Chapter 3

Cha pter 2

Chapter 3Traditional Policing

1Traditional policingAmounts to throwing money at the crime problemIs unimaginativeTraditional policing strategies includeHiring copsFreeing up resourcesRandom, preventive patrolRapid responseResidency requirementsCollege degrees for copsAlso add private securityIntroduction

2Traditional policing prizes deterrence theoryWho cares?Some people cannot necessarily be deterred

The Theory of Traditional Policing

3There are several reasons why hiring more cops may not reduce crimePolice officers cant work around the clock Shift work, sick leave, vacations, transferring suspects, and paperwork reduce the police presenceSome cities have fewer police per citizen than others but less crimePolice are not necessarily capable of deterring certain types of crime (e.g., crimes committed behind closed doors and out of view)Reasons Why Hiring More Cops May Not Reduce Crime

4The famous Kansas City experiment divided the city intoProactive beats (with a stepped-up police presence)Reactive beats (police only responded to calls for service)Control beats (business as usual)FindingsNo significant reductions in proactive beatPeople didnt even notice!

Lessons From Kansas City

5The Kansas City experiment prompted many researchers to explore the relationship between police levels and crimeThe findings??????

The Post-Kansas City Intellectual Debate

6$ Billions to local law enforcementCOPS Office created100,000 new copsHas the Act made a difference?One recent study concludes it hasAuthors claimed that increases in hiring reduce violent and property crimesThe Violent Crime Control Act of 1994

7Several researchers have explored what happens to crime when the police go on strikeFindings?Increase in crime during Helsinki, Finland police strikeIncrease in crime during Montreal police strikeBoth studies dealt with strikes far in the pastToday police are often prohibited by law from strikingWho cares?The police strike-crime relationship offers evidence that additional hiring wont be counterproductive and that police are essentialWhat Happens When the Police go on Strike?

8Hiring more cops is not counterproductiveRecent studies show more cops = less crimePolice strike literature tells us the police perform a valuable functionWe cannot conclude with 100% certainty that hiring more cops reduces crime, but it certainly helpsDoes it Work?

9If hiring is not possible, then cutting the fat and freeing up police resources may helpMethods of freeing up resources includeEliminating two officer patrols and replacing them with one officer patrolsImplementing 311 systemsCarefully examining (and possibly changing) what officers do while on the clockFreeing Up Resources

10Studies on one versus two officer patrols have concluded thatPatrol staffing mode has almost no effect on police effectivenessSingle-officer staffing increases visibility, but has almost no effect on crimeTwo officer patrols are (big surprise) twice as costly as one officer patrolsPatrol activity levels are comparable between both staffing methodsOne Versus Two Officer Patrols

11311 alternative to 911Why would 311 affect crime?Frees up timeDoes 311 work?Theres almost no research available on 311Available research shows311 may reduce overall calls to 911311 does not reduce officer response time311 does not free up uncommitted blocks of time311

12Some studies show that as much as 60 percent of police officers time on duty is uncommitted (they are dated, however)Does it work?Who knows.Patrol Downtime Studies

13Reactive policing is not very effectiveHow do we know?Comparisons of crime rates and arrest rateNot much of a link between crime rate and arrest rateTargeted arrests (e.g., domestic violence)Reactive Policing

14Many people feel that getting cops to the scene of a crime faster will reduce crimeWhat does the research show?No clear relationship between response time and probability of arrestFew crimes are hot

Rapid Response

15Can police officers deter crime by randomly driving around?Probably notWhy?Kansas City ExperimentRandom Patrol

16Reactive and random policing is not effective

Does it Work?

17Some 60% of police personnel are assigned to patrol while 15% are assigned to investigations.The RAND study- the original study found that investigations often did not result in arrest of a guilty party.The RAND study was conducted in 1975 there has been little published evidence to date to refute the original findings.Bring in the Detectives

Private police outnumber public police 3 to 1Store detectivesSecurity guardsWhy private police?PrivatizationMass private propertyPublic police ineffectiveDoes it work?Probably suffers the same fate of other policing methods already discussedPrivate Policing

19AdvantagesBroader base for decision-makingArguments againstRestricted applicant poolEducation does not improve crime fighting abilitiesWhat does the research show?Dont know if crime is affectedMay affect decisions to use force

College Degrees for Cops

20Chapter 3 summary and conclusion. Summary and Conclusion