Metropolitan Police Department: Groomes, Diane (A/C)

Diane Groomes was promoted to the rank of Commander in August 2005, by Chief Charles Ramsey and assigned to the First District, where she currently serves a diverse business and residential community. She continues to promote community policing by creative initiatives that are carried out by her command to the community.

Commander Groomes joined the Metropolitan Police Department in October 1990 and quickly moved up the ranks. Out of the academy she was assigned to the Fourth District as a patrol officer and was designated as the first Patrol Officer First Class when the program was initiated in 1994. She then became a Master Patrol Officer in the Fourth District.

In 1996, she was promoted to Sergeant and was assigned to the Fifth District and assigned to Beat 153. In 1997, the PSA model was created and Commander Groomes was assigned to PSA 510, where she was instrumental in organizing the community and develop a model community policing program. She was also transferred to the Homicide Division as a sergeant during its reorganization. She then returned to PSA 510 in 1998, where the PSA 510 team received top honors for the biggest crime reduction in the city and City Council passed a Proclamation due to the 510’s crime fighting and community organization efforts under her leadership.

In September 2000, she was promoted to lieutenant and assigned to the Third District. She was the team leader for both 309 and 310 and was later tasked with managing the Powershift unit to deal with the violent crime issues surrounding the nightclub zones. During her tenure as a lieutenant she designed and headed up the very successful Street Crime unit, which focused on persistent crime and disorder problems in the Northwest community.

Soon after being promoted to Captain in 2004, Groomes was promoted within six months to the MPDC Command Staff. She was promoted to Inspector, of the Third District Substation. In this role, she helped to design and implement a number of innovative programs, including the community listserv, expanded neighborhood patrols, and the DC Fashion Idol program for at risk young women in 3d and throughout the city. This program has been expanded and adopted by the Greater Washington Boys and Girls Club.

Commander Groomes holds a bachelor’s degree in criminology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She was also a participant in the June 2005 session of the Senior Management Institute for Police, organized by the Police Executive Research Forum. .