Kinlock, T. (1994). Smith (2001); Braga et al. For example, they might make custodial arrests where once they might have issued a citation and released the offender; they might issue a citation where once they might have released the offender with a warning; they might actively look for offenders with outstanding warrants where once they might have served warrants only when encountering offenders in the routine course of their duties; and so forth, Other crackdowns encourage officers to use a broader range of tactics to address targeted problems, exercising full discretion and initiative. Operation Crackdown ( London), Newark Foot Patrol Experiment Police Foundation (n.d.). Overzealous and poorly managed crackdowns can violate citizens' rights.27 Where officers receive overtime pay for crackdowns, they risk being accusedhowever fairly or unfairlyof conducting them primarily to earn that pay. [Full text], Zimmer, L. (1990). Braga (2001); Braga et al. Several researchers have asserted that the best way to maximize the benefits of crackdowns is to conduct them briefly and intensively, rotate them among several target areas, and resume them either at unpredictable times in the future or when target offenses return to certain predetermined levels.7. taking juvenile offenders into custody for status offenses (for example, for truancy or curfew violations); inspecting licenses (liquor, business, driver's); inspecting property for code violations, and enforcing them; establishing mobile police command posts/booking stations/neighborhood offices; conducting knock and talk operations (to gain information from citizens who are hesitant to contact the police directly, let the community know what the police hope to achieve, locate offenders, conduct voluntary searches of private premises, look for evidence in plain view, etc. Chaiken, J., M. Lawless, and K. Stevenson (1974). [4] The participating core agencies included the Boston Police Department; Massachusetts departments of probation and parole; the Suffolk County district attorney; the office of the United States Attorney; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services (juvenile corrections); Boston school police; and gang outreach and prevention streetworkers attached to the Boston Community center program. The Police Response to Gangs: Case Studies of Five Cities . Focused deterrence, also called pulling levers, is a focused strategy that attempts to deter specific criminal behavior through fear of specific sanctions (or levers), as well as anticipation of benefits for not engaging in crime. For focused deterrence to work, the targeted criminal population must be aware of the deterrence strategy. of the Happy Shopper [Tilley Award Finalist], Theft from Motor Vehicle Initiative, Cleveland Police Department Ward, Joe H., Jr., Hierarchical Grouping to Optimize an Objective Function,. When they succeeded in taking the majority of burglars out of circulation, the burglary rate dropped significantly. National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (1968). The second was reduced crime for an entire region. (by special unit and patrol officers); short-term undercover work and buy-busts; reverse stings; vehicle seizures; use of confidential informants; code enforcement; neighborhood cleanups; demolition of abandoned buildings; heavy media coverage; visible response to every citizen complaint; encouragement of anonymous complaints, with promises to protect complainants' identities; mobile booking stations to speed up arrests; parked marked units in middle of drug markets; uniformed patrol through the markets; removal of shade covering dealers; use of expedited nuisance abatement procedures; provision of police beeper numbers to citizens so they could feel more assured of anonymity; confiscation of stashed drugs from citizen tips; arrests for loitering for the purpose of drug dealing (and conspicuously posted warning signs); trespass authority arrests, Yes, visible drug dealing declined significantly, but the study was unable to determine which particular tactics were the most effective; there was some evidence of declines in overall crimes, calls for service, and drug-related homicides, No, evidence of high level of community support from both majority and minority communities, High-volume arrests for drug dealing and other offenses, No, but there was some evidence that the overall crime rate declined, and the study concluded that local drug crackdowns were worthwhile, 100 officers conducted buy-busts; checkpoints established; door-to-door searches of residences; media publicity; neighborhood cleanups; code enforcement, No, there were no significant reductions in overall crime, calls for service, or drug-related crime, Intensive drug enforcement through high- visibility patrol (stopping, questioning, and frisking motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians); buy-busts (targeted in hot spots); crack house raids; compared with door-to-door interviews with residents to discuss drug problems and a drug hotline, Mixed results: there was some positive effect on violent crimes but