PAST ARTICLES AND EDITORIAL BOARDS THE NEW YORK CITY POLICE
DEPARTMENT'S CIVIL ENFORCEMENT OF
QUALITY-OF-LIFE CRIMES
WILLIAM J. BRATTON
3 J.L. & Pol'y 447 (1995)
Quality-of-life crimes are "low-level" crimes like street prostitution, low-level drug dealing, underage drinking, blaring car radios and other crimes that contribute to danger on the street and a sense of disorder. When police departments focus on high profile crimes like murder, robbery and rape, low-level offenders are able to commit crimes which destroy a neighborhood's sense of security and encourage the subsequent perpetration of more serious crimes.

The New York City Police Department ("NYPD") has taken a strategic approach to crime and disorder, and has adopted five crime control strategies that focus on guns, youth crime, drugs, domestic violence and car theft. However, the NYPD's long-term success lies in a strategy entitled, "Reclaiming the Public Spaces of New York." This strategy "outlines a full-scale initiative at the precinct level to eliminate quality-of-life offenses." The strategy also provides a broader range of enforcement options to police precincts which include the Nuisance Abatement Law, the Police Padlock Law, an interdisciplinary attack on noise and underage drinking, and forfeiture actions for prostitution, drugs and illegal driving.