LANSING, Mich. (WZMQ) – The Michigan State Police has finished a campaign aimed at strengthening its relationship with local communities. MSP completed the International Association of Chiefs of Police Trust Building Pledge in July 2026.
The department signed on to the pledge back in August 2024. The program focuses on six key areas: bias-free policing, use of force, leadership, hiring and retention, victim services, and community relations.
MSP Director Col. James Grady II says the process gave the department a chance to look at its current work and find places to improve.
“We pledged to address what we could do better to serve the people we interact with,” Grady said in an interview with WZMQ TV19.
Grady pointed to community service troopers in schools, along with training on cultural differences, de-escalation, and the history of policing and race.
He noted that the department’s Crisis Response and Intervention Training, or CRIT, teaches active listening, cultural awareness, and de-escalation techniques.
“Therefore, when you’re armed with the knowledge, you provide better service,” Grady said.
Grady says one big challenge is figure out how to measure whether public trust is actually growing. Surveys help, but response rates can be low. Because of that, MSP relies heavily on feedback from town halls and community meetings.
“This is where you get feedback and we want genuine and authentic feedback,” Grady said.
Those direct conversations help shape future department planning. Grady added that public feedback is mostly positive.
“Most people are very satisfied with the services that we provide, the professionalism that we provide as an agency,” he said.
Even with the pledge finished, Grady says the work isn’t over. Col. Grady said police departments must be open to changing older policies that no longer work.
“Sometimes what you did 20 years ago, it doesn’t work in today’s day and age,” Grady said. “It’s my responsibility as a leader in law enforcement to make the change where they need to be made.”
Programs like this allow MSP to measure its policies against national standards.
“We want up-to-date modern policy so that we can provide the best service,” he said.
MSP says the ultimate goal is to keep building strong partnerships and safer communities. The IACP honors agencies that take active steps across all six program areas.
