Targeting Policing Strategies

 Police forces in U.S cities have employed punitive measures to respond to the recurring tragedy of gun violence. The new innovative strategy is known as ‘focused deterrence' and this a practice where police focus on the offenders of gun violence and the individuals who are victimized by gun violence (Sierra-Arevalo, 2013). The offenders are informed on the importance of engaging in constructive things such training and they are informed on the penalties they may encounter if they re-offend. For example, in U.S cities, police use the approach of focused-deference by concentrating on a specific population or rather, the American sub-groups that are most affected by gun violence. Focused-deterrence is an effective method as it has reduced gun violence in cities like Chicago, Boston, Massachusetts, Indianapolis, and others (Sierra-Arevalo, 2013).The effect is achieved by employing surgeries like identifying the problematic criminal behavior (gun violence), creating a coordinated approach such as involving police and probation officers to come up with interventions, and identifying groups involved in the targeted behavior (Sierra-Arevalo, 2013).  The services that police are offering are working well since the focused deterrence help them identify the underlying dynamics that produce violence, the factors that contribute to the recurring of the crime and interventions.  

Focused-deterrence strategies are associated with risks in that as police try to reduce gang violence, gangs may restrict the number of control groups by creating interconnections with other gangs. This creates the challenge of implementing the focused-deterrence approach. Another risk is that focused-deterrence requires a long-term implementation and this indicates that as police concentrate on a single city, they may fail to sustain the implemented solutions in other cities (Sierra-Arevalo, 2013).  However, police can alleviate these risks by combining efforts with the law enforcement, social service providers, and community members. Note that all these stakeholders can enhance public safety and reduce gang violence by providing resources and increase scrutiny. Thus, as police concentrate on one area, scrutiny will be increased in other areas to sustain the implemented solutions.

 Focused deterrence is not only used to reduce gang deaths but it also addresses issues related to drug crime and domestic violence. Focused deterrence can reduce drug crime by concentrating on the drug markets and social networks, the drug sellers, the drug abuser, and the violent incidences associated with drug-market operations (Sierra-Arevalo, 2013). For example, police can enter in the African-American community where drug trafficking and violence is high and employ the drug-control strategies that aim at building community cooperation. Focused deterrence can also reduce domestic violence by entering into the communities where the violence is high. Police can target serious offenders and provide the offender with future legal consequences. This method will reduce re-offense as the offenders will opt to adhere to the law rather than facing the legal consequences.

 

 

 Reference

 Sierra-Arevalo. (2013). How Targeted Deterrence Helps Police Reduce Gun Deaths. Retrieved from: https://scholars.org/sites/scholars/files/ssn_basic_facts_sierra-arevalo_on_targeted_deterrence.pdf