Coffee with a Cop lets Savannah-Chatham police officers, public interact

By Eric Curl, SavannahNow
Original article HERE

Instead of sirens, there were snacks.

Residents got a chance to interact with Savannah-Chatham police officers in an informal setting on Monday morning at Savannah Coffee Roasters, part of the Downtown Neighborhood Association’s latest Coffee with a Cop event.

Coming after the Savannah City Council’s decision last week to split up the department in six months after failed attempts to resolve a cost dispute with the county, Association President Melinda Allen said the event had been scheduled before the council’s vote as a way for residents to meet the people behind the badge.

“I think it provides an environment that makes it easier to talk to each other and discuss ideas and issues and also just to get to know one another as people,” Allen said.

Among those officers in attendance was Capt. Joy Gellatly, commander of the downtown precinct, who said she enjoyed the opportunity to speak to residents in an environment that is more relaxed than typical police-resident encounters.

“It builds our relationship with the public when we do things like this,” Gellatly said.

One downtown resident, Gale Steves, took advantage of the opportunity by chatting up an officer about how to get citizens more involved in alerting police to illegal activities. Issues surrounding short-term vacation rentals and the visitors they have been attracting also came up, Steves said.

“On a Sunday morning, when you have someone vomiting in your trash can, it’s not too nice,” she said.

The event afforded Anthony Watkins a chance to introduce himself to the public after recently completing training and hitting the streets as a patrol officer about a week before the St. Patrick’s Day festival.

Law enforcement has long been a dream of his and he decided to follow his passion after about seven years with the Coast Guard, Watkins said.

There was little concern voiced by officers about the pending department split. Watkins said he was too new to understand what the change will mean.

“The military taught me to roll with the punches so whatever happens, happens,” he said.

After the vote last week, City Manager Rob Hernandez said police operations will carry on as usual until Feb. 1, when a new county department will take over the responsibility of policing the unincorporated area.

“However, our residents will continue to receive the outstanding law enforcement services that they get from their police department,” Hernandez said.