Community policing is, in effect, a sustained collaboration between the police and the community that identifies and solves community problems. Depending on the needs and responses of the communities involved, community policing strategies may vary. Till date, though, no comprehensive overview of community policing exists for policing practitioners and others who may wish to learn to use this approach to address the problems of crime and disorder in the communities they live in and serve. Community policing encompasses a variety of philosophical and practical approaches and is still evolving; however, certain basic principles and considerations are common to all community policing efforts.

When Sir Robert Peel established the London Metropolitan Police, he set forth a number of principles, one of which could be considered the seed of community policing: ". . . the police are the public and the public are the police." But, as a result of successive policy decisions taken over the years, police organizations themselves lost sight of this feature as embodying the central organizing concept for police service.

For instance, Police managers assigned officers to rotating shifts and moved them frequently from one geographical location to another, supposedly to eliminate corruption. Police management also instituted a policy of centralized controls, designed to ensure compliance with standard operating procedures and to encourage a professional aura of impartiality. Unfortunately, though, the principle of centralized management of most police organizations usually served only to isolate police from the communities they serve. Not surprisingly, this isolation has had the direct effect of hampering crime-fighting efforts. Without strong ties to the community, police may not have access to pertinent information from citizens that could help solve or deter crime. Data on unreported crime suggests that in many cases police are not even aware of existing problems. Helpful information will be forthcoming from community members only when police have established a relationship of trust with the community they serve. Also, when community members believe the police are genuinely interested in community perspectives and problems, only then will they begin to view the police as being a productive and essential part of that community.

Thus, as links between the police and the community are strengthened, over time, the ensuing partnership will be better able to pinpoint and mitigate the underlying causes of crime. Also, by getting the community involved, police will have more resources available for crime-prevention activities, instead of being forced into an after-the-fact response to crime. Nowadays, Police are finding that crime-control tactics need to be augmented with strategies that not only prevent crime, but also reduce the fear of crime, and thereby improve the quality of life in neighborhoods. Therefore, it is essential that the police work closely with all sections of the community to identify specific concerns and to find the most effective solutions. This is the essence of community policing. In the light of its wide-ranging possibilities, it has even been suggested that community policing can play a primary role in changing the way all government services are provided at the community level.

In this respect, Community Policing is, indeed, Democracy in Action!

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