SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS)- In an age where police activity is increasingly monitored, the Syracuse Police Department has attempted to create a positive relationship with those in the community. Through events, initiatives, and social media, the Department has made efforts to connect with those that. Since 2019, Captain Matthew Malinowski has worked within the department’s full-time public relations office. Malinowski said that the work of police goes beyond law enforcement.
“You can’t simply just arrest people and take them to jail or just do police work. There has to be a mix of relationship building and that’s where the community relations side of the house comes in,” Malinowski said.
Capt. Malinowski played a big role in media inquiries and community relations. His department’s efforts have held events such as Coffee with a Cop and has been involved with initiatives such as the Syracuse Police Athletic/Activities League. The league aims to have local youth and law enforcement interact in a non-law enforcement setting.
The department hopes that creating positive relationships with kids can help prevent crime in the future and can strengthen the trust kids have in the police as they grow older. Capt. Malinowski said developing this relationship is a priority.
“I think it’s just making sure we’re maximizing the understanding between police and community,” Malinowski said.
Capt. Malinowski has shifted roles in the department, but the public relations office plans to continue its efforts. Syracuse Police Public Information Specialist Kieran Coffey said the office will look to find more ways to improve.
“I think that we are off to a strong start but we can always do more. And I think that we need to get into various areas of the city. Obviously [there are] more impoverished areas that we want to create roots in, so we’re trying to that through our neighborhood business development as well,” Coffey said.
Capt. Malinowski has shifted to a role in the department’s internal affairs section. Malinowski said that he remains focused on improving community relation in his new role. The internal affairs office examines the department’s conduct. Malinowski said this gives him a chance to continue to improve community relations.
“What I think people don’t understand is how in-depth these investigations are and our ability to do that. So my goal will be to take what I did in the public relations office and really connect with the community and inform how much which actually put into this,” Capt. Malinowski said.
Both the public relations office and Capt. Malinowski hopes that the department can continue to improve community relations.
