Unit 3 Seminar. Welcome to Unit 3 Seminar !!! Project 2 due by the end of Unit 4.

Unit 3 SeminarUnit 3 Seminar

Welcome to Unit 3 Seminar !!!Welcome to Unit 3 Seminar !!! Project 2 due by the end of Unit 4Project 2 due by the end of Unit 4

Compare and contrast the current dominant approaches to crime prevention.

Examine approaches used by the three components of the criminal justice system, i.e., law enforcement, courts, and corrections, for the prevention of crime.

Minimum of 5 sources outside the textbook, which may include academic papers, journal articles, or books available from the Kaplan online library.

You may include only one web site as a source.

Minimum of 3 pages of written text (not including the cover page and reference page), you will provide the following:

Identify the dominant approaches to crime prevention currently used by law enforcement, courts, and corrections

Compare the dominant approaches used for crime prevention

Contrast the dominant approaches used for crime prevention

Analyze which approaches are most effective

Writing should be well ordered, logical and unified, as well as original and insightful

Your work should display superior content, organization, style, and mechanics

Appropriate citation style should be followed

Title page: name, class name, date

Introductory and concluding paragraph Viewpoint and purpose clearly stated

Standard American English

Microsoft Word

Length should be 3 – 5 pages

Double-space, 12 point font size

Cite all sources on a separate reference page at the end of your paper, and cited within the body of your paper using APA format

Content 90 points

Research 30 points Quality 30 points

Format 20 points

What is Community Justice?

Community justice is a new set of ideas about how justice should be carried out

Community justice favors◦ “Custom fit” crime control◦ Informal controls (families, neighbors, etc.)◦ Innovation◦ Cooperation between the justice system and citizens

Who cares?◦ Community policing is part of the community justice

movement

Assumed jurisdictions differ critically from one community to another.

What works in one place won’t necessarily work in another

Custom-fit crime control is better than an unimaginative, traditional approach.

Formal systems of social control are not the main mechanisms of public safety.

Informal social form the most important foundation for public safety.

What does this mean? What are the formal and informal systems?

Formal Informal Controls

Criminal Justice System◦ Law Enforcement◦ Courts◦ Corrections

Families Neighbors Social organizations Friendship Relations

Community justice emphasizes criminal justice agencies cannot accomplish crime control alone.

Community participation is essential. It is basically an innovative and cooperative

effort to deal with America’s crime problem. One of its hallmarks is collaboration

between the justice system and the community.

What are some examples of community justice in the courts?

Drug courts Domestic violence courts Teen courts Reentry courts Gun Courts

What is the relationship between community justice and community policing?

Community policing is simply a part of the larger community justice movement.

What is problem-oriented policing?

Specific component of community policing

Geared to identifying & solving problems

Resembles directed patrol and community policing

Brainchild of Herman Goldstein

What are two ways to distinguish between community policing and problem-oriented policing?

Problem Oriented Policing Community Policing

Problem-oriented policing focuses on innovation, independently of contact with citizens

Community policing often relies on citizen involvement and contact as ends unto themselves

Three historical policing eras◦ Political era◦ Reform era◦ Community era

Community authorization Broad mandate (including service) Decentralized organization Strong relationships with citizens Quality of life preservation Foot patrol and similar tactics

Why community policing?

◦ Citizen disenchantment◦ Research showing that preventive patrol and the like did

not work◦ Police frustrated with traditional crime-fighting role◦ Isolation of police from citizens during the reform era◦ Narrow crime fighting image◦ Over-reliance on bureaucratic structure◦ Over-reliance on high-tech gadgetry◦ Insulation of police administration from community input◦ Concern for human rights

◦ Failure of police, traditionally, to “reach out”◦ Desire to appear “with it”◦ Change goals of police work from crime control to

service◦ To shape public opinion◦ To deflect attention◦ Saves money◦ Community characteristics◦ Political culture◦ Improved public image◦ Increased control over the community

What is community policing?◦A new philosophy◦A new set of strategies◦A combination of both

What are the four principal dimensions of community policing?

◦Philosophical - Ideas and beliefs citizen input, broaden police function,

and personal service◦Strategic Re-oriented operations (from cruise

to foot patrol) Geographical permanency (officers

assigned to one area for extended time),

Emphasis on crime prevention (officers as mentors/role models

◦Tactical Constructive interactions between the

police and citizens, improved partnerships between law enforcement and the public, and problem solving

◦Organizational Change back to decentralized form of

management strategic planning, and program evaluation.

Two studies show◦ Symbolic changes

Revised mission statements Revised performance criteria

◦ Clinging to crime control role◦ Little to no structural change

Are police officers buying into community policing?

