Crime Reduction and Police Foor Patrols

This study investigates the impact of police foot patrols on crime reduction in the Oakland (California) central business district over the period 1990-1998. Literature relevant to the investigation of this problem is reviewed in this chapter. Information and data specific to the foot patrol program in Oakland and its impact on the incidence of crime are not reported or reviewed in this chapter. Such information and data are reported and analyzed in Chapter IV of this study.

Policing: Historical Background & Development

The use of personnel especially designated to enforce laws and maintain orderùpoliceùis a relatively recent phenomenon. In medieval England, as an example, an agent of the crown called the reeve (the forerunner of the sheriff) primarily served warrants and collected taxes. Law and order was enforced by ordinary citizens, who responded when the hue and cry was raised by a victim or witness (Olmos, 1994).

As many ordinary citizens would not respond to the hue and cry, many persons of means hired third parties to act as watch and ward over their property and personal safety. The modern field of policing evolved from this watch and ward practice. The establishment of a hired police force tended to separate law enforcers from the ordinary citizen, and the adoption of a military model by th

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nforcement initiative targeting victimization (Stephens, 1994). In pro-active cultures, care is taken to see that all citizens take part or are well represented in building a consensus of support for laws, and all citizens are taught and socialized and re-socialized from birth to obey these laws. In reactive societies, laws are often the product of group conflict, and since there is often disagreement about the law, little socializationùor even contradictory socializationùoccurs. Thus, the individual is confused about what is expected, or is even socialized to disobey both the law and supposed societal norms. Society's only contribution in such an environment is to punish the violator if captured and convicted, and even this action generally is ineffective (Stephens, 1994). While the prospects for the control of crime appear bleak, there are approaches that offer hope. An important suggestion is to move from what Stephens (1994) referred to as a "war" model to a "peace" model in the approach to the control of crime (p. 27). Under the current approach to dealing with crime, police "treat a community as if it were enemy territory: They drive around it in patrol cars looking for troublemakers to arrest; friendly contact with t
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Approximate Word count = 8120
Approximate Pages = 32 (250 words per page)