Safe Place Initiative
The Springfield Police Department is an approved agency with the Police Safe Place Program. The Safe Place Program was developed by the Seattle Police Department in 2015 as a means to encourage the reporting of bias crimes and hate crimes, which are crimes based on a person’s race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, mental, physical, or sensory disabilities, homelessness, marital status, political ideology, age, or parental status. It involves local businesses partnering with police departments to offer victims of bias crimes and hate crimes “Safe Places” to remain while police are contacted and respond to investigate the crimes. Currently, there are well over 7,000 business locations throughout the country that provide these accommodations for crime victims. Participating businesses conspicuously display a special police badge with a rainbow background which designates their location as a Safe Place for bias crime and hate crime victims. This aims to help build trust with victims by saying, “you will be heard and you will be treated with care, dignity and respect by the business you enter to find help, as well as the police who respond.”
There is no cost to become an established Safe Place participating business, but there are two requirements: First, the business must allow victims to remain in a safe, public area within the business. Second, the business must call 911, or assist the victim with calling 911, as soon as possible, to report the crime to the police. When police arrive, the Safe Place location will be used to bridge the gap between the victim and the police, which will help ensure the crime is investigated to the fullest extent possible. If a victim becomes uncomfortable and leaves the Safe Place prior to police arriving, the business is asked to contact the police right away and provide a physical description of the victim and their direction of travel, along with a description of any injuries the victim may have sustained.
If your business would like to participate in the Springfield Safe Place Program, please contact Detective Lieutenant James Mirabile at james.mirabile@springfield-nj.us for more information. Once approved, your business will be provided with Safe Place training materials, fliers to distribute, and a Safe Place decal that should be placed conspicuously on or near the main entrance door to your business.
The reporting and investigation of bias crimes and hate crimes is taken very seriously by all Springfield Police personnel. Victims of bias crimes and hate crimes are encouraged to report the crime to police immediately – by calling 911, by approaching a police officer, or by entering a designated Safe Place – to ensure the crime can be investigated thoroughly in a timely manner. If you have been a victim of a bias crime or a hate crime and time has passed, it is not too late to report the incident. Contact the Springfield Police Department at (973) 376-0400 to speak with an officer and to initiate an investigation.