Crime Prevention and Healthy Communities: Interpreting the Results from GPI Glace Bay

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Crime Prevention and Healthy Communities
Interpreting the Results from GPI Glace Bay

• Marcie Smith Dr. Peter MacIntyre

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Background

• As part of the General Progress Index (GPI)
  Atlantic, data was collected from a random sample
  of Glace Bay, N.S. residents over the age of 18.
  1700 surveys were returned which is a response
  rate of over 80.
• The GPI measured many aspects of community life.
  For the purpose of this project the Peace and
  Security index was examined and interpreted to
  raise awareness of the impact of crime and to
  develop strategies to build safer communities.

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Peace Security Issues in Glace Bay

• The most common criminal occurrence mentioned by
  residents was property crimes/vandalism.
• Overall, residents reported they have friendly
  neighborhoods and strong community ties.
• Residents feel that police do an average job of
  enforcing bylaws, promptly responding to calls
  and investigating and solving crime. They view
  police as approachable, easy to talk to, and good
  at ensuring safety.

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Glace Bays Crime Worries

• Top 3
• Underage drinking
• Vandalism/property damage
• Drug use
• Bottom 3
• Noisy parties
• Fighting
• Child abuse

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Residents reports of crimes in Glace Bay
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Glace Bays Ideology on crime

• Glace Bay residents have a somewhat conservative
  view regarding crime issues 83 disagree that
  young offenders are treated too harshly 45.4
  agree that sentences are not severe enough 24.7
  agree that the death penalty should be
  reintroduced for murder and only 13.3 agree
  that marijuana should be legalized.
• Yet, 84.7 of these citizens want more and better
  youth programs, and 50.9 feel that friends and
  neighbors should settle their disputes out of
  court. These views are liberal, restorative, and
  preventative.

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Solutions using a restorative approach

• Glace Bay is a small town with strong community
  ties. Crime can cause breakdowns in many
  relationships if left to the current approach of
  the criminal justice system. Consequently, a
  restorative justice approach would work well in
  Glace Bay.
• Definition Restorative justice is a voluntary,
  community-based response to criminal behavior
  that attempts to bring together the victim, the
  offender, and the community in an effort to
  address the harm caused by the crime(Latimer,
  2001).

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Restorative Justice

• It has been proven in previous studies
  (Schneider, 1990 Stuart, 1996 Umbreit, 1997
  Latimer, 2001) that
• Victims were more satisfied
• Offenders had higher compliance rates
• Offenders had lower rates of re-offending
• Citizens involved in restorative interventions
  had a stronger sense of citizenship, gained more
  legal knowledge, and became empowered in dealing
  with risk.

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Our current justice system

• The community is not recognized as a victim.
• Injuries to relationships remain unrepaired. No
  healing or peacemaking in the community.
• An even more isolated victim and offender is
  created.
• Underlying social problems and risks are ignored.
• Justice system acts as an independent expert,
  separate from the community.
• Emphasis is on punishment which sends mixed
  messages of the very behavior being condemned.
• Cost is 40,000/yr to keep one offender in prison
  (vs. 14,000/yr for community interventions).
• The long term health of the community is ignored.

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Ideas for youth

• Glace Bay residents expressed a concern for more
  and better
• youth programs to give youth something productive
  to do.
• Glace Bay citizens value their youth as an
  important asset to the
• future of Glace Bay.
• IDEAS
• Recreation centers, drop-in centers
• Ball parks, skateboard parks, jogging/hiking
  trails
• Student vs. police sports and events
• Youth crime prevention teams
• Peer programs such as tutoring, mentoring,
  cultural education
• Community service projects, recycling, highway
  clean-ups, painting buildings in town, working
  with/for the elderly.
• Conflict resolution, anger management, drug
  education, decision-making skills
• Work experience, apprenticeships, career
  exploration projects.

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Recreation as an intervention

• Leisure sport and activity have important
  significance for youth during the
• transition to adulthood (Copeland, Galaway,
  Hudson, 1996). Studies have
• shown that programs have led to reductions in
  truancy, drug-use, assault,
• vandalism, and juvenile arrests ( McKay, 1996
  Smandych, 2001).
• Recreation aids in the development of
• Teamwork
• Role models and positive peer socialization
• Time management and responsibility
• Social skills, behavioral skills
• Self-esteem and sense of self
• Goal setting
• Developing a connectedness to the community

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Ideas on the path to solutions

• Assess risks and assets
• Develop programs that combat risk factors and
  social problems, i.e. unemployment and drug use.
• Strengthen community networks and develop
  partnerships
• Involve the business community in crime
  prevention initiatives.
• Block watch
• Police-community councils
• Foot patrols and community police stations
• Concerned citizens groups
• Community beautification projects cleaning,
  painting
• Employment and recreation initiatives are
  essential

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Conclusions

• Solutions developed by the Glace Bay community
  will be stronger and longer lasting than the
  punitive solutions of the criminal justice
  system. These ideas and solutions will increase
  the capacity of the community to handle new
  problems.
• By strengthening connections to the community
  obligations are created that act as both a
  deterrent and rehabilitative measure.
• Glace Bays desire for harsher sentences may be
  reduced when they see the value and success of
  community initiatives.
• Restorative justice, recreation, and community
  programs are seen as the best solutions for Glace
  Bays peace and security.

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Quotes

• The problem of crime can no longer be simplified
  to the problem of the criminal (Bazemore, 1999).
• Communities have significant power to change the
  hearts and minds of offenders. They influence
  the behavior of their members. The criminal
  justice system has power only over the body of
  its offenders (Pranis, 1998).
• Only interventions which are grounded in the
  community and directed by the community are
  likely to strengthen the community (Pranis,
  1998).