The Problem ▸
It has long been recognized that law enforcement alone cannot prevent crime and make communities safe. Contemporary thinking suggests that crime and violence prevention must be a co-production between law enforcement agencies, the community they serve, and other parts of the criminal justice system, such as prosecutors and corrections. Because of the crucial role that law enforcement plays, it must — like other bedrock institutions — be carefully monitored to reduce the negative impact its actions have on the community and individuals. Much of policing focuses on reactive strategies such as stops, citations, and arrests, which can have a negative impact and create secondary harm to social structures and community stability. Collaboration is crucial to the effectiveness of programs and policies that touch so many lives, and strategies that strengthen police-community partnerships can reduce crime and victimization while also minimizing the collateral harm of over-policing and punitive criminal justice responses.
Report Sections ▸
Research has found that when communities have more nonprofit organizations focused on reducing violence and building strong communities, there is less violent and property crime.[1] [2] Access to mental healthcare and substance abuse treatment[3] [4], and affordable housing programs[5] have also been associated with decreased crime and violence. Investing in the physical environment can also reduce property and violent crime. Studies have documented correlations between physical improvements — such as increased green space[6] [7] [8], reductions in vacant lots[9] [10], and increased street lighting[11] [12] — with lower crime and greater perceptions of safety.
Community-based violence prevention programs should be designed to fit the demographics, type of violence, and risk and protective factors of the community it is being implemented.[26] [27] Programs often include a variety of strategies such as social and professional development, intervention, outreach and engagement, counseling and therapy, case management, and financial support. Programs must also be sensitive and flexible in identifying and engaging the stakeholders and influential community leaders. Stakeholders can include clergy, elders, community activists, and athletes.
It remains unclear which components of violence prevention programs lead to success. A meta-evaluation of community policing suggests that these strategies improve public satisfaction, perceptions of disorder, and police legitimacy, but have limited effects on crime and fear of crime.[28] Another meta-analysis of problem-oriented policing suggests that it reduces crime and disorder, but has a limited impact on police legitimacy, fear of crime, and collective efficacy. Given inconsistencies in current research findings, best practices for violence prevention programs should include:
- Tailoring to local problems
- Identification of problems, informed by a variety of stakeholders
- Clear definition of strategies that are supported by research and are implemented with high fidelity to program design
- Consistent funding for programs shown to be effective
Violence interruption programs focus on intervening in violence, mediating conflict, and preventing violence through outreach, strengthening anti-violence norms, and building positive peer relationships. Although program evaluations have been generally positive, success depends on local implementation and context. Research findings on this approach are mixed. Some implementations found reductions in shootings, homicides, and assaults, while others found no impact or an increase in violence.[29] [30] [31] Other programs based on mentorship, cognitive behavioral therapy, professional development, financial incentives, and community-based crisis response have been effective in reducing violence and may even have positive spillover effects.[32] [33] [34] [35] Hospital-based violence intervention programs, which focus on intervening while an individual is in the hospital as a result of a violent injury, have been found to reduce violent reinjury, violent crime arrests, and convictions. [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [41]
The co-production of public safety through police-community partnerships is essential for safe and healthy communities. Several programs focused on developing strong partnerships had positive impacts. For example, Project ROAR focused on developing inter-agency collaboration (comprised of tenants, social service agency and housing authority staff, business owners, politicians and policymakers, and police) to empower public housing tenants to improve their quality of life. An evaluation found that residents’ perceptions of the quality of their neighborhood life, police services, and decreased crime improved.[42] Other programs involving a variety of strategies have demonstrated that strong police-community partnerships can both reduce both crime and strengthen police-community relations. [43] [44] [45] [46] [47] [48] [49]