not on burglary and robbery; there were positive effects on citizen perceptions of safety, drug dealing, and police services, Yes, evidence of spatial displacement, but police shifted crackdown to new areas, Surveillance; informants; informant buys; buy-busts; anonymous drug tip line, No, there was some evidence of suppression of the heroin market in one location, but the overall effect on markets and crime was limited, Yes, some evidence drug buyers easily shifted to drug market in nearby city, Four to six narcotics officers surveilled known drug-dealing locations, questioned buyers and sellers, made arrests for possession, used informants for buy-bust arrests, and executed search warrants on drug houses; hotline for anonymous tips was established and publicized, Yes, there was a significant decrease in the volume and flagrancy of the retail heroin market; there was some evidence that heroin use declined; there was an 85% increase in the demand for drug treatment; reported robberies declined by 18.5%, burglaries by 37.5%, and crimes against the person by 66%, Unknown if there was displacement to other types of drugs; one year after the crackdown, burglaries stayed down and robberies continued to decline, No, high citizen satisfaction with results, The study acknowledges some success in disrupting street drug markets, but it focused more on the negative consequences of crackdowns, Yes, some spatial displacement to indoor locations and other neighbor-hoods, Street drug markets (heroin, crack, marijuana), Street drug markets (powder cocaine and Dilaudid), Intensive drug enforcement (buy-busts, reverse buys, vehicle forfeiture, media coverage of arrests), compared with two other responses: door-to-door surveys of residents about drug problems, and establishment of police substation, Mixed results: there was no measurable reduction in drug trafficking, but there were positive effects on citizen perceptions of police and crime problems; there were some measurable crime reductions, Street-level drug enforcement (undercover drug buys, search warrants, buy-busts, reverse stings, surveillance arrests, vehicle safety checks), followed by community revitalization, There was some evidence of effectiveness; there was a dramatic decrease in drive-by shootings; the study concludes that geo-graphically contained areas are more favorable for crackdowns, Intensive enforcement against prostitutes, clients, pimps, and brothel operators, combined with road closures, Yes, prostitution and serious crime declined significantly; the sense of public safety increased; crime reporting rates increased, No, actually improved police-community relations, Intensive enforcement of low-level offenses by patrol officers, combined with sanctions of the Midtown Community Court, Yes, the incidence and prevalence of street prostitution significantly declined; some stroll areas disappeared almost entirely; there was little evidence that many prostitutes quit the trade, however, Yes, evidence of spatial displacement to outer boroughs; evidence of target, method (prostitutes switched from walking to driving around), and temporal displacement, Variety of responses in a problem-oriented policing project, including arrests of prostitutes, Yes, there was a significant reduction in the number of street prostitutes and prostitution-related robberies, Intensive traffic enforcement (compared with normal and below- normal levels), Variety of responses (28 different ones); aggressive order maintenance, Some spatial displacement of property crimes, but most crimes and calls for service not displaced. Buyers became leery of fresh faces selling on University Avenue . Washington , D.C. : National Institute of Justice. "An Evaluation of Operation Roundup: An Experiment in the Control of Gangs to Reduce Crime, Fear of Crime, and Improve Police Community Relations." Police reasoned that if that group disappeared, the bingers and partyers would have to look elsewhere. It is one of the first and necessary steps in a peace process aimed at transforming or settling a violent conflict. Washington , D.C. : U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice. "Problem-Oriented Data Collection: Toward Improved Evaluations of Police Drug Crackdowns." Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 10(1):147-154. Cordner, G. (1996). 0000005281 00000 n Operation Ceasefire was instituted in Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, and Indianapolis and these cities achieved reductions in gun homicide of 25 to over 60 percent and, here in California, Stockton reduced gun homicide by more than 43 percent between 1998 and 2001. Sampson and Cohen (1988); Wilson and Boland (1978). 