Broken windows don't make for good neighbors. Neither do unruly house parties in Muncie. Calling them "rampant throughout campus," Police Chief Joe Winkle announced a stepped-up policing of said parties. Winkle and crew are taking action for two reasons. First, they wish to prevent the violent crimes that have befallen multiple students, and second, the residents are fed up.
Ball State recently followed up the Muncie initiative by encouraging students to "police themselves." Since those announcements, the police have made good on their word. Lambda Chi Alpha underestimated the new resolve, and 87 people got cited. Some irrational students have responded by comparing the police's actions to those of the Third Reich.
The plain truth is, smothering student life is not the intent. The objective is to restore community security. And police are following a time-tested model, whether consciously or not.
In March 1982, The Atlantic published a piece by George Kelling and James Q. Wilson. The two penned what has become a highly influential piece, called "Broken Windows: The Police and Neighborhood Safety." The criminologists' premise was simple: Crime results from a high level of disorder, and the resulting "unintended" behavior causes the community to crumble.
In the study, the two noted that if a window is broken and not addressed, people consider it a sign nobody cares about the building, thereby inviting people to break more windows. The inevitable result is a loss of respect for the community, which results in escalating lawlessness.
Kelling and Wilson noted that so-called "quality of life" crimes (vagrancy, graffiti, etc.) serve as society's "broken windows." These, in turn, invite further disorder and can lead to an escalation of violent crime.
The solution, the two argue, is that focusing on the "quality of life" crimes, among those being what Muncie is cracking down on, sends a clear message that the police and the community are serious about enforcing the law. When the community sees that resolve, it serves as a strong deterrent against more violent crimes. Communities are restored as respect for authority is restored.
This theory was validated in New York City during the 1990s. The NYPD focused on the panhandlers, fare jumpers and vandalism. Police fought the battle, as Michelle Malkin put it, "hour by hour, subway car by subway car." The crime rate plummeted.
Lest one think the whole thing sounds ridiculous, take a look at the situation around Muncie. The Star Press reports that residents have complained for years about trash, noise and parking issues. Several people are trying to sell their homes. These conditions match the signs of decline Kelling and Wilson illustrate.
Muncie's new initiative aims to turn back the clock to a traditional police function. Kelling and Wilson also noted, "the police role had slowly changed from maintaining order to fighting crimes." Muncie has signaled it intends to revisit this role by squelching disorderly conduct from miscreant students. Muncie is taking back the streets, party by party.
The Muncie Police are to be commended for taking these actions. They are sending the clear signal that the permanent community's security is more important than transitory students' "right" to drink and cause societal disruptions. It's time for the community to restore order. People shouldn't have to look unfavorably on their homestead.
Write to Jeff at mannedarena@yahoo.com
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