Is Community Policing More Talk Than Reality?

The philosophy behind community policing recognizes that the members of a community are important and engaging them in law enforcement activities could help to lower crime rate. It is overwhelming when police officers have to carry out their law enforcement duties and still answer to community policing calls for service. However, this gridlock comes about because there lacks a perspective when it comes community policing. Viewing community policing as a partnership between the members of public and law enforcement officers can be a great way to overcome these challenges (Lawrence, & McCarthy, 2013). In such a

Law Enforcement officers have one of the most critical jobs in the United States. Their lives are always on the line and they are of high regards. This means they cannot fail! The results of their jobs do not only depend on their actions but also on the people. What this means is the community has a huge role when it comes to solving crime. Though many people may not believe it, they are the key to a successful crime prevention community. The people of the United States don’t really understand both the positive and negative effects that community policing actually brings. Some may say it is very dangerous based on their experiences. Others may say it’s the best way to do away with crime. Today the two will be compared and put to test by true officers serving our country. The facts will be stated and questions will be answered. Let’s take a look at what community policing is really all about!

Over time the policing community has faced many different changes to be able to keep up with the new times. The system has adapted many new techniques and a different approach to how they solve problems. Community policing has taken on a number of definition, but put simply it is a working partnership with a community that helps make the area a better environment to subside in. The main goals of community policing is to reduce neighborhood crime, help reduce fear of crime and enhance the quality of life in the community. The United States Department of Justice has defined community policing as a philosophy that “focuses on crime and social disorder through the delivery of police services that includes aspects of traditional law enforcement, as well as prevention, problem-solving, community engagement, and partnerships.” However, community policing can be looked at as not so much a strategy, but a philosophy about how things should be done. According to The Unites States Department of Justice “At its core, community-oriented policing is based on law enforcement and the community joining together to identify and address issues of crime and social disorder.” With new advances and community oriented policing, law enforcement is taking steps in the right direction.

Community policing started in the 1980s when agencies started to move away from a crime-fighting model. This model is based on establishing partnerships with and in the community, including officers and citizens. This was largely based on the fact that through the previous model agencies noticed that they were losing touch with the very communities they had been sworn to protect (Cox, 2014). This method is important to society because it encompasses both officers and private citizens. It gives everyone the chance to have input on policing. It brings support through and with the people of a community together for a common goal.

The Department of Justice COPS Office states Community Oriented Policing is a policing philosophy that promotes and supports organizational strategies to address the causes and reduce the fear of crime and social disorder through problem-solving tactics and police-community partnerships.

How effective is community policing? Community policing has several different definitions. In this paper I will prove that community policing is effective by defining, community policing as the police and citizens coming together to create a safe community, stop crime and resolve problems and also urgently responding to the community. Throughout many years, the people’s view of community policing have remained the same. There are some valid causes as to why law enforcement leaders consider that it is time to change the way policing labors so that they are effectively helping the community. The way that community policing was trained in the past is not necessarily efficient in today’s society. For example, catastrophes in our communities continue to increase the need for security, citizens loose the feeling of protection and wellbeing, and this can be fixed by presenting advanced policing strategies. Law enforcement leaders are beginning to recognize that they must accept the responsibility for the safety of their communities. Community policing is as a law enforcement tactic enforced to progress a stronger connection between the police and the community.

Would you let a robber break into a family member’s or close friend’s house? If you knew everyone in your neighbor and felt connected with them would you feel safer? Would you like more community awareness or to know that the police are concerned with citizens’ problems and concerns not just incidents? These are questions to think about when you are considering community policing. How do you want the police involved in your community? What would make you feel safe in your home and neighbor? In this paper I will be giving you information about community policing and comparing it to our current traditional approach in hopes that the city council will help with the money needed to apply for a federal community policing grant.

Community policing is a policy and a strategy aimed at achieving more effective and efficient crime control, reduced fear of crime, improved quality of life, improved police services and police legitimacy, through a proactive reliance on community resources that seeks to change crime causing conditions. This assumes a need for greater accountability of police, greater public share in decision-making and greater concern for civil rights and liberties.

