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Broken Windows

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Broken Windows
One of the main issues that affects the criminal justice system and DA’s office is why there is a higher occurrence of crime in many poorer or lower class neighborhoods than in middle to upper class ones. This paper raises the question whether Broken Windows theory explains the causes of crime in these areas specifically the cities of Atlanta, College Park, East Point, and Union City within Fulton County. Compared to other major counties and cities that surround Fulton County these four cities had the highest crime rates out of all. This paper also presents the arguments for and against the use of Broken Windows in police polices and policing. Finally this paper will discuss how the use or lack of use of broken windows affects the community, police, crime, and police perception.
To demonstrate the theory of Broken Windows and help explain the issue presented an experiment was done by professor Zimbaro a professor of sociology at Sanford university, and he parked a car in both the Bronx, New York and Paulo Alto, California. He found that the car located in the Bronx was vandalized within minutes, however the car in Paulo Alto remained untouched for over one week. When Zimbaro smashed the windscreen on the car in the Bronx, within a few hours the car had been stripped, overturned and completely destroyed. This you can argue demonstrates how once the communal barriers are removed this gives off the signal that no one cares, and inhibits criminal and anti-social behavior (O 'Shea, T., 2006). Broken Windows theory was developed by James Q. Wilson and the central theme of broken windows theory holds that when neighborhoods appear to be broken down, disordered, and generally unfriendly, they serve as a magnet to delinquent behavior and crime (Garcia, S., 2008). Broken windows theory proposes that crime is not necessarily caused by broken down neighborhoods, but that they become magnets for crime and delinquent behavior because of their disorganization. This is



References: Garcia, S. (2008). Night-time economy: Cooperation between formal and informal social control. Police Journal, 81, 126-143. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu Gault, M., & Silver, E. (2008). Spuriousness or mediation? Broken windows according to Sampson and Raudenbush . Journal of Criminal Justice, 36, 240-243. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu Jang, H., Hoover, L., & Lawton, B. (2008). Effect of broken windows enforcement on clearance rates . Journal of Criminal Justice, 36, 529-538. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu Kelling, G., & Coles, C. (1998). Fixing Broken Windows. New York: Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group. McCabe, J. (2008). What works in policing? The relationship between drug enforcement and serious crime . Police Quarterly, 11, 289-314. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu Messner, S., Galea, S., & Tardiff, K. (2007). Policing, drugs, and the homicide decline in New York City in the 1990s. Criminology, 45, 385-413. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu O 'Shea, T. (2006). Physical deterioration, disorder, and crime. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 17, 173-187. Retrieved June 21, 2010, from www.gsu.edu

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