Right pick for community policing

Community policing is the system of allocating police officers to particular areas so they become familiar with local inhabitants. It has yielded results in Boston and has just gotten a huge boost from police Commissioner William G. Gross.

Commissioner Gross has tapped community policing veteran and decorated leader Nora Baston to lead his first major initiative in the creation of the Community Engagement Bureau.

“This is like a dream come true, a day I never thought would happen,” Baston said after she was honored and given a badge.

Baston, a member of the command staff for 11 years, is the highest-ranking woman in the Boston Police Department. She’ll “be charged with ensuring that every district has a dedicated and robust community policing effort, concentrating on building relationships where they don’t exist and strengthening ties with the community,” according to a statement from the mayor’s office.

“Before, we had great individual community service, but now we’re going to bring more uniformity,” Gross said, “to make sure we have the vision of the mayor, myself and the rest of my brothers and sisters.”

Baston said, “My No. 1 priority is for officers to be mentors for these kids. So that we are the ones that guide them and create opportunities.”

We have no doubt that Baston is the right person for the job and we wish the Community Engagement Bureau much luck.