Crime Prevention

History and Theory

National Crime Prevention Council
2006

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 Goal
To provide community leaders, local
government officials, private sector
partners, faith-based organizations, and
others with information on crime
prevention that will enable them to
create safer, more secure, and more
vibrant communities.

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 Objectives
Review the different types of crime prevention
Define crime prevention
Examine the principles of crime prevention
Review the history of crime prevention
Identify the crime prevention strategies you can
use to reduce the opportunities for crime in your
community

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Types of Crime Prevention

• Punitive

• Corrective

• Protective

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Crime Prevention - Punitive

• criminal laws

• law enforcement

• Crime Stoppers

• courts

• jails and prisons

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Crime Prevention - Corrective

• employment

• education

• counseling

• mentoring

• Head Start

• D.A.R.E.

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Crime Prevention - Protective

• Neighborhood
Watch

• Community Policing

• Public Education

• CPTED

• Homeland Security

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Crime Prevention Defined
1972
Crime prevention is the anticipation,
recognition and appraisal of a crime
risk and the initiation of some action
to remove or reduce it.

Source
National Crime Prevention Institute - 1972

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Crime Prevention Triangle
(from a Criminal’s View)

Desire Ability

Opportunity
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 Crime Prevention
• Crime prevention is proactive, rather than
reactive.

• Proactive policing attempts to prevent the

crime from occurring in the first place.

• Reactive policing responds to crime after it

has occurred.

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Crime Prevention is Proactive
It stops crime from happening in the first place.

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 Crime Prevention is Proactive
(Continued)

To view the criminal justice flowchart and to

see the full explanation go to:

www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/flowchart.htm

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 Crime Prevention Defined
1990
Crime prevention is a pattern of attitudes
and behaviors directed at reducing the
threat of crime and enhancing the sense
of safety and security, to positively
influence the quality of life in our society,
and to develop environments where crime
cannot flourish

Source
National Crime Prevention Council - 1990
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 Principles of Crime Prevention
Crime Prevention Is:

• everyone’s business;
• more than security;
• a responsibility of all levels of government;
• linked with solving social problems; and
• cost-effective

Source: National Crime Prevention Council

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 Principles of Crime Prevention
(Continued)
Crime Prevention Requires:

• a central position in law enforcement;

• cooperation among all elements of the community;
• education;
• tailoring to local needs and conditions; and
• continual testing and improvement

Source: National Crime Prevention Council

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 Crime Prevention

Improves the quality of life

for every community.

Source: National Crime Prevention Council

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 Techniques of
Situational Prevention
Increase the Effort
Increase the Risks
Reduce the Rewards
Reduce Provocations
Remove Excuses

Source: Ronald V. Clarke and John Eck (2003)

View the complete resource at
www.popcenter.org

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Community Policing Defined
Community Policing is an organization-wide
philosophy and management approach that
promotes partnerships, proactive problem
solving, and community engagement to
address the causes of crime, fear of crime,
and other community issues.

Source: Community Policing Initiative - 1990s

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 Sir Robert Peel
Considered a “father” of law enforcement

Are his principles of

policing still
applicable today?

Absolutely!

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 Sir Robert Peel’s
Nine Principles of Policing
1. The basic mission for which the police exist is to
prevent crime and disorder.

2. The ability of the police to perform their duties is

dependent upon public approval of police actions.

3. Police must secure the willing cooperation of the

public in voluntary observance of the law to be able
to secure and maintain the respect of the public.

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 Sir Robert Peel’s
Nine Principles of Policing (Continued)

4. The degree of cooperation of the public that can be

secured diminishes proportionally to the necessity
of the use of force.
5. Police seek and preserve public favor not by
catering to public opinion but by constantly
demonstrating absolute impartial service to the law.
6. Police use physical force to the extent necessary to
secure observance of the law or to restore order
only when the expertise of persuasion, advice and
warning is found to be insufficient.

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 Sir Robert Peel’s
Nine Principles of Policing (Continued)
7. Police at all time should maintain a relationship with the public
that gives reality to the historic tradition; the police are public
and the public are the police. The police being only full-time
individuals charged with the duties that are incumbent on all of
the citizens.

8. Police should always direct their actions strictly towards their

functions and never appear to usurp the powers of the
judiciary.

9. The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and

disorder, not the visible evidence of police action in dealing
with it.

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Opportunities to Commit Crime

I can reduce the major crime rate in Hopetown,

U.S.A. by 10 percent by implementing a crime
prevention policy that does not involve any
law enforcement participation?

What crime is it?