Over the last several decades, police agencies across the United States have invested in proactive strategies to prevent and reduce violent crime in their jurisdictions.[52] A number of research evaluations have examined the impact of these strategies on reducing violence (see McManus et al., 2020 for review). The available evidence suggests that police-led strategies designed with a focus on specific repeat places, people, and behaviors that contribute to violence can be particularly effective in reducing overall violent crime. For example, hot spot policing focuses police resources on the most crime-ridden micro-locations within a city. Substantial research demonstrates crime reductions in areas receiving additional police attention. This approach can also produce crime prevention benefits that spread to areas adjacent to the micro-locations targeted for the intervention.[53] A growing body of scholarly research has also demonstrated that focused deterrence, an offender-focused violence reduction strategy, also significantly reduces violent crime.[54] Similarly, Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a DOJ-developed, offender-focused approach that emphasizes enforcement, deterrence, and prevention, has also been observed to reduce violence across communities.[55] While these and other police-led violence reduction strategies have shown significant short-term reductions in violence, long-term impact has been elusive, leading many to advocate for the increased implementation of community-led approaches.[56]
Community-led approaches to violence intervention mobilize a variety of community stakeholders and multi-disciplinary resources to address violent crime.[57][58][59] The role of the police in community-led strategies varies widely, with some initiatives operating independently from the police, while others have the police as one of many partners.[60][61] There are strengths and weaknesses to each of these approaches. However, many argue that collaborative partnerships between public health and public safety in addressing violence offer the greatest chance for success.[62][63][64] When compared to police-led violence reduction strategies, there is less overall evidence for the effectiveness of community-led initiatives in reducing violence. The available research suggests promising community-led violence intervention strategies, particularly when implemented with a high level of model fidelity and stakeholder collaboration is achieved. However, more research is needed before strong conclusions on the impact of community-led violence reduction interventions can be made.[65]
Improve Community-Driven Violence Prevention Programs
Community-driven violence prevention and intervention strategies must be developed to supplement policing efforts. These should be data-driven, tailored to neighborhood needs, and focused on at-risk individuals. Community-based violence prevention programs should be evaluated for a variety of performance metrics, including changes in community perceptions (such as fear of crime and police-community relations) and disproportionate impacts on racial and ethnic minorities.
Violence Prevention Strategies Must Include Resources and Services
Whether operated by law enforcement or community-based programs, violence prevention strategies must provide resources and services to deter at-risk individuals from crime. Communities should be involved in developing strategies and programs, such as focused deterrence, which connects offenders with social, community, and economic resources and sources necessary for deterance, while still ensuring offender accountability.
Support Community Programs and Research Their Effectiveness
Community-led, community-based public-health approaches to reducing violence, including capacity-building, should be well supported. More research to reduce crime and the fear of crime without reliance on justice-system interventions and punitive measures is needed.
Further Research ▸
More research is needed to identify community violence prevention strategies that have the greatest impact on a range of public safety and community well-being indicators. For instance, some research has pointed to the importance of community buy-in, funding, community leadership, and adequate staffing.[50]
Community-based violence intervention programs should be assessed for long-term sustainability, particularly for multi-site programs. Factors such as variations in program fidelity, shifts in resources, incomplete buy-in, and conflicting priorities can interfere with effective implementation.[51]
Research should evaluate whether community-based violence intervention programs or hospital-based intervention programs improve racial disparities in access to services, programs, and other resources.
Citations ▸
[1] Sharkey, P., Torrats-Espinosa, G., & Takyar, D. (2017). Community and the crime decline: The causal effect of local nonprofits on violent crime. American Sociological Review, 82(6), 1214-1240.
[2] Zimmerman, E. B., Woolf, S. H., & Haley, A. (2015). Understanding the relationship between education and health: A review of the evidence and an examination of community perspectives. Population health: Behavioral and social science insights. Rockville (MD): Agency for Health-care Research and Quality, 347-84.
[3] Bondurant, S. R., Lindo, J. M., & Swensen, I. D. (2018). Substance abuse treatment centers and local crime. Journal of Urban Economics, 104, 124-133.
[4] Deza, M., Maclean, J. C., & Solomon, K. (2021). Local access to mental healthcare and crime. Journal of Urban Economics, 103410.
[5] Freedman, M., & Owens, E. G. (2011). Low-income housing development and crime. Journal of Urban Economics, 70(2-3), 115-131; Roy, L., Crocker, A. G., Nicholls, T. L., Latimer, E. A., & Ayllon, A. R. (2014). Criminal behavior and victimization among homeless individuals with severe mental illness: A systematic review. Psychiatric services, 65(6), 739-750.
[6] Garvin, E. C., Cannuscio, C. C., & Branas, C. C. (2013). Greening vacant lots to reduce violent crime: A randomised controlled trial. Injury Prevention, 19(3), 198-203.
[7] Heinze, J. E., Krusky‐Morey, A., Vagi, K. J., Reischl, T. M., Franzen, S., Pruett, N. K., ... & Zimmerman, M. A. (2018). Busy streets theory: The effects of community‐engaged greening on violence. American Journal of Community Psychology, 62(1-2), 101-109.
