Examining the Relationship between Citizen Contact with the Community Prosecutor and Fear of Crime

Fear of crime has been studied extensively in the extant criminological literature, although the majority of these studies focused on fear of crime through the lens of policing. Put differently, the fear of crime literature that has examined the impact of the criminal justice system has focused primarily on policing. This study thus adds to the literature by being one of the first to examine citizen fear of crime through the lens of contact with the community prosecutor. Using a sample of 325 citizens from a large city in the United States, we found that respondents who interacted with the community prosecutor’s office were more fearful of crime. Also, respondents who got their news mostly from television and perceived that there was physical disorder in the community were more fearful of crime. Conversely, respondents who knew victims of violent/property crime and who believed they were at higher risk of victimization were less fearful of crime. The implications of our findings for community safety and security are discussed.