The U.S. Department of Justice has prepared a series of guides to common problems of crime and disorder. These guides use the Problem-Oriented Policing (POP) model to help citizens and police to work together to solve problems in their own communities. POP guides are available on the Web free of charge. Copies are also available for distribution at the Main Library and selected branches.
Assaults in and Around Bars. We know a lot about the risk factors for assaults in and around bars, and about effective responses to them. We know less about which responses are most effective in addressing specific aspects of the problem. Use this guide to analyze the local problem and put together the right combination of responses to address the situation.
Assessing Responses to Problems: An Introductory Guide for Police Problem-Solvers. This introduction to problem-solving assessments is designed to help design evaluations that answer two questions: Did the problem decline? If so, did the response cause the decline?
Acquaintance Rape of College Students. Rape is the most common violent crime on American college campuses today. This guide describes the problem of acquaintance rape of college students, addressing its scope, causes, and contributing factors; methods for analyzing it on a particular campus; tested responses; and measures for assessing response effectiveness.
The Benefits and Consequences of Police Crackdowns. Police typically use “crackdowns” to address crime and disorder problems. This guide explores the basic elements of a crackdown, outlines the benefits and negative consequences, and explains how crackdowns can be used to address specific problems.
Bomb Threats in Schools. The guide begins by describing the problem and reviewing factors that increase the risk of bomb threats in schools. It identifies a series of questions to assist you in analyzing the local problem of bomb threats in schools and reviews responses to the problem and what is known about these from evaluative research and police practice.
Bullying in Schools. There is new concern about school violence, and police have assumed greater responsibility for helping school officials ensure students’ safety. As pressure increases to place officers in schools, police agencies must decide how best to contribute to student safety. Will police presence on campuses most enhance safety? If police cannot or should not be on every campus, can they make other contributions to student safety? What are good approaches and practices?
Burglary of Retail Establishments. Retail burglaries (break-ins at stores to steal cash or goods) impact the viability of businesses and, consequently, of the communities around them. Although much research has been conducted on burglary in general, little of it has specifically focused on retail burglaries. This guide reviews what is known about retail burglaries, suggests ways to analyze them in your jurisdiction, and identifies a number of appropriate responses.
Burglary of Single-Family Houses. This guide addresses the problem of burglary of single-family houses. It begins by describing the problem and reviewing risk factors. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
The Problem of Check and Card Fraud. This guide describes the problem of check and card fraud, and reviews factors that increase the risks of it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Clandestine Drug Labs. Although clandestine drug labs manufacture a variety of illicit drugs (MDMA (ecstasy), methcathinone, PCP, LSD, fentanyl, etc.), methamphetamine accounts for 80 to 90 percent of the labs’ total drug production. Accordingly, the problem of clandestine drug labs is closely tied with the problems associated with methamphetamine abuse.
Closing Streets and Alleys to Reduce Crime: Should You Go Down This Road? Police sometimes advocate closing streets and alleys to keep offenders out of an area. This guide will help you decide whether this is an appropriate response to a problem you are confronting in a particular neighborhood or community.
The Problem of Crimes Against Tourists. This guide addresses tourist crime, beginning by describing the problem and reviewing the factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it provides a number of measures your agency can take to address the problem and to evaluate responses. The guide addresses tourist crimes committed in the United States, although the information provided here will no doubt benefit those readers dealing with the problem abroad.
Cruising. This guide begins by describing the problem of cruising, and reviewing factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local cruising problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Disorder at Budget Motels. This guide begins by describing the problem of disorder at budget motels, and reviewing factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Disorderly Youth in Public Places. Disorderly youth are a common source of complaints from urban residents and merchants, as well as from shoppers and merchants in malls and business districts. Dealing with youth disorder requires a significant amount of police time and requires considerable police skill and sensitivity. Officers must balance youths’ rights against complainants’ rights, distinguish legitimate from illegitimate complaints, be firm yet flexible with young people, and remain sensitive to how the public will perceive police actions.
Drug Dealing in Open-Air Markets. Open-air markets represent the lowest level of the drug distribution network. Low-level markets need to be tackled effectively because of the risks posed to market participants, and to reduce the impact illicit drug use can inflict on the local community. This guide begins by describing the problem and reviewing factors that increase the risks of drug dealing in open-air markets. It then identifies a series of questions that might assist you in analyzing your local open-air drug market problem and then reviews responses to the problem and what is known about these from evaluative research and police practice.
Drug Dealing in Privately Owned Apartment Complexes. If you have an apartment complex in your community where drug dealing is occurring, you may have found that simply making arrests has not closed the drug market. What else could be done? Why is this problem occurring? What conditions facilitate the drug market's operations, and what remedies will work best?
