In the spring of 2017, DeSales University, in cooperation with the office of the chief of police and Mayor Robert Donchez, conducted a Bethlehem community survey to investigate the perceptions of safety in Bethlehem neighborhoods by household residents. I hoped that the survey would provide insight and information that the Bethlehem Police Department could utilize in order to better serve the citizens of Bethlehem, target areas of citizens’ concerns and to open additional channels of communication with all members of the community. I also wanted to understand residents’ satisfaction with the police department, their perception of crime and their fear of crime and police community relations and cooperation.

The survey was completely voluntary. Feedback from the community is very important and can indicate good things being done or problem areas that may be less known to the police. The survey involved the completion of a mailed survey. The survey was comprised of a variety of closed ended questions and several sections where the respondents could write or add comments that they would like the police to address. The survey took 20 minutes or less to complete.

About the survey

The survey was mailed to 3,264 random Bethlehem households on Monday, Jan. 16, Bethlehem is divided into 8 police districts. Household numbers and basic demographics for each district were provided to DeSales. The following zip code areas of Bethlehem were surveyed: 18017, 18018 and 18015. The response rate was lower than preferred, but within the range expected in mailed surveys.

Respondents were 54 percent female and 46 percent male between the ages of 22 and 98 years of age. 84 percent were White, 11 percent were Hispanic, 3 percent were Black and 2 percent were other (Asian, Indian and Native American). 52 percent responded to the survey in the 18018 zip code area. 38% responded in 18017 area and 11% in the 18015 area. All respondents were Bethlehem city residents.

Results from the survey were interesting. Citizen responses were overall positive. Residents felt safe and were both satisfied and trusting of the Bethlehem Police Department. As in all mailed surveys, a percentage of people failed to respond. This especially occurred in the 18015 zip code. This was not surprising and does occur in other surveys which target multiple areas of a city. The reasons for this low response rate in a certain area could include vacant addresses, rental and/or college properties, language barriers, younger respondents and other potential issues.

Summary of the Study

The survey was funded by DeSales University, and survey construction and data analysis were conducted by Dr. Michelle Bolger from DeSales University and Dr. Colin Bolger from Kutztown University. They have compiled a report titled “Perceptions of Neighborhood Crime and Resident Satisfaction with the Police.” The report was professionally drafted and contained the purpose, methodology, construction of measures, and results of the survey. The following are some of highlights of this study.

NEIGHBORHOODS AND CRIME: The majority of residents reported no or very few problems with crime, physical decay, or social disorder in their residential neighborhoods. Residents reported nearly no fear of crime while doing routine activities in their neighborhoods. The most common fears were walking at night, taking public transportation with the two most commonly reported factors being poor lighting and places for people to hide.

Of the crime issues noted by residents, the top three crime problems were burglary, drug sales, and drug use. However, even with these issues identified, the majority felt they were only a “small problem.” In general, respondents reported a low fear of crime in their neighborhoods. Under social problems, physical decay, or what I refer to as quality of life issues, residents identified vandalism, illegally parked cars, loud music, drinking in public, and littering in public as areas of concern.

CONFIDENCE IN POLICE: The vast majority of Bethlehem residents were quite confident in the Bethlehem Police Department. 74 percent - 94 percent agreed or strongly agreed that they were confident in Bethlehem Police Officers responding to calls and investigating crimes. That vast majority also indicated that they trusted the leadership of the Bethlehem Police Department.

SATISFACTION WITH POLICE: Overall, residents were satisfied with the Bethlehem Police Department. 67 percent - 94 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that BPD provided quality service, acted professionally, and used the appropriate amount of force. The lowest level of support that Police received was in the area of communication to the public on major issues occurring in their neighborhoods. In this item, Bethlehem Police received a 67 percent satisfaction while the rest of items received a 88 percent - 94 percent satisfaction response. This issue is currently being worked on.

