Newport News

Police Department

A Look Inside

Department Foundation

21st Century Policing

1. Building Trust and Legitimacy

2. Policy & Oversight

3. Technology & Social Media

4. Community Policing & Crime Reduction

5. Training & Education

6. Officer Wellness & Safety

CALEA Tri-Arc Award Recipient (1 of only 22 agencies in the country)

A CALEA accreditation is a means for developing or improving upon an agency’s

relationship with the community. CALEA accreditation strengthens an agency’s accountability,

both within the agency and the community, through a continuum of standards that define

authority, performance, and responsiveness.

Recruiting/Vetting

1. Application Process

2. Department Notification

3. Video Scenarios—Teacher’s Review

4. Social Media Search

5. Polygraph Interview

6. Psychological Evaluation

7. Ride Along—with feedback

8. Home Visit

9. Panel Review

10. Chief’s Interview

11. Six Months in Academy

12. Three Months of Field Training & 18 Months on Probation

ARE OFFICERS FORBIDDEN FROM

SHOOTING AT MOVING VEHICLES?

Officers may fire at moving vehicles only if their

lives or other lives are in immediate danger, and

as a last resort. They are expected to try to

move out of the way and should be cognizant of

other individuals inside the vehicle.

ARE POLICE OFFICERS IN NEWPORT

NEWS BEING TRAINED TO

DE-ESCALATE ALTERCATIONS BY

USING PEACEFUL CONFLICT

RESOLUTION STRATEGIES?

Yes. The best asset we have is our

presence, demeanor, and voice, meaning,

how we talk to citizens. Officers are

trained in de-escalation techniques and

tactics.

ARE OFFICERS REQUIRED TO GIVE A

VERBAL WARNING TO CIVILIANS BEFORE

DRAWING THEIR WEAPON OR USING

EXCESSIVE FORCE?

Officers are not permitted to use excessive

force. They are only allowed to use the

minimum amount of force needed to effect the

arrest or bring the situation under control.

Officers are not required to give a verbal

warning before drawing their weapon, but

should only draw their weapons in times of

possible threats or life-threatening situations.

Frequently Asked Questions

DOES THE NEWPORT NEWS POLICE

DEPARTMENT UTILIZE

CHOKEHOLDS?

No. Officers do not utilize any type of

chokehold or restraint and this is spelled

out clearly in our Use-of-Force Policy.

ARE OFFICERS REQUIRED TO REPORT

EACH TIME THEY THREATEN OR USE

FORCE?

We do not train officers to threaten citizens.

Each time force is used, there is a Use-of-Force

Report completed and submitted through their

chain of command and then to the Use-of-Force

Review Board, where Newport News citizens are

members.

HOW DOES HAVING MORE SUPERVISORS

BENEFIT THE COMMUNITY?

The Newport News Police Department has

recently increased supervision to be more

equitable to our officers. Evidence shows that

the sooner a supervisor arrives on scene

complaints and use-of-force incidents decrease.

ARE NEWPORT NEWS POLICE

OFFICERS OUTFITTED WITH BODY

WORN CAMERAS?

Yes, all 460 officers on the Newport News

Police Department have body-worn

cameras.

ARE POLICE OFFICERS IN NEWPORT

NEWS REQUIRED TO INTERVENE IF

THEY WITNESS ANOTHER OFFICER

USING EXCESSIVE FORCE?

Officers are required to report misconduct

(which would include excessive force),

however we did not spell out that officers

have a duty and are expected to intervene.

After reviewing our policy and hearing

citizen concerns, we revised our existing

policy to include the duty to

intervene on June 6, 2020.

DOES THE NEWPORT NEWS POLICE

DEPARTMENT CONDUCT “NO-KNOCK”

SEARCH WARRANTS?

When doing search warrants we do not do or

teach no-knock search warrants. And any time

we make an entry we will announce who we are

and what we’re doing.

Community Action

Community Walks

C.A.R.E. Walks

Homicide Support Group

Community Youth & Outreach Division

Young Adult Police Commissioners

Officers adopting Elementary Schools

Facebook Live Chief Updates

Youth Forums

Domestic Violence Advocates

Faith Leaders Meetings

Citizens United for Action

Weekly Compstat & Intel Meetings

Citizens on Promotions Panel

Citizens on Use-of-Force Review Board

De-Escalation Training

Anti-Bias Based Policing

Procedural Justice

Project Guardian

Cultural Diversity Training

Community Week in Training Academy

Citizen Police Academies

Scenario Based Training

Boys & Girls Club events (Basketball league/Kickball League)

Where Do We Go From Here?

1. Review questions on polygraph

2. Dispatch sergeants to high-priority calls

3. Partner with mental health professionals

4. Expand training on:

Autism

Critical Incident Training (CIT)

De-escalation

Anti-Biased Based Policing

Cultural Diversity Training

CONNECT WITH US

www.NNVA.gov/Police

9710 Jefferson Ave.

Newport News, VA 23605

Non-Emergency Dispatch: (757) 247-2500

Anonymous Tip Line: 1-888-LOCK-U-UP (1-888-562-5887)

“The Newport News Police Department has a long history of

community policing. It is our foundation. As we strive to be the best

department in the country, we will continue to be progressive, creative, and

professional. We are going to build on community interactions, our

relationships with youth, and partnerships with outside professionals to be

the department of choice, not only for new officers, but for our

citizens.” Chief Steve Drew