By Jacques de Maillard. European Journal of Criminology, 2018, 2 janvier 2018, pp. 1-20.
This paper analyses the implementation of Compstat-like processes in two large European police organizations: the Metropolitan Police Service in London and the Préfecture de police in Paris. Compstat-like processes are characterized by processes framed by performance indicators and targets, performance assessment sessions, units dedicated to the collection and analysis of performance data, and information processing requiring the use of crime data. Such processes raise two broad sets of questions. First, do these innovations lead to tighter or more encompassing crime control strategies? Second, does the old command-and-control organizational model of police departments emerge reinforced, or does innovation foster the emergence of a new, more deliberative, problem-solving style of management? The paper analyses the mix of common features (limited geographical decentralization, increasing internal accountability based on the centrality of quantitative data, the prioritizing of crime reduction, and the influence of new technologies on how data is used) and differences (the range of indicators used, broader in London, and the management styles, more in line with a neo-managerial impetus in London). Interpreting these contrasts requires an analytical framework combining both the administrative, political and cultural traditions in the two police forces and the intentional projects carried out by political and professional actors.
Cet article analyse l’adoption et la mise en oeuvre de processus d’évaluation de la performance policière, inspirés du Compstat New-Yorkais, dans deux grandes organisations policières européennes : le Metropolitan police service de Londres et la Préfecture de police de Paris. Deux grandes questions sont posées : est-ce que ces innovations conduisent à des stratégies plus serrées ou plus englobantes de lutte contre la délinquance ? Est-ce qu’ils favorisent une approche plus délibérative, tournée vers la résolution de problèmes ?