CITIZEN COOPERATION WITH POLICE: Overall, respondents reported high levels of cooperation with Police. The majority of respondents felt that residents taking an active role in crime prevention is important. 74 percent - 99 percent reported that they would call Police for crimes in their neighborhoods, should work with Police, and are also responsible for crime prevention in their neighborhoods.

POTENTIAL TARGET AREAS: This is an important subject area. It identified for Bethlehem Police the issues that need attention. Quality of life issues and crimes in their neighborhoods concerned residents the most. Speeding in neighborhoods, especially in school areas, was a key concern, followed by litter, trash, vandalism, poor lighting, and areas where people could hide to commit illegal activities. Communication with the public is also a concern and is currently being addressed throughout the city.

To summarize this study, respondents reported satisfaction with the Bethlehem Police Department. Many reported little to no crime, decay, social disorder and fear of crime in their neighborhoods. Respondents reported high levels of both confidence in and satisfaction with Bethlehem Police service. The majority reported a willingness to call the police and to cooperate with the police. Even with a low response rate from the 18015 zip code area, those residents that did respond conveyed a favorable view of their neighborhoods and of the Bethlehem Police Department.

Residents may access the survey on the DeSales University website and click on the link.

As chief, I would like to thank Assistant Professor Michelle Bolger of the DeSales University Criminal Justice Program and her husband, Assistant Professor Colin Bolger of Kutztown University Criminal Justice Program, for conducting this survey and for the analyzing the data into an understandable and comprehensive study report. I would like to thank all the Bethlehem residents who took time out of their day to respond to this survey. Your thoughts and concerns do matter to me.

Law Enforcement today cannot solve the world’s problems alone. But studies like this provide chiefs and administrators information about what we are doing correctly and what we are not doing correctly. It helps us assess our strengths and weaknesses.

I have reviewed the entire study, page by page. In some areas there is room for improvement and those areas will be addressed by my office and improved. The biggest issue, as with other police departments across the nation, is communication of information with the public.

In our ever changing technological world, the public demands information immediately when something happens. Citizens want to know what is going on now, not later. We watch television shows where crimes are solved in one hour. In real police work, we don’t always have all the information immediately. Events are fluid and many times on going. Violent crimes are not all solved in one hour. The solving of certain crimes takes time due to backlogs in crime labs, lack of cooperation from people involved, the court system, and the time it takes to do a proper solid investigation to obtain credible evidence for successful prosecutions etc. These issues and others do not ease the need for an immediate answer felt by citizens.

Today, especially in their neighborhoods, citizens want to know what is going on around them. Citizens want crimes and issues solved faster and processed through the justice system quicker . Understanding those two issues, the Bethlehem Police Department is already working on improving the methods we utilize to get information out to the public about major events and crimes in the city.

The Bethlehem Police Department is in the process of updating its Facebook Page, the Bethlehem Police Department Website, and our other social media outlets. Soon, we will hopefully be providing more information on what is going on in the city to the public. The city’s website is being improved and will be in both English and Spanish for Bethlehem’s diverse community. The City Administration and Council are also moving towards an open data system for residents concerning city issues. The mayor and I, over the past four years, jointly have increased and attended block watches throughout the city, NAACP and Latino Advisory Committee forums, talks on issues affecting the Bethlehem community, and many other meetings and talks with business and civic groups. In today’s world, we understand that communication is the key to identifying problems and correcting problems.

We will be reviewing and updating the way we assign crimes to our Criminal Investigation Division, and how they investigate those crimes to ascertain if our actions or internal processes in any way are delaying any part of the investigative process. To simply put it, I intend to utilize what is learned from data and use it to make changes to improve our service in these areas and to our citizens.

As I have said in the past, the City of Bethlehem is a great place to live, work, play and enjoy life. The city has been named one of the safest and best cities in Pennsylvania to live and retire. On my watch as chief of police, the Bethlehem Police Department will continue to improve on the way we police our communities, partner and work with all members of the community to improve public safety in our city and continue in our effort to keep Bethlehem one of the safest and best cities in Pennsylvania to live and retire in.