NCJ Number
229311
Date Published
2009
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This chapter traces the evolution of crime prevention in France.
Abstract
This overview provides an account for the evolving French developments, from its confident Bonnemaison origins, to its present-day hesitancy and uncertain future. The social prevention model advanced by Bonnemaison, was rooted in the left-wing politics of the then Socialist government. It established a model of prevention organized around "solidarity," "integration," and "locality," which fore grounded the role of the mayor and local municipality and in which the police and judiciary remained marginal. Although part of the appeal, this limited its impact within wider urban policy over the years and the judiciary initiated its own interventions. Further noted is the paradox that having established city-level partnership structures to deliver prevention locally, the centralized nature of the French state served to undermine their realization by underscoring the lack of shared competences between state and municipality. Highlighted is the manner in which political fortunes have fostered a greater appetite for situational approaches and more punitive responses. Despite the close association between social prevention and the political Left, the prevention landscape in France has become more mixed; both social and situational approaches coexist within programs and local practices managed by Left and Right administrations. Notes and references