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**U.S. Department of Justice**        Office of Community Oriented Policing Services            145 N Street, N.E.       Washington, DC 20530      www.cops.usdoj.gov×         Menu         - Home
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**Message from COPS OfficeDirector Phil Keith**
 May 2018 | Volume 11 | Issue 5

As law enforcement officers nationwide are faced with some of the most  difficult challenges in the history of policing, it is with great pleasure that  I join the COPS Office as its sixth director.  I bring over 47 years of law enforcement  experience with me, 34 of those years in active law enforcement service, and 17  years as Chief of Police of the Knoxville Police Department in Tennessee. 

There is no better time for me to have joined the COPS Office, as over  the years I have seen firsthand the obstacles facing law enforcement officers across  the country, and I know how important the COPS Office is to helping overcome  those obstacles.  I was personally  involved in drafting language for the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement  Act that led to the creation of the COPS Office in 1994.  Since then, the COPS Office has supported law  enforcement agencies through extensive research, funding and technical  assistance, and strong partnerships and collaboration.  The COPS Office knowledge products offer  support to the field, using field-driven approaches to help law enforcement  agencies of all sizes solve their most pressing public safety challenges.  

As the COPS Office continues to serve as a resource, we must ensure  that we understand the needs of law enforcement.  That is why it is my top priority to ensure  that we are always listening to the field, rather than telling the field what  it needs.  We will offer the support and  assistance that state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies request to  improve their own public safety efforts.  Through initiatives designed to reduce violent  crime, increase offender responsibility, and develop strategies that address  the opioid epidemic, the COPS Office is committed to working collaboratively  with law enforcement to advance this Administration’s law-and-order agenda. 

I am personally committed to helping change the narrative around the  ways in which the public views law enforcement officers, and the field as a  whole.  It will take a tremendous and  concerted effort, but I know that the COPS Office can help shed light on the  noble, and often unrecognized, work that law enforcement officers do every day  to keep our communities safe.  Police  work is far from easy, and certainly not glamorous, but it is essential to our  democracy and our well-being.  The men  and women who choose this career path should be celebrated, supported, and most  importantly, protected by policies that help, not hinder, them from doing their  jobs. 

As we commemorate National Police Week, we remember those who paid the  ultimate sacrifice while serving and protecting our communities.  The COPS Office remains committed to keeping  officer safety and wellness a priority.  We  will continue to push forward with innovative research, training, and support  to help ensure that the men and women in law enforcement return home to their  families after every shift. 

Nothing is more important to me than family, as anyone who has heard me  speak may know.  I often mention my  family as the guiding force behind the man that I have become.  I am so grateful to have recently joined a new  family – the COPS Office family – and I look forward to the future work of this  organization and the future of the field.  I am excited for the great things to come. 

Phil Keith

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The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

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