Measuring the Effectiveness of Crime Control Policies in Knoxville’s Public Housing

Abstract

Crime in Knoxville’s public housing is an ongoing problem for the Knoxville Police Department and the Knoxville Community Development Corporation (KCDC). The purpose of this study is to determine whether public policies and programs that attempted to reduce crime in seven of Knoxville’s public-housing developments were effective. They include (a) a “One-Strike” eviction policy, (b) the demolition of one housing project with funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development’sHOPEVI grant program, (c) a “team-based” approach to policing, and (d) a new residency-applicant-screening process. Descriptive statistics were generated by using Arcview mapping software to separate the yearly Part I serious crime incidents for 1996 to 2001 in two distinct geographical regions: (a) the area represented by the KCDC study sites where the policies were implemented and (b) the remainder of the City of Knoxville. Crimes of opportunity and property crimes were minimally affected by some of the policies at best, yet KCDC still has a more dangerous environment than the rest of Knoxville.