Home → City Departments → Urban Development → Neighborhoods → Neighborhood Watch Program
Overview
The Hattiesburg Police Department recognizes that community participation in crime prevention programs is essential to improving the quality of life in the City of Hattiesburg. One of the most effective ways to promote citizen interaction with police is the sharing of information. At its heart, The Neighborhood Watch Program encourages this partnership between the police and community. It is a program of neighbors watching out for other neighbors, particularly during times when criminal activity would likely occur. Also, as a part of Neighborhood Watch, citizen groups determine specific needs or problems and then share this information with local police. The police then act on this information and report back to the group on their progress.
Getting Involved in Hattiesburg 
Joining a neighborhood watch program is as simple as locating one in your neighborhood and attending a meeting to express your interest in becoming a member. If your community in Hattiesburg does not have a crime watch program in effect, starting one is a relatively simple process.
Form a small planning committee with your neighbors to determine how interested your community is in forming a crime watch program of its own. If it is determined that there is ample interest to continue, decide on a place and time for the first official neighborhood watch meeting. Inform your local police or sheriff's office of the meeting ten to fourteen days in advance. This will provide them with ample time to assign a crime prevention officer who will attend your meeting and help you inform the members of your community about the Neighborhood Watch Program and what is required to form their own groups. In addition, the officer will be able to discuss crime statistics in the area and bring a list of local and international contacts in order to help with the organizing and maintenance of your communities' program.
Hold your first neighborhood watch meeting in a place that is convenient for everyone, such as a neighborhood home, church, library or school. Design a flyer or letter of invitation and deliver one to every home in your area. Try to get each household to commit to one adult attendee in order to assess attendance. Prior to the meeting draw a large map of the streets and residences that will be covered by the watch to show the potential members of your group. As the meeting organizer, it is your responsibility to arrive early to introduce the officer attending and to help everyone become acquainted.
Key Positions
Within every neighborhood watch program there are positions of responsibility, which are elected by the members of the group. The first is The Neighborhood Watch Coordinator. This job is crucial for the success of the program and is best served by a retiree or a self-employed individual who spends more time at home and can keep a closer watch on the neighborhood.
The coordinator is responsible for expanding the program and handling new members. He or she is also in charge of maintaining a current list of participants and neighborhood residents, which includes names, addresses, phone numbers and vehicle descriptions. In addition, the coordinator acts as a liaison between watch members, civic groups, block captains and law enforcement officers. The coordinator is also responsible for arranging training programs that target crime prevention, obtaining and distributing materials such as neighborhood watch stickers, signs and decals and for encouraging participation in specific projects.
Another important position within any neighborhood watch program is the Block Captain. The group should designate one Block Captain for every ten to fifteen houses within the neighborhood. These individuals act as liaisons between block residents and the coordinator. They are also responsible for establishing a "telephone chain" or a current list of names, addresses and telephone numbers of block participants and distributing this list to the members of the neighborhood watch group.
The Block Captains visit and invite new residents to join the neighborhood watch program and notify them of meetings and training sessions. In addition, they are required to contact each member of the group as often as possible to discuss any problems, assistance requirements or suggestions for program improvement.
Learn more about Neighborhood Watch Program........
Maxine Coleman
601-554-1005
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
