This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Charli Goodman had goosebumps almost the entire hour she spent talking to President Barack Obama.
Goodman, a Salt Lake City police sergeant, was one of six officers from around the country who met with the president and Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday afternoon to discuss building public trust. Officers from Maryland, Indiana, Washington, California and New Jersey were also there.
"When I first got to the Oval Office, the president opened the door, kind of with gusto, and we didn't expect it to be him to open the door. And there he was, and I thought it was a Madame Tussauds wax figure," Goodman joked. "That's the first thing I thought. Or a hologram. It's just really unbelievable."
Their talk precedes a report from the 21st Century Policing Task Force, expected Monday, that will recommend how to ameliorate relationships between the public and the police. Controversies like the August shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., have strained that relationship on a national level, with law-enforcement policies coming under scrutiny.
The officers had a little more than an hour with Obama, and Goodman said she feels the president now has "some great, honest, firsthand information from the rank and file to go forth and examine the recommendations with the knowledge that he gained from us."
Goodman told the president how officers have to show "great patience," and brought up the Salt Lake City Police Department's successes with transparency.
"The department is very transparent in terms of being available to answer the thousands of questions that the public has, and answer those questions, and put all of our cards on the table to show why it was the officers took the actions that they took," Goodman said. She pointed to the department's body cameras as one example.
Last month, SLCPD released body camera footage soon after the fatal shooting of Avenues resident James Barker. Officer Matthew Taylor shot Barker after the man hit Taylor with a snow shovel multiple times in a scuffle that left Taylor with a broken arm and foot. Taylor was cleared Monday.
The U.S. Department of Justice's Community Oriented Policing Services Office selected the six officers, who were nominated by their department's leadership.
Before her promotion to sergeant, Goodman was the community information officer for Salt Lake's District 3, which includes the Avenues, Capitol Hill and Federal Heights neighborhoods. Officers like her regularly attended monthly community council meetings to relay information from the department and talk to residents about concerns.
Goodman said Friday that she's very passionate about community-oriented policing.
"Our police department is very successful with reaching out to the public, and interacting and engaging on a personal level with people," Goodman said "We also gain the trust of the public through our interactions with people on a daily basis and making sure that we're fair and impartial in every encounter that we have."
The department also regularly holds events like Coffee With a Cop, where the public can talk to officers in a more casual atmosphere, and Shop With a Cop. The department has participated in that program, in which police officers help children shop for toys, for more than 20 years.
"I firmly believe that the youth are the roots of where we can improve police relations," Goodman said. Shop With a Cop engages young people who may have a negative perception of the police, even if they've never met an officer. "First impressions are lasting impressions. ... It is invaluable for our relations with the public."
Goodman's time in the White House "was an awesome responsibility," she said.
"The visit feels like a dream, to be honest. It feels very surreal," Goodman said. "It was the highest honor I could possibly imagine and it exceeded all my expectations, truly, from how hospitable everybody was at the White House to how laid back the president and vice president were, and how genuine and sincere they were in hearing from the six different agencies that were present."
She did take some souveniers home with her.
"I got a picture with Sunny, which is Bo's sister. And I did give her a kiss, so that was kinda cool," Goodman said. "She's a very, very well trained dog. And I took a couple pictures walking into the White House. … And I did get a really cool challenge coin from the president and vice president."
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