Chicago startup, Everyblock, took a healthy stab at making police reports public, enabling interested parties to know what's going on in their backyards. This is a logical move in getting information out to the public, but I think the Chicago Police Department can do more.

Now and then, our household gets phone calls from members of the Fraternal Order of Police. Just yesterday, we received a phone call from a nice gentleman who was asking about donations to buy bullet proof vests. Yes, bullet proof vests. I'm not sure if this phone call came from the FOP or from an affiliate organization, Michael picked up the phone. With a baby in his hand and me running errands, he couldn't chat too long. After hearing about his experience with the phone call I thought, 'Couldn't they raise some cash using social media'?

So I started digging around. After some unscientific research, here are some immediate ideas that come to mind for how CPD can take advantage of social media:

The Chicago Police Department has a Facebook page. With over 7,000 fans, the admins behind the page post updates regarding gun control and other important CPD topics they think we should no about. What I don't see is a two-way dialogue between the fans and the cops.  I can see how this is an overwhelming task, given how large Chicago is - so why not divide the Facebook page up by precincts?  This would make things alot more manageable and important neighborhood CAPS meetings could easily be viewed by neighbors.

There is indeed a CPD Twitter account, but it hasn't been updated since May. By reactivating their Twitter activity, along with including lists of precincts, CPD could instantly become a daily source for Chicagoans across the city.  The CPD should take a look at how  @JoetheCop uses Twitter. Joe is a police officer and does a bang-up job of keeping Chicagoland digerati up to speed on stories. Joe spoke at my recent Gals' Guide Summit and was a wealth of knowledge.

Instead of the phone calls that are being made to raise money for those vests, why not institute an online campaign using a service like ChipIn? I receive numerous invites to donate to friends' Breast Cancer walks. These donations live on an individual walker's profile. This same technology can be instituted for the Fraternal Order of Police, for example.

That's right, I said 'brand'. The Chicago Police Department, like other organizations, is a brand. I'm the kind of citizen that actually likes to know my cops. A few men in blue live in my building, so I have the good fortune of saying hello, asking how their day was and getting the scoop on neighborhood news.  Getting to know the people behind the uniform is a big piece of community building. Creating some sort of basic profile of local, beat police officers could do wonders for community ties. Maybe it's a Ning page.  Privacy is a concern, of course, but including basic information such as precinct, beat, hometown, favorite pizza joint, etc. can't hurt.

I'd love the ability to use my phone to report a crime, namely crazy drivers.

Should any member of the CPD want to chat further, I live up the street from the 1st District police station. 

Signed,

Your Neighbor