Be a good neighbor...
What is Neighborhood Watch?
Neighborhood Watch is a crime prevention program that establishes a trusting relationship among residents of an area. Such relationships, help reduce the amounts of burglaries, robberies, improves existing relations with local law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve.
Watching over time...
Neighborhood watch is not a new concept. In the early colonial times, Night Watchmen looked after the homes and property of their neighbors.
In the late 1960’s, in Queens, New York, a woman by the name of Kitty Genovese, was raped and murdered in the middle of a street. Numerous citizens witnessed this horrible crime, but no one did anything to stop the assault or attempt to apprehend the perpetrator. The incredible public outcry of this brutal act encouraged citizen groups to form beginning the search for suspicious activity in their neighborhoods.
In 1972, the National Sheriff’s Association, in response to numerous calls from the local law enforcement agencies for assistance in regards to an upswing in burglaries occurring across the nation, founded the National Neighborhood Watch Program. Essentially, this program had citizen groups organize and work together with local law enforcement in reporting crimes.
Looking on…
Today, Neighborhood Watch programs are up and running around the world. The program may be called something different in other countries and neighborhoods, but one common and clear mission is held by all and that is simply to report crime and to look out for your neighbor.
Information Source: Oshkosh Police Department, Crime Prevention Unit-Neighborhood Watch Program Guide