Problem Oriented Policing

In 2016, the Lebanon Police Department launched our “Problem Oriented Policing” initiative within the community. This initiative is a department-wide strategy that is dedicated to identifying and solving persistent community problems. Identified issues can be criminal in nature or quality of life issues that are affecting neighborhoods and areas of the City. 

Our officers are charged with gathering information on potential problems from a variety of sources. This can include historical call data, information from community members, survey responses, individual observation and arrest data. 

After gathering the information, officers will strive to develop a clear understanding of the problem and design solutions to address the issues.

Problem Oriented Policing employs the “SARA” concept of problem solving:
  • Scan – Identify problems and prioritize them incorporating community input. 
  • Analyze – Study information about offenders, victims and crime locations. 
  • Respond – Implement strategies that address the chronic character of priority problems by thinking “outside the box” of traditional police enforcement tactics and using new resources that were developed by the officers to support problem-solving efforts. 
  • Assess – Evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy through self-assessments to determine how well the plan has been carried out and what good has been accomplished.
The success of this initiative is also dependent on a strong partnership with our community. We must work together to identify problems, discuss solutions, implement strategies and assess our success. We are committed to maintaining our community as a great place to live, work and play. 

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please contact our Patrol Bureau Commander, Lieutenant Alan Lowe, at 603-448-1212.