| The Public Housing Safety Initiative
PHSI improves the quality of life for public housing tenants.
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Modeled after successful Weed and Seed efforts and Project Safe Neighborhoods, the U.S. Attorney-directed Public Housing Safety Initiative (PHSI) seeks to improve conditions for low-income housing tenants suffering high rates of violent crime and illicit drug and firearm distribution.
In 2004 and 2005, CCDO selected 19 sites throughout the country to participate in PHSI and offered each site $400,000 for law enforcement assistance and $200,000 for community intervention efforts. Cooperation among all levels of law enforcement, community leaders, and nonprofit organizations made this major federal initiative possible. An agreement between the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Office of Public and Indian Housing, and the Office of Justice Programs made nearly $18 million available for PHSI.
"PHSI believes in the premise that strong communities are built on strong interactions between law enforcement and community leaders, and there should be no exception to this in public housing communities," said CCDO Director Dennis Greenhouse. "The PHSI effort is changing these communities for the better."
Partnerships for Public Safety
The initiative generated hundreds of federal indictments, disrupted gang networks, and took vast quantities of narcotics and guns off the streets in and around public housing with the help of U.S. Attorneys, local police departments, and federal agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and U.S. Marshals Service. Local and federal authorities divided responsibilities according to expertise and capacity to maximize program results.
In Chicago, federal agencies coordinated counter-gang operations while the Chicago Police Department (CPD) contributed local informants, onsite intelligence, and the manpower to execute PHSI operations.
In Philadelphia, stakeholders leveraged a $2 million contribution from ATF. Such a large contribution on top of $600,000 in PHSI funds was made possible through the strong cooperation that had already existed among federal partners in the city.
"This grant is an investment in the community," said Pat Meehan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. "And while it will have an immediate, tangible impact, we hope it will represent part of a long-term solution to prevent crime and violence."
The task force of the Office of National Drug Control Policy's High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, in conjunction with the Philadelphia Housing Authority, apprehended four mid- to upper-level drug dealers. In addition to helping to apprehend criminals, the Housing Authority dedicated $750,000 to Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design, a proven approach based on the belief that effectively designed communities will experience fewer criminal incidents and less fear of crime.
Fighting Crime With Technology
Some PHSI sites turn to technology to gain the edge on criminals. In Jordan Downs, a public housing apartment complex in the Watts section of Los Angeles, PHSI organizers turned an ambitious idea into a million-dollar collaboration. The electronics company Motorola donated fixed cameras, DVD camcorders, and night vision goggles to the department. Los Angeles is installing cameras in the neighborhood to create "safe corridors" for children going to and from school, and initial surveys indicate overwhelming community support for their installation. Patrol cars will receive transmissions from these cameras so police can assess the incident scene before they approach. The LAPD also plans to use face and license plate recognition devices to enforce a city injunction against the Grape Street Crips, a criminal street gang with a history of intimidating and terrorizing residents.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Western Missouri also put technology to use with i2 Investigative Analysis Software, which allows investigators to construct "criminal family trees" to help judges, juries, and prosecutors visualize the complex criminal organization of street gangs. These technologies have improved law enforcement's ability to investigate, apprehend, and prosecute offenders.
Improving Quality of Life
PHSI goes beyond the paradigm of arrest and prosecution by mobilizing law enforcement to improve overall quality of life for tenants. A top priority for local officers in Kansas City was evicting repeat criminal offenders and squatters from housing. They trained property managers to proactively address physical dilapidation, unruly or criminal tenants, and public nuisances in housing projects. In places where trainings took place, calls for police service declined 10 percent, and burglaries and reports of suspicious activity declined 12 percent. Police also pressured property managers to enforce rental contracts and to bring the housing into code compliance by installing new screens, deadbolts, and extra security lighting.
In cities such as Chicago, PHSI is helping local police and federal agents stage large-scale drug "take-down" operations that disrupt the gangs' drug enterprises and allow communities to reclaim their streets and public spaces. On the grounds of a public housing complex known as The Square, dealers ran a round-the-clock open-air drug market that earned $5 million each year. But in May, 58 individuals were arrested for their involvement in the drug trade through a joint CPD-FBI operation. A similar operation in June netted another 40 arrests. As a result, "kids are out playing in the playground and older people are out on their porches," said Terra Brown, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.
Community Policing and Relations
Relationships with the community play an ever-increasing role in fighting crime. A daily police presence reduces residents' fears about reporting crimes and assisting police. PHSI strongly reinforces the need for cooperation among law enforcement, community members, and local organizations.
To help build and maintain ties with public housing residents, the Santa Clara Police in New Mexico initiated knock-and-talk operations and distributed pamphlets and refrigerator magnets with an antidrug message and the police telephone number.
"The residents that we contacted were very receptive and appreciated the presence of our officers in this nonthreatening community-oriented policing activity," stated Santa Clara Police Chief James Baca.
Strengthening community programming continues to be a major goal under PHSI. In New Mexico, the local Boys & Girls Club, social service providers, law enforcement, and cultural representatives from the Pueblo Tribe joined forces to provide gang, violence, and substance abuse prevention education to a vast tribal audience.
Conclusion
Throughout 20 cities spanning from Miami to Seattle, PHSI gives communities a chance to take back their public spaces, reduce violent crime, and improve daily living conditions for public housing tenants. U.S. Attorney leadership allows PHSI to continue to achieve its goals. U.S. Attorneys lead by inclusion and bring an array of federal, local, and community decisionmakers to the table. The collaborative aspect of PHSI allows programs to endure long after the last PHSI grant dollar has been spent.
Office of Communications Interns Alexander Maugeri and John Yi provided research and writing for this article.
For more information, contact:
Sonia Klukas
Community Partnerships Outreach Office
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