It seems the use of social media in law enforcement is getting to be more widespread. Not only are more agencies and law officers using the tools but more and more professional groups are addressing the topic at their events as well. That’s really great news. Even better is that the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration (ILEA) is one of those groups. ILEA is devoting an entire two and a half days to leadership in the realm of social media. Next week, from March 24th-26th in Plano, ILEA is hosting its “Leadership in a Cyberworld” conference.

I’m extremely honored to be a part of the conference and will be the final speaker on Friday. I’ll be presenting the C.O.P.P.S. Social Media Method for law enforcement which I developed over the last several months working with law enforcement agencies.

The impressive lineup of speakers is as follows:

  • Keynote Address by Daphne Levenson, Executive Director, Gulf States Regional Center for Public Safety Innovations in Hammond, Louisiana
  • Managing a “Connected” Agency with Chief John Stacey, Bellevue Police Department, Nebraska
  • Electronic Vetting with Dr. Howard Timm, U.S. Department of Defense, Monterey, California
  • Free Speech in the Electronic World with Ms. Laura L. Scarry, Attorney at Law, DeAno and Scarry, LLC, Chicago, Illinois
  • “Second Life”: Perils and Pearls with Corporal Roy Alston, Dallas Police Department, Texas
  • “Humanity” in Cyberspace with Dr. Daniel T. Primozic, ILEA and Ms. Kim Young, Principal, The Forest and the Trees, Dallas, Texas
  • Online Training: What is the ROI? with Mr. Tim Freesmeyer, President, Etico Solutions, Macomb, Illinois
  • Cybersecurity Issues with Mr. Michael Morris, FBI, North Texas Regional Computer Forensics Lab, Dallas, Texas
  • Managing the Use of Social Networks with Ms. Lauri Stevens, Department Chair, Web Design & Interactive Media, New England Institute of Art, Boston, Massachusetts

The conference is designed for the law enforcement executives tasked with managing the agencies who are braving the new social media frontier. As stated on the conference website:

In the rapidly-changing universe of Information Technology, leaders confront a number of strategic, tactical and operational challenges. How, for example, might agencies take advantage of electronic networks to make the community safer? Is there a “best practice”for governing employee use of social networking sites? What are the limits on free speech in cyberspace? Are concerns about social networking affecting the hiring and background process?

Even in Texas, where everything is bigger, the social media challenges for law enforcement management personnel are manageable. This conference appears to be an excellent venue for those personnel to gain the leadership knowledge required to handle any issues that arise, and to prepare them to move forward with confidence. I hope to see you there.