EASTON, Pa. — Easton Police Department has welcomed a new member to help address issues experienced by crime victims, and she is ready to expand the confines of law enforcement in the Lehigh Valley.
Kristen Cooper joined the department about a month ago, bringing over a decade of experience assisting victims in the aftermath of crime, helping them to navigate through a sometimes complex and emotionally heavy process and hopefully helping them on a road to recovery.
- Easton Police Department recently welcomed a new community advocate, Kristen Cooper, to their ranks
- Cooper will help victims of crime, and others in need, navigate the complexities of the legal system and get the help they require
- Not only will Cooper's presence help free officers from work outside their expertise, but it will help foster a better connection between police and the community as a whole, authorities said
Teaming up with community partners, organizations, nonprofit organizations and other groups, Cooper said she has relished the opportunity to bring her passion for the people to the world of law enforcement, providing a friendly face to an oft-neglected sect of society.
"I love the challenges that the job presents, I love thinking outside the box. That's like my favorite thing in the whole wide world. Whenever there's a problem, I love trying to find a creative solution, so this really gives me the opportunity to do those things."Easton Police Department Community Advocate Kristen Cooper
“It's cumbersome, and if you've never been through the process, it is incredibly overwhelming, especially from the victim standpoint, because it’s lot of ‘Hey, just go file a PFA [protection from abuse], go do this, go do that,’” Cooper said.
“But there's not a lot of people telling you that when you walk into that room for the PFA, the perpetrator is going to be sitting right there and looking you down. So that was something that I've really been trying to address immediately, walking people through what it's going to look like to try and make that re-victimization minimal or nonexistent.”
Cooper has about 12 years’ experience in human services at the county level and will utilize that in her mission to help those in need, in addition to identifying those in need of social services throughout the community, she said. This could include procuring a connection to a shelter for an abuse victim, finding a rehabilitation program for an addict and other services.
In addition, she will help with the United Way’s Handle with Care program, which helps vulnerable students who have experienced traumatic incidents.
Bringing those skills to law enforcement is a dream come true, Cooper said.
“I'll be honest, my degree is in criminal justice, and years and years and years ago, I wanted to be a police officer. It just never panned out,” Cooper said. “So the opportunity to help them in this way is amazing. I fully believe in neighborhood policing, community policing, those types of models. And I know that Easton has worked really hard to develop a really strong positive presence in the community, so I was super excited to come be a part of that.”
Identifying a need
According to Police Chief Carl Scalzo, the idea for the community advocacy position stemmed from engaging in block watch meetings, in addition to inspiration from his sister, former Assistant District Attorney Teresa Scalzo, who “fought for domestic violence victims, she was a victim advocate in that capacity, she actually trained the military with the federal government, and ultimately kind of spent her whole life fighting for those who couldn't fight for themselves.”
“The mayor, the city administration, [City Administrator] Luis Campos were heavily on board, they loved the idea. And so it was just a matter of them coming up with the funding and doing all the things we needed to actually go through for the process of finding the right person, because this is a brand new thing here – not only this department, it's new to this area,” Scalzo said.
“So it was kind of one of those things where we were trying to find somebody who could bring some breadth of knowledge as to how to do something like this, and Kristen was a perfect fit with her experience and everything, her excitement about the job.”
On an average day, Cooper will check in with Lieutenant Joe Alonzo on cases which may have come in over the past few days, evaluate the need for social services, follow up on past victims, connect those in need with assistance and connect with the community directly.
Just this week, Cooper had a chance to offer the Mayor’s Summer Youth Camp participants a tour of the police station on 4th Street, where they had an opportunity to explore the training room, “and they had a lot of fun doing that,” Cooper said.
Alonzo said Cooper is an invaluable resource, as “we can’t be trained for everything.”
“To be able to have Kristen on board and working as a team, especially with the uniformed officers, hopefully, it makes a very big impact on what they're able to accomplish out in the street,” Alonzo said, adding Cooper may be able to foster relationships with the community to obtain services and support which could lead to a reduction in recidivism and other issues.
An advocate for crime victims
Having a friendly face to lead one through the legal process is an integral element of the process, as years of media mistakes could confuse the general public when it comes to how things play out in reality, Cooper noted.
“A lot of people think everything goes like TV, but you don't have your hearing the very next day like you do in ‘Law and Order,’” Cooper said. “It could be a week, it could be a month, it could be continued 13 times. So just having someone to explain that process and why these things happen helps them prepare and helps them through the process. Hopefully, it makes it a little less painful.”
Scalzo and Alonzo also said they hope Cooper’s presence could prove beneficial to those who may be intimidated by officers in uniform, creating a sort of bridge between the public and police, who Cooper said “will do everything they can to help you, so give them the opportunity.”
According to the chief and lieutenant, Cooper is already off to a great start, with Scalzo noting “so far, in less than a month, t's been really successful, so we're really optimistic for the future of it."
As it stands, Easton’s new community advocate is excited for what she is taking on, and she is looking forward to the future of connecting with the community and assisting authorities to better address the concerns of citizens.
“I love it. I mean, that's it, I absolutely love it. I love the challenges that the job presents, I love thinking outside the box. That's like my favorite thing in the whole wide world. Whenever there's a problem, I love trying to find a creative solution, so this really gives me the opportunity to do those things,” Cooper said.