Community Policing is an area of discussion that has become more and more important. While more cities, states, and countries are beginning to pick up on community policing, it does not mean they are fully succeeding. The police have a hard time constantly trying to prove themselves to the community. While they try to better their department and the relationship that is shared, they also try to build a community policing aspect (Jenkins, 2016). With this commitment to the community, solving problems becomes due to the reestablishment of the relationship (Martin, 2015). The background of this study will break down if police activity prevents community policing today.

Community policing as a concept is mainly about allowing the community a voice in determining the priorities law enforcement. Allen & Sawhney (2015) defines community police as collaborative effort between police and the community they serve to customize the delivery of police services (p. 307). In order to utilize the community policing approach, it is important for agencies to have a strong bond and trust with the community they serve. Without this trust, creative policing innovations fall short. Despite what shortcomings the approach to policing may have for law enforcement, the popularity of community led or community based policing is on the rise in America. American law enforcement as an industry faces a never-ending public relations crisis, especially during the onset of tough on crime approaches prevalent in of the last forty years. Within the two decades, community police strategies based on bringing key stakeholders together to

Departments are reaching to explore community policing, due to the failures of traditional polices within our society. To help bridge the gaps of the

How effective is community policing? Community policing has several different definitions. In this paper I will prove that community policing is effective by defining, community policing as the police and citizens coming together to create a safe community, stop crime and resolve problems and also urgently responding to the community. Throughout many years, the people’s view of community policing have remained the same. There are some valid causes as to why law enforcement leaders consider that it is time to change the way policing labors so that they are effectively helping the community. The way that community policing was trained in the past is not necessarily efficient in today’s society. For example, catastrophes in our communities continue to increase the need for security, citizens loose the feeling of protection and wellbeing, and this can be fixed by presenting advanced policing strategies. Law enforcement leaders are beginning to recognize that they must accept the responsibility for the safety of their communities. Community policing is as a law enforcement tactic enforced to progress a stronger connection between the police and the community.

This paper will discuss community policing and its effectiveness throughout the United States, to include the development of community policing; the essential components of community policing, how community policing principles and methods are used, and how prevalent community policing is through the United States. Community policing is an effective model that can reduce crime while allowing the police to form partnerships with citizens and communities. The communities that have embraced community policing enjoy good relationships with the police and have lower crime rates than areas that have only traditional policing methods in

Over the decades, the role of police has been drastically changed from the more traditional philosophy of policing towards agencies adopting the community based policing model. Traditional policing was established to introduced reactive patrols to which they would respond to criminal activity after it occurred rather than trying to prevent the crime before it happened (cite book pg. 181). Furthermore, the introduction of reactive policing establishes a rapid response model to criminal incidents became the basis for evaluating the successfulness of police in regulating crime (cite book pg 181). Traditional policing supports the crime fighting role rather than engaging and getting involved with the community they are policing, this is where the basis of community based policing is established. Community based policing attempts to build trust between the police and the communities to benefits the citizens by gathering information that will in time prevent crime before it occurs. Moreover, building trust and becoming integrated with the communities reducing fears of the police and overall diminishes cynicism towards officers (cite book pg 181). Community based policing better satisfies the needs of citizens within all communities, rather than the traditional approach of the past.

Community policing emerged as a response to Wilson and Kelling’s broken windows theory in 1982 (Kappeler, 2006). The need for aloof and/or aggressive officers was diminishing and the need for empathic and progressive officers was born. With the broken windows theory, the lines between police and its community needed to be blurred in order to prevent and discourage decay; empowerment in neighborhoods encouraged, and; responsibility shared for the communities (Kappeler, 2006). The goal of community policing is to bring police and citizens together to solve problems (broken windows) and deter crime before it happens. The concept of community policing is to put control over the quality of the community back into the hands of the citizens by making the police personable, approachable and nearby.