By: Raymond A. Eve, Daniel G. Rodeheaver, Susan Brown Eve, Maureen Hockenberger, Ramona Perez, Ken Burton, Larry Boyd, Sue Phillips and Sharon L. Walker

For the past several decades, an innovation in policing, often controversial, has been emerging in the US. Specifically, community-oriented policing has been used to supplement more traditional forms of police work in preventing and reducing crime. This paper examines a community-oriented policing programme implemented in Arlington, Texas. A national demonstration grant was awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services (COPS). The purpose of the COPS project reported here was to assess a policing problem that, rather than actual crime, was ultimately about (1) multicultural conflict, (2) fear of crime and (3) the effectiveness of this community policing programme in combating both actual incidences and perceptions of crime. We draw several conclusions about the ability to utilise and apply the community policing model and our research findings in other locations. Furthermore, the findings of this paper should have broad utility of international scope.

International Journal of Police Science & Management Volume 5 Number 4

By: Charlotte Gill, David Weisburd, Cody W. Telep, Zoe Vitter & Trevor Bennett

Objectives Systematically review and synthesize the existing research on community-oriented policing to identify its effects on crime, disorder, fear, citizen satisfaction, and police legitimacy.

Methods We searched a broad range of databases, websites, and journals to identify eligible studies that measured pre-post changes in outcomes in treatment and comparison areas following the implementation of policing strategies that involved community collaboration or consultation. We identified 25 reports containing 65 independent tests of community-oriented policing, most of which were conducted in neighborhoods in the United States. Thirty-seven of these comparisons were included in a meta-analysis.

Results Our findings suggest that community-oriented policing strategies have positive effects on citizen satisfaction, perceptions of disorder, and police legitimacy, but limited effects on crime and fear of crime.

Conclusions Our review provides important evidence for the benefits of community policing for improving perceptions of the police, although our findings overall are ambiguous. The challenges we faced in conducting this review highlight a need for further research and theory development around community policing. In particular, there is a need to explicate and test a logic model that explains how short-term benefits of community policing, like improved citizen satisfaction, relate to longer-term crime prevention effects, and to identify the policing strategies that benefit most from community participation.

J Exp Criminol DOI 10.1007/s11292-014-9210-y

By: Joshua D. Freilich

This article compares Beccaria’s and Situational Crime Prevention’s (SCP) claims across six dimensions. Both perspectives question harsh penalties, embrace crime reduction as a goal, and view some individuals as possessing agency and rationality. The latter two points distinguish them from most other criminological theories that are not focused on crime reduction and downplay offenders’ rationality. Both approaches have also been criticized for ignoring the root causes of crime in society. Importantly though, the approaches also differ. The Classical School and SCP are usually differentiated from positivistic approaches in their assumption of offender agency. This article found, however, that SCP does not assume offender agency in all contexts. In fact, many SCP interventions could be explained in positivistic terms. The analysis indicates that it is sometimes unclear which causal mechanisms underlie each of SCP’s 25 techniques of crime prevention. Clarifying the precise causal mechanism of each technique could lead to more effective implementation. The article places these and other issues in context and outlines a series of suggestions for future research to address to strengthen the SCP approach.

Criminal Justice Review 1-20

By: OOREOLUWA. O AGBEDE

This writer takes a look at societal and psychological factors of suicide and attempted suicide, philosophy and psychology of suicide and causes of suicide, concluding that attempts at suicide are calls for help to the society which should be replied with assistance and rehabilitation not punishment and state brand as criminals.

https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.12592160

By: ROB T. GUERETTE and KATE J. BOWERS

Few criticisms of situational crime-prevention (SCP) efforts are as frequent or prevalent as claims of displacement. Despite emerging evidence to the contrary, the prevailing sentiment seems to be that crime displacement is inevitable. This study examined 102 evaluations of situationally focused crime-prevention projects in an effort to determine the extent to which crime displacement was observed. The results indicate that of the 102 studies that examined (or allowed for examination of) displacement and diffusion effects, there were 574 observations. Displacement was observed in 26 percent of those observations. The opposite of displacement, diffusion of benefit, was observed in 27 percent of the observations. Moreover, the analysis of 13 studies, which allowed for assessment of overall outcomes of the prevention project while taking into account spatial displacement and diffusion effects, revealed that when spatial displacement did occur, it tended to be less than the treatment effect, suggesting that the intervention was still beneficial. Implications for theory and future research are discussed.

