Evaluation of the Safe Streets Now Approach: Civil Remedies for Drug, Crime, and Nuisance Problems

摘要

Civil remedies are procedures and sanctions specified by civil statutes and regulations, used to prevent or reduce criminal problems and in civilities (Mazerolle & Roehl, 1998). Often, civil remedies are aimed at non-offending third parties, particularly property owners and landlords, to persuade or coerce them to take responsibility and action to end criminal or nuisance behavior in locations they manage. Civil remedies have become commonplace 'tools in the problem-solving toolbox' and take many forms, including drug and nuisance abatement, code enforcement, curfews, injunctions, restraining orders, and asset forfeiture. They vary on many dimensions, including who applies the remedies (e.g., citizens, city prosecutors, police officers, community organizations), who the targets are (e.g., suspected offenders, third parties), what the problems are (e.g., drug sales, prostitution, blight, noise), what sanctions are used (e.g., eviction, fines, license restrictions), and the statutory basis of the civil remedy (e.g., municipal ordinances, health and safety codes, state statutes) (Mazerolle & Roehl, 1998). Safe Streets Now, a non-profit organization, has developed a unique civil remedy approach to location-specific crime, drug and nuisance problems. The signature activity of Safe Streets Now (SSN), its primary civil remedy, is the filing of small claims court actions against property owners who refuse to address known problems on their property.