Greenwich cops share coffee with residents

By Robert Marchant, Greenwich Time
Original article HERE

Starbucks employee Jason LaGuardia and Officer Justin Rivera make drinks during the Coffee with a Cop event at the Starbucks in the Riverside section of Greenwich, Conn. Tuesday, May 2, 2017. The event allowed citizens to chat with Greenwich police officers in a casual setting to give them a feel for the men and women behind the uniforms. Photo: Tyler Sizemore / Hearst Connecticut Media / Greenwich Time

With a loud booming voice, Greenwich Police Officer Tom Huestis posed an invitation to the world on Tuesday morning: got a question for a cop?

Several dozen curious people took him up on his offer, and chatted with numerous police officers and supervisors who made themselves available for casual conversation. They also availed themselves of a free cup of coffee.

As part of its community outreach program, Greenwich police met with the public at the Starbucks Coffee shop at the Riverside Commons, its fifth such event. People asked about parking tickets, seat belts, marksmanship and learned what it’s like to be a police officer from the men and women in uniform themselves.

“Anytime we have an honest and open dialogue with people, it’s a success,” said Officer Justin Rivera.

Officer Alex Testani said it was good for the public to meet police officers in person, and it also helped police make a connection to the residents they serve.

A number of residents said it was a valuable experience.

“There’s tension with law enforcement these days, and this puts a friendly face on the people who are just doing their jobs,” said James J. Muskus.

Ann Murray, who is taking part in the Citizen’s Police Academy, a program that takes local residents behind the scenes of police work, said the effort to get outside patrol cars and into the public realm was a great idea.

“Community outreach is important, and this is a great way to interact with the community,” she said.

Inocencio Palacios of Stamford said he was appreciative of the work that police put in and welcomed the opportunity to talk with local cops. “It can be dangerous, and they work hard,” he said.

Palacios said there was some fear in the Hispanic community about law enforcement.

“It doesn’t have to be that way,” he said. “We need better communications.”

Officers who are bilingual in Spanish and English were also on hand to talk to anyone who wanted to communicate in Spanish.

While the Greenwich police officers put in an unusually busy spell recently, with three armed robberies and other significant law-enforcement matters clustered in a one-week time-frame, officers said the coffee-shop crowd didn’t ask much about the latest incidents. There was more discussion about regular police work.

Starbucks is partnering with the “Coffee with a Cop” meetings at future events. A Starbucks manager, Nikkie Coetzee, said 100 similar meet-ups are being planned around the country at Starbucks locations.

Coetzee said the recent event in Riverside looked like a good example of how the program can work.

“Great turn-out, great participation with the police,” she said.