Local police officers seek to improve relationship with community members

DELMARVA – In Maryland, Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli says there’s been a lot of hostility against police officers this year.

“I can tell you that our profession is being misjudged by a few and that’s disappointing,” said Crisafulli.

Sheriff Crisafulli says the national narrative about racism and policing is causing a lot of worry for many police officers. He says this is why they’re working to get more training done. The goal is to help improve relationships between police officers and the communities they serve.

“It puts better law enforcement officers out here in our communities when they have multiple trainings in all areas of this profession,” said Crisafulli.

Meanwhile, Delmar Police Chief Ivan Barkley Sr. says to make change happen we all need to take a look at how we treat others.

“There’s a lot more that needs to change other than the concept of policing,” said Barkley, “I think we as human beings need to look at how we interact with each other.”

He adds that knowing your police officers is crucial and that this might be harder to find in bigger areas.

“And if you don’t know who you’re dealing with then it’s easier to go with perceptions of who you think they are,” said Barkley.

Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli says he feels there needs to be a lot more open dialogue between police and people in the community moving forward.