----Press Release----
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Mary Lee Murphy
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New Orleans Crime Coalition Announces First Survey Results
of Citizen Perception of NOPD
(4-page Survey | 11-Page Survey )
(New Orleans, December 7, 2009) – The New Orleans Crime Coalition (NOCC) announces survey results measuring public perception of the New Orleans Police Department performance in ensuring the safety of its citizenry.
The survey (posted on www.crimecoalitionnola.org) sets a baseline for comparison with the results of future surveys of citizen perceptions of the NOPD. This survey is an accurate measure of public perception at the time of the survey, yet perception may lag current NOPD performance. Additionally, the NOCC recognizes the unique challenges that post-Katrina New Orleans has presented the NOPD. This survey should not be construed as criticism of the many police officers working courageously every day to keep our streets safe for all; on the contrary, the New Orleans Crime Coalition acknowledges and fully supports their efforts.
NOCC recently hired Wilson Research Strategies, a nationally recognized survey-research firm, to carry out the first of what will be a continuing series of measurements of citizen satisfaction with the NOPD.
Research on public safety reveals that when police collaborate with neighborhood residents and business owners to see that violent felons are caught and violent crime prevented, they are. Conversely, when citizens and police fail to cooperate effectively, violent crime takes neighborhoods captive and makes whole cities vulnerable. Public safety will not be achieved in New Orleans until neighborhood residents and the police assigned to keep them safe learn to solve crime and crime-generating problems together. Neighborhood policing has been successfully implemented across America and around the world, but only sporadically and unevenly in New Orleans. Building on these past and current efforts to put full-scale neighborhood policing in place throughout our city is one critical element in making our city safe for all.
NOCC issued this survey in the strong conviction that a regular public spotlight on how citizens perceive their police department will be an ongoing catalyst to make New Orleans streets safer. NOCC understands that the NOPD cannot do effective community policing by themselves. Neighborhood residents and business owners must do their part, too, and the NOCC will encourage and challenge neighborhood partners to hold up their end of the bargain.
Research Design and Statement of Methodology - Wilson Research Strategies (WRS) conducted a research study of adults across the city of New Orleans. WRS obtained a list of residents and selected a random sample equally distributed across New Orleans’ 8 police districts. Respondents were contacted by phone via a live telephone interview August 23-24, 2009. The study has a sample size of n=600 adults. The margin of error is equal to +/- 4.0% in 95 out of 100 cases. Chris Wilson, CEO of Wilson Research Strategies and Ryan Steusloff, Account Executive, were lead researchers on this project. Daniel Narvaiz and Connor Walsh provided project management and analytical support
The Crime Coalition’s first survey of citizen perceptions of NOPD indicates that:
Citizens are not satisfied with NOPD’s performance.
- 33% of citizens express overall satisfaction with the New Orleans Police Department.
- Dissatisfaction with NOPD is found within all races, genders, age groups, education levels and police districts.
- 84% of Nashville and 75% of St. Louis residents express overall satisfaction with their police department. NOCC recognizes that comparisons among cities at a single point in time are never equal, and the post-Katrina difficulties facing NOPD are unique.
Crime, particularly violent crime, is the number one issue residents see facing their neighborhoods.
- Nearly 1 in 3 residents (29%) do not feel safe in their own neighborhood, a number higher than that seen in other comparable communities.
- African Americans are the most likely not to feel safe in their own neighborhoods (31%).
- Nearly 3 in 5 residents (58%) do not feel safe in the city outside their own neighborhoods.
In the eyes of New Orleanians across the board, NOPD is falling short in its core mission of serving and protecting them. As noted above, this dissatisfaction is present within all groups.
Violent crime poses the most immediate threat to the future of New Orleans. Without safe streets, the quality of life of our residents and visitors will remain unacceptable, no matter how much good work goes on in other areas. For that reason, organized citizens and public officials must focus relentlessly on improving our local criminal-justice system’s capacity to reduce violent crime. Those agencies include the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), the District Attorney, Orleans Parish Criminal Sheriff’s Office, Orleans Public Defenders Office, Magistrate, and Criminal Court. Our focus here is NOPD.
The New Orleans Crime Coalition (NOCC) is a consortium of nearly twenty community organizations working together to reform our local criminal justice system for the benefit of all. The member organizations are listed below. Since its founding in 2006, the NOCC has played a key role in obtaining an additional $4.2 million for local criminal justice agencies, and monitoring the expenditure of those funds; transforming the district attorney’s office; supporting the creation of an independent NOPD monitor; and obtaining city funding for the Orleans Public Defenders Office for the first time.
About the New Orleans Crime Coalition
The New Orleans Crime Coalition, a citizen-led movement which formed in February 2007 to stem violent crime in New Orleans, exists to work with criminal justice entities by offering recommendations of best practices and to hold said entities accountable for implementing focused, strategic plans that will result in an improved justice system and the conviction and incarceration of violent criminals. The members of the New Orleans Crime Coalition, who united to urge city leaders to focus police, prosecution and judicial system resources on convicting and incarcerating violent criminals, include The Business Council of New Orleans, Citizens For 1 Greater New Orleans, Urban League of Greater New Orleans, Common Good, Court Watch NOLA, Metropolitan Crime Commission, Louisiana Restaurant Association, New Orleans Police & Justice Foundation, Bridge House, Odyssey House, Crimestoppers, GNO Inc., Jefferson Business Council, New Orleans Conventions & Visitors Bureau, New Orleans Chamber of Commerce, Puentes New Orleans, Inc., Young Leadership Council, Beacon of Hope, Afterschool Partnership for Greater New Orleans, Living Witness Ministries, Mary, Queen of Vietnam Parish, St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church, and Touro Synagogue.
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