Innovative Approach to Auto Theft by Juveniles

The City of Erie Police Department's (EPD) proposal aims to combat the rising auto theft issue in the City of Erie particularly among juveniles. To combat this trend, EPD will develop and implement a two-pronged auto theft prevention and enforcement strategy. For prevention, EPD will launch a multi-faceted 3-year marketing campaign targeting potential victims of auto theft and teens considering perpetrating auto thefts. The project will be in partnership with community groups and law enforcement agencies and will be comprised of PSAs to educate potential victims of crimes of convenience, TikToks to deter Erie's teens from perpetrating auto thefts, convenience store signage, door hangers, rack cards, digital billboards, press conferences, and a social media campaign. A second prevention piece includes working with partners to implement a successful early intervention-focused deterrence strategy, or “Call-in,” for teens at risk of displaying auto theft tendencies. At these sessions, law enforcement, social service providers, and community partners would encourage teens to avoid a life of crime, connect them to resources and services, warn them that if they continue along their current trajectory, sanctions will be swift and certain, and then enjoy a meal together. For enforcement, EPD will develop a real-time crime center, outfitting its 38 vehicles with license plate readers (LPRs), and installing 12 stationary LPRs at key intersections where the data shows hotspots. The final element includes funding to add a second dedicated auto theft investigator and to contract with a research partner to analyze data, measure outcomes, identify criminal justice and public safety-related problems, measure program effectiveness, recommend improvements, identify and propose proven strategies/interventions to address problems and communicate with a wide variety of public sector, law enforcement, and community members. The research partner will work with EPD to create a manual that outlines step-by-step instructions for other communities to replicate the same prevention and intervention strategy. This manual will include the process steps taken during the implementation of the messaging campaign and implementation of the focused deterrence model for the high-risk offenders and lessons learned.