CRIMINOLOGY VOLUME 47 NUMBER 4 2009

By: Priit Suve

Recent developments in understanding the concept of problem in problem-oriented policing denote valuable perspectives but mainly from a substantialist perspective. In this article, the relational perspective in thinking of safety problems was introduced, and some key advancements presented. Exploiting causal and constitutive reasoning and the idea of the complexity of problems, the self-actional, inter-actional, and trans-actional perspectives were used for determining the differences between the substantialist and relationalist perspectives. The concept of problem was analyzed from two perspectives. First, in light of initial and recent elaborations of the term. Second, through the actual use of the term. The substantialist ethos dominated through the data analysed and it has both advantages and disadvantages. However, relational thinking calls for a deeper understanding of safety problems. Resigning from the substantialist ethos and asking whether there are pre-given A-s and B-s, and turning towards the idea that there is no A-s without B-s, creates an environment for a more open-minded understanding of problems in policing.

ORCID: 0000-0003-4408-3568, Estonian Academy of Security Sciences, Estonia

DOI: 10.5604/01.3001.0014.6656

By Rana Sampson, Problem-oriented Policing Consultant

In the early 1990s, American policing, applying a problem-oriented approach, displayed much creative energy in closing drug markets. This has not translated to a under range of quality efforts in tackling other common crimes, such as burglary, auto theft, and shop-lifting. While few of the factors that combined to fuel wide exploration of creative solutions in drug markets are present for other crime and safety problems, there may be some simple ways to engage the police to further study and target other crimes. Three strategies are offered: identifying, understanding, and responding to snowball crimes; using a situational crime prevention approach to graded responses for repeat victimization; and examining privately-owned properties for disproportionate demands on police service with an eye towards shifting responsibility for crime-place management to these owners.

Crime Prevention Studies, vol. 15 (2003), pp. 239-256.

By Nicolette Reyhani

From the Introduction:” Over recent years situational crime has gained considerable amount of support and recognition when determining what in society causes crime. Prior to the 1970s, the explanations for causes of crime revolved around the socio-economic effects society endured. The modern focus of criminological policy and theories began to change as attention turned to the potential environmental factors and effects they have on criminal activity (McGloin & O’Neil, 2007). The situational crime results from an offender, who under certain circumstances, commits a crime and is unlikely to repeat the offence or usually is not inclined to commit crimes, hence the emphasis on situational (Clarke, 1995). These crimes and offenders are best explained through theories that do not focus on the social causes of crime, rather the emerging prosperity of contemporary life and the rational human being.”

By Interventions Alliance, Jess Lawrence, et al.

LGBTQ+ people have a long and complex history with the justice system and the policing of sexual orientation and gender expression. ‘Homosexual acts’ were only partially decriminalised in England and Wales in 1967 (1981 in Scotland, 1982 in Northern Ireland). The lives of LGBTQ+ people (particularly gay men) were still heavily policed in the following decades, and this legislation was finally replaced in 2004 (Sexual Offences Act, 1967). The sentiment of anti-gay laws and the related association between (and fear of) sexual deviance and gender diversity (Redburn, 2022) can be seen in laws and attitudes across the globe (Miles-Johnson, 2015). In the US, there were city ordinances against ‘cross-dressing’ as recently as 1980, and the legality of using public restrooms aligned to one’s gender identity (as opposed to sex assigned at birth) is still under threat (Dwyer & Valcore, 2023). While there have not been explicitly anti-trans laws in the UK in the last few decades, trans people still fear interacting with police due to the ‘historic baggage’ (Pickles, 2019) and experiencing discrimination and mistreatment from police (Bachmann & Gooch, 2018a). Although LGBTQ+ people now have legal protections from discrimination in the form of the Equality Act 2010, they still have significantly different experiences of the justice system than their cisgender counterparts. Many trans people still express fear and distrust of the police, either due to experiences of victimisation or transphobia by police officers, or due to negative interactions when reporting abuse (Hord & Medcalf, 2020). There is a growing body of research on the experiences of LGBTQ+ people in the justice system, however only a minority of this work has focussed on the experiences of trans people. HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) policy and operational guidance for working with transgender people is heavily focussed on those preparing for, or in prison, or latterly, Approved Premises (Ministry of Justice, 2023a; 2023b). This focus is reflected in the extant research on trans people in the justice system, which also tends to focus on their experiences in prison (such as Maycock, 2022) or other justice related residential facilities (such as Ellis & Opsal, 2023). Meanwhile, research on trans people in the community predominantly considers their experiences of victimisation, discrimination and abuse (Hord & Medcalf, 2020). A summary of this knowledge is outlined below, though it remains that little to no research has been published on the experiences of trans people on probation orders or prison licence.

