ASSESSMENT OF NEIGHBORHOOD SAFETY INITIATIVE
One of many factors to increase community safety is citizen involvement. Within Memphis and Shelby County, many citizens have stepped up to help improve their neighborhoods and to assist with local issues. The Memphis Shelby Crime Commission (MSCC) recognized the potential crime prevention power of organized groups of citizens in the current Safe Community Plan that targets the overall crime rate. The plan aims to establish and maintain a “Neighborhood Safety Initiative” (NSI) to help build and strengthen partnerships among neighborhood groups, law enforcement, and other city/county government agencies. Neighborhood watch groups (NWGs), for example, align themselves with their police precincts to help report unusual, and possibly criminal, activity. Police precincts also help educate neighborhood residents on how they can improve safety, not only in their communities, but also in their homes.