Reducing Crime through Restoring Community: Findings from a Police-University Partnership

Background and Purpose: The efficacy of community-oriented policing interventions warrants closer investigation given the current sociopolitical climate surrounding law enforcement-citizen interactions. This study examines the impact of Restore Rundberg, a comprehensive crime reduction intervention that targeted a historically disadvantaged district in an urban, Southwestern city.

Though accounting for only 5% of total residents, the 5.74 square-mile Rundberg district accounted for 11% of all violent crime and 34% of all prostitution incidents citywide in 2012. The median income household income in the area is less than half of the citywide average. Ninety-five percent of enrolled students are classified as economically disadvantaged. Cultural barriers between the police and the population, which includes a large number of recent Mexican, Central American, and North African immigrants, have compromised previous efforts to engage residents to assist in crime reduction efforts.

Methods: Three crime hot spots in Rundberg were identified via an analysis of aggregated Police Department crime incidents from 2007 to 2013. The analysis focused on homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, theft and auto theft. Based on the qualitative reports from officers and neighbors on the social and physical environmental dynamics of the area, property crime in large commercial spaces (e.g., supermarket, discount retailer) was removed to highlight the areas of greatest concern to the stakeholders. The research team also examined potential seasonal effects of crime, as well as crime displacement or diffusion effects over three years. The identified micro-geographies accounted for 21% of all crime within the Rundberg area in the year prior to Operation Mobile Walking Beat, the primary community policing intervention.

Between April 2014 and April 2015, foot and bike patrols of approximately 6 to 8 officers rotated across the three hot spots in four 6-hour shifts weekly. Community and patrol data was merged with the daily crime incidents and calls for service using an integrated geographic information systems database. The displacement of crime and diffusion of benefits were measured relative to community assets to support law enforcement strategy and track intervention progress.

Findings: During the 12 months of Operation Mobile Walking Beat, the targeted hot spots experienced an overall reduction of violent and property crime of 15% and 11%, respectively, as compared to the 12 months prior to the intervention. The entire district experienced a reduction in reported incidents, providing evidence of diffusion of crime, with a reduction in violent crime for the entire grant area of 2.4% and a reduction in property crime of 7%. Review of mapped crime data indicates a reduction of crime density in two hot spots and no change in one hot spot.    

Conclusion and Implications: Findings highlight the potential for community-oriented policing strategies to reduce crime through mitigating location-specific risk factors and enhancing citizen engagement with law enforcement. The Restore Rundberg project may also serve as a model for effective police-researcher collaborations.