Positive community relationships are a necessary and vital ingredient of effective policing. Without strong ties to the communities they serve, law enforcement officers are not able to understand, inform, and protect those who are most vulnerable to crime. Furthermore, when law enforcement practices are perceived to be biased or unfair, the general public, and especially minority communities, are less willing to trust and confide in officers, report crimes, be witnesses at trials, or serve on juries. Building community trust must therefore be the cornerstone of police actions. This can be accomplished by reducing the unproductive practice of consent searches, creating a data repository that can help to identify ineffective police practices, and clearly defining public safety officers’ roles in interactions with vulnerable communities. Effective community policing is a mutually beneficial goal that will allow both officers and civilians to assist each other in encouraging communication and protecting public safety.