Sand Springs Police Hope 'Pop With A Cop' Program Strengthens City

The Sand Springs Police Department is working on its newest program, Pop With A Cop, but the police chief says it’s not a reaction to Terence Crutcher’s fatal shooting.

Chief Mike Carter says it’s exactly what it sounds like - officers meet with the public, share a pop and talk about ways to strengthen the city.

“We are the public's police department. We are public servants,” Carter said.

And because of that, the chief said the community deserves a say in how officers police the streets.

“We have responsibilities, and part of those responsibilities is to always be looking to be cutting edge on the way we're going to police,” he said.

Carter said the department spent about a year working on a policing plan.

“How we're gonna be transparent, how we're gonna hold ourselves accountable,” he said.

And part of the plan is to get Sand Springs citizens involved; one way to do that is through the Pop With A Cop program.

Carter said it will give the community a chance visit with officers on a more personal level, in a relaxed setting. No agendas, just conversations and ideas to better fight crime - whether it be vandalism, break-ins or noise complaints.

Carter said, “We get to learn from the average person's perspective, what do they want us concentrating on?”

The chief said the city is broken down into eight different districts for police patrols. The department will hold a meeting for each area, with officers and other city leaders ready to interact with the community.

“We are out there to do what we need to do for them,” Carter said. “And one of the best ways to do that is to understand what they want us to be doing.”

Sand Spring police will schedule the first Pop With A Cop meeting for some time in January. Right now, the department is polling to public about what they want out of the meetings.