Over the last few years, as a result of locally based initiatives, there have been policies of public tranquility that have marked the end of a division between prevention and repression paradigms, coupled with the increasing participation of local authorities in public security. Local security partnerships (CLS - contrats locaux de securite) have enabled security to become a priority at the national level and given it legitimacy at the local level. Nevertheless, the CLS leaves researchers with a degree of uncertainty. Although they foster a kind of technical joint steering of territorial policies, they have rarely contributed to the creation of a local debate on the strategic orientation of a security policy. At best, they have maintained joint responsibility for tasks between the State and local authorities without setting up real local policies.