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Community Policing; Stopping Nuisance Crime

Community Policing; Stopping Nuisance Crime

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Discerning how to effectively police a community is of the utmost importance. People want to feel safe in their homes. People want to feel safe enough to let their kids play outside or go for a walk as a family. An enormous contributor to feeling safe in a community is an actual visible presence of law and order. A study conducted by the Police Foundation in Newark and Houston showed the citizen interaction with police officers on a regular and informal basis plays a huge role in quenching the fear of a community. It is from this very experiment that the “broken window” theory is derived, which posits that when disorder seems apparent in a community, the apparent disorder often leads to an increase in actual crime. However, when police officers are regularly visiting a community, it portrays an air of order, security and trust.

This business of maintaining an appearance of order and security is crucial for police because people often fear crime more than they need to. If people fear crime to a disproportionately high degree, the commercial activity in neighborhoods will stagnate, residents will be isolated from each other, and the streets will be abandoned. When community activity diminishes, the vacuum is often replaced with criminal activity.

To prevent communities from falling prey to the causal chain of crime brought about by disorderly perception, police should do two key things. First, police should develop trust and relationships with their citizens. This can be done through community outreach, friendly interaction in the neighborhoods, and surveys. This not only gives the community a sense of presence, it gives the community a sense of trust. Two, police should employ crime deterrent cameras. Crime Deterrent Cameras are different from traditional surveillance cameras as they are designed to not only capture evidence, they are designed to deter crime before it occurs.  This is an effective way to build and maintain the police presence established. Crime Deterrent Cameras give the presence needed to stop nuisance crimes.

#publicworks #deterrence #security #CommunitySafety

Tools Needed to Stop Vandalism

Tools Needed to Stop Vandalism

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Unfortunately, disadvantaged neighborhoods suffer from the highest crime rates. Once certain kinds of crime infect a neighborhood, it becomes trapped in a vicious, downward spiral of depravity. One of the crimes which contributes to this downward spiral most is vandalism. Vandalism is an incredibly visible crime that communicates weak surveillance and law enforcement to the community, law-keepers and criminals alike. Thus, vandalism indirectly causes more crime in its setting. Furthermore, the damages caused by vandalism increases tax rates and insurance rates in communities, further debilitating the local economy. The resulting environment is a depressing and threatening one.

The negative effects of vandalism especially harms youths as they are heavily influenced by their environment. The costs of vandalism siphon money away from school funding and other beneficial city functions.  Vandalism robs children of the safety of knowing there is an authority that cares enough to prevent others from destroying property.  More than half the vandalism crimes are associated with 13-14 year old youths who may be seeking attention, acceptance, or venting their angst in a destructive manner. The criminal activity of the youths will only doom their fate to remain bleak and dismal, but they are most likely not aware of this.

The best option to rescue these neighborhoods is through forming strong communal bonds and actively preventing crimes like vandalism. The presence of strong bonds between neighbors is shown to reduce crime rates and improve the lives of adolescents. However, communities need the right tools to combat the war against vandalism. A robust crime deterrent system has been created that is especially designed to stop nuisance crimes like vandalism. These vandalism cameras go beyond identifying anyone who trespasses on property.  They are a tool a community needs to change the behavior of the vandals and effectively prevent vandalism from taking place.

#novandalism #stopvandals #parksandrecreation #weareparksandrec #publicworks #security

Don’t Compromise your Parks to Vandalism

Don’t Compromise your Parks to Vandalism

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Imagine your favorite childhood playground. What comes to mind when you picture it? More than likely, you reminisce over fond childhood memories, gliding down a shiny, bright-red slide and flying high on the chain-link swing then jumping off to see how far you’ll land. If you lived in a city that cared about parks, you probably don’t think of vandalism or graffiti in the form of broken-down park benches and swear words scratched into the play equipment. However because parks are often targeted, cities pay large amounts of money to fix damages done to parks to ensure the beauty of recreation sites.

In Louisville, KY, a 2015 report showed that since 2010, there have been nearly $400,000 worth of damages done to city parks (https://wfpl.org/breaking-cost-vandalism-louisvilles-parks/). Among the damages are graffiti and theft. A common occurrence that Louisville parks face is stolen trash cans. Thieves can make around $3 for reselling a metal trash can, whereas it costs parks $10 to replace. This seemingly small number adds up to a sum that could be used towards city events or updating community gathering areas.

Unfortunately, vandalism and destruction are fates that public places regularly face, but there are ways to minimize the damage and costs that parks encounter on an annual basis:

  • Purchase unbreakable equipment that is difficult to steal (i.e. trash cans that are fused to the cement)
  • Install gates with locks 
  • Install bright lights
  • Install anti-vandalism cameras

Accepting the ruin of a community recreational site is not an option. And cities should not forfeit large bulks of money to protect the beauty of their parks. Anti-Vandalism Cameras are a great resource to protect and deter vandalism and graffiti.

#Nograffiti #Novandalism #ProtectParks #WeAreParksAndRec #StopVandalism

Parks are Essential to our Health

Parks are Essential to our Health

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During this challenging pandemic, health is more important than ever. When the immune system is down, it becomes difficult to fight off viruses and infections. When your body is not as prime as it could be, mental health also suffers. Mental and physical health are directly related: mental health impacts physical health and vice versa.

Nature is imperative to our health. For example, we need vitamin D for both our physical and emotional health. Historically, the public park was created with mental health in mind. Parks encourage physical activity and people who live close to parks are more prone to use them for exercise. Without scenic recreational areas, people are more likely to suffer from obesity and depression. Beauty is necessary for the public health. 

We take nature and aesthetics for granted. We take advantage of pristine parks and do not think about the care and effort that is put into keeping it desirable to communities. We do not think about the communities that cannot afford to do what it takes to keep parks free of litter and vandalism. It takes work to keep parks aesthetically appealing and free from graffiti and vandalism. For example, security guards and  anti-vandalism cameras may be a necessary asset to your park for the safety and health of your city. Also, signs reminding the public that the park is meant for everyone. Harming parks harms the entire community. 

We need to keep our parks clean and safe for our health and restore our communities to their original glory.

#Parks4All, #ParksAndRecreation, #WeAreParkAndRec, #NoVandalism #ProtectParks