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Raleigh police host 'Coffee with a Cop' to break down barriers

In an effort to increase transparency, engage in the community and develop mutual trust and respect, Raleigh police officers on Wednesday are spread out across the city hoping to chat with the community.

Posted Updated

By
Lora Lavigne
, WRAL reporter
RALEIGH, N.C. — In an effort to increase transparency, engage in the community and develop mutual trust and respect, Raleigh police officers on Wednesday are spread out across the city hoping to chat with the community.

It's part of the city’s yearly event, Coffee with a Cop.

But this year's event holds more weight than previous years. Mistrust of law enforcement is at an all-time high, according to polling from the Pew Research Center. Research published in 2022 shows that last December, about 31% of Americans said they had "not too much" or "no confidence at all" in American's police. That's up nearly 10% from 2018.

Since the public murder of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who was killed by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, much of the public has been challenging how America's police operate, and what changes need to be made to prevent killings like Floyd's.

Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson said Coffee with a Cop aims to help bring the community and police together to help talk out some of these problems in a "relaxed" and conversational setting.

"If an officer is doing their job daily, they may not know or see or understand another side of the community, and that community member may not understand policing," Patterson said. "It's an opportunity to just bring the two together to just have conversations.”

Coffee with a Cop: Raleigh police officers waiting to chat at 6 locations

In addition to increasing transparency, Patterson hopes Wednesday's event will encourage more people to apply the join the force.

Currently, the Raleigh Police Department has 150 vacancies compared to 168 positions open back in April. Patterson said another large recruit class is also starting soon.

“We see that there's still a need and a desire for people to do this kind of work, and I'm excited," she said. "And we'll continue to recruit and hire people. We know we lost officers, that's just a cycle, but it's coming back around now where people are getting energized again around this profession."

“I'm excited from what I'm seeing now," Patterson added. "There was a time we were seeing many people just leave this profession with the climate in the country. But now I think the pendulum is starting to swing back the other way. Now we are hiring."

City leaders are taking Coffee with a Cop a step further this year by launching the Raleigh Police Foundation, a non-profit and new initiative to promote safe neighborhoods and stronger relationships. Already, the foundation has raised $2 million, although Wednesday was the official day the RPD Foundation kicked off its fundraising.

Patterson will be joined by Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin and Brenda Gibson, Chair of the Board of Directors for the Raleigh Police Department Foundation, to formally launch the foundation and kick off its fundraising campaign.

The official launch of the Raleigh Police Foundation began at 10 a.m. Wednesday at 321 Coffee.

People can stop by the six Coffee with a Cop locations to thank a police officer, talk about a concern they have or just say hello.

Fifth Third Bank locations (free coffee donated by First Watch):

  • 1641 Glenwood Ave., 9 to 10 a.m.
  • 1200 Ridge Road, 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
  • 5500 Six Forks Road, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
  • 4917 Capital Blvd., 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
  • 6200 Glenwood Ave., 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Police officers were also at the McDonald's at 3424 Poole Road between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m.

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