Community Policing
Developed in Response
● To the changes that put police in cars and
removed them from neighborhoods
● To understanding that modern law enforcement
has not been able to make communities safer
(for the most part) or to reduce fear of crime
● To the recognition that both the extent and
nature of crime in our communities require
different police strategies
It requires:
● the active participation of local government, civic
and business leaders, and public officials
● fundamental changes in the structure and
management of police organizations
● that police goals be expanded beyond crime
control and prevention
● that police use a wide variety of methods to
achieve these goals.
Two Core Components
Focus on:
● community partnerships
● problem solving instead of crime
fighting
It is a philosophy more so than a
specific set of actions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAf23H2Dz7I
Examples
● Community Coordinated Responses
● Family Justice Units
● Specialized Domestic Violence Officers/Units
Coordinated Response Model
● Duluth – Pioneer in the Field
● Interagency Communication and Cooperation key to the
process
● Usually established a task force model whereby all
stakeholders come to the table to coordinate the
responses of all stakeholders
● Key Components: Establish Philosophical Approach;
Networking/Interagency Communication and
Cooperation; Policy/Protocol Development; Support for
Victims; Accountability; Evaluation
Philosophical Approach
● Creating a coherent philosophical approach that
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makes victim safety the most important goal
Eliminate victim blaming (attitudes and practices)
Ask why should she use the system?
Understanding that the perpetrator is responsible
Examine all reforms to look for unintended
consequences that may put the victim in harm’s way
Networking/Interagency
Communication and Cooperation
● Interagency dialogue is a must
● The process of setting up any Council
is critical
● Regular, focused meetings
Policy/Protocol Development
● Focus on agency accountability
● Focus on individual accountability
● Helps ensure that change is lasting –
beyond individuals who may leave
agencies
Support for Victims
● Ensures that all essential services
exist, identifies needs, and targets
funding and implementation in areas
where services are lacking
● Asks: How does this practice improve
or impair a victim’s protection and
safety?
Accountability
● Provides opportunities for treatment and change
of offenders, but focus is always on
accountability.
● Assesses all responses to ensure that batterers
are held accountable at all levels.
● Holds agencies responsible for ensuring that
batterers are held accountable
Evaluate Progress
● Collect data and use it to evaluate
changes
● Willingness to change policies and
procedures in light of findings
● Recognizing that some data will be difficult
to deal with
Key Questions
● What will improve the community response?
● What kind of resistance will there be to a different
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proposal?
Why would that resistance be there?
Who are the key leaders to sell on trying something
new?
How could proposed changes backfire – for the
community, the police, the victim?
What kind of training on the proposed changes will be
needed?
How can changes be institutionalized (policy/protocol?)
Impact for Law Enforcement Officers:
● Need to play an active role in working with
coordinating councils
● Councils ultimately help officers because when
all systems work together:
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victims will be more apt to cooperate with officers in
arrest situations and be more apt to use the criminal
justice system at all levels, and
officers will have more options at their disposal
including referrals to service agencies that will
respond effectively and ultimately reduce the need for
victims to rely upon police response.
Family Justice Centers (FJC)
● Pioneered in San Diego.
● Are a place where all (or many) services for victims of
domestic violence are provided in one place
● Reduces the burden of accessing multiple service
providers
● Increases interagency coordination
● Services may include domestic violence advocacy,
prosecution, police, housing assistance, income
assistance, civil legal assistance, medical assessment
and/or treatment, and faith-based support.
Specialized Domestic Violence
Units/Officers
● In large police departments
● May involve patrol officers, detectives,
crime analysts, victim advocates
● Idea is that they become “specialists” in
the area
● In smaller departments, one or two officers
can have these same role
Ultimately
● A police response that sees domestic violence
as integral to community policing and which
engages with community wide responses will
provide better services to victims, enhance
police response, and help officers responding to
calls for service.