Community prosecution strategies: Measuring Impact. A report on community justice initiatives

Source: (2001) Philadelphia: Crime and Justice Research Institute.

This lengthy research report examines the emergence of community prosecution strategies and some of their common elements in the United States, with particular emphasis on measuring the impact of such strategies. Community prosecution constitutes a “grassroots” approach to law enforcement. It poses the possibility of significant changes in the role and aim of the prosecutor and in the organization and operation of the prosecutor’s office. To accomplish their research, the authors made observations and conducted interviews with officials and key actors in prosecutor’s offices across the United States who are engaged in community prosecution. The report consists of several parts: an executive summary; a discussion of the role of the prosecutor with respect to the community and community justice; a history of the emergence of community prosecution strategies; a typology of such strategies; overviews of community prosecution programs in the United States; and description of the research methods used to measure the impact of community prosecution.