Scenario: Several individuals have been apprehended for possessing illegal weapons. There are reports of multiple individuals in the area working together to traffic and sell illegal weapons.
It has come to our attention that there are individuals within this community that currently possess illegal weapons, and are working to traffic and sell them. While we don't know the specific type of weapons, nor the individuals, we have clues on how this is happening. Edwin Sutherland, a sociologist from the 20th century, gave us an idea called the differential association theory. This explains that criminals "learn to be criminals" by studying the tactics of others, essentially what worked for them and what hasn't. This means they're able to source these weapons, and have websites or contacts in which they are resold at likely higher prices with more risks. We know that there are multiple individuals that are trafficking these weapons, therefore, we can presume they are working together, likely in a gang or syndicate. We can also gain more intel as to why they're doing this through the social learning theory, which similarly tells us about the vicarious reinforcement aspect, or the rewards they're receiving from carrying out these crimes. However, it is not all negative news. From this point on, we will be employing more community programs to hopefully reduce these crimes. A neighborhood watch group will be created in which residents will "see something and say something", reporting any suspicious activity they see. Additionally, we will hold trainings for residents where you can learn safety tactics about self-defense and how to de-escalate a situation in which you may come face-to-face with one of these criminals. Lastly, we will be increasing our on-site officers around suspicious areas where there are higher crime rates. We ask that residents remain vigilant and calm during these unknowing times.