Hockley, Essex, UK: Interventions Alliance, 2024. 53p.

By Bethan Loftus, Martina Feilzer, Benjamin Goold

The ongoing Undercover Policing Inquiry (UCPI) is largely a response to a stream of national media scandals that exposed the illegal and unethical behaviour of undercover police officers in two secretive units. The testimony of those who were the targets of undercover operations has further exposed the human costs stemming from the personalised and highly invasive surveillance undertaken by anonymous state agents. In this article, we reflect upon the existing research on covert policing and identify new areas for conceptual and methodological engagement, with a view to better understanding the harms that these secretive operations can generate. Attending to the inherent and inescapable intimacy of covert policing offers a much-needed opportunity to explore the effects of a unique state practice that can radically alter the lives of individual surveillance subjects, and which tests our conventional understandings of the legitimacy and limits of force, coercion, and police power.

The Howard Journal of Crime and Justice Early View April 2024

By Hina Kalyal  Swaleha Naqvi, PhD Volunteer Researcher Nadia Asjad

The impetus behind this report was the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in the United States, triggering global protests against police use of force. In response to the public reaction, many police organizations across North America are now reflecting on their treatment of people of color and devising measures to improve the relationship. The London Police Service is one of the first few police organizations in Canada that have voluntarily undertaken a research project on systemic racism to better serve the culturally and ethnically diverse community of London, Ontario. The specific objectives of the project were: To identify whether service gaps/differences exist during police interactions with White versus the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community members of London, Ontario. To determine whether any systemic barriers exist within the LPS that might impact the professional growth and development of BIPOC members; and to conduct an Employment Systems Review to determine whether the current policies  Context of the Report The impetus behind this report was the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in the United States, triggering global protests against police use of force. In response to the public reaction, many police organizations across North America are now reflecting on their treatment of people of color and devising measures to improve the relationship. The London Police Service is one of the first few police organizations in Canada that have voluntarily undertaken a research project on systemic racism to better serve the culturally and ethnically diverse community of London, Ontario. Research Objectives The specific objectives of the project were: To identify whether service gaps/differences exist during police interactions with White versus the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community members of London, Ontario. To determine whether any systemic barriers exist within the LPS that might impact the professional growth and development of BIPOC members; and To conduct an Employment Systems Review to determine whether the current policies and procedures followed by the LPS are equitable and fair to all members of the LPS. Research Design The project was divided into three phases. In Phase I, public opinion was sought regarding their interactions with the members of the LPS through in-depth interviews with the BIPOC members of the community, followed by an online survey. In Phase II, interviews were conducted with BIPOC members of the LPS regarding their views about the organizational culture. The interviews were followed by an online survey administered to all members of the LPS. In phase III of the project, an Employment Systems Review (ESR) of LPS human resources policies and procedures was conducted to identify any barriers that may be impeding the progress of BIPOC members in their careers within the organization. Phase I Findings The analysis of interviews conducted with the BIPOC community members during the first phase of the project yielded themes that indicated that police officers were generally impolite and dismissive, relied on stereotypes while interacting with the BIPOC community, and occasionally used excessive force. The survey results highlighted similar themes. However, there was a significant difference of opinion between the BIPOC and White community members regarding the officers of the LPS with the BIPOC respondents showing a higher level of dissatisfaction compared to the White respondents. Phase II Findings The analysis of interviews with BIPOC members of the LPS revealed dissatisfaction with certain elements of the organization’s culture such as the bonding between White members which excluded others and the use of culturally inappropriate language. The BIPOC members also believed that they are discriminated against when it comes to career development and growth opportunities. The results of the survey, which included all members of the LPS, were interesting as the White members claimed that they were the ones being discriminated against, to accommodate diverse and women members. The White members (men) claimed that the organization was relaxing the recruitment and promotion criteria to facilitate the BIPOC members and women, at the cost of organizational effectiveness and the quality of service- delivery by the LPS. Phase III Findings The third phase of the project included an Employment Systems Review (ESR) to assess the Human Resource policies and procedures in order to determine whether any of these documents were creating barriers to the growth and development of diverse members within the organization. While the policies and procedures reviewed were consistent with the principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion outlined by the government, some minor observations were made where LPS could improve its process to enhance employee satisfaction. Summary of Recommendations Based on the findings of the three phases, the recommendations are summarized as follows: LPS should focus on developing training programs for all employees focusing on developing cultural competence and cultural humility, and organizational policies and procedures must reflect these efforts. Resources should be allocated towards community outreach programs to improve public-police relationships and enhance mutually beneficial partnerships. The recommendations of the employee interviews, employee surveys, and the ESR mainly focus on enhancing transparency in the recruitment, selection, employee development, and promotional processes within the LPS. We recommend the introduction of a Human Resource Information System (HRIS) which would streamline the aforementioned processes and enhance employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention.    

