Council hears Baltimore example of repurposing officers for community-based intervention; Providence police note staffing limits

Council members reviewed a model used in Baltimore where police departments repurposed several officers into community intervention roles and reported reductions in violence without increasing overall costs. A committee member said the Baltimore model reassigned eight officers into CBI roles using existing revenue and partnered those officers with community-based organizations.

Providence law enforcement representatives at the meeting cautioned that local staffing shortages and labor constraints complicate a similar approach here. A Providence police lieutenant said current patrol staffing is short and the department lacks a dedicated core group of officers solely assigned to community intervention work.

Members discussed what would be required to pursue a comparable model: training for reassigned officers, clear role delineation between officers and community partners, and negotiation with unions and mayoral leadership on any changes to assignments or pay. Participants noted Baltimore negotiated adjustments and used incentives to secure buy-in.

The council asked staff to research Baltimore’s implementation details. One member agreed to look into how Baltimore negotiated officer roles, training and partnerships to inform possible local conversations with the police chief and mayor’s office.

Meeting remarks made clear participants saw potential benefits but emphasized implementation trade-offs — notably the short-term impact on patrol staffing and the need for city-level conversations about bargaining and resource reallocation.

Next steps recorded in the meeting included further research into the Baltimore model and invitations to city leadership to discuss feasibility and data requirements in a future session.