Planning Community-Initiated Crime Prevention

• NCJ Number: 82528
• Journal: Journal of Police Science and Administration Volume: 10 Issue: 1 Dated: (March 1982) Pages: 76-82
• Author(s): D C Hale; R G Leonik
• Date Published: 1982
• Length: 7 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

This article reviews the literature on community-initiated crime prevention and suggests an organizational development model as an approach to crime prevention programs. It also evaluates the Neighborhood Foot Patrol Officer program in a highly industrialized Midwestern city.

Abstract

Studies indicate that the most promising crime prevention programs rely heavily on citizen involvement at all stages, including planning. Regardless of the coordinating body, programs must address the type of organization to be developed, allocation of responsibility and resources, definition of priorities, and development of strategy. The Washnis study of 37 projects in 17 cities found that effective programs included key planning roles for community members, beat patrol officers, and a police public relations unit. Angell (1976) points to neighborhood organizations as avenues for interaction between citizens and the criminal justice system, and Kuykendall and Unsinger (1975) indicate the necessity for public education about the needs of the criminal justice system. The Action Research Model, based on principles of organizational development, assumes that citizens have an active desire to contribute to the program. The model requires collecting data on residents' needs and problems, analyzing feedback from residents, and developing a strategy based on the data. The Neighborhood Foot Patrol Officer (NFPO) program, initiated in a highly industrialized, blue-collar, Midwestern city, used heavy citizen input in allocating foot patrol officers to the city's problem areas. Officers visited homes, encouraged citizens to register valuables, made juvenile contacts, and conducted followup investigations. Preliminary results point to the importance of neighborhood organizations such as block clubs in soliciting citizens' participation in anticrime efforts. The text includes 18 references.