Community policing can be defined as the partnership between a community and police officers to solve criminal problems which affect residents living there. It is a form of law enforcement which builds partnerships between police officers and members of communities with high criminal incidents meant to tackle the problem. Community policing has been used in different countries to enhance the safety and well being of all citizens by reducing crime rates.
The U.S. is reputed to be one of the first countries in the world which embraced the concept of community policing. However, some urban areas in the US are full of violent criminal gangs which commit crimes recklessly. They mete out violence to their victims who are left with physical and psychological scars for the rest of their lives (Inciardi 122). Community policing offers law enforcement agencies an opportunity to handle criminal incidents before they happen by involving members of the public who report to the police promptly.
Community policing programs make all citizens feel they have a duty to uphold law and order in areas they reside. There are many forms of crimes which criminals engage in. For instance, some criminals peddle narcotics and break into people’s homes to steal their property. Some police departments do not have enough police officers and this makes it difficult for them to maintain law and order in areas where they operate.
The concept of community policing helps the public fill the void by keeping their communities safe from any criminal activities. Community residents need to have unified objectives to enable them to tackle issues which are related to crime effectively. They need to take an active role in their own welfare by collaborating with the police to stop criminals from endangering their security (Inciardi 135).
Supporters of community policing argue that the practice helps reduce high criminal incidents in the society. They insist that since many police departments are underserved, community policing is the only effective way through which criminal incidents can be curbed. They argue that community residents partner with the police to come up with effective approach to tackle criminal incidents (Nalla and Newman 67).
They also argue that community policing helps promote public safety in areas with rampant criminal incidents. It improves the relationship between community residents and the police which help solve problems quickly. This partnership helps residents safeguard the welfare of their neighborhood which ensures criminal incidents are contained before they take place (Nalla and Newman 67).
Community policing makes residents living in an area be more vigilant on different activities which happen in their neighborhoods. This fosters a sense of duty and responsibility in people living in a particular area. Therefore, residents are able to have a neighborhood watch, which helps protect them against any criminal threats (Nalla and Newman 67).
Community policing gives law enforcement officers and community leaders an easy task to tackle rampant criminal incidents. This approach allows the community to share ideas on how they want police to help them reduce crime rates. This makes it possible for both parties to understand each other more to ensure positive results are achieved (Nalla and Newman 68).
Community policing helps reduce fear in the society. A reduction in criminal incidents in a particular area makes it possible for different economic activities to be done without the fear of robbery or extortion. This improves the quality of life of people living in the area (Nalla and Newman 68).
Opponents of community policing argue that it may give rise to vigilantes. They argue that residents, who serve on the neighborhood watch patrol, may use excessive force when dealing with criminal suspects. Therefore, this has a bad effect on community policing. If residents who assist the police are not given clear instructions on what to do, they may overstep their roles and this can cause resentment in the community (Hess 117).
Police officers and community residents may not have strong mutual trust to encourage them to partner and solve problems. This will make the approach unsuccessful because of the poor relationship between community residents and law enforcement officers. This affects the ability of the program to solve law enforcement problems at the community level (Hess 117).
Some opponents argue that a lot of resources are needed to ensure community policing approaches succeed in communities where they are implemented. Limited resources make it difficult for community policing to succeed. It becomes difficult for local residents to conduct routine patrols which are used to deter criminals. This ends up discouraging residents from participating in community policing which leads to poor results (Hess 118).
Opponents of community policing argue that many civilians who are involved in the practice do not have skills needed to solve crimes. They argue that these people do not undergo any formal training to help them deal with criminal incidents in their neighborhoods. Therefore, they are unable to tackle complex crimes in the society (Hess 118).
Community policing may encourage racial and ethnic profiling of minorities living in particular communities. Residents from the majority racial groups may accuse other residents of engaging in criminal activities. This leads to conflicts in the community brought about by prejudice and mistrust between residents. This alienates a section of residents who are likely to become unwilling to participate in community policing efforts (Hess 118).
In my opinion, community policing has many advantages which outweigh its disadvantages. Community policing makes it possible for residents and police officers to collaborate to reduce criminal incidents. Residents understand issues of concern in areas where they live and they need to cooperate with police officers to find common solutions to criminal problems.
It is vital for residents to be more vigilant to improve their own security. For instance, residents can be encouraged to light up streets which are close to their homes to deter criminals from mugging people (Gaines and Worral 103). They also need to be encouraged to lock all their doors whenever they go out or when they are sleeping to make it difficult for criminals to sneak into their homes.
Residents need to consult the police to agree on approaches which need to be used to fight criminals using community policing. This will ensure that all residents are comfortable with the program to eliminate any form of apathy in the community.
Effective community policing initiatives make it easy for the police to gather intelligence regarding various crimes. This helps to eliminate the fear residents have for criminals in the community (Gaines and Worral 105). This encourages more people to be willing to testify against criminals suspects in court, which improves security in the community.
Works Cited
Gaines, Larry K., and John L. Worral. Police Administration. New York: Cengage Learning, 2012. Print.
Hess, Kären M. Introduction to Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice. Belmont: Cengage Learning, 2005. Print.
Inciardi, James A. Criminal Justice. London: McGraw Hill, 2001. Print.
Nalla, Mahesh K., and Graeme R. Newman. Community Policing in Indigenous Communities. New York: CRC Press, 2013. Print.