Increased police presence is the process by which the police increase their presence in a particular place and time for two reasons: to intimidate, and to improve their options for intervention and their responsiveness.
Examples of increased police presence include:
- More frequent police patrols in a particular area.
- The deployment of police officers and vehicles at a public demonstration. In the hours before a demonstration begins, police officers and vehicles can cluster on the streets around the demonstration or around its expected targets. This clustering can be an opportunity for them to conduct overt surveillance before, during, and after the demonstration.
Used in tactics: Arrest, Deterrence
Mitigations
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Attack | If an increased police presence is organized in anticipation of a public demonstration, it can be inconsequential if the crowd is large and fierce enough. Decentralized and autonomous forces are more agile than the rigid chain of command that police agencies rely on for crowd control. For example, despite years of planning to militarize Hamburg, Germany, for the G20 summit, rioters were able to liberate a neighborhood from police occupation for an entire night[1]. |
| Careful action planning | Police cannot be everywhere all the time, even with an increased presence in a given area. Agility, thorough reconnaissance, and a good escape plan can go a long way. For arson attacks, the use of timers can allow an attack to be carried out unobserved right under their noses. Increased police presence in one place also means the possibility of decreased police presence elsewhere. |