Crime Prevention Taken Seriously In Minneapolis
By Heather Woodbine
Even though the crime rates have been steadily falling from the 1990’s, some of the bigger cities across the nation have to still contend with a growing crime rate. While the government officials are doing their best, crime related problems continue to persist due to the ever-growing population in these urban centers. So fighting crime is a battle that must be waged continuously day after day by law enforcement agencies against elements of anarchy and social unrest.

Minneapolis, located in Minnesota, has a population a little under 400,000. Even so, the emergency services receive more than one thousand distress calls every day. And the police, the fire and EMT departments of the emergency services try to process most of them.

Budget constraints and the sheer volume of calls make it impossible to respond immediately to all such emergency calls. Hence the local administration officials are forced to impose a prioritization of all such emergency calls. Highest priority is given to all those calls dealing with life threatening situations. Subsequent priority is allotted to calls based on their severity level in a manner to ensure the best possible service within the given constraints.

During peak times, a situation is assessed using the following criteria before a cop is dispatched to the location. The process of such verification and dispatching a cop takes around one hour. An incoming call is considered high priority if 1. there is an immediate threat to life, 2. there are any injuries 3. there is any ongoing criminal action and 4. the offender is present in the immediate vicinity or is expected to return.

This prioritization of incoming calls is part of the new initiative by Minneapolis to more effectively handle crime. Rather than spread their force thin responding to low priority calls, the police ration resources so that they are always capable of handling ongoing crimes effectively. It is all part of the new CODEFOR plan.

CODEFOR stands for Computer Optimized Deployment—Focus on Results. All sections of the police force are involved

in this new crime reduction initiative and it involves four basic ideas: 1. accurate and timely intelligence on crime that is occurring 2. rapid deployment of personnel and resources in appropriate circumstances 3. effective tactics and 4. relentless follow-up and assessment.

The ‘Watch Your Car’ program is another initiative taken by Minneapolis to reduce car theft. It is a voluntary program that involves registered owners who sign a release form stating that they are not normally driving their vehicle between 1-5 a.m. This gives the police the right to pull their car over if they spot it on the road during these hours.

Participants get luminous stickers for their cars. If a vehicle with the sticker is seen between 1-5 a.m. the police will pull it over even if no crime has yet been witnessed. The citizens are happy to join this revolutionary program because it is showing great results.

However, it is presumptuous to consider a crime fighting initiative will be 100% effective. But, the Minneapolis police department is certainly trying its best to make the community as safe as possible for its citizens. It is a great incentive for people considering relocating to Minneapolis as the community is committed to fighting crime to make the city safe to live.

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Heather Woodbine is the webmaster for F minneapolis, the web's premier resource for information about minneapolis, For more articles on minneapolis visit: www.yominneapolis.com/articles
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