Law Enforcement and Public Health: Sharing Resources and Strategies for Safer Communities

The public health field has long recognized violence as more than just a law enforcement problem. A 1979 Surgeon General report made one of the first explicit links between public health and law enforcement by identifying violent behavior as a significant risk to health. Four years later, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established the Violence Epidemiology Branch. Over the years, practitioners in both health and law enforcement have developed a richer understanding of the causes of violence and strategies to address it. This report documents the discussion at an executive session aimed at exploring how public health approaches and partnerships can help law enforcement practitioners prevent and reduce incidents of violence.

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Author: Robert V. Wolf

Federal Sponsor Agency: COPS

Provider: Center for Court Innovation

Publication Date: 2012

Publication Type: PDF