In the book Intelligence Led Policing (Ratcliffe 2008), author Jerry Ratcliffe offers a summary of the newest technique in policing which is termed Intelligence Based Policing by Ratcliffe. This book argues that the best stance for law enforcement to take in regards to crime is a proactive stance rather than a reactive stance. This means focusing more upon using intelligence gathering and intervention techniques to prevent crime rather than on punishing criminals for crimes that have already been committed. Ratcliffe claims that this has been a common policing practice in the United Kingdom for several years already, which is one of the primary reasons that they have not been as vulnerable to the attacks of 911. It is also argued that the United States might not have been as enthusiastic about the move to Intelligence Based Policing had 911 not occurred.
Intelligence Led Policing seems to be an international phenomenon. (Ratcliffe 2008) With the rise of terrorism in the Middle East, and the fall of many Communist governments and dictatorships many countries have determined that this type of policing is better suited to an international climate where it is often critical to know about potential crimes before they have been committed in order to intervene and prevent potentially devastating results. Ratcliffe points out that countries as far afield as Australia have begun using these policing techniques in order to create a safer environment for their citizens as well as an increased level of national security.
Intelligence led policing seems to be a relatively new phenomenon in the Criminal Justice Field. The concept that one should prevent crime rather than intervening after it occurs has only become popular within the last 30 years or so. Ratcliffe compares Intelligence Led Policing to journalism in some respects by stating that in order to successfully use this Law Enforcement technique an officer of the law must know the Who, What, When, Why, Where, and How of the potential crime before they seek to intervene. It is argued that the primary goal of using this information is to prevent crime. Punishment of the offender is considered to be a secondary responsibility of Law Enforcement officials, and officers are encouraged to base decisions about crime and potential crimes on physical evidence rather than on subjective opinions.
Ratcliffe presents powerful crime statistics suggesting that punishing criminals alone is not successful. According to the data presented in the text, only 751000 crimes are ever solved, and this data does not even look at whether or not the alleged perpetrators of these crimes are ever punished for their crimes. Ratcliffe also argues that rather than targeting the 6 of the overall population that comprise the criminal element, one should instead focus on resolving the problems that cause them to become criminals such as domestic violence, child abuse, poverty, lack of education, job training and employment, and psychological problems that result in poor impulse control or difficulty discerning the different between right and wrong. (Ratcliffe 2008)
There seems to be a strict line between how traditional policing is defined, and how Intelligence Led Policing is defined. Traditional policing is defined as investigating, detecting, and punishing crimes that have already occurred. In comparison, Intelligence Led Policing is about crime prevention, meaning to stop criminal behavior before it occurs through education and intervention in the types of situations that give rise to criminal behavior. (Ratcliffe 2008)
Ratcliffe also points out that Intelligence Led Policing is useful only insofar as the intelligence that is gathered and the techniques they use to prevent crimes from occurring are effective. If the intelligence is not reaching the appropriate Law Enforcement personnel than those responsible for enforcing the law cannot prevent crime. If education and other crime prevention methods are ineffective, crime will not decrease.
It is also pointed out that one of the main difficulties in using Intelligence Led Policing successfully lies in the political maneuvering that (Ratcliffe 2008)
Overall this book was very useful in outlining and summarizing the overall usefulness of Intelligence Led Policing in comparison to Traditional Policing methods. The subject matter was clear, easy to understand and a gave many functional guidelines for the implementation of these techniques in a Law Enforcement Setting. Ratcliffe gave a more detailed overview of Intelligence Led Policing techniques than would be found in a more general Criminology Text. He also offered the reader real life scenarios of how Law Enforcement Agencies worldwide are implementing these techniques, not only, at the national and international levels such as the FBI and Interpol, but at the state and local levels as well.
