To the Editor:

I read with interest a recent “Guest View” piece in The Press. The writer presents frustration that Whitehall Crime Watch has become dormant.

Coplay’s seven-time nationally recognized Town Watch, founded in 1995, has fallen on challenging times during 2016. I was a leader and officer in CTW (Coplay Town Watch) for nearly 20 years. I vacated the leader role in January 2016 due to other responsibilities. I remain a CTW member.

It is true CTW, like Whitehall Crime Watch, is experiencing difficulty finding volunteers. Many NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) experience this, but there are other reasons.

A positive relationship between the police and citizens is critical to have a safe community. In both municipalities, crime has been trending down for over the last 15 years. In fact, when a Coplay Borough Council majority passed a curfew a couple years ago, it was chuckled at throughout town because juvenile crime had been descending for the past five years. As the “Guest View” writer said, less crime, less interest in watch groups.

Another reason for the decline in watch group membership is a lamentable shift by police departments from “community policing” to “broken window” policing. Ten years ago, Coplay had a vibrant community policing strategy. That is no longer the case. At that time, the chief was an active member of the Town Watch, attending many meetings and a firm supporter of the watch. His presence stimulated interest.

Any police department that abandons community policing becomes less engaged in its community. That is unfortunate, as police and communities struggle to keep solid bonds.

In its heyday, CTW had eight committees ranging from the Neighborhood Watch Committee, a Children’s Bike Derby Committee and the Feral Cat Committee. CTW remains active but at a much smaller scale.

The solution for a successful watch group requires full support from the police chief and mayor. It also needs community policing strategies to grow respect between the police and the community. The final ingredient is finding a core group of dedicated volunteers - volunteers who understand their watch efforts trace directly to the American colonial times, when the watchmen were concerned about the safety of their community. They did their part.

CTW meets in January in Coplay council chamber to reorganize and plan its 2017 activities. Consider joining and making Coplay a safer, better community.

Bill Leiner Jr.

Coplay

(Editor’s note: Leiner is a former mayor of the Borough of Coplay and former president of Coplay Town Watch.)