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Unit 2 Community Policing

Unit 3 Police Ethics and Police Deviance in Nigeria Unit 4 Policing and Human Rights in Nigeria

UNIT 1 POLICE AND THE COMMUNITY

CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Objectives 3.0 Main Content

3.1 The Need for Proper Police – Community Relationships 3.2 Human Relations, Public Relations, Community Relations 3.3 Community Crime Prevention

4.0 Conclusion 5.0 Summary

6.0 Tutor-Marked Assignment 7.0 References/Further Reading

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Community policing and problem solving policing had been practiced for over a decade and had proven to be tremendously popular among some citizens, academics, politicians and police chiefs. Many believed that community policing could be the best strategies in policing our nation. These ideas emphasised community involvement and partnership between police and the community. In many area where community policing and problem solving have been implemented, crime rates have gone down, quality of life has been improved and people have felt safer.

2.0 OBJECTIVES

At the end of this unit, you should be able to:

• explain the meaning of police – community relation and their importance to the safety and quality of life in a community

• discuss some innovative community crime prevention programs that focus on crime reduction and improving the quality of life in communities

• state the need for proper police – community relationships

• discuss community crime preventions programs.

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3.0 MAIN CONTENT

3.1 The Need for Proper Police – Community Relationships The police are needed to handle emergencies, maintain order, regulate traffic, and promote a sense of security within the community. To accomplish this, the police must be part of the community. The police can best serve the community when they are regarded as part of the community both by the residents and themselves.

The police and community need each other to help communities to be as vibrant and safe as possible. Police community relationships must be two – way partnerships. Additionally, in a democratic society, the legitimacy of the police depends on broad and active public acceptance and support. Police authorities have the responsibility and obligation to educate the public about the many causes of crime and the inability of the police, acting, and alone on their own to control crimes.

Lee Brown (1985) said that the police chief must “take the lead in addressing broadened local social service needs that could if neglected, produce greater crime problems. The more educated a community is concerning the role of the police and the challenges the police face in meeting multiple demands, the more supportive and helpful they can be.

The ability of the police authorities in reaching out to the community therefore is essential. This is because positive interaction with the community generally results in increased citizen support, higher morale in the work force, protection against or insulation from many hostile external forces and increased resources. Although, it is very important for the police authorities to seek the support and co-operation of the public to improve efforts to police the community, the most important person in the police department in terms of improving police community relations is the individual police officer. Patrol officers, traffic officers and detectives are the individuals within the department who come into contact with the public on a regular basis. Most people receive their impression of a particular police department through the actions of the police officers they encounter. A person who has a bad experience with a particular officer may believe that the entire department is reflected by that officer. Officers are constantly serving as ambassadors for their departments. That is why it is imperative that every police officer sees a great deal of community relations as part of his daily patrol or investigative assignment.

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

Highlight on the need for proper police - community relationship

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3.2 Human Relations, Public Relations, Community Relations

Are community relations and human relations the same as police public relations? Cox and Fitzgerald (1969) perhaps best defined these terms.

They defined police human relations as follows “In the most general sense, the concept of human relations refers to everything we do with, for and to each other as citizen and as human beings. Human relations thus connotes treating others with respect and dignity and following the Golden Rule, acting towards others as you would want others to act toward you. Cox and Fitzgerald defined police public relations as “a variety of activities with the express intent of creating a favorable image of themselves … sponsored and paid for by the organisation.

Then using these two definitions, they defined police community relations as follows: Community relations are comprised of the combined effects of human and public relations. Police community relations then encompass the sum total of human and public relations whether initiated by the police or other members of the community.

Police Community Relations may be either positive or negative, depending upon the quality of police interactions, and the collective images each holds of the other (which are derived from public as well as human relations).

The President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice in 1967, USA defined police community relations in its summary report in the Challenge of Crime in a Free Society. A community relations programme is not a public relations programme “to sell the police image” to the people … it is a long range full-scale effort to acquaint the police and the community with each other’s problems and to stimulate action aimed at solving these problems.

The Police Community Relations PCR movement should not be confused with today’s community policing. The PCR movement involved assigning a few officers in a department as community affairs or community relations specialists. These officers attend community meetings, and they try to reduce tensions between members of the department and the public. The PCR movement at present has no real effect on the philosophy or culture of most police departments. Egon Bittner (1976) has said that for PCR programmes to be effective there is need for the Police to react to “the grassroots of discontent” where citizens' dissatisfaction with the police exists. In short, police human relations skills are needed.

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3.3 Community Crime Prevention Programmes

Police expert, George Kelling (1983) opined that citizens have armed themselves, restricted their activities, rejected cities, built fortress houses and housing complex, both inside and outside the cities and panicked about particular groups and classes of citizens. Surely citizens are worried about crimes and have taken measures to isolate or protect themselves against it. However, the police have an obligation to help citizens protect themselves against crime. It is obvious that the police cannot solve the crime and disorder problems of any nation by themselves, and they cannot let citizens take the law into their own hands. To address these problems, the police must turn to the public for its support and active participation in programmes to make the streets safer and improve the quality of life. Community crime prevention include neighborhood watch, crime stoppers, citizen patrols citizen volunteer programs, home security surveys, operation identification, National night out, police storefront stations, mass media campaigns and other police sponsored programs.

SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

What is community crime prevention programmes?

4.0 CONCLUSION

Establishing and maintaining mutual trust between members of a community and the police is the main goal of community policing.

Police have always recognised the need for cooperation with the community and have encouraged members of the community to come forward with crime fighting information.

Under Community Policing, police must form a partnership with people in the community allowing average citizens the opportunity to have input into the police process in exchange for their support and participation. Community rests on the belief that contemporary community problems require a new decentralised and personalised police approach that draws citizens into the process of policing themselves.

5.0 SUMMARY

• The police must be part of the community in order to effectively carry out their role.

• The police and the community need each other to help communities to be as safe as possible.

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• Police and the community relations will improve on the image of the police and promote trust between the two groups.

• There is need for the communities to participate in community crime prevention programmes.

6.0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT

1. Discuss the meaning of police community relation and their importance to the safety and quality of life in a community.

2. Discuss Community Crime Prevention Programs in your neighborhood, if any.

7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Alemika, E. E. O. & Chukwuma, I. C. (2000). Police–Community Violence in Nigeria. Centre for Law Enforcement Education, Lagos and the National Human Right Commission, Abuja, Nigeria.

Broderick, John (1977). Police in a Time of Change. Morristown, NJ:

General Press Learning.

Cox, S. M. & Fitzgerald, J. O. (1992). Police in Community Relations:

Critical Issues. (2nd ed.). Dubugue, IA:

Friedmann, R. R. (1992). Community Policing: Comparative Perspectives and Prospect. London: Harvester Wheatsheaf.

Kelling, George L. (1974). The Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment: A Summary Report. Washington, DC:

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