Policing Policies

What do you know about or think of when you hear… Community Policing Stop and Frisk

Two Major Cities: Violent Crime Decrease

Policing Policies Option A case study: Los Angeles’ “Community Policing” approach Option B: New York’s “Stop and Frisk” approach

LAPD’s Community Policing Community policing emphasizes proactive problem solving in a systematic and routine fashion. Rather than responding to crime only after it occurs, community policing encourages agencies to proactively develop solutions to the immediate underlying conditions contributing to public safety problems.  Policing agencies are encouraged to think innovatively about their responses and view making arrests as only one of a wide array of potential responses.   1st period

LAPD’s Community Policing Continued Research has shown that “hot-spot policing” (flooding high-crime areas with police officers) effectively reduces crime without simply displacing it But the department’s efforts in Watts go beyond “cops on dots.” Its centerpiece, the Community Safety Partnership, is the department’s collaboration with a group of residents known as the Watts Gang Task Force

LAPD’s Community Policing Continued Watts Gang Task Force Every Monday morning, community leaders meet with top police commanders to discuss what’s happening in the Watts gang world — who’s feuding with whom, where criminal investigations stand, which are the issues residents are worried about Many of the task force’s participants have close ties to street gangs. Some are former gang leaders. Others are the mothers and grandmothers of notorious gang leaders past and present With the community, police seek to repair their image and make positive connections

New York’s “Stop and Frisk” approach This type of limited search occurs when police confront a “suspicious person” in an effort to prevent a crime from taking place. The police frisk (pat down) the person for weapons and question the person.

New York’s “Stop and Frisk” approach The Supreme Court has ruled that police do not have to wait until a crime has been committed but can make stops based on suspicion that a crime is about to occur. Police have great discretion to deal with behavior that arouses their suspicion. That is fortunate because such stops have been shown to be an effective tool for reducing crime, and there is no clear prevention alternative. In 2011, there were 685,724 stops and frisks --

New York’s “Stop and Frisk” approach In 2011, there were 685,724 stops and frisks, In 2015, there were 22,939 stops and frisks

Things to consider… The 4th amendment to the constitution protects Americans against unlawful searches. Some might feel that these stop and frisk searches violates our right to privacy.

Further Research LA NYC Recent Crime stats Is community policing still working? NYC Is Stop and Frisk unconstitutional? Why have stop and frisk stats dwindled? Why does President Trump want to continue using ”Stop and Frisk”?