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Evaluating the Impact of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Initiative on Violence and Gun Crime in Tampa: Does It Work and Does It Last?

NCJ Number
306803
Journal
Journal of Experimental Criminology Volume: 18 Dated: 2022 Pages: 543-567
Author(s)
Bryanna Fox; Scott F. Allen; Alexander Toth
Date Published
2022
Length
25 pages
Annotation

The authors present a quasi-experimental evaluation of Tampa, Florida’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative over a six-year period; they discuss their research methodology, results and outcomes, policy implications.

Abstract

Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is an increasingly popular violence and gun crime prevention program which aims to identify prolific violent offenders and deter or incapacitate them from offending. While PSN programs generally show moderate effects on violence and gun crime reduction, questions remain about the magnitude and duration of effects given the heterogeneity in treatment applications across PSN programs. This study presents a quasi-experimental evaluation of a cutting-edge PSN initiative on violence and gun crime in Tampa, Florida over a six-year period. Results indicate that PSN was associated with a 24.4 percent raw reduction in violence and a 24.0 percent reduction in gun crime rates for the treatment agency, while the control groups saw much smaller decreases in violence and gun crime over the same time period. There are several policy implications, which the authors discuss in-depth, as PSN is currently endorsed by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat violence and gun crime, with billions spent to support these programs across the nation. Publisher Abstract Provided