• Center for Problem oriented policing

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Appendix B: Strategic Planning Framework for Preventing Student Party Riots

A comprehensive strategy should address the five stages of a student gathering presented earlier (see figure). It should also incorporate Ronald Clarkes techniques of situational prevention. These techniques fall under five general types of opportunity-reduction: increase the effort needed to commit an offense, increase the risk of detection, reduce the rewards gained from committing crime, reduce factors that can provoke a criminal response, and remove excuses justifying illegal behavior.§ The five gathering stages and five opportunity-reduction types can be combined to produce a strategic planning framework for preventing student party riots. Using this framework to organize and select your interventions will allow you to determine whether you have considered all intervention points (gathering stages) and opportunity-reduction types.

§ For more information on Clarke's situational prevention techniques, see the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing website: http://popcenter.org.

The following form provides an example of how you can use this strategic planning framework to develop a comprehensive strategy. It is not necessary to fill each cell with an intervention to create an effective action plan. Instead, using this table to classify your strategies will allow you to see whether there are opportunity-reduction types (rows) you have not considered, and whether you are concentrating too much or too little of your effort at a single intervention stage (columns). At minimum, a comprehensive strategy addresses each of the five stages. You should use at least two different types of responses at each stage to increase your likelihood of success.

As you can see, the example provided for addressing the student riot at Riverside Drive and 13th Street is weakest at stages 3 (assembling process) and 4 (assembled gathering). Two interventions should be used at each stage; however, no interventions are planned for the assembling process. Although two interventions are planned for the assembled gathering, both increase the risk of detection. Therefore, a different opportunity-reduction-type intervention should be included at this stage. The planning assessment section at the bottom of the form allows a supervisor to quickly see whether the action plan meets the basic criteria for a comprehensive strategy. A blank planning form is provided for you to duplicate and use when formulating your particular strategy.

Strategic Planning Framework for Preventing Student Party Riots

Event: Student riot at Riverside Drive and 13th Street__ Date: April 1, 2006_____________

Classification of Interventions

Opportunity-Reduction Type

STAGE 1

Initial Planning

STAGE 2

Preassembly
Preparation

STAGE 3

Assembling Process

STAGE 4

Assembled Gathering

STAGE 5

Dispersal Process

Increase Effort

Require party permits

Enforce no- parking

Provide transportation

Increase Risk

Videotape gathering

Use alternative deployment methods

Reduce Rewards

Sanitize location

Reduce Provocations

Use student patrols

Remove Excuses

Use Adopt-a-Cop program

Facilitate dispersal

TOTAL INTERVENTIONS

2

3

0

2

2

NUMBER OF TYPES USED

2

3

0

1

2

Planning Assessment*

1. Have you used at least two interventions during each stage (see total interventions row)?
Yes No

2. If not, which stage or stages are lacking two interventions?

__Assembling Process _____________________________________________________________

3. Have you used at least two different opportunity-reduction types during each stage (see number of types used row)?
Yes No

4. If not, which stage or stages are lacking multiple opportunity-reduction types?

__Assembling Process and Assembled Gathering__________________________________________

*You should consider changes or additions to your overall action plan if you answered "no" to any of the above questions.
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