Crime Prevention
The Development of American Law
Enforcement
The United States has more police
departments than any other nation in the
world.
Virtually every community has its own police
force, creating a great
disparity in the quality
of American police
personnel and service.
American Police History
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1626, the New York City Sheriff's Office
was founded
1631, the Town of Boston started its first
"Night Watch“
1838, first local modern police department
established in the United States was the
Boston Police Department
Police were not respected by the
community, as corruption was rampant
Who were the first Police
Officers?
Bass Reeves
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Born enslaved in 1838 in Crawford County,
Arkansas
Fled north into Indian Territory and lived with
Seminole and Creek Indians.
Reeves and his family farmed until 1875
Recruited by Judge Isaac Parker & U.S.
Marshal James Fagan in 1875
Reeves arrested over 3,000 fugitives
& killed at least 14
At statehood became a member of the
Muskogee, Oklahoma, police department at
the age of 68
State Police Agencies
Growing populations, as well as the
inability of some local sheriffs and
constables to control crime, led states to
create their own law enforcement
agencies.
Texas officially created the Rangers in 1835.
Pennsylvania established the first modern state law
enforcement agency in 1905.
By the 1930s, every state had some form of state
law enforcement agency.
The evolution of policing
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1920s, led by Berkeley, California police
chief, August Vollmer, police began to
professionalize, adopt new technologies,
and place emphasis on training
First female police officer was Alice Stebbins
Wells, who was hired by the Los Angeles
Police Department in 1910
LAPD also hired the first African-American
police officer, Georgia Ann Robinson, in
1916
Professionalism and Reform
• Until the late 19th century, there were
no qualifications required for law
enforcement officers.
• Cincinnati was the first city to require (2)
qualifications of police officers:
– High moral character
– Foot speed
The Structure of American Law
Enforcement
American law enforcement agencies are
extremely diverse in:
Jurisdictions
Responsibilities
Employers (hospitals, colleges, transit
authorities may have their own police)
COMMUNITY POLICING DEFINED
A PRACTICAL, EFFECTIVE WAY OF POLICING
THAT HELPS LAW ENFORCEMENT AND
COMMUNITY PARTNERS WORK TOGETHER TO
IDENTIFY CRIME AND ITS RELATED
PROBLEMS, THEN DEVELOP WAYS TO
RESOLVE AND PREVENT
CRIME AND DISORDER
FROM OCCURRING IN
THE FUTURE
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PHILOSOPHY
CHANGE
COMMITMENT
FUTURISTIC
PERSONALIZED
ENFORCEMENT
PROACTIVE
SPECIAL NEEDS
TRUST
GRASS ROOTS
TEN PRINCIPLES
OF COMMUNITY
POLICING
THREE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF
COMMUNITY POLICING
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PARTNERSHIPS
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EMPOWERMENT
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PROBLEM SOLVING
MISSION STATEMENTS
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DESCRIBE THE
PURPOSE OF AN
AGENCY
YOU SHOULD KNOW
THE MISSION
STATEMENT FOR
ANY AGENCY YOU
INTERVIEW WITH
The role of the law enforcement
agency in Community Policing Management
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THE PROCESS OF PLANNING,
ORGANIZING, LEADING AND
CONTROLLING THE WORK OF
ORGANIZATION MEMBERS TO REACH
STATED ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS
Leadership:
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The process of directing and influencing the
task-related activities of organization
members
Leadership is doing the right things and
involves inspiring a shared set of values and
vision for the future
Community Policing cannot be mandated
from on high; leaders in the agency must
lead by example
Building Consensus
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Communication is a two way
process
Seek ownership from all
stakeholders in the Community
Policing process,
including…WHO???