0000029482 00000 n While this sounds straightforward, agencies need to keep equity and civil rights protections and considerations in mind, answering the following questions: Tip: Selection of individuals for focused deterrence interventions must be logical, defensible, and based on clear criteria on why the individual might pose a major threat to the community. [Full text], Matthews, R. (1997). Justice Quarterly 12(4):755-781. They are. American Journal of Police 13(3):59-94. The following passage from the problem-specific guide on Street Prostitution [Full text] directly relates to prostitution crackdowns: In addition to routinely enforcing prostitution laws, the police often conduct intensive arrest campaigns against prostitutes, clients, or both. Kelling, G., T. Pate, D. Dieckman, and C. Brown (1974). The table below summarizes published studies on crackdowns. "Policing Crime Guns." Caeti, T. (1999). Operation Rehab's goal was to change people's perception of the area from that of a drug corridor to that of a strong business community, through an intense positive marketing campaign. Evaluations of police operations are always complicated. National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (1968). 0000028681 00000 n It only supplements the information provided in this guide's main text. Ann Arbor , Mich. : University Microfilms International. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Impact on the rest of the criminal justice system. A key part of the message is that penalties for continued violence would occur immediately, with organizers presenting evidence (e.g., video footage of group members committing crimes) and likely consequences (e.g., unsigned arrest warrants to be signed if violence continues). Fontana Serious Traffic Offender Program, Harbor Overall, the project did not follow its original plan of a continuous cycle of crackdown and consolidation. "The Cost of Crackdowns: Policing Cabramatta's Heroin Market." Washington, D.C.: National Institute of Justice. For example, if police make full-blown custodial arrests of all offenders, they risk reducing the police presence in the target area when they leave it to book prisoners. Prostitutes, like drug dealers, sometimes adapt to crackdowns by devising new ways to negotiate transactions (e.g., via beepers and cellular telephones). Department, 1999, Ticketing Wessa, Patrick, Free Statistics Software, Office for Research Development and Education, version 1.1.23-r7, 2017. A locked padlock Capowich, G., and J. Roehl (1994). Potter, G., L. Gaines, and B. Holbrook (1990). Displacement, where and when it does occur, seldom occurs at 100 percent. But see Jacob and Rich (1981), cited in Sampson and Cohen (1988), for contrary conclusion. 2. Applying basic marketing principles to both the illegal drug market and the legitimate retail merchandise market, police convinced drug users that University Avenue was the last place they wanted to be, and helped businesses convince residents that it was a convenient and safe place to shop. For further information about establishing repeat offender programs, see Spelman (1990). The general elements include the following: As a result of the initiative, merchants reported that business had increased, they felt safer on University Avenue , and they were seeing more families and shoppers on the street. 0000036235 00000 n If a drug market is in an area that is relatively hard to enter and exit (due to natural geography, street design, gang turfs, etc. Schnelle, J., R. Kirchner, J. Casey, P. Uselton, and M. McNees (1977). (London, UK), 2008, The The National Network for Safe Communities (2016) provides a detailed guidebook on the core model for conducting focused deterrence for groups, the Group Violence Intervention (PDF), which is an updated version of Boston's Operation Ceasefire model for focused deterrence. Criminology 37(3):541-580. 0000004026 00000 n Others are more broadly aimed at deterring a range of illegal and problematic behaviorall crimes, all serious crimes, all calls for police service, etc. 0000001267 00000 n When officers conduct a crackdown in a target area they are not normally assigned to, there is a heightened risk that they will not be able to distinguish the truly suspicious from the ordinary as effectively as locally assigned officers.28, Expense. Sherman, L. (1997). Justice Quarterly 18(20):365-391. Washington , D.C. : Police Executive Research Forum. Equity (real and perceived fairness) is a major topic for todays policing to consider in any program that attempts to target a specific demographic via such an intervention as deterrence. Caulkins, J., R. Larson, and T. Rich (1993). Smith, R. (2001). San Diego : San Diego Association of Governments, Criminal Justice Research Division. ); searching vehicles and interviewing drivers at roadblocks or checkpoints; and. Policing Today (September):34 - 36. Sherman, L., and D. Weisburd (1995). (2002). Please limit your note to 200 characters. Operation Ceasefire and the Safe Community Partnership. "I Won't Do Manhattan ": Causes and Consequences of a Decline in Street Prostitution . There is no universally accepted definition of a ceasefire, and the use of the term varies widely. Millie, A. Most of the crackdowns reported in the research literature are reasonably well-planned, coordinated, and focused: they must be to justify the research. Area Cadillac/Corning Neighborhood Project, Department of Justice COPS Response Center, Yes, spatial displacement to adjacent precincts, No, but had a positive effect on