Reducing Crime

Stacey Rothwell is the director of innovation action across seven police forces leading ERIN, the Eastern Region Innovation Network in the UK. After a career as a sworn officer, including as a detective in financial investigation, she returned in a civilian role, pioneering the innovative use of rapid video response in domestic violence cases. She chatted to Jerry Ratcliffe at the Somers Town Coffee House to discuss her career and the challenges of getting an experiment in rapid video response up and running.

David Décary-Hétu is a professor at the University of Montreal and chair of the Darknet and Anonymity Research Centre. Décary-Hétu's research focuses on studying data from offenders who use anonymity technologies like the dark web, cryptocurrencies, and encryption. He reveals that the dark web was originally developed by the military to enable anonymous communication, and that while the dark web and other anonymity technologies pose challenges for law enforcement, they are not the unbreakable havens for crime that are sometimes portrayed in media. The dark web enables new types of crime, but repeated disruptions of dark web markets can lead to some offenders becoming discouraged and quitting.

Loren Atherley is the Senior Director of Performance Analytics & Research and the Senior Research Scientist for the Seattle Police Department. He emphasizes the importance of taking an incremental, gradual approach to implementing evidence-based policing. He focuses on building data curiosity and buy-in within the department by providing useful analytical products and dashboards. He advocates for hiring "pracademics" - academics with applied experience - to help bridge the gap between research and practice in policing. This allows departments to leverage rigorous methodology while still understanding the practical realities. However, Dr. Atherley also acknowledges the need for caution when applying advanced analytics and machine learning to policing.

Gina Hawkins, experienced police leader, former chief, and President of the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives, discusses the importance of support networks and mentorship for women in policing, especially at the executive level. She emphasizes the ‘sorority-like’ connections among women leaders that provide crucial emotional and professional support. She talks about the personal sacrifices that come with taking on leadership, the need for better mental health and wellness support for police officers, as well as the historical stigma and lack of resources around this issue. Also discussed are the barriers and biases that women, particularly women of color, face in advancing to leadership positions in policing.

Jerry Ratcliffe talks to Professor Cliff Stott, a distinguished social psychologist specializing in crowd behavior, group identity, and public order policing. Stott discusses his background and early life experiences, and how this led him to study crowd psychology and develop the Elaborated Social Identity Model as an alternative to outdated mob psychology theories. Stott's work aims to debunk the myth that crowds inherently lose control and become irrational, arguing instead that crowd behavior is guided by shared social identities and norms. Instead, indiscriminate use of force by police can escalate crowd conflicts, by creating a shared identity of opposition to the police.