Tactical Police Responses to Micro-Time Hot Spots for Thefts from Vehicles and Residential Burglaries (Port St. Lucie, Florida)
Axios
Policing
Solution types
Hot Spots Policing
Problems addressed
Robberies
Effectiveness

Effective

.

.

.

.

.

Effective

Want to know more about this classification? Check out our methodological manual.

Life periods served
People of all ages
Where the program was applied
Community (streets or community centers)
Country of application
United States
Description

This is a police intervention focused on vehicle thefts in “micro- time” hot spots. The definition of hot spots took into consideration areas where two vehicle thefts occurred within a maximum 14-day interval inside a given distance radius.
Police officers applied targeted patrol strategies and contact with potential victims and offenders during the 14 days after the events were recorded. Analysts tracked criminal activity at hot spots and updated reports until the area was crime-free for a continuous 21-day period.

Impact evaluations

An impact evaluation showed that, on average, there was a 20% reduction in vehicle theft. There was also no evidence of displacement of crime to surrounding areas. Thus, a targeted, short-term response to hot spots appears to have reduced crime [1].

Bibliographic reference

[1] Santos, R. G. y Santos, R. B. (2015). An Ex Post Facto Evaluation of Tactical Police Response in Residential Theft from Vehicle Micro-time Hot Spots. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 31(4), 679–698. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10940-015-9248-7

Information source