Evaluation of the City of Jacksonville Community Involvement for Drug Free Neighborhoods, Neighborhood Enforcement Action Techniques, and Providing Alternatives to Violent Crimes Programs

• NCJ Number: 160959
• Author(s): C A McNeece; C M Daly; M A Shader
• Date Published: 1994
• Length: 85 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)
• Corporate Author: Florida State University
• Sale Source: Florida Dept of Community Affairs
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This report examines the design and operation of three closely related drug and crime prevention programs that operatd in Jacksonville, Fla. between October 1990 and September 1994 and were funded under the Federal Anti-drug Abuse Act of 1988.

Abstract

Many of the program components were no longer in operation when the evaluation began; those that continued had evolved significantly since being initiated. The city's coordinating organization, the Coalition for a Drug and Crime Free Jacksonville, had a major role in designing and tracking these initiative. One education and organization initiative planned, implemented, and coordinated law enforcement and other governmental resources in seven target neighborhoods that were formally designated by the coalition as drug-free zones. The second initiative provided the law enforcement component of the first initiative. Grant funds paid for surveillance equipment, training, and overtime pay for patrol officers. The third initiative focused on preventing and reducing juvenile violence and included juvenile crime analysis and youth programs. The evaluation indicated that to be effective, community organization efforts must focus on small areas with sufficient cultural and socioeconomic homogeneity to assure common needs, goals, and priorities. In addition, the juvenile crime analysis capability has been invaluable, and the youth program operations experienced mixed success.