Law Enforcement Views on Safety and Justice

What do law enforcement officers think works best to reduce crime? 

It may not be what you think. 

Alliance for Safety and Justice commissioned this first-of-its-kind survey to learn about the experiences and policy preferences of sworn law enforcement officers. 

Contrary to common assumptions, most people in law enforcement believe that strong neighborhood programs and maintaining a range of options beyond the traditional justice system can help improve public safety – and reduce burdens on police and corrections systems at the same time. 

Instead of the one-size-fits-all crime policy approaches of the past, this report reveals that law enforcement officers - like voters - support a range of strategies to improve safety that can more effectively prevent violence and strengthen communities.  

Public safety policymakers would be wise to listen. There is a smarter, more effective way to improve safety for all, and the voices of those on the frontlines can help guide us toward that. 

Report Background and Summary  

More than 700,000 sworn officers serve police and sheriffs’ departments, corrections agencies, probation and parole systems, and federal law enforcement agencies in the United States. The law enforcement officers who patrol our streets, staff our prisons, and monitor people on probation and parole are frontline workers responding to crime and confronting some of our society’s most challenging problems – mental health crises, substance use disorder, homelessness, and more. 

The challenging conditions law enforcement officers face on a daily basis take a toll. Officers deal with stress, burnout, and trauma. Many of the challenges associated with the work of law enforcement have increased in recent years. Not only do law enforcement officers report that issues like these place significant burdens on law enforcement agencies, but 9 in 10 report that their departments are not equipped to address these challenges alone.

The results of this first-of-its-kind survey reveal a foundational truth about public safety policy in America: Law enforcement officers are overwhelmed by social crises beyond crime and report that neighborhood programs help them do their jobs more safely and effectively.

Key takeaways 

• 92% of law enforcement officers agree that “police departments are burdened with a wide range of social problems beyond crime.”
• 80% agree that community residents trained in street outreach, mediating conflicts, mentoring youth, and diverting problems away from violence would help prevent retaliatory violence, reduce neighborhood incidents, and make their job safer and easier in the long term.
• 81% agree that professional mental health workers trained in de-escalation techniques and crisis intervention would make their job safer and easier in situations where someone is experiencing a psychiatric crisis.
• 90% agree that sobering centers and/or crisis stabilization centers, staffed by trained professionals, would reduce repeated emergency calls and hospital transfers for drug or alcohol overdoses, making officers’ work more efficient and safer.
• Support for street outreach programs, mental health experts, and civilian traffic responders is even higher among officers who have experience working with these programs.
• A majority (51%) prefers shorter prison sentences and using money saved to fund youth violence prevention, mental health interventions, and addiction programs. 
• Nearly 3 out of 4 law enforcement officers (73%) prefer policies that authorize parole boards to consider early release for people in prison who participate in rehabilitation, education, and job training.