Focused deterrence (also known as pulling levers policing) is a crime prevention strategy which aims to deter crime by increasing the swiftness, severity and certainty of punishment for crimes by implementing a mix of

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term ...

social service Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administ ...

s, and

community mobilization Community mobilization is an attempt to bring both human and non-human resources together to undertake developmental activities in order to achieve sustainable development. Process Community mobilization is a process through which action is st ...

. This approach also aims to identify underlying causes of gun injury-related problems and tailors specific solutions to each of them. The available evidence indicates that these programs are notably effective at reducing gun violence, though this may not be due to the provision social services. Among the focused deterrence programs that have been implemented in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

is the

Operation Ceasefire Operation Ceasefire (also known as the Boston Gun Project and the Boston Miracle) is a problem-oriented policing initiative implemented in 1996 in Boston, Massachusetts. The program was specifically aimed at youth gun violence as a large-scale pro ...

program in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

, which aimed to concentrate law enforcement efforts on violent criminals in crime "hot spots".

References

Criminology {{Criminology-stub