The Police: Organization, Role, and Function Chapter 6 The Police: Organization, Role, and Function

Recent Changes to Police Work Kansas City Patrol Study Broken Windows Policing Community Policing Problem-oriented Policing (POP) Intelligence-led Policing (ILP)

Kansas City Patrol Study Variations in patrol techniques appeared to have little influence on citizen’s attitudes toward the police, their satisfaction with police, or their fear of future criminal behavior Why do you think that is?

Broken Windows Policing The role of the police as maintainers of community order and safety Three key points Neighborhood disorder creates fear Neighborhoods give out crime-promoting signals Police need to aggressively target low-level “quality of life” crimes Some people perceive broken windows policing as harassment because the police are focusing on lower level petty crimes and not the more serious problems

Community Policing For generations, police agencies have been trying to gain the cooperation and respect of the communities they serve Initially, police-community relations programs were implemented to improve relationships between police departments and the public, making citizens more aware of police activities. Community-oriented policing includes programs designed to bring police and the public closer together and create a more cooperative working environment Help patrol officers reduce the level of fear in the community Some studies have shown this method reduces crime Implementing community policing Foot patrols were the first community policing initiatives that were aimed at forming a bond with community residents by acquainting them with individual officers

Problem-oriented Policing (POP) Police management that stresses proactive problem solving instead of reactive crime fighting Requires police to identify particular long-term community problems and develop strategies to eliminate these problems, and relied on local residents and private resources Concentration of police resources on the hot spots of crime Criminal acts, criminal places Problem-oriented strategies are being developed that focus on specific criminal problem area, specific criminal acts, or both Combating auto theft Some police departments have invested in bait cars, which are parked in high-theft areas and are equipped with technology that alerts law enforcement when sto

POP, continued Reducing violence The most well-known problem-oriented community policing technique is Operation Ceasefire which aimed at reducing youth homicide and youth firearms Success of street level problem solving efforts must be interpreted with caution Gauging the effectiveness of problem-oriented policing is difficult There is a possibility of displacement (crime just moves to another neighborhood)

Intelligence-led Policing (ILP) Since 9/11 policing has experienced a fundamental philosophical change Combination of homeland security focus with advances made in community and problem oriented policing ILP is the collection and analysis of information to reduce terrorist activities Emphasized information sharing, collaboration, and strategic solutions to crime problems

ILP, Continued Relies on: Confidential informants Offender interviews Careful analysis of crime reports and calls for service Suspect surveillance Community sources of information Emphasizes a top-down managerial approach by which administrators set priorities for crime prevention and enforcement, and then pass these priorities down through the agency Relies on residents as part of the intelligence gathering process