False Burglar Alarms. In the United States in 1998, police responded to approximately 38 million alarm activations, at an estimated annual cost of $1.5 billion. Most of the activations were burglar alarms. This guide examines current police responses and presents alternative strategies to address the false alarm dilemma. Purchasers of an alarm system expect a police response if the alarm is activated, even though they bought the system from a private alarm company with no link to a police department. The vast majority of alarm calls-between 94 and 98 percent-are false (higher in some jurisdictions). In other words, reliability of alarms, which can be measured using these false rates, is generally between 2 and 6 percent. Nationwide, false alarms account for 10 to 25 percent of all calls to police. In the United States alone, "solving the problem of false alarms would by itself relieve 35,000 officers from providing an essentially private service."
Financial Crimes Against the Elderly. This guide addresses the problem of financial crimes against the elderly. It begins by describing the problem and reviewing risk factors. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem and describes the conditions under which they are most effective.
Graffiti. Graffiti has become an extensive problem, spreading from the largest cities to other locales. Despite the common association of graffiti with gangs, graffiti is widely found in jurisdictions of all sizes, and offenders are by no means limited to gangs. This guide addresses effective responses to the problem.
Gun Violence Among Serious Young Offenders. This guide addresses serious youth gun violence, describing the problem and reviewing factors that increase the risks of it. It then identifies a series of questions that might help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Identity Theft. This guide addresses identity theft, describing the problem and reviewing factors that increase the risks of it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Loud Car Stereos. This guide addresses the problem of loud car stereos, one of the most common sources of noise complaints in many jurisdictions. The guide begins by describing the problem and reviewing factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions that might assist you in analyzing your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem and what is known about these from evaluative research and police practice.
Misuse and Abuse of 911. This guide addresses the problem of misuse and abuse of 911. It begins by describing the problem and its scope. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem, and discusses potential responses to it.
Panhandling. This guide addresses the problem of panhandling. It also covers nearly equivalent conduct in which, in exchange for donations, people perform nominal labor such as squeegeeing (cleaning) the windshields of cars stopped in traffic, holding car doors open, saving parking spaces, guarding parked cars, buying subway tokens, and carrying luggage or groceries.
The Problem of Prescription Fraud. This guide describes the problem of prescription fraud, and reviews the factors that increase the risks of it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Rave Parties. Rave parties ("raves") are dance parties that feature fast-paced, repetitive electronic music and accompanying light shows. Raves are the focus of rave culture, a youth-oriented subculture that blends music, art and social ideals (e.g., peace, love, unity, respect, tolerance, happiness). Rave culture also entails the use of a range of licit and illicit drugs. Drug use is intended to enhance ravers' sensations and boost their energy so they can dance for long periods.
Robbery at Automated Teller Machines. This guide addresses the problem of robbery of people using automated teller machines (ATMs) and night cash depositories. The guide begins by describing the problem and reviewing factors that increase the risks of ATM robbery. It then identifies a series of questions that might assist you in analyzing your local ATM robbery problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem and what is known about these from evaluative research and police practice.
Shoplifting. This guide discusses measures to reduce shoplifting (theft of store merchandise during business hours). In many cases, the preventive techniques discussed will also apply to "price switching" (switching price tags from less expensive to more expensive items) and refund fraud (returning stolen or fraudulently acquired items for cash refunds). Due to the lack of available research, the guide makes few distinctions between casual, opportunistic shoplifting and shoplifting committed by "professionals," or gangs of thieves who sometimes descend on a particular mall or shopping center and take advantage of lax security or unsuspecting shop owners.
Speeding in Residential Areas. Speeding in residential areas is a common source of citizen complaints to the police and is often the chief concern of community groups, largely because of the perceived risks to children. However because speeding must compete with other problems (that may appear to be far more serious) for police attention, the police often do not devote a lot of resources to it.
Stalking. This guide reviews the problem of stalking and the factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.
Street Prostitution. This guide deals with the problem of street prostitution, focusing on female prostitutes and male clients. There are widely different perspectives on prostitution. Some view the prostitutes as primarily responsible for the problem; some view the clients as responsible, and the prostitutes as victims. Others view prostitution as a private matter in which the state should not intervene. Community morals and beliefs about how the law should regulate morality will affect how any particular community addresses street prostitution. This guide is intended to provide objective information about the effectiveness and consequences of various approaches to controlling street prostitution. Before discussing response options, a general understanding of the problem is presented.
Street Racing. The guide begins by describing the problem of street racing and reviewing factors that contribute to it. The guide then identifies a series of questions that might assist you in analyzing your local street racing problem. Finally, the guide reviews responses to the problem and what is known about these from evaluative research and police practice.
Thefts of and From Cars in Parking Facilities. Car-related thefts are among the most common offenses calling for a police response. This guide summarizes information on risk factors and evaluates published literature on dealing with such thefts in parking facilities. It also identifies information police should collect to understand and respond effectively to their local problem.
Underage Drinking. This guide begins by describing the problem of underage drinking, and reviewing factors that contribute to it. It then identifies a series of questions to help you analyze your local underage drinking problem. Finally, it reviews responses to the problem, and what is known about them from evaluative research and police practice.