London: The Project, 2024. 120p.

By The Policing Project at the New York University School of Law

The Policing Project at the New York University School of Law, in partnership with Microsoft and with funding from the Joyce Foundation and Microsoft’s Justice Reform Initiative, has developed the SAJETM Policing Assessment – a comprehensive tool to define and measure the characteristics of a Sound, Accountable, Just, and Effective policing agency. This assessment of approximately 100 metrics was developed in partnership with police leaders, researchers, and community advocates, and reflects the latest developments in social science, constitutional law, and industry best practice. Agencies respond to each metric with a simple yes/no and provide evidence (e.g., policies, training manuals) to support their responses. SAJETM is not designed to find a “perfect” police department. Rather, the goal is to provide an assessment of a department’s current standing across the four pillars, identifying both areas of strength and areas in need of improvement. In addition, because SAJETM relies on documentation rather than personal observation, it leans toward policy review over actual practice. While some of the metrics do seek to capture specific practices, they do not assess how comprehensively or effectively these practices are being carried out. Future audits may wish to delve deeper into these issues. Insights provided through this tool will help municipal leaders, police departments, and the communities they serve understand agency performance and collaboratively identify challenges and opportunities. At the request of the Office of the District of Columbia Auditor, the Policing Project conducted a SAJETM Assessment of the District’s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Dr. Aili Malm, an independent social science researcher, and policing subject-matter expert, assisted the agency in completing the tool as a neutral third-party evaluator. The process took approximately five months to complete. This report outlines MPD’s SAJETM Assessment results. Overall Score MPD’s overall SAJETM score is 81.66%. As MPD is the only agency to complete the tool at the request of an auditor’s office, insufficient benchmarks are available. However, the Policing Project team anticipates that agencies scoring over 70% should be considered well-performing police departments and MPD is over this level. There are some areas in which MPD is performing exceptionally well, and other areas in which improvement may be needed, particularly in the Just Policing pillar. The following sections describe MPD’s results across the four pillars. 

Washington, DC: Office of the DC Auditor, 2024. 45p.

By Pyman, Mark and Heywood, Paul M.

This open-access book provides accessible insight into how to tackle corruption in organizations and institutions. It explains how to recognize and analyze corruption issues, together with knowledge and advice on how they can be avoided, prevented, or minimized. It also provides a framework through which readers can examine what strategies are available to tackle corruption issues, a rationale for how to prioritize strategies depending on circumstances and context, and guidance on how to critique various options. The book will appeal to professionals and practitioners, as well as academics interested in governance and corruption.

