NCJ Number
176756
Journal
Police Chief Volume: 65 Issue: 12 Dated: December 1998 Pages: 86-89
Date Published
1998
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This paper describes a model that police agencies can use to bring together community members and take advantage of individual and organizational resources to create sustainable crime prevention efforts.
Abstract
Citizen involvement in crime prevention dates from the colonial era. Successful community-based crime prevention programs generally have several common characteristics. They are collaborative efforts among government agencies, community groups, parents, youth, businesses, and police. They are grounded in the community, rather than in a program imported and run by an outsider. They are integrated into the activities of more general, multi-issue neighborhood organizations. They are also consistent with and reinforce community norms, and they have clearly defined goals. The community crime prevention model is based on the concepts of risk factors, protective factors, and resiliency and on asset-based community development. The goal of the community mobilization model for crime prevention is to involve community members in reducing the occurrence of crime and to promote safer and healthier communities. The model uses a multidisciplinary team approach to mobilize communities in addressing identified problems. Local residents become resources for new participants, and the process can be sustained. The five step model includes: (1) a half-day advisory meeting, (2) a 1-day team-building seminar, (3) an action planning seminar, (4) a training institute, and (5) an advisory/follow-up meeting. This model has been successful in bringing together diverse groups in an effort to reduce crime. The model is a logical extension of the community policing or problem-oriented policing in place in many police agencies. Both the police and the community must reassess their relationship for the model to be successful. Reference notes