[8] Kuo, F. E., & Sullivan, W. C. (2001). Environment and crime in the inner city: Does vegetation reduce crime? Environment and Behavior, 33(3), 343-367.
[9] Branas, C. C., South, E., Kondo, M. C., Hohl, B. C., Bourgois, P., Wiebe, D. J., & MacDonald, J. M. (2018). Citywide cluster randomized trial to restore blighted vacant land and its effects on violence, crime, and fear. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 115(12), 2946-2951.
[10] Moyer, R., MacDonald, J. M., Ridgeway, G., & Branas, C. C. (2019). Effect of remediating blighted vacant land on shootings: A citywide cluster randomized trial. American Journal of Public health, 109(1), 140-144.
[11] Chalfin, A., Hansen, B., Lerner, J., & Parker, L. (2021). Reducing crime through environmental design: Evidence from a randomized experiment of street lighting in New York City. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 1-31.
[12] Farrington, D. P., & Welsh, B. C. (2002). Improved street lighting and crime prevention. Justice Quarterly, 19(2), 313-342.
[13] Davis, J. M., & Heller, S. B. (2020). Rethinking the benefits of youth employment programs: The heterogeneous effects of summer jobs. Review of Economics and Statistics, 102(4), 664-677.
[14] Modestino, A. S. (2019). How do summer youth employment programs improve criminal justice outcomes, and for whom? Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 38(3), 600-628.
[15] Rhew, I. C., Hawkins, J. D., Murray, D. M., Fagan, A. A., Oesterle, S., Abbott, R. D., & Catalano, R. F. (2016). Evaluation of community-level effects of Communities That Care on adolescent drug use and delinquency using a repeated cross-sectional design. Prevention Science, 17(2), 177-187.
[16] Augimeri, L. K., Walsh, M., Donato, A., Blackman, A., & Piquero, A. R. (2018). SNAP (Stop Now And Plan): Helping children improve their self-control and externalizing behavior problems. Journal of Criminal Justice, 56, 43-49.
[17] Heller, S. B., Shah, A. K., Guryan, J., Ludwig, J., Mullainathan, S., & Pollack, H. A. (2017). Thinking, fast and slow? Some field experiments to reduce crime and dropout in Chicago. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 132(1), 1-54.
[18] Hawkins, J. D., Oesterle, S., Brown, E. C., Monahan, K. C., Abbott, R. D., Arthur, M. W., & Catalano, R. F. (2012). Sustained decreases in risk exposure and youth problem behaviors after installation of the Communities That Care prevention system in a randomized trial. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 166(2), 141-148.
[19] Hawkins, J. D., Oesterle, S., Brown, E. C., Abbott, R. D., & Catalano, R. F. (2014). Youth problem behaviors 8 years after implementing the Communities That Care prevention system: A community-randomized trial. JAMA pediatrics, 168(2), 122-129.
[20] Oesterle, S., Kuklinski, M. R., Hawkins, J. D., Skinner, M. L., Guttmannova, K., & Rhew, I. C. (2018). Long-term effects of the Communities That Care trial on substance use, antisocial behavior, and violence through age 21 years. American Journal of Public Health, 108(5), 659-665.
[21] Heinze, J. E., Reischl, T. M., Bai, M., Roche, J. S., Morrel-Samuels, S., Cunningham, R. M., & Zimmerman, M. A. (2016). A comprehensive prevention approach to reducing assault offenses and assault injuries among youth. Prevention Science, 17(2), 167-176.
[22] Smokowski, P. R., Bacallao, M., Evans, C. B. R., Rose, R. A., Stalker, K. C., Guo, S., ... & Bower, M. (2018). The North Carolina Youth Violence Prevention Center: Using a multifaceted, ecological approach to reduce youth violence in impoverished, rural areas. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 9(4), 575-597.
[25] Spoth, R. L., Trudeau, L. S., Redmond, C., Shin, C., Greenberg, M. T., Feinberg, M. E., & Hyun, G. H. (2015). PROSPER partnership delivery system: Effects on adolescent conduct problem behavior outcomes through 6.5 years past baseline. Journal of Adolescence, 45, 44-55.
