[BigStick]

My house is only a few hundred yards away from a local satelite sheriff's station. This makes my wife feel more safe and comfortable in our neighborhood, and it can't hurt as far as response time goes, but I was wondering if that actually has any effect on the frequency/type of crimes committed in the area. I have been unable to find any info online about crime statistics with relation to distance from a LE station.

I understand it is no excuse for being less prepared or vigilant, I was just wondering if proximity actually made a difference in crime rate or type?

 

[C9H13NO3]

CrimeReports | The National Crime Map

Look at the address of the police station, put in what crimes you want to see and the time frame, compare to further away areas...

 

[BigStick]

Thanks for that link. I will spend some time looking into that when I get home from work. It should give me specifics for my area, but I was also wondering in the more general sense. Have there been any studies done showing overall trends accross the country or in specific areas?

 

[Rugergirl]

I don't know of any studies, and I'm sure it varies from area to area.
I know where I am from, most of the officers on a given shift are out on the road, handling anything from traffic calls, to crimes in progress, and don't often even stop at the station between calls.
From what I've heard on the scanner and knowing there are only 6 officers for general duty on each shift, they keep pretty busy. If you are in a smaller or rural community things may be quite different, as far as how busy the department is and staffing.
I'd start with checking the local PD's website(if they have one) and take a look at the crime reports for that area, it might give you an idea of how busy your local PD is.

 

[Janq]

Additional reading material along the same subject matter as CrimeReports; Center for Problem Oriented Policing | Crime Prevention Studies

Crime varies depending on local and regional factors.
Are you in a city, suburb, or rural area?

There are police stations and sub-stations everywhere, and crime continues to occur.
In the city which I know best there are murders and other crimes of violence on going right next door (!) to major police stations as a regular occurrence.
Police place sub-stations literally inside of apartment buildings and guess what, it generally means nothing as a deterrent goes.

Out in the suburbs and rural areas crime tends to be more spread out in type and frequency and may even be less dense per annum (rural).
But even that is not exactly a deterrent to crime per se as by proximity.

Best thing to do is check your own local and regional crime stats, as suggested by adrenalin.

Another site that I personally reference when ever thinking to guy in a neighborhood is; Crime Statistics - CityRating.com
A second being City-Data.com and NeighborhoodScout

As well of course reference your own local police and/or city/town govt. website for monthly/quarterly/annual crime reports and statistics which most every police dept. these days provides to the public.

Do not assume or guess. Find out and know with surety.

- Janq

 

[dukalmighty]

When I was an LEO after shift change there weren't any cops near the Police Dept.,unless we were called in or had to return for paperwork,the PD only fell within one beat cars Jurisdiction.we had a lot of crime committed within 2 blocks of the PD.The Sheriffs Dept was about 3 blocks away,and same story,only people onsite were dispatcher and jailer

 

[mcp1810]

Unscientifically I would say no. Unlike the fire department that generally responds from the station, officers usually are responding from somewhere out on the road. In my department officers were in the stations for roll call, to file reports, or processing DUIs. Other than that they were expected to be either in their own beat or backing someone up on a call.

 

[BigStick]

Thanks for the links and perspectives. Not being one or knowing any LEOs, I guess I never thought about the fact that most of them are out on patrol and not in the office. But then again, the BG might not know that either and be influenced by an emotional fear of the station. Looking at the reports for my area or anywhere you want to move to definitly seems to be a good way to get some valuable information.

 

[ccw9mm]

Does proximity to LE stations affect crime rates?

I'm sure that when it really comes down to it, proximity to opportunity is what primarily drives crime rates. In that sense, and supported by basic statistical data/maps we've all seen, it doesn't seem that having a precinct/station nearby seems to dissuade much of anything from happening.

 

[CopperKnight]

For the Spokane area, the short answer is "no".

The main station for the police, sheriff, court, and jail are in one place. Some of the highest crime rates are right near there.

 

[chiboxer]

In my anecdotal experience no, we once had a guy shot in our station's parking lot! Proximity to the police station seems to do nothing to abate the crime rate.

 

[LM2024]

In my anecdotal experience no, we once had a guy shot in our station's parking lot! Proximity to the police station seems to do nothing to abate the crime rate.

Agreed. Our northeast assembly is in the middle of the hood. Shootings occur right across the street and within a few blocks on a regular basis. There's a McDonalds within 50 ft of the assembly and it still got robbed at gun point. Despite the fact that cruisers are always going back and forth from the assembly doesn't seem to deter the hardcore criminal elements.

 

[chiboxer]

No, one of our district stations actually seems to act like some sort of bizarre crime magnet. LM2024, I am guessing you are located somewhere in Omaha?

 

[Blue Jacket]

In a word, NO. When I worked an inner city precinct, the sub-station had to be fenced in. While we were on the street working, our personal cars were being targeted. Besides, the buildings are 95% unoccupied. Only paperwork tasks were done and maybe a bathroom break. Heck, BG's steal cruisers, so a nearby police facility is not a guarantee of safety.

 

[ExSoldier]

After Hurricane Andrew, I was with a group of staff officers invited from the army national guard to City of Miami HQ in downtown for coordination on curfew checkpoints and helicopter LZ's I had set up in the disaster zone (I was acting S-3 "Air"). We got to go into the HQ armed with our 45's which was pretty neat. I'm standing at the window on like the third floor and I could clearly see the street right in front of the building and I witnessed a mugging! Some street dude ambles up to some old lady waiting for the bus and snatches her purse! I point it out and one of the cops in the room sprints out while muttering "OH NO NOT AGAIN!" I suddenly felt a whole lot safer with my 45 on me.

 

[Guardian]

I've got to agree with what is being said here. Our Sheriffs Dept. is located downtown just about 5 blocks from eastside, gang turf and mug central and high crime, our Police Dept Training Center is located right in Eastside and our Police Dept is located on the Central Part of the City where the other half of the crime/gangs live, so I've got to agree with most here are saying. Deterrent, no way.

 

[dnowell]

Think about causality. If you were doing city or police planning, where would you put police stations? I'd put them in high crime areas, so that officers wouldn't have to drive all the way from a nice neighborhood to a bad neighborhood to do their jobs.

 

[RETSUPT99]

Do I think that dirtbags, who ignore all kinds of laws each and every day care if they commit crimes near a police station? NO!:nono:

 

[longtrain58]

My house and gun shop are one block from the Sheriff's training center.

There's a Sheriff's car or Trooper's car parked in front of the house all the time. I put a brisket on the pit on Thursday's and offer free Bar-B-Que sandwhiches and refreshments on Thursdays, slice and make your own.

Sometimes it looks like a cop convention on Thursday afternoons. Works for me.

 

[Rexster]

Unscientifically I would say no. Unlike the fire department that generally responds from the station, officers usually are responding from somewhere out on the road. In my department officers were in the stations for roll call, to file reports, or processing DUIs. Other than that they were expected to be either in their own beat or backing someone up on a call.

+1.

Moreover, from a purely statistical point of view, keep in mind that when a complainant goes to a police station to make a report of something that happened to them on the street somewhere, and the exact location of the incident is unknwon, the police station's address become the default location of the incident. Also, when a person comes to the station to turn themselves in for a warrant from another agency, that requires a new incident number, so, statistically, that is another major or minor crime incident at the police station's address.

Also, as other posts mentioned, police stations are often built in high-crime areas.