Up To Date

Topeka Police In National Program To Go From Standing By To 'Active Bystander'

By Steve Kraske,

Published November 9, 2020 at 4:30 PM CST

Ways To Subscribe

Two Kansas City Police officers have been indicted for felony excessive force in the beating of Breona Hill in May 2019. — The ABLE (Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement) program teaches law enforcement officers peer-to-peer intervention to prevent harm.

"We may not know the full impact right now, but we're going to see it in five years," says Topeka Police Chief Bill Cochran.

Topeka is the only Kansas city selected for a new national program that stresses moral courage. The ABLE program (Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement) from Georgetown University's Program on Innovative Policing is teaching law enforcement agencies that being loyal to fellow officers can include preventing them from taking a harmful action.

Christy Lopez, Georgetown University Law School professor
Bill Cochran, police chief of the Topeka Police Department

Tags

Steve Kraske

When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.

See stories by Steve Kraske

Danie Alexander

As senior producer of Up To Date, I want our listeners to hear familiar and new voices that shine light on the issues and challenges facing the myriad communities KCUR serves, and to expose our audiences to the wonderful and the creative in the Kansas City area. Just as important to me is an obligation to mentor the next generation of producers to ensure that the important conversations continue. Reach me at alexanderdk@kcur.org.

See stories by Danie Alexander

Mackenzie Martin

Mackenzie Martin is a senior podcast producer at KCUR Studios and host of the podcast, A People's History of Kansas City. Contact her at mackenzie@kcur.org.

See stories by Mackenzie Martin