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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 1:49 am
Time: 1:49 am
Results for private policing
4 results foundAuthor: Prenzler, Tim Title: Outsourcing of Policing Tasks: Scope and Prospects Summary: This report examines developments internationally in private security, including the role of security in crime reduction. The review also examines forms of privatised and outsourced policing, and crime prevention partnerships between government and private security. Available evidence indicates that the current downward trend in crime internationally is largely attributable to the wide-scale uptake of security services across a range of institutional, commercial and domestic settings. Rising crime rates globally, and in Australia, appear to have been turned around, and long-term downward trends have set in across numerous offence categories. Growth in the security industry has included a variety of forms of outsourced and partnership policing. There is little evidence, internationally, of any deliberate and thorough-ongoing policies of privatisation of police departments. "Privatisation" has, instead, occurred primarily through market-driven growth in security. Growth has occurred in consumption by government, as well as private sector in-house and contract security. Despite the turnaround in crime rates, crime victimisation remains at high levels in many countries, including Australia. To address this problem, the traditional separation of police and private security needs to be systematically overcome through more organised and active partnerships. There are numerous case studies available of police working closely and successfully with private security, primarily through forms of crime prevention partnerships. These often involve local government and local business associations. Governments also need to make more of opportunities to reduce crime and reduce costs by installing advanced security systems and outsourcing security where a business case can be mounted. Governments also need to facilitate the general uptake of security in commercial, institutional and residential settings. This report concludes that there are enormous opportunities for governments, police and private security to achieve a synergetic effect in crime prevention. Although police and private security operate on different principles of private and public interests, contract arrangements and partnerships can be managed in ways that meet public interest criteria and satisfy democratic principles of accountability. Details: Crows Nest, NSW: Australian security Industry Association, 2013. 67p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 23, 2015 at: https://www.asial.com.au/documents/item/13 Year: 2013 Country: International URL: https://www.asial.com.au/documents/item/13 Shelf Number: 135774 Keywords: Crime PreventionPrivate PolicingPrivate SecurityPrivatization |
Author: Klopfer, Franziska Title: A Force for Good? Mapping the private security landscape in Southeast Europe Summary: The private security industry polarises opinion. For some, it is simply unacceptable to hand responsibility for public security to commercial entities driven - according to this argument - purely by the pursuit of profit. For others, private security companies (PSCs) offer a much needed complement or even an alternative to beleaguered state security services. Perspectives may vary for reasons as diverse as wider national attitudes to privatisation of state services in general or, for example, personal experience of PSCs. But views are always likely to reflect either strong opposition or support. In short, it seems that there is no general agreement about the role that PSCs should and can play as part of the security sector in a democratic state. This topic has been the focus of considerable attention in research and policy circles at national and international levels. Spurred by high profile incidents in contexts such as Iraq and Afghanistan, much attention has been given to the role of PSCs and private military/security companies (PMSCs) in conflict and post-conflict environments. This has led to international non-governmental actors, governments and PSCs themselves coming together to develop international regulatory mechanisms that aim to ensure transparency and accountability while fostering good practices and improved standards within the industry. While developments on the international level provide important starting points for private security regulation, they do not provide a detailed analysis of how private security can contribute to ensuring security as a public good. Indeed, the answers to this question will differ significantly from context to context. A true understanding of private security and its regulation can only start from two fundamental considerations: (1) which role does the state want to attribute to private security providers within the security sector; and (2) which framework is most effective to enable private security to deliver those services and fulfil to clearly defined standards. The first question requires a political decision. The second situates private security within the wider framework of domestic security sector governance concerns. Crucially, both questions need to be answered based on a clear understanding of national security needs and the actual roles played by PSCs operating in a given context. Details: Belgrade; Geneva: Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces, 2015. 129p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 19, 2015 at: http://www.researchgate.net/publication/282657912_A_Force_for_Good_Mapping_the_private_security_landscape_in_Southeast_Europe Year: 2015 Country: Europe URL: http://www.researchgate.net/publication/282657912_A_Force_for_Good_Mapping_the_private_security_landscape_in_Southeast_Europe Shelf Number: 137018 Keywords: Private PolicingPrivate SecurityPrivatizationPublic Security |
Author: Stringham, Edward Title: A Report on the Patrol Special Police and Community Safety in San Francisco Summary: This paper provides an analysis of one of the longest established private police groups in America, The San Francisco Patrol Special Police (PSP). Dating back to the days of the Gold Rush, the PSP are a collection of independent companies that the city charter authorizes to patrol difference neighborhoods at the request of private clients. Details: Oakland, CA: Independent Institute, 2009. 33p. Source: Internet Resource: Independent Institute Working Paper Number 74: http://www.independent.org/pdf/working_papers/74_privatepolicing.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: http://www.independent.org/pdf/working_papers/74_privatepolicing.pdf Shelf Number: 147589 Keywords: Private PolicingPrivatization |
