engleski

ICT Tools - Bridging the Gap Between Police and the Community

The police are the most operational social institution and are always available to citizens. They hold information on crime, violations and events, they maintain public order and peace in a particular area. In general, the overall public views the police as being in charge of preventing, detecting and controlling crime, and, on the other hand they view crime as a police problem. However, without the support of the community and other stakeholders, the police are not able to efficiently prevent, detect or control crime in the community. Community Policing in Croatia has been undergoing numerous changes since 2000, aiming at reinforcing the connection between the police and the citizens, initiating partnerships and adapting CP to the needs of the contemporary society - CP as an integral part of the community. As part of these efforts, the Croatian Police started introducing new ICT tools in an attempt to modernize policing and strengthen relations between police and citizens. The e- Police project comprises a number of different apps and systems, including: app for frontline police officers, body cams, reporting app for citizens, geocoding, upgraded AVL system, Viber and WhatsApp apps. Although the introduction of new ICT tools is often quite challenging, as it requires a shift from established patterns of conduct, causing opposing attitudes, in our case, police officers and citizens, seem to use the tools quite freely. Since the introduction of the e-Reporting app (e-Opažaji) in October last year, the police Operations and Communications Centre of the Zagreb County Police Administration (tasked with operating the e- Reporting app for the Zagreb County area) received more than 5, 000 citizens’ messages through the app. Moreover, uniformed police officers have started wearing body cams, using specific apps and systems. For purposes of this study, we will analyse the upsides and downsides of the introduction of ICT tools in everyday police work in Croatia.

police ICT tools, community policing

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