Weed and Seed Program
Assignment 3
Weed and Seed
Your assignments should be a minimum of 5 typed, double-spaced pages with 1-inch margins and 12 pt. Times New Roman font. Your assignments should be APA Paper Writing Service by Expert Writers Pro Paper Help: Essay Writing Service Paper Writing Service by Essay Pro Paper Help: Essay Writing Service formatted with a title page that includes your name and class information.
Grammar, punctuation, and spelling mistakes will be graded. You should use outside sources (to include other case law and law journals). Assignment is due in the dropbox by by the beginning of class on the due date in the syllabus. Good luck.
ASSIGNMENT 3:
Law enforcement and government agencies are routinely attempting to find innovative programs to reduce, target, or eliminate crime. Weed and Seed is an example of such a program. The provided evaluation reviews a Weed and Seed program. Please read through this evaluation, paying close attention to the information needed to answer the questions below.
Links have also been provided for you to review before you begin this analysis. Please click through and read all the available material for this assignment before completing your analysis. https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh176/files/pubs/gun_violence/contents.html
Your analysis of the Weed and Seed Program Evaluation should be a minimum of 5 double-spaced pages of writing (this does not include spacing, title pages, or reference pages. Excessive spacing through paragraphs will be deducted from total page count).
Youranalysis should include the following:
1. What is the Weed and Seed Program?
2. Why was the program developed? What factors led to its creation?
3. What criminological theory/theories for the basis of Weed and Seed?
4. Was Weed and Seed successful? Why or why not?
5. Policy or program changes you would make to this program and why?
• This question is for page six
There are many criminological theories at work in the Weed and Seed Program. For this discussion, identify a theory present in the program and give 3 reasons why you think this theory applies.
1. What is the Weed and Seed Program?
The weed and seed program entails a department of Justice Community-based program directed towards preventing, containment, and reducing crime across the communities. Society experiences increased and intensification in the crime; thus, there is a need to restore law and order through a weed and seed program (Lilley, 2015). Society is faced with a wide range of crimes such as violent crimes, drug abuse and gang-related crimes in the urban areas, thus making life unbearable. The weed and seed programs take the strategy of cooperation of law enforcement agencies and prosecutors in weeding out criminals while at the same time adopting seeding programs directed towards prevention, inte3rvention, treatment and revitalization of criminals and the neighborhood.
The weed and seed program is neighborhood experiencing high crime rates such as cities, and it targets the cooperation between locals and law enforcement in reducing crime and assuring the community of a safe environment. Different Weed and seed sites across the targeted neighborhoods are all run by steering communities (Lilley, 2015). The steering committee comprises different participants that include the U.S attorney, federal agency representatives, police, local nonprofit leaders, mayor, faith-based organizations, residents, corporations and private businesses. The steering committees are tasked with developing strategic plans for the operation at the site, such as overseeing operations, monitoring operations, implementing different programs, distributing funds to various programs, and evaluating programs.
The weed and seed program is founded by the presence of law enforcers and prosecutors to weed out criminals and neighborhood improvements and social services for seeding. Furthermore, weed and seed strategies adopt the element of interagency cooperation and collaborations (Lilley, 2015). This approach ensures that there are optimal prosecution strategies to eliminate criminals in society. On the other hand, there are increased interactions and task sharing between communities based private sector and social services agencies for social services delivery to ensure that potential criminals are prevented from engaging in crime while former criminals are rehabilitated. Therefore, weed and seed programs ensure that society is composed of the highest number of law-abiding citizens.
2. Why was the program developed? What factors led to its creation?
There is a wide range of criminal aspects and elements that have led to weed and seed programs’ introduction and practice across the targeted parts of society. The Weed and seed programs address the increased crime rates in the neighborhoods to combat crime and make society a better place (Dunworth et al., 1999). In this case, the Weed and seed programs have been developed to create a comprehensive, multiagency strategy directed towards controlling and preventing violent crime, gang activity, and drug trafficking. The different crimes need to be addressed using a comprehensive and long term strategy to handle different types of crimes across the region. The weed and seed program will be effective as it ensures that criminals are effectively prosecuted, and the society adopts a strategy towards the prevention of crimes.
The weed and seed program is developed to coordinate and integrate new initiatives and strategies to eliminate and prevent crimes in societies. Society is faced with increased and diversification of crimes that include gang crimes, drug trafficking and violent crimes that need to be addressed using numerous strategies (Dunworth et al., 1999). It is important to note that new strategies and innovation towards preventing and handling crimes keep arising in society. They must be incorporated with the old strategies for success in fighting crimes in the society. The weed and seed steering committees effectively introduce and incorporate new initiatives and strategies to fight crimes.
Additionally, the weed and seed program has a high ability to mobilize communities to cooperate with law enforcement in the fight against crime across society. The Weed and seed committees are made up of different parties in the society, thus effectively representing all parties; thus, decisions and implementation of the program are made in the interest of the common good(Dunworth et al., 1999). The cooperation enables the community members to assist law enforcers in identifying and removing criminals from society. On the other hand, members of society contribute towards the success of the service needs in the targeted areas as they make a positive contribution towards attaining a conducive environment.
