Community policing is more than just a bunch of extra officers on the roads in new vehicles cruising around at night.

Community policing is neighbor looking after neighbor, during the daylight hours and in the evening.

But together, the two working in cooperation demonstrate the reality of community policing.

Here’s how it has worked.

On Tuesday night, a person in Old Town, which has been plagued with burglaries, spotted a couple of guys poking around parked cars.

The person flagged down a police officer who was patrolling in the area and reported what he say.

The officer called for other units. Soon there was a search on. One of the suspects got away. Another suspect was nabbed as he tried to hide in the bushes and darkness.

Authorities couldn’t arrest that suspect for just hiding in the bushes, but a background check reveled he had outstanding warrants.

As one officer said after the man was handcuffed and led away, “This is an excellent example of crime prevention.”

Other sections of Selma would do well to follow Old Town’s example. Sure, times have been tough for some of the residents, but the lessons learned Tuesday night is it takes many of us watching for all of us to feel safe in our homes.