◦Perceptions that community policing officers are not “real cops”

◦Doubtful whole departments will buy in

◦Community policing assignment doesn’t appear to affect officers’ use of coercion

Important aspects of police culture mitigate against change:

Resist intrusion of civilians (who “can’t really understand”) into their business.

Fear community troublemakers will take over programs

Fear public will use police for their private purposes or for personal revenge.

Researching the effectiveness of community policing is complicated because◦ Many definitions of community policing◦ Many possible outcomes community policing is

expected to address

Citizen contact patrol consists of police officers engaging in door-to-door contacts with citizens

Has been used to◦ Get information about who is carrying guns◦ Provide citizens with burglary reduction tips◦ Give citizens advice about how to deal with

domestic violence What does the research show?

◦ Probably works best where it is needed the least

◦ Much conflicting evidence

Do police efforts to improve their legitimacy in the minds of citizens reduce crime?◦ No clear answer

We do know◦ There is a correlation between citizens’ trust of

police and willingness to obey the law◦ Citizens perceive less crime in areas where

trust in police is high

Neighborhood watch is often undertaken at the urging of local police departments

Does it work?◦ Almost all published research is unsupportive

of the approach Why doesn’t it work?

◦ Tough to organize residents in high-crime areas

◦ May increase fear of crime

Community meetings differ from neighborhood watch insofar as police attend

They are also not surveillance-oriented Do they work?

◦ Little research is available, but that which is available is mostly unsupportive

What are the differences?

Neighborhood Watch Community Meeting

Surveillance Oriented Organized in

neighborhoods.

Police officers and community members in the same facility

Ideas on crime prevention/ control

Public places, such as a police station, a community center, or city hall.

Police departments sometimes provide crime control newsletters to community members

Newsletters may contain◦ Information on recent developments◦ Crime statistics◦ Tips for avoiding victimization

Do they work?◦ Most research shows newsletters don’t affect

crime Public relations benefits may outweigh

lack of newsletters’ ability to reduce crime

Do they work?◦ Most research suggests storefronts and

substations do not affect crime Additional problems

◦ In areas where they are needed the least◦ Often staffed by civilian volunteers

Specialized patrols include◦ Foot patrol◦ Bicycle patrol◦ Horse patrol

Issues◦ Specialized patrols are not well-suited to

large areas Foot patrol is the most researched

◦ The evidence is mixed May reduce public order offenses May have no effect on serious crime

Many police departments maintain their own television stations and web sites

The research?◦ Again, there is almost none◦ We can’t conclude these approaches reduce

crime

Some “school resource officers” are stationed in schools

Reasons for police in schools◦ Students know officers better◦ Students develop an understanding of the effects of

violence◦ Students learn consequences of improper behavior◦ Crime control

Does this approach work?◦ Anecdotal evidence suggests it does◦ May reduce truancy and bullying

So far we have looked at community policing strategies in isolation

Question◦ What happens when several are implemented

in the same place at the same time?

Answer?◦ Success!

Citizen patrols usually consist of volunteers who engage in preventive patrol

Does citizen patrol work?◦ No formal studies have been completed◦ One study of the Guardian Angels in NY

showed that people felt the patrols should have been conducted by police (effects on crime not examined)

◦ Think preventive patrol research

Watered-down version of the police academy for civilians

Do citizen patrol academies work?◦ Unclear◦ Possible criticisms include

No effect on crime Reinforce traditional crime-fighting image of police Overrepresentation of community elites Just another methods of improving the police image

and shifting the focus away from crime

What is third-party policing?◦ Police efforts to persuade or coerce non-

offending persons to take actions which are outside the scope of their routine activities

◦ Use of civil rather than criminal law Dark side?

◦ Coercion?◦ Passing the buck?

Countless forms of community policing exist. Police officers trained, books written, criminal justice classes devoted to it.

Appears that we are witnessing a major paradigmatic shift in the way law enforcement is accomplished in the United States.

But is this a movement in the right direction? Research concerning community involvement

in policing is at least a little disheartening.

The message of this chapter is that most community- policing approaches to the crime problem—by themselves—do not appear to alter crime rates markedly.

Whether police departments move their presence into the community or bring citizens closer to police departments, giving them an eye into the law enforcement world, most research is either unsupportive or uncertain with respect to the effectiveness of each approach.

Does not mean we should throw our arms up in despair.

Some studies do show that an integrated approach to community policing, one that draws on several strategies simultaneously, can have promising effects.

Likewise, third-party policing shows promise, but more research is necessary before we can safely label it “effective.”