NCJ Number
204424
Date Published
2003
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article discusses how community policing can be implemented and applied to terrorism-related issues.
Abstract
Community policing is a policing philosophy that can take many different forms in practice. While there are many definitions of community policing, the definition offered here is that community policing is a philosophy that focuses on reducing crime and disorder through the “delivery of police services that include aspects of traditional law enforcement, as well as prevention, problem-solving tactics and partnerships.” As such, the focus of community policing shifts from the traditional reactionary approach to crime to a proactive approach that seeks to minimize the problems that may lead to criminal behavior in the first place. In the community policing model, citizens and police partner to prevent criminal activities. The article discusses the organizational, tactical, and external elements that support community policing and, in turn, facilitate efforts to improve homeland security. Organizational elements that support both community policing and homeland security include adopting an organization-wide community policing philosophy, decentralizing decisionmaking and accountability, fixing geographic accountability, and utilizing volunteer resources. By addressing these organizational elements, officers will be more likely to be aware of possible terrorist targets because community policing officers are intimately familiar with their assigned patrol areas. Tactical elements that support community policing and homeland security include enforcing existing laws, preventing crimes through proactive activities, and using problem-solving strategies to address community problems. Each element is discussed in turn and related to homeland security concerns. The external elements that support community policing and homeland security involve a commitment to the development of coordinated working partnerships with governmental, civic, and other community groups. Citizens should be considered a resource and a valuable partner in the fight against crime and terrorism. For the past 20 years, the community policing model has encouraged the development of partnerships between police and citizens for the safety of communities. Following the terrorist attacks of September 2001, the ideals of community policing are all the more relevant; community policing is poised to take a central role in the prevention of terrorism.