Police departments have come under question throughout the nation after the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The Wilmington PD is taking steps to become more diverse.
The Wilmington Police Department participates in state-mandated juvenile minority sensitivity training, which teaches effective communications with minority groups and aims to improve the treatment of minority juveniles. But Wilmington Chief of Police Ralph Evangelous told City Council on Tuesday evening that they’re looking to expand this training even further in the future:
"We are currently working with the Department of Justice to evaluate a four hour block of training, which will be offered to the entire department. I’m working with UNCW and their law enforcement group to evaluate this and to use their resources."
The Wilmington PD is also considering adding training from NOBLE, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, to address bias, prejudices, and stereotypes.
In addition, the department is attempting to increase diversity within its ranks when recruiting. Evangelous says that, like many police departments, Wilmington PD has had difficulty recruiting black officers and women officers. Eighty percent of the police force is white, and seventy-five percent is male.