Cham: Springer Nature, 2024. 

By Sarah Florini

How black Americans use digital networks to organize and cultivate solidarity unrest gripped Ferguson, Missouri, after Mike Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed by Officer Darren Wilson in August 2014. Many black Americans turned to their digital and social media networks to circulate information, cultivate solidarity, and organize during that tumultuous moment. While Ferguson and the subsequent protests made black digital networks visible to mainstream media, these networks did not coalesce overnight. They were built and maintained over the years through common, everyday use. Beyond Hashtags explores these everyday practices and their relationship to larger social issues through an in-depth analysis of a trans-platform network of black American digital and social media users and content creators. In the crucial years leading up to the emergence of the Movement for Black Lives, black Americans used digital networks not only to cope with day-to-day experiences of racism but also as an incubator for the debates that have since exploded onto the national stage. Beyond Hashtags tells the story of an influential subsection of these networks, an assemblage of podcasting, independent media, Instagram, Vine, Facebook, and the network of Twitter users that has come to be known as “Black Twitter.” Florini looks at how black Americans use these technologies often simultaneously to create a space to reassert their racial identities, forge community, organize politically, and create alternative media representations and news sources. Beyond Hashtags demonstrates how much insight marginalized users have into technology.

New York: NYU Press, 2019.

United States. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency; United States. Federal Bureau Of Investigation; United States. Election Assistance Commission; United States. Department Of Homeland Security

From the document: "The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) prepared this overview to help partners defend against insider threat concerns that could materialize during the 2024 election cycle. For years, federal, state, local, and private sector partners nationwide have worked closely together to support state and local officials in safeguarding election infrastructure from cyber, physical, and insider threats. Because of these efforts, there is no evidence that malicious actors changed, altered, or deleted votes or had any impact on the outcome of elections. Over the past several years, the election infrastructure community has experienced multiple instances of election system access control compromises conducted by insider threats. While there is no evidence that malicious actors impacted election outcomes, it is important that election stakeholders at all levels are aware of the risks posed by insider threats and the steps that they can take to identify and mitigate these threats. This document outlines several recent examples of election security-related insider threats, discusses potential scenarios that could arise during the 2024 election cycle, and provides recommendations for how to mitigate the risk posed by insider threats."

United States. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency; , et al. 2024. 9p

United States. Department Of Justice. Office Of The Inspector General.

From the document: "The Department of Justice (Department or DOJ) Office of the Inspector General (OIG) undertook this review to examine the Department's and its law enforcement components' roles and responsibilities in responding to protest activity and civil unrest in Washington, D.C., between May 29 and June 6, 2020, following the murder of George Floyd on May 25. The report details the relevant events involving DOJ and its components during this time period, including their assistance to the U.S. Park Police (USPP) and the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) in and around Lafayette Park in connection with USPP and USSS plans to construct a fence on H Street after violence had erupted during protests on May 29; meetings attended by then Attorney General William Barr and other DOJ officials at the White House on June 1; Barr's involvement in the events at Lafayette Park on June 1; and DOJ's deployment of its law enforcement personnel on June 1 and on subsequent days. Thereafter we describe our analysis of these events, including whether Barr affected the timing of the clearing operation at Lafayette Park on June 1."

United States. Department Of Justice. Office Of The Inspector General. Jul, 2024. 168p.

by Rana Sampson

Abstract: In the early 1990s, American policing, applying a problemoriented approach, displayed much creative energy in closing drug markets. This has not translated to a under range of quality efforts in tackling other common crimes, such as burglary, auto theft, and shoplifting. While few of the factors that combined to fuel wide exploration of creative solutions in drug markets are present for other crime and safety problems, there may be some simple ways to engage the police to further study and target other crimes. Three strategies are offered: identifying, understanding, and responding to snowball crimes; using a situational crime prevention approach to graded responses for repeat victimization; and examining privately-owned properties for disproportionate demands on police service with an eye towards shifting responsibility for crime-place management to these owners.

Crime Prevention Studies, vol. 15 (2003), pp. 239-256..