3. What criminological theory/theories for the basis of Weed and Seed?
The weed and seed program can be based on the social disorganization theory of criminology in addressing the crimes in the society. The social disorganization theory argues that crime originates from the breakdown of effective social control arising from a lack of functional integration between society (Crowl, 2014).
It is important to note that crime rates are directly linked to neighborhood ecological characteristics that determine if crime rates will be high or low under the theory. In this regard, Weed and seed programs are established in specified areas such as urban areas or neighborhoods with high populations since there are high crime rates. The crime rates in urban areas increase due to disorganization or breakdown in societal structure. The breakdown of social structures means that people have no access to learning programs, social services or employment opportunities, thus inclining the highest number of people to engage in different forms of crime as a source of livelihood. Therefore, urban areas’ locations and circumstances are inclined to engage in crime due to social disorganization.
The weed and seed program is directed towards addressing the social disorganization existing among communities, thus addressing the underlying problems to regain social order. In this regard, the weeding aspect ensures that the law enforcers and prosecutors work closely to prosecute criminals. Prosecution ensures that criminals are punished or eliminated from society until they reform and conform to society (Crowl, 2014). In this case, the prison subjects the convicted persons to programs to reform and rehabilitate them. On the other hand, the seeding aspect ensures that the society within the areas with high crime rates is subjected to social services and programs that intend to prevent and control crime. Therefore, the weed and seed program is directed towards society’s organization, thus preventing crime incidents.
4. Was Weed and Seed successful? Why or why not?
The operation and implementation of weed and seed programs have in handling crime has recorded high success rates in preventing and control of crime to attain a conducive environment. Crime and criminals are effectively controlled, thus ensuring that the society has law and order. First, the weed and seed program has effectively boosted to maintain law and order across the sections of the society recording high crime rates (Lilley, 2015). Law enforcement under the program is tailored to fit the strategy as designed in different regions. The enforcement adopts a multiagency task force that ensures effective street patrols and high-level prosecutor/police interagency cooperation. This approach has increased local, state and federal coordination among offenders of different crimes, making the environment relatively safe.
The weed and seed program has achieved increased police presence on the ground, thus making law enforcement operations programs in the common good (Lilley, 2015). The weed and seed program has been sufficiently funded, thus encouraging additional staffing and overtime in the targeted areas, thus effectively combating crime. The police are constantly present in targeted areas conducting regular patrols to address crime incidences in real-time.
The weed and seed program has successfully attained the cooperation and coordination between law enforcers, the criminal justice system and the local communities and the general society, thus effectively handling crimes and related issues (Lilley, 2015). The improved relationship between law enforcement and residents enables law enforcement agencies to acquire local knowledge and intelligence, enabling them to operate proactively and enhance communication and interaction between residents and the police. The good relations between law enforcement agencies and the residents improve operations and security through community meetings, neighborhood watches that are vital in decision making in regard to combating crime.
5. Policy or program changes you would make to this program and why?
Several changes need to be incorporated in the weed and seed program to ensure that it effectively achieves the crime control and prevention objectives. In this regard, there is a need for criminal participation in the program to ensure that they cooperate and interact with the law enforcers and the residents to help them get rehabilitated. The involvement of criminals enables the society and law enforcement agencies to understand them, thus avoiding crimes and getting rehabilitated once they reform.
The Weed and seed need to give a lot of emphasis on juvenile delinquency and children’s aspect of crime to ensure that they can be prepared in advance to avoid and prevent from engaging in crime. It is vital to note that children are the potential criminals because they are prone to be recruited to different forms of crimes such as drug trafficking, prostitution or gang activities. Thus, they need to be protected from parties that can recruit them. In this regard, the Weed and Seed can extend their services and operation in schools and communities and involve parents in protecting children from current or future crime engagement.
6. Criminology theories
Different theories can be used in the explanation of the Weed and Seed Program. The social disorganization theory can be effectively related to the Weed and seed program (Crowl, 2014). In this regard, the theory fits the Seed and Weed because it explains crime in society. The theory suggests that crime exists in society due to disorganization existing in the social structure; thus, it is impossible for people to access social services such as education or opportunities, thus contributing to crime. Consequently, the social disorganization theory indicates that crimes are only found in some areas and not others. The theory compares regions to explain the different levels of crime. In this regard, the theory argues that urban areas or cities have high crime rates due to increased social disorganization. Finally, the theory argues that order can be restored through societal re-organization through programs such as Weed and seed. Under the Weed and seed, the societal re-organization is achieved by arresting and prosecuting criminals to reform them while using social services.
References
Crowl, J. N. (2014). Criminal Justice Policy and Violent Crime in Socially Disorganized Neighborhoods: The Implications for Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Journal of Law and Criminal Justice, 2(2), 01-10.
Dunworth, T., Mills, G., Cordner, G., & Greene, J. (1999). National evaluation of Weed and Seed: Cross-site analysis. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs.
Lilley, D. (2015). The weed and seed program: A nationwide analysis of crime outcomes. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 26(5), 423-447.
Lilley, D. (2015). The weed and seed program: A nationwide analysis of crime outcomes. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 26(5), 423-447.
