Transparency

The West Sacramento Police Department is partnering with Zen City, a global technology company redefining community engagement to build better local governments to gauge trust and sentiment towards public safety in West Sacramento. The department will be utilizing a new public survey tool, “Blockwise”, to better understand local concerns, attitudes, and trust in local police officers. The survey will appear to local residents on their mobile devices, enabling the Department to more holistically understand local neighborhood safety issues and enhance their responsiveness to community priorities. This is the latest effort by the Department to use technology to better understand community concerns and more effectively serve residents. The West Sacramento Police Department is among the first Police Departments implement this new technology.

In under five minutes, West Sacramento residents can help the West Sacramento Police Department know how they feel. The survey is available in English, Spanish, Russian and Farsi to allow for a diverse group of respondents. Some questions asked will include:

When it comes to the threat of crime, how safe do you feel in your neighborhood? Please indicate on a scale of 0 (not safe at all) to 10 (completely safe).
Treat everyone fairly regardless of who they are.
Provide the same quality of service to all individuals.
Would treat you with respect if you had contact with them for any reason.
Treat local residents with respect.
Are approachable.
Listen to and take into account the concerns of local residents.
How willing would you be to contact West Sacramento PD if you were a victim of crime or were worried about something?
During the last 6 months, did you report to West Sacramento PD something that happened to YOU which you thought was a crime?
How much access to information does the West Sacramento PD make available to the public about crime and arrest patterns in the community? What is the number one issue or problem in your local area that you would like the police to deal with?

In keeping with the Department’s commitment to transparency and accountability, the survey results will be shared with the public as they become available. Zencity’s community surveys incorporate voices from every corner of the community. To do so, Zencity sets response targets based on U.S. Census data about the municipality. Zencity ensures the security and privacy of its data and survey respondents. Survey responses are anonymous unless a respondent chooses to share their email address for follow-up purposes. Regardless, survey responses are kept confidential. Zencity does not collect a respondent’s name, address, or any other personally-identifying information. Zencity’s weighting accounts for the responses of every single person who answered a question. The responses give a proportional voice to all demographics (e.g., by age, sex, race, education level, and income level) based on the makeup of the municipality.

Based on responses, the tool will measure the safety and trust residents have in their communities, while also identifying key concerns residents want the police to address.

West Sacramento PD- Zencity Blockwise Report
Quarter 4 October- December 2024- Key Findings

Blockwise delivers surveys to residents using digital ads and confidentially measures community perceptions of safety and sentiment towards local police. The sampling technology ensures respondents are statistically representative based on key demographics such as race, sex, age, education and income. Additionally, surveys are collected from each police beat in the city determining perceptions around safety, fairness, respect and voice.

Concerns Citywide: Residents were asked to the following question: “What is the number one issue or problem in your neighborhood that you’d like the Police to deal with?” Citywide data found that "Streets and Traffic" is the most common concern at 26%. Other concerns included:

Streets and Traffic 32%
Homelessness 30%
Theft, Burglary and Break ins 10%
Police Resources 7%
Drugs 6%
Noise Disturbance 4%
Violence 4%
Police Community Relations 3%
Loitering and Harassment 2%
Vandalism 2%

Trust, Safety and Concerns by Beat: If you sort concerns by police beat, “streets and traffic” is the top concern for Beats 1, 2 and 3.

City of West Sacramento

Transparency

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