Local Policemen Participate In Special Law School Project

The Law School's Police Interaction Program, through which Harvard and Cambridge police are brought together with law students to learn about each other's work, has proven "successful and very beneficial," administration officials said yesterday.

Rosanne Kumins, assistant administrator at the Harvard Center for Criminal Justice, said yesterday that program, in which two Cambridge policemen and three Harvard policemen work with law students both inside and outside of the classroom, "has been very beneficial in helping the students and police understand each other's work."

The project grew out of an earlier program initiated by the center in 1969 in which police from across the country attended criminal law seminars and research programs here sponsored by the center.

Benefit

That program ended in 1974, but its success led to the creation of a similar program for the benefit of local police and law students, Kumins said.

"A lot more tension existed between students and police in '69," Kumins said, "and the programs really helped students appreciate the policeman's point of view."

The policemen attend classes, carry the same workload as a regular law student in the class, and can receive credit at other institutions for classes taken, although Harvard will not accept them as credits.

Expert

The officers from time give "expert opinions," and students often go on patrol with the officers to get a "first-hand view of how arrests are made," Kumins said.

David L. Gorski, chief of Harvard Police, said yesterday, "The program is really very good because it gives the students a chance to see things from the other side of the fence."

Harvard Police officer Larry Murphy said yesterday, "The program is good for the students and for us, too. It's an excellent program."