Criminal Justice Capstone Final

Criminal Justice Capstone

CRJ 422

Jason Lum

July 4, 2011

Introduction

Because citizens are afraid to get involved in helping law enforcement solve crimes in their neighborhoods, community oriented policing is being trained to the citizens by attending the citizen police academies and become members of the community advisory councils. In this assignment I will focus on the importance of Community Policing, and the Community Reactions to Crime. I am going to show you on paper how citizens feared to get involved with law enforcement.

Today law enforcement has changed and community involvement is a must. Communication and trust will start a new beginning with the community and law enforcement. Over the years it will show that crime is down and more crimes are being solved.

Community policing has been evolving slowly since the civil rights movement in the 1960s exposed the weaknesses of the traditional policing model. Even though its origin can be traced to this crisis in police-community relations, its development has been influenced by a wide variety of factors over the course of the past forty years.

The Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s

Individual elements of community policing, such as improvements in police community relations, emerged slowly from the political and social upheavals surrounding the civil rights movement in the 1960s. Widespread riots and protests against racial injustices brought government attention to sources of racial discrimination and tension, including the police.

As visible symbols of political authority, the police were exposed to a great deal of public criticism. Not only were minorities underrepresented in police departments, but studies suggested that the police treated minorities more harshly than white citizens (Walker).

In response to this civil unrest, the...