The Impact of Police Foot Patrols

In the contemporary unify States, the concentration of ethnic and racial population groups in specialized locations deep down urban argonas, the increased incidence of crime within neighborhoods of high ethnic and racial concentration (for whatever reason), and the drift for constabulary forces to be composed predominantly of individuals drawn from the majority Anglo population group combine to create even great tensions between police departments and connection argonas of high ethnic and racial concentration (Kelling & Coles, 1996).

The demands position upon police ship's officers in American order are far more complex and difficult than were those placed on the police in an earlier era. Further, the potential for additive and significant changes in these demands over the coming ten years appears to be strong. The complex demands placed on police officers in contemporary American society be appreciated through and through a consideration of the retraceing factors (Zhao & Thurman, 1997):

1. practice of law departments are expected, by society, to preserve order and to enforce the law. In accomplishing these objectives, police, at times, victimize or, less often, kill offenders. When injury to or death of offenders occur, police officers are often condemned by many in society.

2. guard departments are expected, by society, to incarcerate offenders, and to pr

Proactive rather than reactive methods must be employ in reducing crime. If a crime is prevented, there are no victims and no costly repercussions such as trials and incarceration. A preventive approach, however, requires a change in the traditional structure, role, and methods of criminal-justice placements. In the traditional system, violators are apprehended, taken before a court, and, if convicted, direct to institutions or placed under supervision. Such a system does relatively little to prevent crime, as most convicted criminals are eventually release without having been cured of their tendencies toward criminal behavior.

Under a reformed criminal-justice system, the traditional law-enforcement agencies would expand their scope to create partnerships with other social-service units and expand the role of the police to include crime prevention. "The community councils in China provide a model for this approach. Police officers often can anticipate when someone is likely to root for a crime, but they are now largely in efficient to do much about it. An officer on patrol may, for instance, spot an unemployed, homeless teenager on the street; from experience, the officer knows the youth will probably run out of coin and then shoplift at a nearby supermarket, or worse, snatch an elderly woman's purse, break into an elderly person's home, or mark an elderly pedestrian, but the officer typically does nothing until a crime occurs. Under a reformed criminal-justice system, the officer would be contact social-service-agency workers to see that the youth was dealt with before he or she committed an act of criminal behavior. Furthermore, the officer would assist social-service professionals follow up to make sure the teenager continued to cod adequate social support and social supervision" (Stephens, 1994, p. 27).

As is true of the relationship between crime rate reductions and the effective management of resources available to police agencies, there are no indicati
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