Center for Problem-Oriented Policing

Summary of Responses to Assaults in and Around Bars

The table below summarizes the responses to assaults in and around bars, the mechanism by which they are intended to work, the conditions under which they ought to work best, and some factors you should consider before implementing a particular response. It is critical that you tailor responses to local circumstances, and that you can justify each response based on reliable analysis. In most cases, an effective strategy will involve implementing several different responses. Enforcement responses alone are seldom effective in reducing or solving the problem.

General Requirements
#	Response	How It Works	Works Best If...	Considerations
1	Enlisting community support for addressing the problem	Establishes joint ownership of the problem	…there is sufficient public interest in and political support for addressing the problem	Requires a high degree of project management to sustain coalitions over time
2	Implementing multifaceted, comprehensive strategies	Addresses many of the known risk factors that contribute to assaults	…responses are properly implemented (in the right sequence and strength)	Difficult to isolate the effect of specific interventions; requires a high degree of project management
3	Getting cooperation and support from bar owners and managers	Prevents displacement of the problem; prevents perceptions of unfairness; addresses problems at lower-risk bars	…there are mechanisms to enforce agreements, and regulators acknowledge the legitimacy of owners' profit motive	Rogue operators can easily undermine cooperative agreements
4	Informally monitoring bar policies and practices	Identifies high risk locations and practices; enforces cooperative agreements; monitors progress and effectiveness	…participating bar owners cooperate and support the oversight system; constructive feedback is offered to participating bar owners, along with potential solutions	Lacks the force of law; requires a high degree of project management
5	Formally regulating and enforcing relevant liquor-licensing laws	Motivates owners/ managers to adopt and enforce responsible serving policies and practices	…done in conjunction with more cooperative and voluntary efforts, and enforcement is consistent, routine, and perceived to be fair	Labor-intensive and costly; increases rates of detected and reported offenses
Reducing Alcohol Consumption
#	Response	How It Works	Works Best If...	Considerations
6	Establishing responsible-beverage-service programs	Addresses a range of risk factors, especially reducing drunkenness levels	…servers, managers, and owners are provided with concrete examples of responsible practices; combined with sanctions and enforcement	Evidence of effectiveness is mixed; requires enforcement to be taken seriously; costly to establish
6a	Monitoring drinking to prevent drunkenness	Reduces drunkenness levels	…servers know how to detect intoxication, they have sufficient incentives to stop serving, and there is adequate opportunity to monitor patrons	Refusing service to intoxicated patrons can instigate aggression; difficult to monitor drinking in large bars
6b	Providing reduced-alcohol or nonalcoholic beverages	Reduces drunkenness levels	…patrons will drink reduced- or nonalcoholic beverages	Some bar owners may be reluctant to stock reduced-or non-alcoholic beverages, believing they are less profitable
6c	Prohibiting underage drinking	Prevents drunkenness of vulnerable population	…jurisdiction has identification cards that are difficult to falsify	Easy to provide false proof of age in some jurisdictions
6d	Providing reduced-alcohol or nonalcoholic beverages	Reduces drunkenness levels	…patrons will drink reduced- or nonalcoholic beverages	Some bar owners may be reluctant to stock reduced-or non-alcoholic beverages, believing they are less profitable
6e	Requiring or encouraging food service with alcohol service	Reduces drunkenness levels; attracts a more diverse, less aggressive clientele; creates a calmer atmosphere	…patrons will buy and eat food, and food service is adequate so as not to create additional frustration and conflict	Increases costs to licensees, but does not necessarily reduce profitability
6f	Discouraging alcohol price discounts	Reduces volume of consumption	…all bars are prohibited from discounting prices	Easily undermined by the pressures of business competition; potential legal restrictions to price agreements
7	Establishing and enforcing server liability laws	Provides incentives for servers to control excessive consumption	…there is sufficient community support for liability laws, and laws are enforced adequately	Difficult to establish server's knowledge of drunkenness; judgments are rare
8	Reducing the concentration and/or number of bars	Reduces barhopping; reduces the potential for conflicts at closing time	…the concentration and/ or number of bars is high	Not conclusively proven effective at reducing violence levels
Making Bars Safer
#	Response	How It Works	Works Best If...	Considerations
9	Training staff to handle patrons nonviolently	Reduces levels of aggression; encourages staff to intervene before assaults occur	…there are high- quality training programs available; skill development is emphasized; real-world scenarios are used	Increases costs to either licensees or local government to administer training; training is often of poor quality
10	Establishing adequate transportation	Reduces numbers of drunken people on streets after closing hours; reduces competition for transportation	…the transportation infrastructure is adequate to the demand	May increase costs to local government
11	Relaxing or staggering bar closing times	Reduces the concentration of drunken people on streets after closing hours	…there are multiple bars in the area, with large crowds	Requires legislation to authorize; seems counterintuitive and therefore easily opposed
12	Controlling bar entrances, exits, and immediate surroundings	Reduces the entry of underage, drunken, and belligerent patrons; reduces barhopping; controls conflict at key locations	…the security staff is properly trained and nonaggressive, and patrons often get into conflicts in the alleys and parking lots outside bars	May increase short-term costs to licensees (for security staff, surveillance cameras, lighting)
13	Maintaining an attractive, comfortable, entertaining atmosphere in bars	Reduces the frustration and boredom that can precipitate aggression	…bar owners are willing to invest in maintenance and entertainment	Increases short-term costs to licensees
14	Establishing and enforcing clear rules of conduct for bar patrons	Reduces the potential for conflicts among patrons; promotes a calmer atmosphere	…bar owners have sufficient incentives to promote peaceful and legal conduct	May run counter to patrons' expectations and desires
15	Reducing potential weapons and other sources of injury	Reduces the likelihood and/or severity of injury	…bar owners know where to buy safer materials	May increase short-term costs to licensees
16	Communicating about incidents as they occur	Permits early intervention in potentially violent	…all local bars participate; police are included	Need to distinguish between incidents that require police response and those that do not
17	Banning known troublemakers from bars	Removes high-risk offenders from situations where altercations are likely	…police and bar management cooperate to identify banned patrons, and enforce the terms of the banishment	Legal restrictions; may be difficult to ensure compliance from bar owners if regular customers are banned
Responses With Limited Effectiveness
#	Response	How It Works	Works Best If...	Considerations
18	Using extra police patrols in and around bars	Intended to deter assaults and allow police to intervene in disputes		Little evidence in the research that extra police presence is effective or efficient
19	Marketing responsible consumption and service practices	Intended to heighten general awareness of the problem and discourage excessive consumption		Excessive-consumption- warning campaigns do not appear effective; irresponsible marketing can be used to identify high-risk bars
20	Prohibiting the sale and consumption of alcohol	Reduces consumption		Difficult to obtain widespread public support; reduces the positive effects of social drinking; creates illegal and potentially violent black markets

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Summary of Responses to Assaults in and Around Bars

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