Crime prevention at the Tracy Police Department means more than locks, hardware, and self-protection. It also means a partnership between the citizens of Tracy and the Tracy Police Department, working together as a team to fight crime.

The Crime Prevention Bureau continues to provide the community with programs designed to meet the particular needs of individuals, neighborhoods, schools, civic groups, and businesses. Close networking by using the Community-Oriented Policing philosophy results in the solving of problems in otherwise pleasant neighborhoods.

The following is a list and description of the current Crime Prevention programs available to Tracy citizens.

Tracy Resources Against Crime (TRAC) is a citizen volunteer organization within the Tracy Police Department. They have been volunteering over three thousand hours each year since 1993 when the organization was founded as part of the department's Community-Policing philosophy.

Besides the annual Community Safety Fair they host with the Tracy Police Department, other TRAC programs that assist the department include Neighborhood Watch, Graffiti Abatement, participation in the Designated Driver program, Data Entry, Mobile Command Vehicle, and the Bicycle Giveaway program.

Neighborhood Watch is a crime prevention program which enlists the active participation of community members in cooperation with law enforcement to reduce crime in their neighborhood. Each neighborhood elects a "Block Captain" who coordinates information in their neighborhood and acts as a liaison with the police. The program encourages neighbors to get to know each other and to protect themselves from criminal activity.

Business Watch is a program designed to educate businesses, both large and small, on how to deter and detect business crimes. Businesses learn how to protect their employees against violent crimes, how to detect shoplifters and incidents of fraud. They receive security tips and are encouraged to report suspicious incidents or persons to the police.

Citizen Police Academy, a segment of the Department's Community-Policing Philosophy, is designed to familiarize the public with law enforcement's role in the community. Participants learn how citizens can best interact with the Police Department in a effort to provide a safer community.

The Academy is held weekly for 13 weeks. Classes are taught by members of the department and other City department managers. Topics include Crime Prevention, K-9s, Narcotics, Gangs, Graffiti, City Government, Crime Scene Investigations, Evidence Collection, and use of the Fire Arms Training Simulator (FATS).

Bicycle Giveaway is a program where recovered stolen bicycles that are not reclaimed are refurbished and given to underprivileged children.

Traffic Education and Monitoring (TEAM) is a group of citizens who meet the minimum qualifications and who attend a brief course on the operation of a radar device and may use radar to record the speed of vehicles in their neighborhood. Follow-up letters to violators will be sent from the Tracy Police Department. There is no citizen/violator contact in this program.

Data Entry — TRAC volunteers assist the department's Records Bureau by entering crime data in the database, purging old records, and organizing existing records.

Graffiti Program — TRAC volunteers work with the City in organizing monthly paint-outs and check to ensure that local merchants who sell products that could be used for graffiti are in compliance with the City's Municipal Code.

Designated Driver Program was developed to assist in keeping drinking drivers off the road, not just during graduation time, or the holiday season, but all year long. This program seeks to enlist the help of community organizations, as well as eating and drinking establishments, in an effort to motivate and reward "Designated Drivers." The Tracy Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, and TRAC volunteers strongly encourage participation in this worthy program, not only in the City of Tracy, but the surrounding area as well.