CLEVELAND -- The Second District police foot patrol program has seen a lot of success, and it has residents singing police praises.
"I just know the presence overall helps the neighborhood," said Greg Bodnar, owner of Koffie Cafe.
"We feel safer when we know a cop... you never know where they are... which is good because criminals don't know where they are at certain times."
Second District Commander Thomas Stacho appreciates the praise, "Anytime we can be out there and be among the citizens and let 'em know hey we're just like them, it's only good for us and it's good for them."
There are seven zones in the Second District. On an average day shift, seven two-man units and eight one-man units are on patrol.
A two-man car is taken out of a zone and the officers walk their beat instead.
The foot patrols began in June. This is an implementation of an overall community policing strategy put in place by Chief of Police Calvin Williams.
Stacho reports there are seven zones in the district. During a normal day shift, there are seven, two-man units cruising and eight one-man cruisers.
The councilman for the area, Joe Cimperman, reports that the program also helps remove fear from citizens and engender trust between police and residents.
"When we were kids we were playing football with them... Yeah, they disciplined us. Yeah they told us not to do stupid stuff, but we never had this inherent fear of police," Cimperman tells Channel 3's Hilary Golston.
Follow WKYC's Hilary Golston on Twitter: @HilaryWKYC
