Police and Clergy Join Forces on Patrol in Northern Ireland Town
"Since Christmas, there has been a dramatic drop in sectarian violence and I attribute that in part to the tremendous effort between the police and the churches."
(County Tyrone, Northern Ireland)—Strabane, a small town in Northern Ireland is teaming up area ministers—both Catholic and Protestant—with local police, for their Friday and Saturday night patrols. (Photo: BBC News)
The idea was developed by Inspector Graham Dodds, in hopes of curtailing some of the "sectarian tension and alcohol-related crime" there. According to the report, a similar experiment had been successfully carried out in the Castlederg area.
"Since Christmas, there has been a dramatic drop in sectarian violence," Dodds said, regarding Castlederg. "I attribute that in part to the tremendous effort between the police and the churches."
"We are not asking [the ministers] to be apologists," explained Dodds. "If they see us doing something wrong then I want them to please tell us, and we can adapt the way we do things."