public perceptions of safety, No, increased citizen satisfaction with police, No, did not reduce robbery or auto theft or have any measurable effect on traffic crashes, High volume of traffic stops in drug market areas; aggressive traffic enforcement; field interviews; street- level drug enforcement; follow-up investigation of arrestees; case- building, Yes, reduced burglary in three out of four districts; reduced robbery in one out of four; reduced auto theft in all four (by 43%, 50%, and 53% in three districts), while the citywide crime rate was climbing, Saturation patrol (four times the normal level, and 30 times the normal level of "slow patrol"), Yes, reduced nighttime, but not daytime, burglary; concluded that the crackdown was not cost-effective, All crimes (specially intended to reduce crimes considered suppressible: burglary; street and commercial robbery; assault; auto theft; thefts from yards, autos, or buildings; DUI; possession of stolen property or weapons; and disorderly conduct), Aggressive traffic enforcement, especially of speeding, signal violations, seat belt violations, DUI, and license and registration violations; from 140% to 430% increase above normal levels, Mixed results: there were significant reductions in Part I crimes (mainly burglary and larceny) in three out of four target areas, but there was less evidence of a significant impact on assaults and Part II offenses, Yes, but the effect was modest; concluded the crackdown was not cost- effective, Subway patrol by Guardian Angels (private patrol force), No, but there was a short-term reduction in citizen fear, Overtime to put 655 additional officers in the seven highest crime beats in the city; high-visibility patrol; hot-spot monitoring; zero tolerance; problem-oriented approaches, Yes, there were significant reductions in UCR Index crimes, No displacement; some diffusion of benefits to adjacent areas, Assault, malicious damage to property, and offensive conduct, Regular but unpredictable visits to licensed premises to check for breaches of licensing laws, Raids; arrests of burglary suspects; seizure of stolen property, West Yorkshire, England (Boggart Hill area), Targeted and intensive enforcement against known burglars, followed by repeat victimization reduction efforts (target hardening, educating elderly potential victims of burglary by deception) and youth outreach programs, Yes, there was a significant reduction in burglary and repeat victimization, No evidence of spatial displacement; some evidence of diffusion of benefits to other types of crime (auto theft), Intense intermittent patrol at known hot spots (100% increase in patrol time at hot spots), Yes, there was a modest effect (25% less disorder at hot spots), Identification and analysis of drug hot spots; engagement of business owners and citizens in crime control efforts; increased pressure on open-air markets (through drug enforcement, code enforcement, license regulation), maintained by patrol, Yes, there were consistent and strong impacts in reducing disorder-related emergency calls for service, but there was no impact on violent or property offenses, No evidence of displacement; some evidence of diffusion of benefits to adjacent areas, Enforcement of truancy and curfew laws; high- visibility patrol, with lots of stops and frisks by six to eight officers in areas where gangs hung out, Yes, there were significant reductions in gang violence, Two alternative interventions: 1) increased traffic enforcement on major arteries, with lots of stops of limited duration (general deterrence strategy); 2) traffic stops of suspected gang members and drug dealers, of longer duration, with more investigation and vehicle searches, Yes, the second intervention tactic resulted in significant reductions in gun-related crimes, aggravated assault, and homicide; there were no similar reductions resulting from the first intervention tactic, Little evidence of displacement; no evidence of geographic diffusion of benefits; modest evidence of residual deterrence effects 90 days after intervention, No, evidence of high level of public support both before and after intervention, Intensive enforcement of gun- carrying laws (Terry stops, searches incident to arrest, car stops and searches, plain-view searches,); door-to-door solicitation of tips; police training to interpret gun-carrying cues; field interviews in known gun crime hot spots, Yes, there was a 49% reduction in gun crimes in the target area during the intervention period, compared with the prior 29-week period; there were declines in both drive-by shootings and homicides; there was no apparent effect on total calls for service, other violence calls, property offenses, or disorder; the community became less fearful of crime and more satisfied with the neighborhood, Yes, modest spatial displacement; some evidence of diffusion of benefits to two adjoining beats, Extra dedicated police patrols on high-crime days of week and times of day for 14 weeks; traffic and pedestrian stops and searches; targeting of hot spots and times based on crime analysis, Yes, reduced shots fired by 34% and