It draws on a completed 2-year research study of a number of community-based crime prevention initiatives in the southeast of England. The paper considers the nature of "community" to which appeals are made in criminal justice discourse and policies, the contribution of "community" to the practices of social order and the nature of "community representation" and participation in crime prevention initiatives. The author argues that appeals to "community" in crime prevention, and crime control more generally, embody shifts in what constitutes the legitimate responsibilities of individuals, collectivities, and the State. This has a number of implications, the first of which is a redrawing of the costs of policing and security services. Additionally, there is an associated shift in blame for failure. Finally, actual "community" involvement in crime control gives rise to new structures and forms of local governance that evoke key questions about the regulation of social relations, the nature of conflict resolution, citizenship, democracy, and social justice. 86 footnotes