NCJ Number
89567
Date Published
1983
Length
13 pages
Annotation
An analysis of reported forced-entry burglaries in Portland, Oreg., indicates that a police-directed residential security program which focused on site hardening substantially decreased burglary rates for participating households during a 3-year followup period.
Abstract
This evaluation reviewed the records of 300 households which had fully complied with the site hardening recommendations between May and December 1978 and then checked burglary rates for these homes 1, 2, and 3 years before and 1, 2, and 3 years after the site hardening. A typical site hardening job consisted of installing deadbolt locks, pinning ground floor windows, placing an expanded metal screen on basement windows, and replacing hollow core doors. The program's primary beneficiaries were elderly citizens. Of the 300 homes, only 13 forced entry burglaries were reported during the followup period. Burglaries decreased by 62 percent in the 3 years after site hardening from the previous 3 years. The 13 burglaries reported during the followup period represented an annual rate of 1.4 burglaries per 100 households compared to a citywide rate of 3.0. Windows were the points of entry in seven burglaries and doors in the remaining six incidents. In most cases, doors and windows were broken after site hardening materials had prevented an easier entry into the homes. The report provides eight references, the residential security survey form, and residential security recommendations.