Crime Stoppers or Crimestoppers is a community program that helps people to provide anonymous information about criminal activity. Often managed by non-profit groups or the police, it operates separately from the

emergency telephone number Most public switched telephone networks have a single emergency telephone number (sometimes known as the universal emergency telephone number or the emergency services number) that allows a caller to contact local emergency services for assis ...

system or other standard methods of contacting police. Profile
Crime Stoppers USA. This allows a person to provide crime-solving assistance to the authorities without being directly involved in the investigation process. Founded in the United States in 1976 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Crime Stoppers later caught on in Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom. The authorities, especially the

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

, sometimes rely on information from the community about criminal activities or events. Crime Stoppers was developed to enable the public to participate without fear of reprisal and to make it easier for witnesses to volunteer information anonymously. There have been challenges to this aspect.

History

Crime Stoppers first began in Albuquerque, New Mexico in July 1976. That month Michael Carmen was fatally shot while he was working at night at a local filling station. After two weeks the police had not been able to gather any information about the killing. Detective Greg MacAleese approached the local television station to request they film a reconstruction of the crime. When the re-enactment was aired, the police department offered

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1,000.00 for information leading to the arrest of the killers. Within 72 hours, a male called in identifying a car which he had seen leaving the scene at high speed; he had noted its registration. The person calling said that he did not want to get involved; therefore, he had not called earlier. Detective MacAleese realized that fear and apathy often prevented the public from getting involved. He helped design a system by which the public could anonymously provide details of the events. This system focused on stimulating community involvement and participation, and took advantage of electronic media to publicize unsolved crimes. The police offered cash rewards for information leading to an arrest or conviction. Since the first chapter was officially formed in Albuquerque in 1976, Crime Stoppers in the United States has been responsible for more than half a million arrests and more than US$4 billion in recovered property. Crime Stoppers spread to Australia,

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and the

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. While the individual programs are local or regional in nature, mostly run by non-profit groups or directly by police, various national and international umbrella organizations exist. The

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+1-800-222-TIPS is used to reach various different Crime Stoppers groups in Canada and the U.S., although some groups publish their own numbers.Call 713-222-TIPS
Crime Stoppers Houston Area.

References

External links

* * * * {{Official website, http://www.crimestoppers-uk.org/, Crimestoppers UK Organizations established in 1976 1976 establishments in New Mexico

History

See also

References

External links