Community Policing

Community Policing

What is community policing? According to The Committee on Law and Justice, Community policing (problem-oriented policing, neighborhood-oriented policing or community-oriented policing) is a policing strategy and philosophy based on the notion that community interaction and support can help control crime, with community members helping to identify suspects, detain vandals and bring problems to the attention of police. One of the most effective means of involving the community in exploring creative ways to enhance public safety is to provide them a Community Policing Officer, who acts as a problem solver to other public and private agencies that can help.

The history of modern law enforcement began 166 years ago with the formation of London Metropolitan Police District in 1829. Robert Peel assigned his "bobbies" to specific geographic zone and held them responsible for preventing and suppressing crime within the boundaries of their zones. He believed that placing officers in the community would make them known to the public, and citizens with information about criminal activity would be more likely to tell a familiar officer rather than a stranger; and also become familiar with people and places and be better able to recognize suspicious people or criminal activity and also be highly visible on their posts, tending to discourage criminals from committing crimes in the direct area. "While Peel believed overall civilian control to essential, he also believed that only military discipline would ensure that constable actually walked their beats and enforced the law on London's mean streets, something their nonmilitary predecessors, and the watchman had failed to do." (Patterson)

Most major U.S. cities had established public police departments by the Civil War, much like London officers; they wore distinctive blue uniforms and walked assigned beats. One of the earliest articulations of what would later develop into the community policing philosophy can be found in Skolnick's case study of the San Francisco, California, Police Department's Community Relations unit. This case study also documents the first organized battle to the basic concepts of community policing. In the 1970's a new type of policing came about called "team policing" There were numerous reasons why this type of policing failed including: social climate, more patrol cars and less foot patrol, contradiction of the basic beliefs of professionalism, and isolation from the community, which makes crime control more difficult. Like team policing, community policing is rooted in the belief that the traditional officer on the beat will bring the police and the community closer. Instead of just responding to calls and arresting criminals, community policing officers would devote a great deal of time to performing social works and working independently and creatively on solutions to the problems on their beats.

Another question that pops into mind about community policing might be how does community policing work? A focus of Community Policing is problem-solving. Police will still respond to emergencies. On the other hand, many calls to the police are not police-related. They are more effectively handled by other agencies. As the amount of these non-emergency calls lessen, officers can spend more time working with citizens to solve crime and chaos problems, with better communication among police and the citizens, officers can better use and share crime information with the public, residents can tie people with other public and private agencies that can help solve community concerns, and a combined community-police effort restores the safety or our neighborhoods and business districts. (SCPD, 2008) Community policing also reduces the rate of crime, creates public awareness on the need to safe guard their own neighborhoods, reduces fear of crime, reduces complaints against police, and helps to nurture public spirit in assisting police in combating crime.

Citizens may wonder, what is my role as a citizen to assist community policing efforts? My answer is that, you, as a citizen should: volunteer information on suspicious characters or activities, keep in mind that information remains the most effective tool, work closely with the Police through Community Policing Forums, help the police to help you by offering any kind of support, encourage greater contacts between neighbors, and support the victims of crime through counseling, safeguard your own neighborhood. Security begins with one-self; you should always be alert, never take the law into your hands, and attend community meetings on a regular basis. Without us, police have little to go on when investigating a serious crime, without our tips, there would be so many more unsolved cases. To summarize, we must work with the officers to ensure that our community stays protected.

With that being said, how does community policing affect you? A community oriented Police Department is a police organization that enables and empowers its police officers and civilian employees to function as enforcers of the law, maintainers of public