Concept of Community Policing and a Case Study of Lima, Ohio (From Atlas of Crime: Mapping the Criminal Landscape, P 221-228, 2000, Linda S. Turnbull, Elaine Hallisey Hendrix, eds, et al., -- See NCJ-193465

• NCJ Number: 193490
• Author(s): William V. Ackerman
• Date Published: 2000
• Length: 8 pages
• Sale Source: Oryx Press
• Publication Format: Book (Hardbound)
• Publication Type: Case Study
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This chapter discusses community policing and provides a case study of Lima, Ohio.

Abstract

Community policing is based on the concept that police officers and private citizens can work together to help solve community problems related to crime. A guiding assumption is that identifying and solving problems is preferable to continually reacting to them. In spite of substantial interest in and widespread implementation of community policing, it has no single definitive form. The deployment perspective focuses on removing officers from patrol cars and placing them on foot patrol. Officers more familiar with neighborhoods can learn more about local needs and problems and develop better cooperation with community members. Community revitalization can prevent the deterioration of neighborhoods by having the police evaluate fear-inducing neighborhood characteristics and work with government agencies and citizens to properly maintain infrastructure. A number of cities have adopted community policing and numerous studies have been made to evaluate results. This research includes 21 cities that cover a wide spectrum of population size. These studies suggest some important factors to consider in the implementation and evaluation of community policing. These factors are: (1) success or failure is contingent upon conditions within individual cities; (2) successful programs involve neighborhood residents, businesses, key governmental agencies, and the media; (3) the program will likely fail in areas where norms and values are lacking and core groups are nonexistent; (4) the fear of crime is reduced by seeing police officers on foot patrol in neighborhoods; and (5) where officers have sustained cooperation with the community, levels of social disorder and physical decay have declined. Lima, Ohio has witnessed substantial reduction in crime following the implementation of programs related to the overall concept of community policing. Political leaders, the police department, social agencies, neighborhood associations, and the media are all involved in the success of the program. 7 figures, 33 references