Institutionalizing Police-Community Cooperation

Abstract

Our experience with the North and Central hot spot provided us with a deeper understanding of the intricacies of the police-community-crime-incivility nexus. In an attempt to obtain a profile of this hot spot, a community organization staff member was trained to work with merchants to record events they did not report to the police. Preliminary analysis of the data made it clear that crime in the area of North and Central is a complex problem. The intersection is situated in an area where racial diversity and the close proximity of middle- and low-income people can feed fears among residents and potential investors. Finding a solution requires more than the collection, analysis, and mapping of data. Strategies based on the experience of merchants, residents, and police must be devised. These strategies can only come out of a coordinated planning process that involves all relevant parties. Gains in the area can only be maintained if the basis for action is cooperative. This need for a nontraditional problem-solving approach suggests a team response, consisting of police officers and community representatives. The task is unfamiliar for most police agencies and cannot be handled in the course of normal patrolling duties.