Starting a Neighborhood Watch Group is a great opportunity to develop relationships with your neighbors, building community and trust.  Having a network of neighbors who are willing to look out for one another furthers the sense of community, security, and reduces the fear of crime.  Neighborhood Watch empowers citizens to take ownership of their neighborhood while partnering with law enforcement.   

Neighborhood Watch is NOT taking personal action when observing suspicious or criminal activity in the neighborhood.   The role of a Neighborhood Watch group is to observe and report.  The best action is to call the police.  

Networking - We'd like to get to know you! 

Neighborhood Watch meetings are designed to allow the group of neighbors to meet assigned patrol officers and/or supervisors to their Public Service Area in which their neighborhood is located.  Neighborhood Watch meetings provide space for open dialogue where neighbors can discuss and work to solve problems in their neighborhood with law enforcement.  Additionally, neighbors can receive resources from Crime Prevention and patrol officers to prevent criminal activity.  

 Neighborhood Watch meetings are a great place to meet your neighbors! 

Get organized! 

• First, contact your neighbors about starting a Neighborhood Watch group.  Gather interest!  Feel free to create a flyer to distribute to your neighbors expressing your interest in creating the group for the Neighborhood. If several homes on your street share the same interest, contact the Fairfield Police Department. Note: Fairfield Police Department kindly requests at least five (5) interested neighbors to begin a Neighborhood Watch Group.  

• Contact the Fairfield Police Department Crime Prevention Unit for help in picking a date for an initial meeting and for crime prevention resources.  Not sure where to hold your meeting?  You may hold your Neighborhood Watch meeting at your home or a neighborhood facility, such as a park.  With the ability to host meetings online, Zoom is always an option; however in-person contact is always better.  

• Designate a Neighborhood Watch Block Captain or Captain(s) who will be responsible for organizing meetings and relaying information to members. The Neighborhood Watch Block Captain will also act as the liaison between the community and the Fairfield Police Department Neighborhood Watch Coordinator. We can help you with information and materials to help make your meetings a success!  Neighborhood Watch Coordinator, Florentina Mederos can be reached at (707) 428-7673.

Make the Call

If you are witnessing a crime in progress or a threat to life, health and safety, dial 9-1-1 

For all other non-emergencies,  dial 707-428-7300, select option #8

If you observe suspicious activity in your neighborhood, consider the following: What, When, Where, and Who? 

• What is happening?  Try to be as specific as possible describing what you're observing or have observed. 

• When is it happening?  Is the activity taking place currently?  How long ago did it occur? 

• Where is it happening?  Provide the dispatcher with a specific address of the activity. 

• Who is involved?  Giving the best description you can of the involved parties help dispatchers communicate to the responding officers who to look for. 

Good descriptions help tremendously when officers are responding to calls for service.

When providing a description of a person to dispatch, begin from top to bottom.  The most important identification features are: sex, height, weight, race, physical impairments, tattoos, scars, and approximate age.   Anything you observe unusual about the person should be relayed to dispatch.  

When providing a description of a vehicle to dispatch, consider the type, make, model, and color.  If you are able to obtain a license plate, even better.  Consider unique features of the vehicle such as: dents, tinted windows, bumper stickers. 

Do NOT hang up with Fairfield Police Department Dispatch Until Instructed to do so!  

Have FUN! 

• Organize meetings.  Meetings are a great way to stay current with neighborhood concerns.  While some groups like to meet more frequently, some meet only once or twice a year.  Your Neighborhood Watch group is what YOU make it.  

• While organizing meetings is a way to stay active and share neighborhood concerns, remember you can also host a social event which encourages your neighbors to help solve neighborhood issues.  This also provides a chance to continue to meet your neighbors and develop relationships.  

• Some social events that give neighbors the opportunity to meet are:  ice cream social, block party, baseball game at a local park, or a picnic.  The possibilities are endless!  

• Give back to the community and the neighborhood - Adopt a park or school playground: pick up litter, repair broken equipment, or paint over graffiti.    Gather your neighbors to pick up any litter in your neighborhood.    

If you and your neighbors are committed to partnering with the police department and reducing crime in your neighborhood, contact Crime Prevention today!