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Child Development-Community Policing

Highlights

Description

The Child Development-Community Policing (CD-CP) program was developed by the Yale Child Study Center in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1992 to reduce the harm that chronic exposure to violence inflicts on children and families. The program provides a framework for a collaborative alliance among law enforcement, juvenile justice, domestic violence, medical and mental health professionals, and child welfare. CD-CP is a collaborative initiative between the National Center for Children Exposed to Violence at the Yale Child Study Center and the University of Connecticut’s Department of Psychiatry that focuses on the development and study of assessment and treatment approaches for children exposed to violence.

The Childhood Violent Trauma Clinic is the central program component. It provides longitudinal assessment and treatment for children and their families who are affected by violence and other potentially traumatic circumstances. In addition to providing comprehensive assessment, treatment planning, and intervention, the clinic provides longitudinal assessment and treatment for children and their families who are affected by violence and other potentially traumatic circumstances.

Other program components include:

  • Acute response and consultation service.
  • Child development fellowships for police supervisors.
  • Police fellowships for clinical faculty.
  • A seminar on child development, human functioning, and policing strategies.
  • Weekly case conferencing.

CD-CP has been replicated in many communities across the United States.

Risk Factors

Individual

Exposure to firearm violence

Physical violence/aggression

Violent victimization

Family

Child maltreatment (abuse or neglect)

Delinquent siblings

Family history of problem behavior/criminal involvement

Family violence (child maltreatment, partner violence, conflict)

Poor parental supervision (control, monitoring, and child management)

Community

Availability and use of drugs in the neighborhood

Availability of firearms

Exposure to violence and racial prejudice

Feeling unsafe in the neighborhood

High-crime neighborhood

Neighborhood youth in trouble

Peer

Association with antisocial/aggressive/delinquent peers; high peer delinquency

Association with gang-involved peers/relatives

Gang membership


Endorsements

National Gang Center: Effective program structure

Contact

National Center for Children Exposed to Violence
Child Study Center
Yale University
230 South Frontage Road
New Haven, CT 06520-7900
Phone: (877) 49-NCCEV or (203) 785-7047 (local)
Fax: (203) 785-4608
Web site: http://www.nccev.org/

References

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (1996). Reducing Youth Gun Violence: An Overview of Programs and Initiatives. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Date Created: April 7, 2021