Ratcliffe promotes Intelligence Led Policing as a positive method of controlling crime levels while still maintaining strong ties with the community and with other Law Enforcement Agencies. While there are some negative aspects to these methods, most specifically, their weakness when not used in conjunction with more traditional method of policing. The usefulness of this text in outlining some of the new methodology being used in the prevention, detection and punishment of criminal acts cannot be denied. Ratcliffes text is a suitable resource whether you are a member of Law Enforcement with several years of experience, or a young officer just starting out ones career in Policing. It can be concluded, that Ratcliffes guide offers suitable guidelines in how to transform ones department from a traditional Law Enforcement Agency, to an agency better suited to policing in the Modern Era
Intelligence Led Policing seems to be an international phenomenon. (Ratcliffe 2008) With the rise of terrorism in the Middle East, and the fall of many Communist governments and dictatorships many countries have determined that this type of policing is better suited to an international climate where it is often critical to know about potential crimes before they have been committed in order to intervene and prevent potentially devastating results. Ratcliffe points out that countries as far afield as Australia have begun using these policing techniques in order to create a safer environment for their citizens as well as an increased level of national security.
Intelligence led policing seems to be a relatively new phenomenon in the Criminal Justice Field. The concept that one should prevent crime rather than intervening after it occurs has only become popular within the last 30 years or so. Ratcliffe compares Intelligence Led Policing to journalism in some respects by stating that in order to successfully use this Law Enforcement technique an officer of the law must know the Who, What, When, Why, Where, and How of the potential crime before they seek to intervene. It is argued that the primary goal of using this information is to prevent crime. Punishment of the offender is considered to be a secondary responsibility of Law Enforcement officials, and officers are encouraged to base decisions about crime and potential crimes on physical evidence rather than on subjective opinions.
Ratcliffe presents powerful crime statistics suggesting that punishing criminals alone is not successful. According to the data presented in the text, only 751000 crimes are ever solved, and this data does not even look at whether or not the alleged perpetrators of these crimes are ever punished for their crimes. Ratcliffe also argues that rather than targeting the 6 of the overall population that comprise the criminal element, one should instead focus on resolving the problems that cause them to become criminals such as domestic violence, child abuse, poverty, lack of education, job training and employment, and psychological problems that result in poor impulse control or difficulty discerning the different between right and wrong. (Ratcliffe 2008)
There seems to be a strict line between how traditional policing is defined, and how Intelligence Led Policing is defined. Traditional policing is defined as investigating, detecting, and punishing crimes that have already occurred. In comparison, Intelligence Led Policing is about crime prevention, meaning to stop criminal behavior before it occurs through education and intervention in the types of situations that give rise to criminal behavior. (Ratcliffe 2008)
Ratcliffe also points out that Intelligence Led Policing is useful only insofar as the intelligence that is gathered and the techniques they use to prevent crimes from occurring are effective. If the intelligence is not reaching the appropriate Law Enforcement personnel than those responsible for enforcing the law cannot prevent crime. If education and other crime prevention methods are ineffective, crime will not decrease.
It is also pointed out that one of the main difficulties in using Intelligence Led Policing successfully lies in the political maneuvering that (Ratcliffe 2008)
Overall this book was very useful in outlining and summarizing the overall usefulness of Intelligence Led Policing in comparison to Traditional Policing methods. The subject matter was clear, easy to understand and a gave many functional guidelines for the implementation of these techniques in a Law Enforcement Setting. Ratcliffe gave a more detailed overview of Intelligence Led Policing techniques than would be found in a more general Criminology Text. He also offered the reader real life scenarios of how Law Enforcement Agencies worldwide are implementing these techniques, not only, at the national and international levels such as the FBI and Interpol, but at the state and local levels as well.
Ratcliffe promotes Intelligence Led Policing as a positive method of controlling crime levels while still maintaining strong ties with the community and with other Law Enforcement Agencies. While there are some negative aspects to these methods, most specifically, their weakness when not used in conjunction with more traditional method of policing. The usefulness of this text in outlining some of the new methodology being used in the prevention, detection and punishment of criminal acts cannot be denied. Ratcliffes text is a suitable resource whether you are a member of Law Enforcement with several years of experience, or a young officer just starting out ones career in Policing. It can be concluded, that Ratcliffes guide offers suitable guidelines in how to transform ones department from a traditional Law Enforcement Agency, to an agency better suited to policing in the Modern Era
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