Discrepancy between the Theory and Practice of Crime Prevention

Introduction: the article considers the concept of prevention in several aspects (social prevention, criminological prevention, situational prevention, evolutionary prevention). We describe the subjects implementing the prevention of offenses and consider the issue of public participation in this process in historical and modern periods. We focus our attention on the prevention of new crimes in the institutions of the Federal Penitentiary Service, emphasize its importance during the period of serving a sentence (educational techniques and methods) and after release (interaction of probation inspectorates with law enforcement agencies for the re-socialization of released convicts). We outline possible risks and difficulties of organizing crime prevention together with public organizations: determining preferences for activists; politicization of preventive work (obtaining additional electoral points); selection of activists (preventing the involvement of representatives of the criminal environment). In the context of considering ways to improve prevention, much attention is paid to the prevention of crime through technological innovations: control over people’s movement using a mobile phone; analysis of web browsing history; computer programs for crime prevention; compilation and maintenance of federal database programs; chipping, etc. The study is based on the accumulated experience of implementing preventive work, which is described in the sections “Prevention yesterday” and “Prevention today”. The article analyzes examples of crime prevention in Thailand, the U.S. etc., and reflects the results of implementation of the “Safe City” program in Moscow. The methodological basis of this study is represented by the axiological approach. Research problems were addressed with the use of general philosophical principles of dialectics and special methods of cognition: systematic, formal-legal, sociological, etc. Results: the public remains the most important element of the prevention system. It is necessary to develop and legally consolidate the relevant activities, for example, as it is done in Article 11 of the Federal Law “On the fundamentals of the system for prevention of neglect and juvenile delinquency”. Legal education should be the main weapon in the hands of the subjects of prevention. Elimination of crime should become the main direction of prevention.