FDLE Community Policing and Crime Prevention 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary goal of community policing?
- Increasing arrest rates in high-crime areas
- Building partnerships between law enforcement and the community to solve problems (Correct answer)
- Reducing the number of officers needed on patrol
- Centralizing all law enforcement decision-making
Correct answer: Building partnerships between law enforcement and the community to solve problems
Community policing focuses on building trust-based partnerships between officers and community members to collaboratively identify and solve public safety problems.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes the SARA problem-solving model used in community policing?
- Suspect, Arrest, Review, Assess
- Scan, Analyze, Respond, Assess (Correct answer)
- Search, Apprehend, Report, Archive
- Survey, Arrest, Respond, Analyze
Correct answer: Scan, Analyze, Respond, Assess
SARA stands for Scan, Analyze, Respond, and Assess — a structured process for identifying and addressing recurring crime problems.
Question 3: Under Florida law, which agency is responsible for setting minimum standards for community policing training in Florida?
- Florida Highway Patrol
- Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) (Correct answer)
- Florida Attorney General's Office
- Florida Department of Corrections
Correct answer: Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE)
FDLE's Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission (CJSTC) sets minimum training standards for all law enforcement in Florida, including community policing.
Question 4: Which concept involves citizens reporting suspicious activity to law enforcement and is a key component of community crime prevention?
- Broken Windows Theory
- Neighborhood Watch (Correct answer)
- Hot Spots Policing
- CompStat
Correct answer: Neighborhood Watch
Neighborhood Watch programs engage residents to observe and report suspicious activity, extending law enforcement's eyes and ears into the community.
Question 5: What does the 'Broken Windows' theory suggest about crime prevention?
- Replacing broken windows in police stations improves officer morale
- Tolerating minor disorder signals that more serious crime will be ignored (Correct answer)
- High-rise buildings create more crime than residential neighborhoods
- Officers should focus only on violent felonies and ignore misdemeanors
Correct answer: Tolerating minor disorder signals that more serious crime will be ignored
Broken Windows theory holds that visible signs of disorder and neglect signal that an area is not monitored, encouraging escalation to more serious crime.
Question 6: A community policing officer is assigned to a specific geographic area on a long-term basis. This practice is known as:
- Saturation patrol
- Geographic assignment or beat ownership (Correct answer)
- Random patrol
- Task force deployment
Correct answer: Geographic assignment or beat ownership
Beat ownership assigns an officer consistently to the same area so they can build relationships, identify problems, and take personal responsibility for that community.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of a Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) strategy?
- Increasing minimum mandatory sentences
- Installing proper lighting and trimming shrubs to increase natural surveillance (Correct answer)
- Deploying SWAT teams to high-crime areas
- Conducting undercover drug stings
Correct answer: Installing proper lighting and trimming shrubs to increase natural surveillance
CPTED uses environmental modifications like lighting, visibility, and access control to reduce opportunities for crime.
FDLE Community Policing and Crime Prevention 1
What is the primary goal of community policing?