Former AATTAP Administrator Phil Keith has been asked to oversee the nation's community-oriented policing program. Keith has been named as the Director of the U.S. Department of Justice Department's Office of Community Oriented Police Services, or COPS Program. Keith oversaw the AMBER Alert Training & Technical Assistance program from 2004 until 2014. From 1988 until 2004, he served as the Chief of Police for Knoxville, Tennessee, and has worked with the Tennessee Police Chiefs Association, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and other notable organizations. He has received numerous awards and commendations for his expertise and leadership in law enforcement, community safety and child protection work. “My first priority will be carrying out the mission of the Attorney General's violent crime plan,” said Keith. “We'll primarily be going back to basics, listening to law enforcement in the field, which has not been occurring for a while.”
