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Students from the University of Florida are working with local law enforcement to prevent crime through environmental design. Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) is a way of approaching crime prevention by looking at environmental factors like lighting, traffic flow, ambush points and shrubbery.
The UF students are examining local businesses, evaluating them from a design perspective, and making suggestions for improvement. They’ve partnered with police in their efforts and are lobbying the city council to require CPTED compliance for local businesses.
Not only is CPTED a new and effective way to look at crime prevention efforts, but as local law enforcement departments partner with local residents, they will build relationships and create better communication between citizens and law enforcement. And those relationships will help law enforcement and citizens stay in touch and prevent crime before it even happens.
Is there a chance to do this in you area?
For more information on how they use CPTED to evaluate local businesses, read the full article here: http://www.alligator.org/news/local/article_bae8e36e-c37a-11de-ab2b-001cc4c03286.html
Get on the crime map at CrimeReports.com
The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida sued Miami-Dade County this week over the sex offender residency restriction laws that are forcing sex offenders to live in a homeless shantytown under the Julia Tuttle Causeway. The suit claims that the county’s mandate that sex offenders live 2,500 ft. from any place that children congregate should be superseded by the state’s 1,000 ft. law, thus opening up areas of Miami where sex offenders could find proper housing.
The suit claims that the current restriction laws force sex offenders to live under the bridge, creating a public safety and health concern, and that faced with living under the bridge as a homeless person, many sex offenders have simply absconded and are living elsewhere illegally, causing more problems for themselves and the community.
Although there is little sympathy for sex offenders in the general public and many would like to see the sex offenders leave the county completely, most don’t realize that many of those sex offenders are legally obligated to stay in the county for parole and other concerns. If the county cannot provide an adequate, legal area for housing these individuals, they are in-effect either forcing them to break the law or live as vagabonds, creating greater public health and safety concerns.
Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/southflorida/story/1135191.html
Get on the crime map at CrimeReports.com
Stumble It!Dovetailing on a story I posted last week, Miami may soon to be forced to reevaluate its sex offender residency restrictions. Because the sex offender residency laws forbid sex offenders from living within 2,500 feet of schools, parks, and even bus stops and other locations, Miami has essentially made the entire city off limits to sex offenders. The result has been a growing homeless sex offender community living under the bridge that connects Miami to Miami Beach. Currently the community consists of about 70 individuals, but could certainly grow as more felons are released from prison or if sex offenders in the city are prosecuted for violating the residency laws.
Certainly any area of a city where 70 or more people are living without proper housing or waste facilities can become a public safety hazard, and seeing as the population could get worse, this problem is not going away soon.
Of course, nobody wants sex offenders living in their neighborhood, but cutting these people off from housing, transportation, and jobs could potentially cause an even bigger public safety hazard.
Source: http://sexoffenderresearch.blogspot.com/2009/06/fl-close-camp.html
Search crime in your neighborhood (including sex offenders) at CrimeReports.com
Yesterday I posted a link to a story about Shelby, North Carolina’s efforts to reduce crime through targeting hot spots of crime and working to develop the community. Today Tampa Bay Online posted a story about Hillsborough, Florida’s efforts to reduce crime by targeting repeat offenders and putting them behind bars.
Their philosophy comes from the oft quoted statistic that 80% of crime is committed by 20% of criminals. Their plan: take the 20% off the street and crime will drop. Its too early to tell if the program is working, but the PD is now spending most of its time targeting specific individuals. Read the full story by clicking the link above.
What is your take on Hillsborough’s new approach to crime reduction? Leave a comment.
Search crime in your neighborhood at CrimeReports.com
The Orlando Sentinel reports that the Orange County, Florida Sheriff’s Office has created a map of domestic abuse that gives a visual display of the location and density of domestic violence incidents in the county.
County officials say that the information will be used to focus the help of social workers, create “drop-in” centers for victims, and hopefully reduce the amount of domestic abuse, as well as provide better aid to victims.
Search crime in your neighborhood at CrimeReports.com
The Crime Map 