For Immediate Release

Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017

Contact: Captain Richard Flynn, PIO
Office: 781-316-3907
Cell: 781-844-1224
Email: rflynn@town.arlington.ma.us

Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net

Arlington Police Win National Community Policing Contest

ARLINGTON — Chief Frederick Ryan is pleased to announce that the Arlington Police Department is the winner of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) “Community Policing in Action” photo contest.

The winning photo features Officer Jessica Scearbo helping an Arlington resident operate her smartphone. Members of the resident’s out-of-town extended family had purchased her the device so she could stay in contact with everyone. When no one could reach her, they became worried and contacted Arlington police, who conducted a well-being check.

When Officer Scearbo arrived at the woman’s home, she realized that the resident did not understand how to use her new phone. Instead of simply calling the family and reiterating the problem, Officer Scearbo spent some time teaching the woman how to use the phone. She even took the time to input the woman’s contacts into her phone so that she could easily reach her family members.

“Officer Scearbo, one of our finest, exemplified the way we police in Arlington,” Chief Ryan said. “She saw a problem, found a solution and showed care and compassion to our residents in the process. I am pleased that her actions were captured on film, and thank COPS for showcasing the good work our officers do on a daily basis.”

The COPS Office piloted the photo contest in 2015 to highlight positive community policing efforts across the country. After receiving an overwhelming number of submissions, the COPS Office made the photo contest an annual event. The 2017 contest garnered close to 200 photos during the one-month submission period.

About COPS:

The COPS Office, headed by Director Ronald Davis, is a federal agency responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. Since 1995, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing. This includes grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 129,000 officers and to provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training and technical assistance. For additional information about the COPS Office, please visit www.cops.usdoj.gov.

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