Urban Neighborhood Information Systems: Crime Prevention and Control Applications

0 VER the last fifteen years, advances in computer technology have begun to significantly influence the way criminologists and policy makers think about crime and justice. One ofthe more influential technological advances has been the development of computer mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIs). The adoption of computer mapping technology by many criminal justice agencies and academics has helped to move criminal justice policy and research in a direction that places increasingemphasis on the relationship betweencrime and the environmental context in which it occurs. This direction has also been supported by other important trends Sampson such as the growing body of research demonstrating a link between BunikmdGrasmick crime and the environment and the shift in policing philosophy to a Swam TaylormdHamll more communityor problem-oriented approach. These forces have created an abundance of opportunities to use the latest mapping technology in powerful ways to assist those interested in addressing Goldsmithet al. Harries 1999 public safety issues in local communities. To support community-based research, many agencies have developed some Geographic Information Systems (GIs) capacity. A basic GIs system includes individual andfor area-level data with geographic indicators along with mapping software capable of producing geographic displays of information. Some systems also include statistical tools for advanced spatial analysis. There is a