NCJ Number
189575
Date Published
April 2000
Length
118 pages
Annotation
This report describes the evaluation methodology developed for the Municipal Drug and Gang Enforcement pilot program and the findings of a process and impact evaluation.
Abstract
The mission of the Municipal Drug and Gang Enforcement (MDGE) pilot program is to tackle gang and drug problem buildings, known as "non-owner occupied multi-unit dwellings," because they were believed to foster gang and drug crime. The MDGE program is an experimental supplement to the Strategic Inspections Task Force (SITF), which identifies city buildings with documented drug and gang problems, conducts inspections for code violations, provides information and recommendations for improving the properties, and conducts administrative proceedings to bring landlords into compliance. The MDGE process evaluation involved a description of the current operations and implementation experiences of MDGE in pilot and comparison districts and a comparison of current operation to the original plans and goals set for MDGE. The process evaluation found that: the MDGE project was implemented as planned; most of the dissatisfaction expressed by program staff was related to resources, not to personnel, political, or systemic problems; staff and leadership understood the SITF and MDGE process, and their roles and the roles of others. The impact evaluation consisted of a quasi-experimental design using an address-based mapping application that compared before and after inspection time periods, as well as a pilot/comparison study of narcotics and gang-crime activity at buildings targeted by MDGE. The impact evaluation found that: SITF and MDGE had the intended impact at the targeted building level, and within catchment areas around the buildings; and program effects were lasting, as downturns in targeted crimes continued well after inspection teams left the targeted areas. Notes, tables, figures, references, appendixes