Evidence-Based Policing is an approach that uses the best available research, data, professional experience, and community knowledge to guide policing decisions. Rather than relying solely on tradition or assumptions, it focuses on identifying what works, evaluating results, and continually improving how police services are delivered.
Lawrence Sherman’s Three Ts—Targeting, Testing, and Tracking—provide a practical framework for putting evidence into action:
🎯 Targeting the highest-harm people, places, problems, and times.
🧪 Testing strategies to determine what is most effective.
📊 Tracking implementation and outcomes to ensure resources are achieving the intended results.
For police organizations, evidence-based policing supports better decision-making, strengthens accountability, improves the efficient use of resources, and helps ensure policing strategies have a meaningful impact on community safety.
By using evidence-based research to guide our work, we can continually learn, adapt, and provide policing services that are effective, transparent, and responsive to the communities we serve.
