6.5: Community- Based Policing Plans

Community policing is a policing approach embraced by some departments and espoused by national law enforcement organizations. It is described as a philosophy, managerial style, and organizational strategy that promotes better police-community partnerships and more proactive problem solving with the community. It can help solve a wide range of community problems and issues involving crime control, crime prevention, officer safety, and the fear of crime.

Community policing is referred to by several names, most commonly as community-oriented policing, problem-oriented policing, community problem solving, neighborhood policing, and problem-based policing. Community policing is based on collaboration between police and citizens in a nonthreatening and cooperative spirit. It requires that police listen to citizens, take seriously how citizens perceive problems and issues, and seek to solve problems which have been identified. "A fundamental assumption of the community policing approach is that the community is more likely than the police to recognize and understand its public safety needs," states researchers Vincent J. Webb and Charles M. Katz. Effective community policing can result in enhanced quality of life in neighborhoods, reduction of fear of crime, greater respect for law and order, increased crime control and crime prevention, and greater citizen satisfaction with police services.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Image is in the public domain.

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Click here for more information on the department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services.

While community policing continues to evolve, current research shows that it results in improved safety for both residents and police, neighborhood revitalization, positive neighborhood and police morale and confidence, heightened confidence in government institutions, including police, and improved race relations. Community policing has been shown to decrease actual criminal activity and reduced fear of crime. As one resident of Chicago said, "When you have a sense of camaraderie and cooperation between beat officers and community residents you lose the sense of fear." However, law enforcement executives should be aware that "community perceptions of the potential effectiveness of community policing may determine how residents rate the importance of community policing activities carried out by the police," according to Webb and Katz. In fact, they state some community policing activities may be viewed as unimportant to the community, while others, such as investigations of drug and gang-related activities, may have broad community support.

Reports on public support for community policing has been generally favorable. "In general, the findings show that 'preventative' community policing activities, or those usually considered as having an indirect effect on crime, are regarded by the community as being less important than 'enforcement' activities, or policing activities thought of as having a more direct effect on crime." Police executives may need to explain to communities that community policing programs--like all other policing programs--are enforcement oriented. The difference with community policing programs is an intentional focus on community interaction with the department.

In Madison, Wisconsin, police officers and community volunteers conducted surveys of police activities and police efforts to resolve neighborhood problems. The Madison Police Department found that "as the officers completed the questionnaire with the participants, the respondents gave information to the officers about the quality of life and social order issues whereas the other volunteers who were not officers, those issues rarely emerged." In the Madison interviews, participants reported a wide variety of concerns to police officers:

…a greater concern that children would be hurt while playing in their neighborhood; less satisfaction with their neighborhood as a place to live; parking, public drinking and intoxication, gang activity and graffiti as more of a problem; drug sales, drug usage, drug addiction, possession of guns and weapons, violence, fighting and assaults all to be more of a problem; more negative assessments of the effectiveness of rental property owners and managers in dealing with neighborhood problems, and of the extent to which residents were organized and committed to improving neighborhood conditions.

Community policing represents a continuation of the established traditions of policing in the United States. It flows from three essential values:

• The police department believes that the prevention of crimes is its number one priority.
• The police department involves the community in the delivery of its services.
• The police department holds itself accountable to the community it serves.

Underlying principles of community policing

1. Crime prevention is the responsibility of the total community.
2. The police and the community share ownership, responsibility, and accountability for the prevention of crime.
3. Police effectiveness is a function of crime control, crime prevention, problem solving, community satisfaction, quality of life, and community engagement.
4. Mutual trust between the police and the community is essential for effective policing.
5. Crime prevention must be a flexible, long-term strategy in which the police and community collectively commit to resolving the complex and chronic causes of crime.
6. Community policing requires knowledge, access, and mobilization of community resources.
7. Community policing can only succeed when top management police and government officials enthusiastically support its principles and tenets.
8. Community policing depends on decentralized, community-based participation in decision-making.
9. Community policing allocates resources and services, based on analysis, identification, and projection of patterns and trends, rather than incidents.
10. Community policing requires an investment in training with special attention to problem analysis and problem solving, facilitation, community organization; communication, mediation and conflict resolution, resource identification and use, networking and linkages, and cross-cultural competency.

Think about it . . . "Recognizing Your Own Biases”

One advantage of a stereotype is that it enables us to respond rapidly to situations because we may have had a similar experience before.

One disadvantage is that it makes us ignore differences between individuals; therefore, we think things about people that might not be true (i.e. generalize).

1. Explore these test sites: Harvard – Implicit Bias and UpWorty Prejudice Test. There are multiple tests you can take regarding many types of bias, such as ethnicity, skin tone, body type, ect. Choose 2-3 tests.
2. Discuss the outcome of the tests.
   • Which tests did you take and why?
   • What surprised you most about the test?
   • Did you feel the test was accurate? Why or why not?
   • Knowing this information, how would you address it when you come into contact with a person with the trait?