Local Leadership Can Make the Biggest Difference of All

One person has made a huge difference in South Florida’s approach to crime prevention. She emphasizes local efforts that can be models for any community in the country.

By Martin King, NCPC Staff

With the economy gone sour and crime rising in many communities as a result, crime prevention is more important than ever. Crime prevention has become a real struggle in some locations, as funds tighten and crime prevention leaders are forced to become more ingenious than ever in creating successful programs. Sometimes, however, just one person who perseveres can make a big difference by galvanizing others to action or setting an example that like-minded citizens will want to follow. 

One of those persons is Carmen Caldwell. One of the nation’s most recognized crime prevention experts, Caldwell is a certified crime prevention practitioner who works from her home base in Miami-Dade County in South Florida, where she is executive director of Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County, a nonprofit organization. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the National Crime Prevention Association, which was recently launched by NCPC; a former, long-serving member of the Executive Committee of the Crime Prevention Coalition of America; and an active member of the National Sheriffs’ Association’s USA on Watch Advisory Board. Caldwell also writes a column called Crimewatch about local crime prevention efforts for the Miami Herald.

In one of her recent Miami Herald columns, Caldwell extolled the actions of local citizens in creating an environment that was conducive to crime prevention. And she pointed out that the actions of even a tiny handful of citizens can go a long way toward preventing crime.

One example she cited was that of the Westchester Crime Watch. The vigilance of its members in calling the police and in using phone chains to alert each other of suspicious behavior has thwarted several robberies, she said.

Another problem she wrote about was one of the toughest facing many communities—abandoned and foreclosed homes. The Islandia Black Point Marina kept such homes and their grounds well maintained so squatters weren’t tempted to use them, then worked with Miami-Dade community police officers and county officials to board them up. “Their success story is due to the strong determination of a group of neighbors to confront crime,” Caldwell wrote.

In the same column, Caldwell also told the story of the Bayside I group in the city of Miami, whose members were “totally overwhelmed” by crime in their neighborhood. She described how “these neighbors decided that they were no longer going to be victims, and started working closely with their Upper Eastside Neighborhood resource officers.”

“They have gotten so tight,” Caldwell said, “that a neighbor recently left a ladder on the side of the house and the neighbors thought it was someone trying to break in, so they called the police.” The call may have been made in error, but the neighbors get an “A” for being observant.    

The work of Citizen’s Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County has been featured on all major broadcast TV networks, CNN, and in many major newspapers.

There are many activists like Carmen Caldwell in communities of all sizes across the country. Each day they work to recruit volunteers; enlist the assistance of law enforcement, civic officials, faith leaders, and business leaders; and seek a presence in our schools. They work with tight budgets or no budgets at all. They design programs that meet specific community needs and serve specific populations. Some take advantage of the free materials available at NCPC’s website. Whatever the case, they are all heroes of crime prevention, especially at this time of great hardship for the nation.  

Go to the Citizens’ Crime Watch of Miami-Dade County’s website for more information on its activities, or contact Carmen Caldwell at Carmen@citizenscrimewatch.com.