[26]Le, T. N., Arifuku, I., Vuong, L., Tran, G., Lustig, D. F., & Zimring, F. (2011). Community mobilization and community-based participatory research to prevent youth violence among Asian and immigrant populations. American Journal of Community Psychology, 48(1), 77-88.
[27] Hipple, N. K., Saunders, J., Allison, K., & Peterson, J. (2020). What does success look like? Lessons from the innovations in Community-Based Crime Reduction (CBCR) Program. Justice Evaluation Journal, 3(2), 227-244.
[28] Gill, C., Weisburd, D., Telep, C. W., Vitter, Z., & Bennett, T. (2014). Community-oriented policing to reduce crime, disorder and fear and increase satisfaction and legitimacy among citizens: A systematic review. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 10(4), 399-428.
[29] Tita, G. E., Riley, K. J., Ridgeway, G., & Greenwood, P. W. (2005). Reducing gun violence: Operation Ceasefire in Los Angeles. National Institute of Justice; Office of Justice Programs
[30] Butts, J. A., Roman, C. G., Bostwick, L., & Porter, J. R. (2015). Cure violence: A public health model to reduce gun violence. Annual Review of Public Health, 36, 39-53.
[31] Braga, A. A., & Pierce, G. L. (2005). Disrupting illegal firearms markets in Boston: The effects of Operation Ceasefire on the supply of new handguns to criminals. Criminology & Public Policy, 4(4), 717-748
[32] Matthay, E. C., Farkas, K., Rudolph, K. E., Zimmerman, S., Barragan, M., Goin, D. E., & Ahern, J. (2019). Firearm and Nonfirearm Violence After Operation Peacemaker Fellowship in Richmond, California, 1996–2016. American Journal of Public Health, 109(11), 1605-1611. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2019.305288
[33] Brantingham, P. J., Yuan, B., Sundback, N., Schoenberg, F. P., Bertozzi, A. L., Gordon, J., ... & Malinowski, S. (2018). Does violence interruption work. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 8(7), 1-6
[34] Park, J., Schoenberg, F. P., Bertozzi, A. L., & Brantingham, P. J. (2021). Investigating clustering and violence interruption in gang-related violent crime data using spatial-temporal point processes with covariates. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 116(536), 1674-1687.
[35] Kennedy, D. M., Braga, A. A., Piehl, A. M., & Waring, E. J. (2001). Reducing Gun Violence: The Boston gun project's Operation Ceasefire. National Institute of Justice; Office of Justice Programs
[36] Evans, D., & Vega, A. (2018). Critical Care: The Important Role of Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Programs. New York, NY: Research and Evaluation Center, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York.
[37] Cheng, T. L., Haynie, D., Brenner, R., Wright, J. L., Chung, S. E., & Simons-Morton, B. (2008). Effectiveness of a mentor-implemented, violence prevention intervention for assault-injured youths presenting to the emergency department: Results of a randomized trial. Pediatrics, 122(5), 938-946.
[38] Cooper, C., Eslinger, D. M., & Stolley, P. D. (2006). Hospital-based violence intervention programs work. Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, 61(3), 534-540
[39] Juillard, C., Cooperman, L., Allen, I., Pirracchio, R., Henderson, T., Marquez, R., ... & Dicker, R. A. (2016). A decade of hospital-based violence intervention: Benefits and shortcomings. Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery, 81(6), 1156-116
[40] Shibru, D., Zahnd, E., Becker, M., Bekaert, N., Calhoun, D., & Victorino, G. P. (2007). Benefits of a hospital-based peer intervention program for violently injured youth. Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 205(5), 684-689.
[41] Zun, L. S., Downey, L., & Rosen, J. (2006). The effectiveness of an ED-based violence prevention program. The American journal of emergency medicine, 24(1), 8-13.
[42] Giacomazzi, A. L. (1995). Community crime prevention, community policing, and public housing: An evaluation of a multi-level, collaborative drug-crime elimination program in Spokane, Washington (Doctoral dissertation, Washington State University).
[43] Pate, A. M., Skogan, W., Wycoff, M.A., and Sherman, L.W. (1985). Coordinated community policing: The Newark experience. Technical Report. Washington, DC: Police Foundation.
[44] Tuffin, R., Morris, J., Poole, A., & Great Britain Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate. (2006). An evaluation of the impact of the National Reassurance Policing Programme (Vol. 296). London: Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate.
[45] Laycock, G. (1991). Operation identification, or the power of publicity? Security Journal, 2, 67-72.
