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### **January Photo Contest Winner: Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office**

 January 2020 | Volume 13 | Issue 1

*The COPS Office is pleased to feature the*Fauquier County (Virginia) Sheriff’s Office*as the January 2020 winner of the Community Policing in Action Photo Contest.  The winning photo captures Sheriff Robert Mosier helping a little girl get a  drink from a water fountain.*

 It was a sunny day in October when Sheriff Robert Mosier stopped  by a local park after a meeting to say hello to the kids in the park, and to  see his grandchildren who were visiting from out of town. As he was walking up  the hill, he noticed his granddaughter struggling to reach the fountain.  Naturally, he offered her a lift to help her get a quick drink of water. “When  I think about the way that I engage even with my own family in the public, it's  showing a human side,” said Mosier. “I mean, we're all human beings as law  enforcement officers. And, quite frankly, we gain legitimacy as the police from  those that we serve. So what is a better way to do that, then to live a life  alongside of people in the community?”

 Sheriff Mosier emphasizes that any of his deputies would  connect with the community just as he did in the moment captured in the photo. “I  would have done that for any child—anybody in our sheriff’s office would have  done the same in similar circumstances,” Sheriff Mosier explained. “The idea is  to lead an organization with people [who are] able to do things that benefit  the community on their own.”  

 Encouraging his deputies to engage with the community outside  of on-the-job interactions is just one of the ways that Sheriff Mosier has  overcome the issue of establishing a presence throughout Fauquier County. The  department has also expanded the outreach programs since Mosier’s start in  2016. The Sheriff’s Office’s Public Information Officer, Sergeant James Hartman, stated, “Our  community outreach—it’s on steroids now compared to what it  used to be.”  The office particularly focuses on programs that target at-risk youth, such as  the Explorer Program and Junior Academy. “Reaching out to the youth in Fauquier  County is something that we work on all the time,” Hartman explained. “We  realize that the youth here are our future, and we want to show them a  different side of law enforcement then what they might see on the news or  encounter elsewhere in their lives.” 

 “[Our outreach efforts] continue to grow,” Sheriff Mosier  added. “Now we have organizations calling us to be a part of different  [activities]. Whether it be restorative justice or mental health related  issues, the boys and girls clubs, youth events, and more.” Mosier feels that  the sheriff’s office has demonstrated to the county that “We are here and we  are not going away. We are engaged and we will continue to be engaged.”

 To quantify their success with engagement, Sergeant  Hartman and Sheriff Mosier discussed the rapid growth of followers on social  media. The Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook account jumped from 2,000  followers in 2016 to its current 18,000 followers. “Not only do we put out  pertinent crime news and emergency information that needs to be distributed,  but also [a lot of] our community interaction is put out through social media.  The response has been tremendous,” stated Sergeant Hartman. Sheriff Mosier added,  “It’s another way for us to communicate to the public and be transparent. I  think anyone can look at us and feel that we are approachable, and I feel that  social media has helped us with that.” 

 Mosier explained that people have seen the social media  efforts and actually come into the office to inquire for help. In one instance,  a woman who had a criminal charge from 12 years prior came into the office  asking for assistance in reentering the workforce. “The woman felt that we were  approachable because of our social media efforts,” stated Mosier.

 When asked about how Sheriff Mosier will continue the  office’s success with community outreach, he explained that, “It's about our  people. It's about the men and women who work at the sheriff's office. We're  going to be very intentional, about building up our people for the future and  building leaders.” Sergeant Hartman added, “[The sheriff’s office’s] focus is  on building and maintaining these community relationships that we have and especially  targeting youth in our community because they are the future. And that's  instilled in everybody that works here.” 

 “It’s the ethos of our organization to support and care  for the community,” Sheriff Mosier said. “I don’t see any chance of regression  because of the nature of the expectations that have been created by [our ongoing  engagement efforts.]” 

 The COPS Office congratulates the Fauquier County  Sheriff’s Office for being one of the 12 winners of the 2020 Community Policing  in Action Photo Contest and for its commitment to community policing.

*Written with  contributions from Fauquier County Sheriff Robert Mosier and Sergeant James  Hartman. Photo courtesy of Fauquier County Sheriff’s Office.*

 Madeleine Smith          Managing Editor

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