The Kansas City Gun Experiment was a study conducted in the 1980s by the Kansas City Police Department and the National Institute of Justice to examine the effectiveness of targeted police patrols in reducing gun violence in high-crime areas. The experiment, which took place in two high-crime neighborhoods in Kansas City, Missouri, was a randomized controlled trial in which one neighborhood received targeted patrols while the other served as the control group.
The targeted patrols involved a high-visibility policing strategy in which police officers patrolled the neighborhood in marked cars, on foot, and on bicycles. They also conducted undercover operations and worked closely with community members to identify and apprehend individuals involved in gun violence. The goal of the targeted patrols was to disrupt and deter criminal activity, particularly gun violence, and to create a sense of safety and security in the community.
The results of the Kansas City Gun Experiment were mixed. On the one hand, the targeted patrols did lead to a reduction in gun violence in the neighborhood where they were implemented. There was a 25% reduction in gun assaults and a 20% reduction in gun homicides in the experimental neighborhood compared to the control group. This suggests that targeted patrols can be an effective strategy for reducing gun violence in high-crime areas.
On the other hand, the Kansas City Gun Experiment also found that targeted patrols had little impact on overall crime rates. There was no significant difference in the overall crime rate between the experimental and control neighborhoods, indicating that targeted patrols may not be a viable solution for reducing crime more broadly.
In addition, the Kansas City Gun Experiment faced criticism for its methodology and for its limited scope. Some critics argued that the study did not adequately control for other factors that could have influenced the results, such as changes in the local economy or changes in policing strategies in the control neighborhood. Others argued that the study focused too narrowly on gun violence and did not consider other types of crime.
Despite these limitations, the Kansas City Gun Experiment remains an important example of the potential effectiveness of targeted patrols in reducing gun violence in high-crime areas. While the study may not provide a comprehensive solution to the problem of crime, it does suggest that targeted patrols can be an important part of a broader approach to addressing gun violence and improving public safety.