Public organizations are formed according to the district principle

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One of the most important components of a stable and prosperous state of society is calm on the streets, in public places, and the proper state of public order. The degree of importance of this issue for modern society can be evidenced by the totality of the efforts undertaken by various states. Therefore, it is no accident that the efforts of the state, society, and the individual are aimed at maintaining public order.

At the state level, protection of public order is carried out by a system of special bodies. But along with the active efforts of such bodies, public participation in this process, whose representatives actively cooperate with state authorities, is becoming increasingly important. Such cooperation seems to be more effective than the adoption of “hard” laws. For this purpose, various public associations are created, citizens unite in order to ensure proper order on the streets, protection of public order. Interaction of the state and institutions of civil society is an indicator of democratic development, it shows the interrelation and interdependence of the state and public subjects.

Let us note that similar organizations are created and carry out their activities in foreign countries as well. For example, in the USA there is a large number of different public organizations, the activities of which are aimed at protecting public order. These organizations can be formed according to the area of residence, production interests and even “according to race in white and black neighborhoods.

These organizations were especially active at the local, neighborhood level, and they were created in a variety of forms: volunteer police organizations made up of citizens-volunteers (US Volunteer Police, British Volunteer Police), “neighborhood” crime control organizations, “neighborhood watch”, “security brigades”, “grab-ass” type organizations, “Guardian Angel Alliance”, etc. Among the many such organizations are “safety brigades,” the “guardian angel union,” and “neighborhood” crime-fighting organizations.

Voluntary community organizations formed according to the neighborhood principle, i.e. according to the place of residence of the organization’s members, are the “safety brigades” in Philadelphia. These organizations are formed on a voluntary basis and have several advantages over other such formations.

First, security brigades patrol the streets on a daily basis. A special feature of the watch is the rule that the “security brigades” patrol only on streets known to them, they do not invade an unfamiliar neighborhood. This contributes to more effective patrolling, since the members of the “security brigades” know their street, their house and their courtyard very well and can signal to the police any breaches of public order in good time.

Second, team members are equipped with mobile communication with the police. This makes it possible not only to report and prevent an offense in time, but also to summon police officers when members themselves are in danger.

Third, it is not the responsibility of the “security brigades” to apprehend the offender, but only to report information about the nature and location of the offenses to the police department. When an offender is on the move, members of “security brigades” may report information to police officers until “a signal is received from the police that the person of interest has entered the zone of visibility.

Such approaches to organizing the activities of “security brigades” are the most expedient, since they exclude the use of any powers of authority by public organizations, thus minimizing the risk to their lives and health.

An indisputable advantage of the activity of these organizations is the practice of generalizing positive experience of their activity. In particular, representatives meet once a month at the police station of their area to summarize positive experiences, develop general directions and determine prospects for the future.

The experience of brigades in the United States shows that community organizations staffed by the district principle have a number of advantages. In addition, the absence of state-authoritative powers in the activity of such organizations reduces the risk to life and health of their participants.

In foreign countries the public organizations, completed at the place of residence, they consist of neighbors in an apartment house effectively carry out their activity. These are the so-called “neighborhood organizations” created within the framework of the “Neighborhood Watch” program, actively supported and stimulated by the police to participate in such activities8.

It is worth noting that the prototype of such organizations as supervision, which are local groups carrying out their activities within one house or street, were voluntary people’s druzhiny. The legal regulation of the activity of “neighborhood watch” type organizations is based on the principles of legality, voluntariness, persuasion, and the absence of state-authoritative powers. Their activities are aimed at creating “neighborhood” organizations that supervise the state of public order in the territory entrusted to them.

Researchers who study this type of organizations compare their scale and prevalence by the degree of public impact with the environmental movement. The effectiveness and popularity of these public organizations among the population is clearly evidenced by their number, for example, in the United States – more than 100,000 thousand such organizations. They are formed from citizens-enthusiasts who are willing to “take on this troublesome but necessary task. The members of the organization themselves determine “who will coordinate their actions, who will contact the police, who will receive general information about the state of local crime and bring it to the residents, in what form, etc.”

In this regard, along with patrolling, “neighborhood organizations” inform the police about violations of public order, report information of a “criminal nature,” creating a calmer situation in their territory, in their neighborhood.

In turn, police officers provide citizens with printed materials containing information on the prevention of offenses.

Thus, “neighborhood watch” organizations are formed at the place of residence of citizens on the basis of the principles of legality, voluntariness, persuasion, absence of state-authoritative powers. These principles represent the basis of legal regulation of their activities.

However, such principles may not apply to the activities of some public organizations in foreign countries, as they have the right to use the powers of authority, in particular, to make civil arrests. The Union of Guardian Angels, which makes civil arrests of people who have committed crimes, is one of these organizations.