Policing in Overtown

Date: July 7, 2020
Time: 2:30 to 3:30 p.m

Join us for the conversation: bit.ly/OvertownPolicing

Commander Bianca Joseph

Bianca Joseph, a second generation Haitian American, was born and raised in Miami, FL. Her parents instilled strict morals, ethics and values to assure she would be on the right path to success.  Holding to those values instilled in her, she successfully graduated with a Master of Arts Degree in Disaster Management from Florida International University. She is currently the Commander of Overtown and her plan is to reduce the crime rates and enhance the mutual trust between law enforcement and the community. 

In 2005, Bianca joined the Miami Police Department where she worked road patrol until she interviewed for a position in the Criminal Investigations Division and she was selected to be a Domestic Violence Detective.  She was one of the top three detectives with a clearance rate of over 80%. After a year of working in Domestic Violence, she was asked to join the Economic Crimes Detail where she specialized in white-collar crimes. In 2012, she was offered a position in the Administration Division as a Background Investigator. While in that unit, she took the initiative and updated the Standard Operating Procedures manual. In October of 2013, she was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. She worked various areas that included Overtown and Little Havana and she received several Commendations while working these areas. 

In 2014, Bianca was transferred back to the Administration Division where she worked as the Complaint Sergeant in the Communications Section. During her tenure in this division, she supervised over 15 civilian employees, and at times she would be the citywide commanding officer. Bianca ensured that Emergency 911 calls were at a daily answer rate of 95% or more for the entire City of Miami. She also screened calls, ensuring priority calls and hazards were considered when they were dispatched to police officers. Bianca then worked in the Business Management Section as the Grants Coordinator from 2017-2018. During her tenure, she coordinated, applied and managed over $9,000,000 in grants for the police department to include the Body Worn Cameras. 

In 2017, Bianca was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, scoring at the top of her class. She was transferred to the Community Relations Section. There, she has gained knowledge on police practices, media and community interaction. She worked closely with community groups, and managed a budget of half a million dollars for community programs like the Miami Police Athletic League. Bianca has planned and coordinated several events, meetings and opportunities for residents and stakeholders while establishing relationships along the way. Her goal is to continuously build stronger bonds between the community and law enforcement. Additionally, she noticed a major issue of recidivism and has applied for a grant in partnership with the Juvenile Services Department and Big Brothers & Big Sisters for half a million dollars.

Lastly, Bianca is the proud parent of a beautiful one-year old daughter Janelle. The joy of motherhood has ignited a passion to make a stronger impact on the youth and recidivism, which will combat a lot of the crimes plaguing our city today.