Investing Wisely in Crime Prevention

At the end of a century that has seen unprecedented levels of crime, violence, and drug abuse in communities across America, we can take hope from the growing number of communities now reporting significant declines in their crime rates. We know that, at the community level, this success is due largely to crime reduction partnerships that contain strong prevention components. However, we still face many challenges to ridding our communities of crime. First, the media's preoccupation with violent and frightening crimes leaves us all with a feeling of apprehension over the safety of our homes, workplaces, and schools. So although communities may be safer today than they were a few years ago, people still feel unsafe, and their perceptions, real or unreal, must be addressed. Second, despite the recent reductions in crime and violence, crime rates are still at unacceptably high levels, and we must not become complacent. Third, some communities have been left behind in this success-communities in which crime and violence are still on the rise. We must find ways to meet these challenges head on by funding crime prevention programs that work. This monograph examines a variety of successful programs from around the world: the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. These programs demonstrate that focused policing and mobilization of a broad range of agencies can significantly reduce crime rates. It is our hope that practitioners in the United States can learn from these experiences and develop crime reduction and prevention programs that are both financially and socially beneficial.