EMPOWERMENT
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Agencies must empower or give official
power and authority to law enforcement
personnel as they implement community
policing in the community
Empowerment recognizes that the people
who actually do the job are in a position
to know how to do the job in the best
way
EMPOWERMENT RESULTS IN:
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MORE PHILOSOPHICAL BUYIN
A GREATER SENSE OF
OWNERSHIP IN THE
PROCESS
INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY
EFFECTIVENESS OF
SERVICES FOR THE
COMMUNITY
DUTIES OF THE OFFICER IN
COMMUNITY POLICING
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ENFORCE LAWS & FOLLOW THEM
PROBLEM SOLVING
INCREASE POSITIVE COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT
RECRUIT AND SUPERVISE COMMUNITY
VOLUNTEERS
COMMUNICATION BETWEEN LAW
ENFORCEMENT AGENCY AND COMMUNITY
Continued
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REFERRALS TO
OTHER AGENCIES
NETWORK WITH
OTHER AGENCIES,
INCLUDING THE
PRIVATE SECTOR
Full service policing:
Adding a
new dimension to law enforcement
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Daily interaction with “customers” (citizens)
Crime prevention and the enforcement of
laws
The officer must ascertain when each is
appropriate, a broker of law enforcement
and related services and a facilitator
between the community and service
providers
Shaping the new policing role
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Creative problem solving skills
Ability to distinguish between
symptoms of crime and actual crime
problems
Interpersonal communication skills
including public speaking
Outside activities and interests
including volunteer opportunities
CREATIVE THINKING IS DEFINED AS
1ST STEP IN PROBLEM SOLVING
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CREATIVITY IS AN ATTITUDE
CREATIVITY DOES NOT ACCEPT THE
OBVIOUS
CREATIVITY ASKS WHY AND QUESTIONS
THE STATUS QUO
CREATIVITY HAS MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES
AND LEARNS BY LISTENING TO THOSE WHO
ARE OR MAY BE DIFFERENT
ATTRIBUTES OF CREATIVE
THINKERS
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INTELLIGENT
FLEXIBLE
INTELLECTUALLY PLAYFUL
POSITIVE NONCONFORMITY
APPROPRIATELY PERSISTENT
SELF-CONFIDENT
AWARE OF SELF AND OTHERS
THE FOUR STEPS OF
PROBLEM SOLVING ARE:
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SCANNING
ANALYSIS
RESPONSE
ASSESSMENT
Problem Solving
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Incidents are usually a symptom of a
larger problem
Traditionally, police have been
conditioned to treat symptoms or
handle an incident as an isolated event
rather than identify and address
problems
COMMUNITY POLICING INITIATIVES
THAT INVOLVE LAW ENFORCEMENT
AND THE COMMUNITY-CRIME
PREVENTION
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NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH
CITIZEN POLICE ACADEMIES
WHAT PREVENTS CREATIVE
THINKING
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FALSE PRIDE
FAILURE TO FULLY DEFINE A
PROBLEM
CONTENTMENT WITH THE
PROBLEM/STATUS QUO
SINGLE SOLUTION
THINKING
A PROBLEM IS DEFINED AS:
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TWO OR MORE INCIDENTS SIMILAR TO
EACH OTHER THAT CAUSE HARM TO THE
PUBLIC AND THAT THE PUBLIC EXPECTS
LAW ENFORCEMENT TO HANDLE
Scanning
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Discovering and identifying the problem
Most important of the four steps
Avoid confusing symptoms with the real
problem
Learn about and verify the problem
Identify the problem in terms of the
people involved, their behavior and
response to the problem
Analysis
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Understand the actors, actions and reactions
to the problem
Determine each aspect of the problem
Gather information including:
 The seriousness of the problem
 The individuals and groups affected by
the problem
 The possible causes of the problem
 Solution objectives
Response
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The action or solution decided on to
address the identified problem
 Solutions may eliminate the problem
 Reduce the frequency of incidents
 Reduce harm to the community
 Improve the community’s perception
of the problem
Response
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Response objectives recognize that the
strategy to address the problem must go
beyond the incident to address:
 Underlying issues
 Provide a long-term solution
 Improve the community in some way
 Ultimately reduce police workload by
reducing or eliminating the problem
Assessment
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Determines whether the selected response
was carried out as planned and effectively
addressed the identified problem
Assessment is essential to determine the
effectiveness of the response
If the response strategy was ineffective, go
through the S.A.R.A. process again
After a third attempt, involve outside
individuals to study the problem
Word Association
SCOUT
LEADER
The Problem
Trust does NOT save lives.
Distrust saves police officers
every day.
Normal Threat Level
Hypervigilance
Alert, alive, energetic, humor
Normal Threat Level
Hypervigilance
Normal Threat Level
Tired, detached, isolated, apathy
Easy to think the problem is your home
life.
Everyone gets Screwed!
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Who controls what kind of cop you
will be?
You only control your integrity and
professionalism.
Department controls assignments,
schedules, and duties.
You control your personal life. Keep it
that way!
Victim Attitude
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Leads to integrity issues
Leads to entitlement problems
Lose sense of self
Cops will justify and rationalize
behavior that they normally
wouldn’t participate in.
Things to Do
Aerobic Exercise*
 Time Management
 Keep a Personal Life
 Remember that your career
WILL end someday
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