Broken Windows Policing: A Randomized Experimental Evaluation of its Impacts on Disorder, Fear and Crime in Three Cities

This study will develop a block randomized experimental evaluation of Broken Windows Policing in three cities in the San Bernardino Valley area of California. Specifically, it will test the impact of a Broken Windows Policing approach upon approximately 180 street segments (divided equally into treatment and control locations) that evidence relatively high levels of disorder at the outset of the study. The study would examine the impacts of Broken Windows Policing on the actual and perceived level of minor offenses and disorder at targeted locations; its effects on fear of crime and perceptions of police legitimacy in the areas that are targeted; and possible impacts on crime during the study period.

ca/ncf