Two years ago, a man named Deshawn Leeth was named a community engagement officer at the sheriff’s office in Washtenaw County, Michigan. This is a position that, according to the sheriff’s office, is something of a big deal:
Community Engagement is a foundational element of our ability to realize our organizational mission. … Community Engagement isn’t just a program. It is how we communicate, build trust, identify needs, and collaboratively work side by side with our partners to create interventions and provide solutions.
In other words, “community engagement officers” are representatives for the police force. Their job is to visit schools and prisons and other institutions, and try to find ways to make the community safer.
For 30-year-old Deshawn Leeth, the title of “community engagement officer” was just one line on a lengthy resume that — if you leave off his…
