NCJ Number
143135
Date Published
1991
Length
440 pages
Annotation
These two manuals, a training manual and a pleadings manual, are intended for use in planning and implementing an innovative and comprehensive approach to reduce drug law offenses in a community through a concentrated, coordinated effort in which law enforcement, prosecutorial, regulatory, and service agencies work closely with community groups.
Abstract
Known as FALCON, Focused Attack Linking Community Organizations and Neighborhoods, the process was developed during a successful pilot program that was conducted in 1989 in Los Angeles and that targeted a neighborhood experiencing extensive narcotics and gang activity. Conceived by the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office and implemented in conjunction with the Los Angeles Police Department, the program used a multiagency task force to rid a local area of chronic narcotics locations. The program reduced crime by 60 percent and improved the community's quality of life. In addition, the community was mobilized to form a neighborhood organization and to police itself effectively. Using a 13- part approach, the FALCON abatement strategy seeks not only to eliminate the criminal nuisance but also to address the causal factors creating an environment for crime. The pleadings manual is designed to aid prosecutors and other government attorneys in exploring remedies other than traditional criminal sanctions to reduce drug dealing in their communities. The manual includes sample pleadings and an outline setting out the case law and statutory procedures that apply to narcotics abatement. Forms, excerpts from regulations and laws, and additional sample documents and instructions