[46] Lindsay, B., & McGillis, D. (1986). Citywide community crime prevention: An assessment of the Seattle program. In D. Rosenbaum (Ed.), Community crime prevention: Does it work? (pp. 46-67). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
[47] Schneider, A. L. (1986). Restitution and recidivism rates of juvenile offenders: Results from four experimental studies. Criminology, 24(3), 533-552.
[48] Bennett, T., Holloway, K., & Farrington, D. (2008). The effectiveness of neighborhood watch. Campbell systematic reviews, 4(1), 1-46.
[49] Taft, P. B. (1986). Fighting Fear: The Baltimore County COPE (Citizen-Oriented Police Enforcement) Project. In Police Executive Research Forum, Washington, DC.
[50] Butts, J. A., Roman, C. G., Bostwick, L., & Porter, J. R. (2015). Cure violence: A public health model to reduce gun violence. Annual Review of Public Health, 36, 39-53.
[51] Saunders, J., Ober, A. J., Kilmer, B., & Greathouse, S. M. (2016). A community-based, focused-deterrence approach to closing overt drug markets: A process and fidelity evaluation of seven sites. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation. Retrieved from http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_ reports/RR1001.html
[52] Weisburd, D., & Majmundar, M. (Eds.). (2018). Proactive policing: Effects on crime and communities. National Academies Press.
[53] Braga, A. A., Turchan, B. S., Papachristos, A. V., & Hureau, D. M. (2019). Hot spots policing and crime reduction: An update of an ongoing systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 15, 289-311.
[54] Braga, A. A., Weisburd, D., & Turchan, B. (2018). Focused deterrence strategies and crime control: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis of the empirical evidence. Criminology & Public Policy, 17, 205–250.
[55] McGarrell, E. F., Kroovand Hipple, N., Corsaro, N., Bynum, T. S., Perez, H., Zimmerman, C. A., & Garmo, M. (2009). Project Safe Neighborhoods – A national program to reduce gun crime: Final project report. Michigan State University. Available from https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/226686.pdf
[56] McManus, H. D., Engel, R. S., Calnon Cherkauskas, J., Light, S. C., & Shoulberg, A. M. (2020). Street violence crime reduction strategies: A review of the evidence. IACP/UC Center for Police Research and Policy. Available from https://www.theiacp.org/sites/default/files/Research%20Center/Violence%20Reduction%20Literature%20Review_FINAL.pdf
[57] David-Ferdon, C., Vivolo-Kantor, A. M., Dahlberg, L. L., Marshall, K. J., Rainford, N. & Hall, J. E. (2016). A comprehensive technical package for the prevention of youth violence and associated risk behaviors. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Available from https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/yv-technicalpackage.pdf
[58] Petrosino, A., Campie, P., Pace, J., Fronius, T., Guckenburg, S., Wiatrowski, M., & Rivera, L. (2015). Cross-sector, multi-agency interventions to address urban youth firearms violence: A rapid evidence assessment. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 22, 87–96.
[59] Welsh, B. C., Braga, A. A., & Sullivan, C. J. (2014). Serious youth violence and innovative prevention: On the emerging link between public health and criminology. Justice Quarterly, 31, 500–523.
[60] Abt, T. P. (2017). Towards a framework for preventing community violence among youth. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 22, 266–285.
[61] Butts, J. A., Gouvis Roman, C., Bostwick, L., & Porter, J. R. (2015). Cure Violence: A public health model to reduce gun violence. Annual Review of Public Health, 36, 39–53.
[62] Abt, T. P. (2017). Towards a framework for preventing community violence among youth. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 22, 266–285.
[63] Anderson, J. F., Reinsmith-Jones, K., & Reddington, F. P. (2017). Violence prevention in disadvantaged communities: The need for using criminal justice and public health approaches. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 27, 743–744.
[64] Williams, D. J., & Donnelly, P. D. (2014). Is violence a disease? Situating violence prevention in public health policy and practice. Public Health, 128, 960–967.
[65] McManus, H. D., Engel, R. S., Calnon Cherkauskas, J., Light, S. C., & Shoulberg, A. M. (2020). Street violence crime reduction strategies: A review of the evidence. IACP/UC Center for Police Research and Policy. Available from https://www.theiacp.org/sites/default/files/Research%20Center/Violence%20Reduction%20Literature%20Review_FINAL.pdf