hospital-treated assault gunshot injuries by 71%, No evidence of temporal or spatial displacement; residual deterrence effects lasted about two weeks, No, no reported citizen complaints against police, Locating, cutting down, and burning marijuana plants; asset seizure and forfeiture; drug enforcement, No (but the methodology limited the findings), Public disorder (street cruising, loud music, and public drinking), Liquor license agents issued citations for open containers and other alcohol violations; local police parked police cars at intersections to monitor cruising; lasted for one month in 10-by-12- block area; no media publicity, Extra police patrols put on subways from 8 PM to 4 AM ; nearly every station and train had a uniformed officer on duty; total transit system police force increased by 250%, Yes, minor offenses and felonies declined significantly due to increased patrol, but at substantial extra cost (about $35,000 per felony crime prevented); there was some question as to whether police reporting procedures accounted for some of the claimed reduction, No displacement; residual deterrence effects for eight months, Robbery, burglary, grand theft, petty theft, auto theft, assault/ battery, sex crimes, and malicious mischief/ disturbances, Yes (there was some evidence that burglary, petty theft, and malicious mischief/disturbances are the most suppressible), Stiffer sanctions for speeding convictions: 30-day license suspensions for first offense, 60 for second, indefinite for third, Not definitive; the overall conclusion was that the crackdown was a substantial enforcement effort, but some of its effects were mitigated in practice, Speeding and other traffic problems, crime, and disorder and blight, Saturation patrol by about 30 officers/agents from various agencies; about 10 times the normal level of police activity in the area; traffic unit focused on traffic problems; alcohol agents worked bars; sheriff's deputies supervised inmates doing community service; traffic arrests increased tenfold; police made highly visible arrests in well-traveled parking lot at major intersection, Yes, there was some evidence of a modest effect on reported crime; unable to measure the effect on traffic crashes (weak evaluation), Regular patrol supplemented by specialized units (10 times the normal level); field interviews; citations; surveillance; arrest of street drug dealers and buyers; high-visibility presence (including setting up a mobile police command post); code enforcement; cleanup; public works repairs; trimming of foliage, Yes, total reported Part I offenses and violent crime declined significantly (by 92%) during the crackdown period and rates were unchanged in the comparison area; Part I property crimes and calls for service declined, but not significantly, No spatial displacement of crimes, but significant displacement of calls for service to adjacent areas; some evidence of diffusion of benefits to adjacent areas; residual deterrence effects lasted about six months, Buy-busts and high police visibility in hot spots with high mobility; vehicle seizures and confiscations; initial crackdown operation never lasted longer than 90 days in an area, but maintenance crackdowns occurred as necessary; initiative claimed to incorporate community involvement and interagency collaboration to address drug market conditions, but there is little evidence this occurred, There was a limited impact; there was an immediate benefit, but conditions returned to normal soon after the TNTs left; there were no measurable effects on public perceptions of crime, quality of life, or police-community relations; there was some increase in fear because drug dealing moved indoors to apartment hallways; there were some positive effects in making drug markets less visible in the target blocks, Yes, some displacement to indoor locations, No, some evidence community was largely unaware of crackdown in their neighbor-hood; community leaders generally supportive of crackdown, Operation Pressure Point (two smaller Pressure Point operations conducted in subsequent years), 240 uniformed officers on foot patrol to disperse crowds; increased arrests; field interviews; warnings and parking tickets; searches; mounted park patrols; canine units to clear buildings; surveillance and buy-busts; anonymous tip lines; raids on dealing locations; asset forfeiture; increased likelihood of conviction and severity of sentences; custodial arrests made instead of citing and releasing; additional responses to address environmental conditions, Yes, the search time for drugs increased; there was a reduction in heroin-related street activity; there were reductions in selected crime rates: burglary (37%), robbery (47%), grand larceny (32%), and homicide (62%); the neighborhood was revitalized; there was an increased demand for drug treatment, Mixed evidence: one study reported no spatial displacement, another reported displacement to other areas in and around city; some evidence of diffusion of benefits to adjacent areas, Observation by four 10-officer teams; arrests for drug dealing, public drinking, etc.