Professional Issues in Criminal Justice Vol 4(2), 2009 35 Is Hot Spot Policing Effective Empirically?

This paper examines the literature used to argue hot spot policing is an effective crime reduction technique. More specifically Sherman, Farrington, Welsh, and MacKenzie (2002) used five experimental or quasi-experimental studies that were given a Maryland Scientific Methods Scale (SMS) of 3 or greater. The authors posited that these five articles provide enough evidence to establish that hot spot policing is an effective policing technique. This paper reevaluates those five articles, allocating new SMS scores. The findings reveal that each of these studies has less explanatory power than originally indicated. Although hot spot policing is potentially an effective policing technique, this manuscript will show inadequate research has been used to understand its successes. Consequently, additional research should be reviewed to understand the full effectiveness of hot spot policing practices