During the past decade, Fort Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke and the Fort Wayne Police Department have been developing effective ways to fight drugs and violence in the community. The community policing philosophy has been implemented, home fleet vehicles have been purchased and dozens of new officers have been hired. Since School Liaison Officer Ricardo Robles came on board, communication and coordination with the Fort Wayne Community Schools has improved dramatically. The school system provided Robles and several other officers with communications equipment.
Robles can now communicate directly with school safety officials and administrators.
In an emergency, when phone lines may be jammed, this is vital. Robles also worked with the schools to get access to some of their limited data records. He can now call up the name and address of any student, which helps with research and investigations. This team is made up of representatives from the Juvenile Probation Department, Sheriff's Office, Fort Wayne Community Schools and the Fort Wayne Police Department. The representatives are experts in dealing with juveniles and violent situations.