Crime Prevention and Community

Crime Prevention

• Crime prevention is a cooperative effort between law enforcement and the community to discourage criminal activity.
• The majority of law enforcement work is a response to community complaints, which is a proactive measure involving community involvement.

Factors that Influence Crime Rates

• Social forces in the community heavily influence crime rates.
• Two basic strategic models for crime prevention:
  • Opportunity Reduction Model: removes or reduces opportunities for criminal activities, reducing fear by decreasing crime in the community.
  • Informal Social Control Model: uses rewards and punishments by community members to encourage conformity with local customs and norms.

Cooperative Strategies for Individual Self-Protection

• Risk Avoidance: proactive stance to remove criminals' targeting methods, e.g., parking in a well-lit area, keeping vehicles locked, and being aware of surroundings.
• Resistance and Self-Defense Activities: carrying objects for protection, being physically fit, and knowing when to fight or resist.
• Victim Services: provides immediate access to counseling and medical care.

Collective Approaches to Crime Prevention

• Watch programs
• Citizen patrols
• Neighborhood organizations
• Board counsels and commission
• Social problems approach
• Community policing: a collective agency for information and equipment dissemination.

Components of Community Policing

• Foot patrol
• Neighborhood mini-stations/community centers
• Police organizing and outreach strategies
• Analysis and mapping of crime-related data

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design

• Household Target Hardening: making homes less penetrable through architectural design and object identification.
• Street Lighting: increasing lumens to discourage criminal activity.
• Street Lighting and Traffic Patterns: identifying high-risk areas and improving lighting.
• Cameras and Alarms: deterring criminal behavior through surveillance and shock and scare tactics.

Media and Public Education Strategies

• Initiated programs like McGruff National Media Campaign and Crime Stoppers to prevent crime through education and awareness.

School-Based Prevention Initiatives

• Law-related education, crime prevention, and safety programs
• Drug and alcohol abuse prevention programs

Community Crime Prevention Process

• Define the problem
• Develop the program
• Implement and maintain the program
• Evaluate and provide feedback

Preventive Patrol

• Purpose: to prevent crime by reducing opportunities for criminal activity.
• Strategies:
  • Traffic stops
  • Building checks
  • Pedestrian checks
  • Resistance checks
  • Networking with community groups

Role Models

• Learn from successful officers and their strategies.
• Groom yourself to be a role model for newer officers.

Vacant Property Security Checks

• Checking vacant homes and properties to ensure they are secure and not a hub for criminal activity.
• Steps to check vacant homes/buildings:
  • Initial daytime check
  • Alternate daytime and nighttime checks
  • Working with property owners and building departments to secure properties
  • Observing interior and exterior conditions

D.A.R.E. Program

• Aims to reduce drug abuse and criminality among youth.
• Officers become a part of the school staff, interacting with students outside of the classroom.
• Program goals: reduce drug abuse, reduce demand for drugs, and foster a positive image of law enforcement.

Community Involvement

• Officers work with various community groups to address community problems.
• The program depends on leaders in the community who can make things happen.

Community Problem Solving

• SARA model: Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Analysis.
• Patrol methods:
  • Foot patrol
  • Bicycle patrol
  • Community meetings
  • Community councils
  • Satellite police stations
  • Community news letters

Innovative Patrol Strategies

• Sources of information for agencies to develop new strategies:
  • Calls for service data
  • Crime statistics
  • Interviews with residents
  • Media
  • Other peace officers