A year into the job, Henderson Police Chief LaTesha Watson is instituting her vision for geographic policing to cut down on property crimes as well as violent crime.
Chief Watson, who moved to Henderson from Arlington, Texas, last November says she is a driven person and is working to achieve her goals after spending the first few months getting to know the officers and community.
"Here is my business card. This is my beat should you need anything. I just wanted to introduce myself," Watson said of her vision for an officer's typical day.
It is all part of Watson's plan for geographic policing.
As she works to prevent property and violent crimes in one of the state's safest cities, the chief says it isn't always about the raw numbers.
"We are also looking at the perception of crime because they don't always share the same perspective," Watson said.
That is one of the reasons groups of officers have been assigned beats to familiarize themselves with not just the people who live there, but also the schools, businesses, organizations, and bad guys.
"If that is your area you should know who that is and have a history in your mind of what you've had to deal with this person for," Watson said.
While the chief put her plan in motion in August, she says all that work will take about a year before those who call Henderson home see the full impact of the changes to the department's philosophy.
"Make sure that community policing is not just a unit, but the entire foundation of our police organization," Watson said.