By Runnymede Trust

Summary ● New Home Office data and a government consultation has enabled the Runnymede Trust to explore the use of strip search by the police, and its impact on people of colour in the UK. ● Black people are subject to disproportionate rates of strip search across all police forces in England and Wales: ○ Black children are 6.5 times more likely than white children, and Black adults 4.7 times more likely than white adults, to be strip searched by police. ○ In London, Black children are 5.3 times more likely than white children, and Black adults 3.5 times more likely than white adults, to be strip searched by police. ○ Nearly half (47.7 per cent) of strip searches carried out on children in London are on Black children. ● The Metropolitan Police conducted around a third of strip searches in England and Wales in the year to March 2023. ● Evidence illustrates the disproportionate, racialised harm caused by strip searches. ● Instead of using heavy police powers such as strip search, and in the context of wider punitive policing and curtailment of rights, the Runnymede Trust calls for a societal reorientation to address the root causes of criminalised behaviour, to actually prevent harm.

London: The Runnymede Trust, 2024. 10p.

Michael S. Scott

In the last three decades, several concepts have been advanced to structure efforts to improve policing. Among them have been team policing, neighborhood policing, community policing, problem-oriented policing, and, most recently, quality-of-life policing. With much overlap, each concept, as reflected in its name, emphasizes a different need, relegating other commonly advocated reforms to a secondary role, shaped to support that need. This volume traces the efforts to implement problem-oriented policing.

The emphasis in problem-oriented policing is on directing attention to the broad range of problems the community expects the police to handle–the problems that constitute the business of the police–and on how police can be more effective in dealing with them. A layperson may think this focus elementary on first being introduced to it. Indeed, laypeople probably assume that police continually focus on the problems they are expected to handle. But within policing, this focus constitutes a radical shift in perspective.

Problem-oriented policing recognizes, at the outset, that police are expected to deal with an incredibly broad range of diverse community problems–not simply crime. It recognizes that the ultimate goal of the police is not simply to enforce the law, but to deal with problems effectively–ideally, by preventing them from occurring in the first place. It therefore plunges the police into an in-depth study of the specific problems they confront. It invites consideration of a wide range of alternatives, in addition to criminal law, for responding to each specific problem. Thus, problem-oriented policing draws the police away from the traditional preoccupation with creating an efficient organization; from the heavy investment in standard, generic operating procedures for responding to calls and preventing crime; and from heavy dependence on criminal law as the primary means for getting their job done. It looks to increased knowledge and thinking about the specific problems police confront as the driving force in fashioning police services.

This publication was supported through Grant #98CKWXK052 from the Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions expressed herein are the author's and do not necessarily represent the official position of the U.S. Department of Justice. October 2000. 46p.

DIAS, TALITA DE SOUZA; HAKMEH, JOYCE; MESSMER, MARION

From the document: "Many states are becoming more interested in nuclear energy as a means to help achieve environmental goals, economic development and energy security. A declaration by 25 countries - including the US, the UK and Canada - during the COP28 UN [28th Conference of Parties to the United Nations] Climate Change Conference in December 2023 exemplified this trend, announcing an ambition to triple nuclear energy capacity by 2050 as part of efforts to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions and limit global warming. The commitment emphasized not only the potential role of nuclear energy in supporting sustainable development but also the consequent importance of maintaining safety, sustainability, security and non-proliferation standards in the civil nuclear industry. As growth in the use of nuclear energy would imply that more nuclear power plants will come into operation, considerations of safety and security in the civil nuclear industry - including around cybersecurity, the specific subject of this paper - are likely to become more critical than ever. Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, there has been a notable shift in many Western countries' energy security strategies. [...] This surge in interest can be attributed in part to nuclear energy's reliability, resilience and low carbon footprint. [...] However, any expansion of nuclear capabilities also brings new challenges, particularly in cybersecurity. Cyber operations targeting civil nuclear systems have been reported worldwide. Such operations pose significant risks, with potential harms including information theft, equipment malfunction, disruption of energy supplies, environmental damage and health impacts. The risks are prevalent both in peacetime and during conflicts."

ROYAL INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. JUL, 2024.