TRENDS & ISSUES in crime and criminal justice

As part of the Australian Institute of Criminology’s commitment to building an evidence base on the effects of Australian policing initiatives this paper explores the impact of a targeted policing operation to reduce property crime. By comparing property crime data for the ACT and surrounding areas of NSW, the paper finds no evidence for displacement, either spatially or by crime type following a significant burglary reduction strategy conducted in the ACT in 2001. This paper suggests that there was a diffusion of benefits as car crime and burglary in the surrounding parts of NSW (outside the intervention area) saw significant reductions. However, it is important to note that crime reduction and prevention activity can have unintended, negative consequences not measured in this analysis and that there may be other important factors not accounted for. As a consequence these results may not automatically translate to other initiatives. This paper highlights the need for on-going evaluations of crime reduction initiatives to further our understanding of both the possible displacement and the diffusion of benefits from police operations. Diffusion of Benefits: Evaluating a Policing Operation

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