Community policing and its effectiveness

Community Policing

The end of the 20th century has seen vast changes in almost all spheres of human activity. Today the state, living and information have undergone vast changes both in the concept and definition. Availability of a number of opportunities, change in lifestyle and upward mobility of the people as a whole has given rise to new genera of crime and therefore the modern state requires better policing. The earlier police state was such that the people were 'policed' by the agency which was active at the time of an occurrence. Today the policing have to be in terms of preventing and arresting the crime before it happened. The police state is slowly giving way. There is more public participation in governance. Community policing as a method of curtailing crime is being adopted by the police forces all over the globe. This change will redefine the roles and the methods how the police officers will do their jobs and also in a new manner which will necessitate new psychological training and readjustment. (Skogan; Hartnett, 1997)

The Police as a force has wrested control to the department from the political bosses and have evolved over the years the platform for this change. In the last century the reactive and incident-driven policing model had evolved, and community policing is involved in preventing crime which calls for more participation and involvement. (Skogan; Hartnett, 1997) the importance of the community being involved and supporting the police force not in the detection or general duties, but in controlling crime by preempting it is very important today more than ever, because of the demands on the police force and the nature of crimes which have grown in different arenas than the beaten path. Community policing is a new concept with a short history.

Historical background of the programs

According to Weatheritt community policing is not a single identifiable concept. It involves rapid action by many agencies which merge together to enforce a program of crime control. The process involves the public in the working of programs like neighborhood watches and efficient communication. In the United States during the 1970s, 'community policing' began as a good will building measure between the citizens and the forces. This was then extended to patrols, reducing fear and evolving some kind of social control. This seemed to work in homogenous communities. (Fielding, 1995) for a simple illustration, we can consider the Chicago city. Community policing was t6ried out in Chicago on April 29, 1993: The policy was called CAPS an acronym for Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy. This involved reorganization of the police force, and redefine its relationship with the residents. The foundation for the transformation began with the city council which was pressurized into doing something on account of the racial violence, crime rates and the forthcoming elections. So far back in 1991, the Mayor brought about the concept and the idea of community policing was imposed on the police and the people. (Skogan; Hartnett, 1997)

That is an illustrative case where public opinion and the civic bodies determine to have such a system. The theorists have been arguing on the issue for quite a long time. In fact the theories of the social systems including community policing owes its roots to the Community Action Program of the 1960s. Communities organized projects which later evolved into community development corporations. These companies are into "housing and neighborhood revitalization, with an elaborate network of intermediary institutions to support them at the local, state, and national levels." (Sirianni; Friedland, 2001) There are more than 200 such groups in one hundred cities and it is this force that set the community activity and furthers the community policing concept in motion. (Sirianni; Friedland, 2001)

The important shift comes in the very definition of the capitalist state, which by definition plays the important role of the protector. For two centuries the state had absolute monopoly of the enforcement of law and this concept is a result of a paradigm shift. Increasingly the changes in the nature of the state itself have given rise to more public participation in its affairs, with the limitations of the state becoming more apparent. Thus the concept of state sovereignty based on the power of enforcement and political power is slowly being replaced from the last few decades with a volatile situation. (Crawford, 1999) if we examine the Chicago program CAPS actually worked we understand that back in 1990s, when the concept was mooted, the organizers were aware that the public would respond to the generic problems if given an opportunity to express themselves. The CAPS service request was a design that elicited this response. Thus the coordination responsibility began to be shared jointly by the police; local businesses, established community leaders and representatives. (Skogan; Hartnett, 1997)

Innovations and use of technology

The information age has brought in many new gadgets and concepts that can help individuals fight crime. One is the identification or tagging a suspect through the video pictures, and another is the use of the media like the internet and the TV to get at suspects. The second use of technology is the advances system of surveillance that can protect citizens and also preempt crime. This development is unique and requires the active consent and participation of the community. The people do not mind being watched on camera, according to the results of surveys conducted by observers and researchers. In 1992 a public survey result showed that ninety two percent of respondents welcome camera surveillance. Not only in the U.S. But in the UK surveys at Brighton, Cambridge, and Glasgow showed that sixty four percent of people did not mind being watched on camera. The general supposition is that it prevents ventures by criminal elements. (Norris; Armstrong, 1999)

Community policing can thus be effective with advanced technology. For example in the on San Francisco public housing development there are over one hundred and seventy eight video cameras. The advance in technology enables anyone to set up surveillance from any where. Today surveillance has gone digital and has a wider application. The company bosses watch employers. The pictures of a person's home can be viewed from sites offering satellite images. The police dogs in New York also have cameras attached. The culture of the state is being transformed to include being spied upon. In UK an individual is captured on camera about three hundred times in a day. There are many authors who have documented the fact that western society is today the most watched society by governments, security agencies and private cameras and equipment. (Mcgrath, 2004) This will be the most enabling feature of community policing.

Analysis of data or critical examination of researches

The sympathy of the people with the victims of police violence first causes them to band together and then form the next code that automatically creates the stage for community vigilance. Police violence has resulted in large scale unrest and the research that used the data for Toronto, New York City which was analyzed to see public reaction to police actions and the result was that it was not even reported by the press. (Hale; Ross, 2000)

Evaluations, Theory and Innovations, alternative and impact

The neighborhood watch which arises from the fear of crime is often on the agenda of politicians and by turning it to a civic duty the citizen is brought on par with the police. "The neighborhood watch is put forward as one of the central vehicles through which collective community action may be coordinated and expressed by 'active' citizens." (Kurke; Scrivner, 1995) the sociological models of the state which have contrasting views like crime is the action that fragments a community and arguments by people like Conklin that both crime and fear go hand in hand which ultimately makes the community powerless to involve itself in any constructive program. Emile Durkheim argues on the contrary and advocates that crime actually unifies the community and bringing to gather the members strengthens them by creating a bond which helps fight crime. (Kurke; Scrivner, 1995)

In either case the strengthening of the community by curtailing crime is shown to be of paramount importance and this is important. However these theories describe the expectations but not the actual way of organizing the community. To create the community practice, Weil, Mondros and Wilson have set out several components that are crucial for proper community based activities including the policing activity. This can be listed as defining specific roles for all concerned the staff, participants and the authorities, a proper goal to be achieved by the units, and the process of selecting and attending to the relevant and pressing issues. The members also have to have a deep understanding of the community and the changes in the community. (Hardina, 2002)

The government and the law are inseparable and a decentralized version of administration will change the relationship of the departments and the people and government. The government role will be diminished in perspective with regard to petty issues. In an argument against this decentralization it is argued that "diminishing their importance would erode the privatized feel that now dominates the exercise of city power in America and, thereby, affect the life of every metropolitan resident." (Frug, 1999) it is argued that the community policing will create 'city power' which will be the forerunner of the decentralization of power to American cities. This would in the long run help the cities improve and become safe with more interaction between the citizens and in common aims. This will result also in community building. The police department which is more isolated from the public and views issues as 'us' and them angles will become more humane and cooperative in peaceful policing methods.

Community policing as a method of curtailing crime is being adopted by the police forces all over the globe. Even where the state and police show reluctance the local people form organizations that either cause vigilant watch over the community or take to following up the actions done by police in sensational cases. This concept has caught on in most of the world and now cases as old as 26 years are being reopened in the light of fresh evidence coming to light on account of individual and community activity. This change will redefine the roles and the methods how the police officers will do their jobs and also in a new manner which will necessitate new psychological training and readjustment. The Police as a force has wrested control to the department from the political bosses and have evolved over the years the platform for this change.