Nothing New Under the Sun

• NCJ Number: 211392
• Journal: Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 32 Issue: 9 Dated: September 2005 Pages: 10,12,14,16-18,20
• Author(s): Kay Falk
• Date Published: September 2005
• Length: 7 pages
• Publication Format: Article; Correspondence
• Publication Type: Instructional Material; Case Study
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

After summarizing the features of problem-oriented policing (POP), this article presents three examples of its use.

Abstract

As defined by the director of the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing at the University of Wisconsin Law School, POP is a "comprehensive approach to police work in which officers work collaboratively with others to re-examine how crime and disorder problems are handled." Although there are several effective POP methods, the SARA model is easy to remember and use. The acronym stands for the POP procedures of scanning, analysis, response, and assessment. Activities associated with each of these tasks are listed in this article. One example of POP was implemented in Plano, TX. The problem consisted of traffic congestion around a school that had led to a host of traffic accidents and complaints by neighborhood residents. Police worked with school representatives and residents to develop consensus on a traffic management plan that dispersed traffic from the area. Another example of POP involved criminal and nuisance behavior at an airport motel in Oakland, CA. The problem was recurring calls for police service regarding prostitution, illegal drug activity, abandoned cars, illegal auto repair business in the parking lot, and the renting of rooms to minors. Through coercive and cooperative tactics with the management of the motel chain, which included a performance bond and investigative costs, the problems have been resolved. The third example of POP involved the University of Wisconsin Police Department and the disorderly and nuisance actions of alcoholic vagrants who congregated in a campus area near city businesses and residences. Cooperative deliberations and actions involved a strategy that held offenders accountable while offering them the use of a social caseworker to provide services that got the vagrants off the streets.