RESOURCES

CityLab reports on the Stockton police department’s path-breaking commitment to reconciliation and trust building which serves as a cornerstone for its successful violence reduction initiative.

This article reports findings that procedural justice training – similar to that instituted with CPSC’s support in Stockton, Salinas, and Oakland – can change police behavior and reduce both citizen complaints and police use of force. The research team, George Wood, Tom R. Tyler and Andrew V. Papachristos, suggest that intensive training can produce “substantial changes in police behavior on the streets.”

The Giffords Law Center details the development and implementation of Oakland Ceasefire, highlighting five elements: (1) analysis of violent incidents and trends; (2) respectful, in-person communication with residents at risk of violence as victims or suspects; (3) relationship-based social services; (4) narrowly focused law enforcement actions; and (5) an intentional management structure.

Leading researchers recommend that prospective candidates and elected officials refer to the community and police collaborations in Oakland and Stockton as they create new models of policing.

Rodrigo Canales, an associate professor of organizational behavior at Yale School of Management, is building on CPSC’s organizational change work as it tests approaches to increasing trust and effectiveness in police departments in Mexico.

Tracey Meares, the Walton Hale Hamilton Professor at Yale Law School and a founding director of the Yale Justice Collaboratory, highlights Oakland and Stockton as promising models of community and police collaborations to reduce violence.

CPSC’s primary focus during its long partnership with Stockton has been the development of its evidence-based and values-driven violence reduction initiative, which has reduced homicide by over 50 percent since 2012.

The impact evaluation was designed to determine whether the Ceasefire intervention was associated with this steep decline in serious gun violence and assess how Ceasefire partners and community leaders perceived the implementation of the strategy.

Mayor London N. Breed and San Francisco Police Chief William Scott today announced a $6 million grant awarded to the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) from the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC). The money will continue funding the San Francisco Violence Reduction Initiative (VRI), which initially was awarded a $1.5 million grant in 2020 when VRI was created. This year’s new grant will fund continued operations that support the City’s efforts to prevent violent crime over the next three years.

This analysis establishes a common understanding of the local violence problem that informs the work of civic, community, and criminal justice leaders to reduce violence. The problem analysis identifies the networks and individuals within a community who are at greatest risk of violence and helps tailor an intervention to reduce that risk. Though the methodology is informed by research, the problem analysis is primarily a practice document with implications for local policy.