CRIME PREVENTION

Members of the Mullica Township Police dept are trained to advise citizens on how to best protect themselves from criminal attacks at home, at work, and in public places. Certain officers will make arrangements to come out to your community or business to discuss and train citizens on this important topic.

Although great effort has been made at the elimination of crime, most all of our crime control methods have been directed at the investigation and surveillance, apprehension, prosecution, incarceration. probation/parole, and rehabilitation of actors who have committed offenses against society.  these efforts after the fact have not been successful in eliminating crime.  Crime prevention is a direct control method on that it applies to before the fact efforts to reduce criminal opportunity.  It reduces the environmental opportunity for the crime to occur rather than seek to alter the criminals behavior or desire.  our past strategy to control crime by treating offenders after the crime had been committed can be compared to treating polio victims by medication and physical therapy after they had contracted the decease.  Crime prevention is a systematic and effective strategy to reduce or eliminate the opportunity for the crime to occur.


HISTORY OF CRIME PREVENTION

The English experience:  The development of the principles which form the basic practice of modern day crime prevention can be followed in the history of police service.  Great Britain served as the father of modern police service which fostered crime prevention, although the concept did not emerge until early in the nineteenth century.  Until that time, all action against crime was taken only after the crime had actually been committed.  then the principal deterrent was swift and severe punishment for persons found guilty.  All citizens were expected, however, to play their part.  This is the first principle of crime  prevention – public cooperation.  It is no wonder that crime, especially in the cities, was rampant and it was unsafe to walk the streets at any time of day.