6th Street Community Oriented Policing House

	Sixth Street Community Oriented Policing House 1522 West Sixth Street (262) 635-7863 Contact COP Officer Here

The namesake of our city’s first
COP officer, Officer Marty Defatte joined the Racine Police Department in 1965,
after serving our nation as a member of the Police Unit of the United States Army.
Officer Defatte faithfully served the citizens of Racine as a police officer
for nearly 30 years until his retirement in 1995. During the course of his
distinguished career, Officer Defatte served in a number of positions,
including the Community Relations Office, Hostage Negotiation Team, and the
1-person Crime Prevention Unit.

In response to the challenges
associated with juvenile delinquency, in 1971, Officer Defatte worked to create
a drop-in center located at 333 Main St. to provide guidance and mentoring to
local youth. In 197, Officer Defatte Championed the need for a community
shelter of abused women, paving the way for the creation of the Women’s
Resource Center.

Following the introduction of
the community policing philosophy in 1992, Officer Defatte was selected as the
department’s first neighborhood Community Oriented Policing (COP) Officer.
Through leveraging years of public trust established over the course of his
career, Officer Defatte worked with the residents of the West 6^th
St. community to develop problem-solving partnerships at the neighborhood
level. This partnership led to record-low rates of crime in this community.

Officer Defatte is also a
founding member of the Racine Community Outpost, the non-profit organization
that owns and maintains the community policing houses located in Racine and
Mount Pleasant. In 2019, the West 6^th St. COP house was named in
honor of Officer Defatte for his tireless effort in improving the quality of
life in this area.

The Defatte COP house is home to
a one-of-a-kind bicycle and scooter repair shop. This house also staffs
Wisconsin Department of Correction Probation and Parole Agents. Racine
Neighborhood Watch hosts meetings each month at this location. Please contact
Officer Konner Scott at 262-635-7863 or via email at Konner.scott@cityofracine.org
for times and questions.