As of late, change has been the resounding theme for Mandeville’s Police Department.

The newest developments involve interim Chief Ron Ruple realigning the department and placing more officers on the street. That means several detectives with investigations will now patrol the streets.

“I spent 12 years in investigations. There are some things that can be handled by the road very easily,” Ruple said. He said he feels too much time and resources have been spent on investigating less complex matters that could be handled by patrol officers more quickly.

“I can keep a smaller number in investigations and let them deal with the more serious crimes,” he said.

This move will also provide lower-level officers more experience with the investigative side of policing, Ruple said, which will generate more well-rounded officers.

Not to mention, he said, it will ultimately put more bodies on the street.

The move comes as part of the department’s revamped community policing program that began in December during former chief Tom Buell’s tenure. The new policing method puts officers in assigned districts of the city, which they will patrol indefinitely.

The idea is to get residents and business owners better acquainted with the officers. More interaction with the public translates to less crime and more solutions, Ruple said.

The community policing program is also the more widely accepted method of policing across the country.

Buell began revamping the program after a report initiated by the Metropolitan Crime Commission last year found several inadequacies in the department. Its primary complaint was the lack of a community policing program. Buell said his department strayed away from the more accepted policing method after Katrina.

The new department manual has also been undergoing the knife for some time now, Ruple said, but he’s hopeful the refurbished book will be up to national standards when complete.

Buell’s 30-year tenure officially ended Jan. 1. He resigned after public scrutiny plus state and federal investigations into the department after a report released earlier last year accused him of taking funds from his charitable toy program to pay for employee Christmas parties and gifts for Mayor Eddie Price.