burnsville, Minn. Department. He and went on to serve as Madison’s chief of police for over 20 years. Couper brought much change and reform to Madison – a new way to management conflict and public protest, he broke open the employment barriers that kept women and racial minorities from the police ranks, and instituted a new and collaborative style of leadership. In 1993, he was chosen by his peers to receive the National Police Leadership Award. He has graduate degrees from the University of Minnesota and Edgewood College in Madison, studied police in Europe, and has authored three books on policing and the role of forgiveness in government. He and his wife, Sabine, who also served as a police officer for 20 years, have been married for over thirty years. Between the two of them they built a family of nine children and eleven grandchildren.
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