Chat With The Chief: Why We Chat

Two months after being sworn in as chief of the Oklahoma City Police Department, Ron Bacy is sharing more on why it is important for police officers to reach out to the community.

Chief Bacy joined News 9 on Thursday to discuss the importance of Chat With The Chief.

"I think this is a unique opportunity to speak to the community directly," Bacy said. "To talk about issues that are important to them, and to give them our perspective on how we serve them as a police department, to address their concerns and get out in front of important issues that we as a community all care about."

Bacy said community outreach is important, and though there are some things he is unable to speak about, such as ongoing investigations, but said he strives to be someone the community looks to for answers or assistance.

"Ultimately, I'm committed to being as transparent as the situation allows me to be," Bacy said. "There are always going to be things I can't talk about, whether it's a pending investigation or safety concerns, but for the most part, I want to communicate with you and the public as transparently and honestly as I can, to keep them as informed and safe as well."

Apart from joining News 9 on Chat With The Chief, Bacy said there are several other community outreach programs within his department.

"You talked about our toughest days, and being transparent and speaking about those things, what's often lost are those wonderful things that we're doing," Bacy said. "The outreach programs, victim services, all of those things we do to enhance the quality of life for our residents, and so we're very active on our social media. Please make sure you follow us, we'll update you on anything that we have going on, whether it's grandparents raising grandkids, whether it's our chess program with the PAL [police athletic league] unit, or whatever the case may be, we want you to be involved in your police department see what we're doing for your community."