Program Profile: Hot Spots Policing Program (Programa de Alta Dedicación Operativa) (PADO) (Montevideo, Uruguay)

The program involved the use of hot-spots policing tactics in certain neighborhoods of Montevideo to reduce incidents of robbery. The program is rated Promising. Compared with the control group hot-spot areas, treatment group hot-spot areas that received increased police presence (in the form of foot patrol) experienced a statistically significant reduction in robbery.

A Promising rating implies that implementing the program may result in the intended outcome(s).

Program Goals/Target Sites

Programa de Alta Dedicación Operativa (PADO) is a hot spot policing program in Montevideo, Uruguay, that was implemented in 2016 by the Uruguay Police Department as part of a reform initiative to reduce crime. The program focused specifically on reducing robbery in locations in Montevideo that were found to have high levels of robbery. By deploying police patrols to specific small areas (i.e., crime hot spots), the ultimate goal was to reduce robbery.

Program Components

In 2015, as a part of a series of reforms, the Uruguay Police Department developed a crime analysis unit. The unit was tasked with examining patterns of robberies across Montevideo to identify areas where robbery was highly concentrated, and, thus, where the hot spots policing program could be implemented. The analysis identified 120 locations, consisting of street segments and street junctions, to deploy the PADO program. The analysis also yielded a temporal analysis of robbery patterns, with increased robbery occurring during the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. Using these data, the hot spots program began in 2016.

As a part of the program, two or three officers were assigned to patrol each of the 120 locations between the hours of 5:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. The foot patrol officers were to remain in their assigned location during these hours, except when they were accompanying an arrested individual to the police station. The foot patrol officers were supported by two to four motorbike police patrols and a car patrol. While in their respective locations, officers were not instructed to employ more aggressive police tactics, but instead to act as a visible deterrent for individuals who may commit offenses. Between each shift, the foot patrol officers would rotate between the locations (e.g., street segments).

Program Personnel

In total, 525 officers were dedicated to the PADO program. Most of the officers assigned to the PADO program were young officers who recently graduated from the police academy. An incentive was provided to officers to join the PADO program; specifically, PADO officers were offered the equivalent of an additional 200 USD per month.

Program Theory

Hot spots policing involves the deployment of police officers to certain locations where crime is highly concentrated, with the overall goal of reducing crime at these locations (Braga et al., 2019). The PADO program adopted a hot spot policing framework in an effort to use existing police resources in a more dedicated, targeted, and efficient manner. It was believed that employing foot patrol officers in locations where robberies had previously been concentrated would deter individuals from committing crime. In other words, it would increase the likelihood that individuals who may commit offenses perceive crime as riskier given the active presence of police in the area. As a result, the program used deterrence theory as its theoretical rationale (Chainey, Serrano–Berthet, and Veneri, 2021).

Study 1

Chainey, Serrano–Berthet, and Veneri (2021) used a quasi-experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of Programa de Alta Dedicación Operativa (PADO), a hot-spot policing program in Montevideo, Uruguay, in reducing robberies. To do so, the researchers chose a difference-in-difference, negative binominal panel data approach. This approach allows for the examination of change in an outcome in a control group, compared with the change in outcome in the treatment group. In this study, it allowed for the examination of change in robberies in areas that were not subject to the PADO intervention, compared with the change in robberies in the areas where the PADO intervention was deployed.

This study used two control groups. Control group 1 consisted of street segments and street junctions from within 1 meter to 300 meters of a treatment area (i.e., the areas surrounding the PADO areas). Control group 2 consisted of street segments and street junctions more than 300 meters from a treatment area. The CrimeSolutions review of this study focused on the comparison between the treatment group and control group 2.

The police provided robbery data from January 2013 to December 2016. The data were aggregated into monthly counts of crime, for a total of 48 months, for each street segment or street junction. Each street segment or street junction was coded with data for the 4-year period. This resulted in 1,385 street segments and street junctions in the treatment area, 9,476 street segments and street junctions assigned to control group 1, and 37,915 street segments and street junctions assigned to control group 2. These totaled 48,776 units of analysis. The study did not conduct subgroup analyses.

These sources were used in the development of the program profile:

These sources were used in the development of the program profile:

Following are CrimeSolutions-rated programs that are related to this practice:

Hot Spots Policing

Hot spots policing strategies focus on small geographic areas or places, usually in urban settings, where crime is concentrated. Through hot spots policing strategies, law enforcement agencies can focus limited resources in areas where crime is most likely to occur. This practice is rated Effective for reducing overall crime and rated Promising for reducing violent, property, public order, and drug and alcohol offenses.

Evidence Ratings for Outcomes

	Crime & Delinquency - Multiple crime/offense types
	Crime & Delinquency - Violent offenses
	Crime & Delinquency - Property offenses
	Crime & Delinquency - Public order offenses
	Crime & Delinquency - Drug and alcohol offenses

Why might a practice's outcome ratings differ from the ratings of specific programs encompassed by that practice?