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Opportunities to Commit Crime
(Continued)

What type of crime prevention is this?

How do we reduce the opportunity?

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Crime Prevention Strategies

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 Crime Prevention Programs

Personal safety •CPTED

Robbery prevention •Neighborhood Watch
School safety •McGruff House
Workplace safety •Operation Identification
Auto theft prevention •And many others

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Communities

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 Communities
Start a Neighborhood Watch program.
Institute community beautification projects.
Organize voluntary resident patrols.
Demonstrate against landlords who rent property
to drug dealers.
Make young people part of your neighborhood
improvement activities.
Organize annual community events.
Make sure the local newspaper covers good
news about your neighborhood.
Start a McGruff House program for children and
youth.

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Apartments
and
Condos

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 Apartment/Condo Safety
Start an Apartment Watch program.
Organize citizen patrols.
Publish newsletters that update residents on
news about crime and community activities, and
that recognize residents.
Start a McGruff House program.
Organize annual events.

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Schools

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Safer Schools – Parents
Take an active role in your children's school.
Act as role models.
Set clear limits on behaviors in advance.
Communicate clearly on violence issues.
Help your children learn how to find solutions to
problems.
Insist on knowing your children’s friends.
Work with other parents to develop standards for
school-related events.
Support school policies and rules that help create
and sustain safety.
Join with other parents to talk about violence and to
discuss prevention.

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Safer Schools – Principals
Reward good behavior.
Establish “zero tolerance” policies for weapons and
violence.
Establish a faculty-student committee to develop a
safety plan.
Work with juvenile justice authorities, community
groups, and law enforcement on a safety plan.
Offer training in anger management and other
violence prevention skills.
Involve every group within the school community in
crafting solutions to violence.
Involve parents.
Develop and sustain a network with health care,
mental health, and social work resources in the
community.

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Safer Schools – Students
Refuse to bring weapons to school.
Report any crime or suspicious behavior
immediately.
Learn how to manage your anger.
Help others settle disputes peaceably.
Set up a teen court.
Become a peer counselor.
Mentor a younger student.
Start a school crime watch.
Ask each student activity or club to adopt an
anti-violence theme.
Start a “peace pledge” campaign.
Welcome new students and help them feel at home
in your school.

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Safer Schools – Teachers
Set norms for behavior in your classroom.
Invite parents to talk with you about their children.
Learn how to recognize warning signs that a child
may be headed for violence.
Encourage and sponsor student-led antiviolence
activities.
Offer to serve on a team to develop and implement
a safety plan.
Enforce school polices that seek to reduce violence.
Learn and teach conflict resolution and anger
management skills.
Incorporate discussions on violence and prevention
in the curriculum.

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Workplace

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 Workplace Safety
Post evacuation plans in highly visible locations.
Train employees in evacuation procedures.
Include revocation of security privileges in
termination procedures.
Make fire extinguishers, first aid kits, and
emergency preparedness kits readily available.
Place keys and other personal items in a secure
location.
Protect computer equipment from surges.
Protect fixed and portable computers from theft.
Make sure smoke detectors, fire alarms, and
sprinkler systems are installed and working.

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Identity Theft and
Cyber Safety

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 Identity Theft
Don’t give out personal information over the phone.
Shred all documents.
Don’t use your mother’s maiden name as a
password.
Minimize the identification information and the
number of cards you carry.
Don’t carry your Social Security card, birth
certificate, or passport with you, unless absolutely
necessary.
Don’t put your telephone number or Social Security
number on checks.
Be careful when using ATM and phone cards.
Pay attention to your billing cycles.

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 Cyber Safety
Never give out your name and personal information
to others online.
Don’t send personal information over the Internet, by
email, or over cellular phones.
Don’t use passwords that are obvious.
Avoid break-ins by changing your password regularly
and memorizing it.
Never agree to meet face-to-face with someone
you’ve met online.
Never respond to messages from unfamiliar persons.
Look for web pages that have a proper title, additional
resources, or a person that you are able to contact.
Know who are the authors or sponsors of the site.

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Questions
and
Answers

41
Portions of this presentation are provided by

Patrick D. Harris
Executive Director
Virginia Crime Prevention Association
1405 Westover Hills Blvd., Suite 6
Richmond, VA 23225
804-231-3800 FAX: 804-231-3900
email: vaprevent@aol.com
website: vcpa.org

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The National Crime Prevention
Council

1000 Connecticut Avenue, NW

Thirteenth Floor
Washington, DC 20036-5325
202-466-6272
202-296-1356 fax
www.ncpc.org

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Presenter Contact Information

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