Intended as a resource guide for using environmental design as a means of preventing crime, this guide explains the basic principles of crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) and describes a process for identifying crime problems, evaluating the physical environment in which they occur, and developing CPTED strategies that will remove or reduce opportunities for crime.
The guide's introductory section presents three crime scenarios that show how opportunities for crime and other problems arise from a variety of environmental conditions related to buildings, sites, the specific location of the crime, and how the location is used. This is followed by an explanation of how the initial design of a particular site or its modification can reduce opportunities for crime by controlling access to the site, providing opportunities for people at the site to see other people and to be seen by people, and to define positive ownership of the site. CPTED requires a systematic analysis of crime events and the conditions and factors that contribute to crime opportunities. Data from the analyses are then used to build programs or strategies that reduce features of the environment that facilitate committing particular crimes and maximizing potential offenders' perception of risk of being caught if a crime is attempted at the location. This process requires the participation of a variety of citizens, government agencies, and local institutions, each of which has a role to play in defining the problem and deciding upon an appropriate solution, as well as some accountability for long-term improvements. After discussing the features of CPTED, this guide explains in detail how to perform each element of CPTED. The guide concludes by applying the CPTED problem-solving process to the three crime-problem scenarios presented in the introduction. Appended descriptions of how to use CPTED at a building or facility in multifamily housing, and neighborhoods