Problem Oriented Policing

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Problem Oriented Policing Problem-oriented policing presents an alternative approach to policing that has gained attention in recent years among many police agencies. Problem-oriented policing grew out of twenty years of research into police practices, and differs from traditional policing strategies in four significant ways. · First, problem-oriented policing enables police agencies to be more effective. Currently, police agencies commit most of their time to responding to calls for service. Problem-oriented policing offers a more effective strategy by addressing the underlying conditions that prompt calls for service. Often, many of the calls for service are related and, if grouped together, disclose a pattern of activity or behavior that presents a more accurate picture of the condition that prompted the calls in the first place. Problem-oriented policing offers police agencies a model for addressing the underlying conditions that created and cause other problems of concern to the community. · Second, problem-oriented policing recognizes the expertise that line officers have developed in their police careers, and allows them to use this expertise to study problems and develop creative solutions to those problems. Experience in departments around the country has shown that line officers are capable of contributing much more to the resolution of crime and other community problems than what we presently ask of them. Officers engaged in problem-oriented policing have expressed greater job satisfaction and exhibited a keener interest in their work. · Third, problem-oriented policing entails a greater and closer involvement by the public in police work. Communities must be consulted to ensure that police are addressing the... ... middle of paper ... ... group, which would keep the department informed of abandoned vehicles. This would keep the costs down and allow the officers to spend their time on other projects as well. Bibliography: Kelling, George L. and Wilson, James Q. (1982) "Broken Windows: The Police and Neighborhood Safety." Published in the Atlantic Monthly. Oliver, William. (1998). Community-Oriented Policing: A Systemic Approach to Policing (Second edition 2001). New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc. http://www.cjcj.org. [Internet Website]. "Shattering Broken Windows." http://npcr.org/reports/npcr1142/npcr1142.doc. [Internet Website]. "Community Oriented Policing Evaluation in the Seward Neighborhood." By Paul Hannah http://www.ojip.usdoj.gov/nij. [Internet Website]. "Crime and Place: Plenary Papers of the 1997 Conference on Criminal Justice Research and Evaluation."

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