Increasing Police Legitimacy and Reducing Victimization in Immigrant Communities

Recent increases in robbery in the city of Lake Worth, Florida have been concentrated in neighborhoods where many of the residents are migrant workers of Guatemalan (and Mayan) descent. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office (PBSO) and its research partner at Lynn University sought to address this robbery problem, as well as the challenges surrounding policing immigrant communities more generally, through their Smart Policing Initiative (SPI). The PBSO SPI included targeted efforts to increase police legitimacy, to improve residents' awareness of their victimization risk, and to empower residents to embrace crime prevention in their community.

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Federal Sponsor Agency: BJA

Provider: Smart Policing Initiative

Publication Date: 2012