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“Great moments are born from great opportunity.” — Herb Brooks, Miracle That line may have been delivered in the context of hockey, but it speaks just as powerfully to the future of policing. Law enforcement has a great opportunity right now. An opportunity to move beyond simply answering call after call, taking report after report, and repeating the same cycle without ever getting ahead of the problem. An opportunity to think differently. To ask better questions: Who is invo

“Be proactive” is one of the most common phrases in policing — and one of the most misunderstood. In too many agencies, proactive becomes shorthand for more stops, more tickets, more arrests, and higher activity counts. The problem is: activity isn’t the same as impact. You can stay busy all shift and still return tomorrow to the same addresses, the same people, and the same problems. That’s why I wrote my recent Police1 article — to help put proactive policing into plain lan

Police can enforce the law — but communities can help prevent the next incident.   I believe in community policing — when it’s done right.   When officers genuinely care about the communities they serve, when they show up consistently, follow through, and have a stake in what happens beyond the call for service, relationships form. Rapport builds. Trust grows. And prevention becomes possible.   But there’s an uncomfortable reality many officers have experienced firsthand:   W

In many conversations about crime prevention, prosecutors are viewed primarily as the next step in the criminal justice process — the place cases go after arrests are made and investigations are complete. From a proactive crime-prevention perspective, that framing overlooks something critical. If prevention is about deterring harm, reducing repeat victimization, and disrupting escalation before it occurs, then prosecutors are not just downstream decision-makers. They are es

Over the past several decades, law enforcement has increasingly been asked to do more — often far more than what officers were originally trained, staffed, or resourced to handle alone.   Today’s officers are routinely expected to act as counselors, mental health responders, substance use specialists, social workers, crisis mediators, problem solvers, protectors, investigators, and crime fighters — often within the same shift, and sometimes within the same call.    Mental hea

Evidence-based and problem-oriented approaches to crime prevention are often framed as police-centric — but the reality is that these mindsets apply across the entire public-safety and criminal-justice system. From patrol officers and correctional staff, to probation and parole, analysts, prosecutors, service providers, and policy makers, proactive prevention only works when each role understands how problems develop, why they repeat, and how their actions influence risk for

Evidence-based and problem-oriented approaches to crime prevention are often framed as police-centric — but the reality is that these mindsets apply across the entire public-safety and criminal-justice system. From patrol officers and correctional staff, to probation and parole, supervisors, analysts, prosecutors, service providers, and policy makers, proactive prevention only works when each role understands how problems develop, why they repeat, and how their actions influe

Evidence-based and problem-oriented approaches to crime prevention are often framed as police-centric – but the reality is that these mindsets apply across the entire public safety and criminal justice system.   From patrol officers and correctional staff, to supervisors, analysts, probation and parole, prosecutors, service providers, and policy makers, proactive prevention only works when each role understands how problems develop, why they repeat, and how their actions infl

Many agencies I work with are eager to “do something proactive.” They want strategies. Programs. Tactics. But here’s the reality: Without a solid understanding of the basics of Evidence-Based Policing (EBP) and Problem-Oriented Policing (POP), even the best strategies will miss the mark. Before we talk about what to do, we have to understand what the actual problem is—and why it’s happening. 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙁𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙨 Evidence-Based Policing (EBP) is

Protecting Constitutional Rights, Preventing Harm, and Supporting Officers and Communities   Across the United States, communities are experiencing an increase in protests—many peaceful, some tense, and a few that unfortunately escalate into violence. These events place law enforcement officers, supervisors, community leaders, and local governments in an extremely difficult position: balancing the constitutional right to peacefully protest with the responsibility to protect p

We’re living in an era where new policing technologies seem to emerge almost weekly. Agencies are investing in license plate readers, cameras, analytics platforms, AI-driven tools, and more—often with the hope that technology itself will be the solution. But technology isn’t the strategy. The real question isn’t what we buy—it’s how we use it. Does this technology actually make our communities safer? Does it make officers safer? Does it help prevent harm—or does it simply hel

A recent article in Police Chief Magazine, “Empowering Safer Choices for Stronger Communities,” is an excellent example of what effective, modern violence reduction actually looks like in practice. The article highlights how Community Violence Intervention (CVI), Group Violence Intervention (GVI), and focused deterrence are not theoretical concepts or academic buzzwords—they are data-driven, evidence-based strategies that have demonstrated consistent, real-world reductions in

Grateful for the people, the conversations, and the work focused on proactive crime prevention. Thanks for taking a few minutes to watch. Feel free to share!

As we head into 2026, it’s a good time for law enforcement and community partners to reflect on how we approach public safety. The profession has always been strong at responding to crime, investigating incidents, and making arrests. Those responsibilities remain critical. But if we want safer communities and better working conditions for officers, reaction alone cannot be the goal. This year, let’s make a conscious effort to be more proactive, evidence-based, and problem-ori

As we close out another year, I’ve found myself reflecting—on the work, the conversations, the challenges, and most importantly, the people. This year reinforced something I’ve believed for a long time: proactive crime prevention works. When research, education, experience, and practical application come together, safer communities aren’t just an idea—they’re achievable. The progress we’ve seen across agencies, classrooms, and communities is proof that thoughtful, problem-ori

Some of the most effective public safety strategies don’t rely on more enforcement, but on smarter focus. By using data, community insight, and on-the-ground experience to identify specific places and recurring problems, agencies can prevent harm before it occurs. When this approach is done well: • Officers understand why they’re working certain areas • Analysts and researchers see measurable, evidence-based impact • Community members see purposeful, consistent problem-solvin

Most people will experience only three to five truly traumatic events in their lifetime. A police officer, by contrast, may encounter hundreds during a 20–25 year career. Not because they seek out danger, but because they spend their professional lives stepping into the worst moments of other people’s lives. Officers carry the weight of: • violent scenes • fatal crashes • domestic tragedies • overdoses • child-related incidents • moments of profound loss and grief These even

🚨 Policing Is Changing. Our Communities Deserve Us at Our Best. After more than two decades in law enforcement, one truth stands above all: We cannot arrest our way to safer communities. For too long, policing in many places has been measured by response, not prevention. Yet the work that truly changes a community happens before the 911 call. Crime prevention is not simply a tactic. It is a culture, a strategy, and a shared responsibility. We owe our officers, agencies, and

Every police agency has a wealth of information right at their fingertips—hidden in the reports, records, and calls for service that come...

Why Proactive Crime Prevention Matters When people ask me what I do, the short answer is this: I help law enforcement professionals and...