Author: Montgomery, Ruth Title: The Use of Private Security Services for Policing Summary: Over a decade ago, the Law Reform Commission of Canada (2002) opened a dialogue on the trend in the growth of private policing in Canada. A continued rise in police expenditures, combined with economic downturns, have contributed to pressure being placed on police services around the world to become more effective and efficient. This has resulted in a growing interest in discussing the value of privatizing or civilianizing functions of public police services (Public Safety Canada, 2012). This study examines the intersections between private security and public policing, with an emphasis on those functions that private security are now performing that have traditionally been performed by the public police, as well as cooperative efforts between public police and private security. METHOD The research included a literature review of the roles and responsibilities of private security and public police in the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, a review of relevant Canadian legislation, and interviews with key individuals in Canadian government, private security, policing, and police governance organizations. FINDINGS There is the potential for private security to play an important role in community safety and addressing issues of crime and social disorder. Research evidence as to the effectiveness of police-private security initiatives in preventing crime and reducing disorder is mixed. A key factor in the success of these initiatives is management; that is, ensuring there is open communication among the parties, the integrity of the initiative, effective supervision of police and private security officers, and protocols for evaluation. In all of the jurisdictions reviewed, a major challenge is that the core functions of the police have not been defined. This makes it difficult to identify the parameters of the role and responsibilities of the public police, and to determine the niche for private security, working in partnership either with the police, or in an outsourcing or privatization arrangement. There are a number of key factors that are important to the success of police-private security partnerships: 1) a common interest in reducing a specific crime or crime set; 2) effective leadership, with personnel with authority from each partner organization driving participation; 3) mutual respect; 4) information sharing based on high levels of trust in confidentiality; 5) formal meetings of consultation and communication; and, 6) a willingness to experiment and consider all ideas. These processes seem to be in their infancy in Canada. The tiered policing system in Alberta is perhaps the best current example of a system-wide framework for police-private security collaboration. Ideally, police-private security partnerships would be a component of strategic plans that identify areas where collaboration between public police and other groups in the community can be undertaken, monitored, and evaluated. Cost should be one of only several metrics that are used to evaluate the effectiveness of these collaborative partnerships and of outsourcing. Given the unique role of the police in society, other metrics including the legitimacy of the police, the community's view of the various initiatives, and the sustainability of collaborative partnerships must be examined. It is evident that the size and scope of activities of new private security services is expanding. Despite this, there are few, if any, protocols in place to ensure communication and information sharing between these units, many of which are staffed by ex-police and security officers, and the public police. Similarly, there is no information on the size of these units, their budgets, and their activities. At present, these firms seem to inhabit a parallel universe to both public police and traditional private security firms. It is often assumed that privatizing and outsourcing traditional police tasks will result in reductions in the numbers of sworn police officers. Public police-private security collaboration may, on the other hand, result in innovative initiatives that previously did not exist. Little attention has been given to the legal framework within which private security firms operate. There has been little attention given to developing compliance standards and structures for a regulatory regimen. There is also considerable variability across jurisdictions in provisions for enforcement where regulations do exist. Most often, sanctions involve revoking operating licenses. In the absence of a national, provincial or territorial strategic plan for private security, there has also been a failure to develop mechanisms to ensure effective oversight of private security. This has a number of consequences, including an inability to ensure that private security companies are not vulnerable to organized crime, unethical and/or illegal behaviour. The movement to expand the role of private security is occurring in the absence of empirical research studies that would reveal the nature and extent of cost savings, the effectiveness, and the sustainability of policeprivate sector partnerships, outsourcing, and privatization. Cost savings are most often assumed rather than demonstrated. Within the larger context of the economics of policing, there is no published data on the relative cost-effectiveness of private versus public police. The absence of evaluation research on private policing in Canada precludes an informed discussion on proposals for expanding the activities of private policing companies. As well, it is difficult to assess the proposals that are made by private security companies to assume responsibilities currently managed by public police, or to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies that are being proposed by private security firms. There is a need to know more about what private security personnel are doing, the rationale for their activities, and whether these rationales are supported by empirical data. There is no information on the ethics of private security, the values of private security officers, and the private security subculture - all key facets in the study of public police. Details: Ottawa: Public Safety Canada, 2015. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Research Report: 2015-R041: Accessed October 17, 2017 at: https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/2015-R041/2015-R041-en.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Canada URL: https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/2015-R041/2015-R041-en.pdf Shelf Number: 147706 Keywords: Costs of Criminal JusticePartnershipsPolicingPrivate PolicingPrivate SecurityPrivatizationSecurity Officers |