Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy

For other uses of "Caps", see Caps (disambiguation).

Chicago Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS) is a community driven policing strategy designed for the Chicago Police Department that aims to bridge the gap between the police force and the citizens of Chicago. CAPS started in 1993 as a pilot program in five of the 25 police districts in Chicago - Englewood, Marquette, Austin, Morgan Park, and Rogers Park - after a realization that the community and police were becoming increasingly isolated from one another throughout Chicago since the early 1960s.[1][2] The original five districts, characterized by high crime rates[3][4][5] and cases of extreme poverty,[6] provided the Chicago Police Department with an initial benchmark from which to determine the program's strengths and weaknesses.[7] By 1995, the Chicago Police Department implemented CAPS across all Chicago neighborhoods with the goal of blending traditional policing strategies with alternative strategies aimed at encouraging community members and police to work together in order to prevent and control crime.[8] The program's motto, "Together We Can," emphasizes the need for increased lines of communication between the community and the police, so that together they could come up with solutions for chronic neighborhood problems.[9]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Daley, Richard. "Together We Can" (PDF). Center for Problem-Oriented Policing. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-02-19.
  3. ^ "Crime in Chicago -- Chicago Tribune". crime.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
  4. ^ "Man Found Shot To Death In Vacant Austin Lot". CBS Chicago. 2017-03-05. Retrieved 2017-04-04.
  5. ^ "Crime in Chicago -- Chicago Tribune". crime.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
  6. ^ Cherney, Elyssa. "Police remove 9 children left alone in Englewood home with no heat". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2017-03-07.
  7. ^ "What is CAPS? | Chicago Police Department". home.chicagopolice.org. Archived from the original on 2017-03-16. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  8. ^ Skogan, Wesley. "Taking Stock: Community Policing in Chicago" (PDF). National Institute of Justice. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  9. ^ Daley, Richard. "A Strategic Plan for Reinventing the Chicago Police Department" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.