A department floods a neighborhood with a high number of officers to deter crime and increase arrests in a targeted area.

• A. Saturation patrol
• B. Blending
• C. Split-force patrol
• D. Swatting

Answer: (A)

Flooding a neighborhood with a large number of officers is a saturation patrol. This tactic aims to deter crime and increase arrests by overwhelming the targeted area with visible, high-density police presence for a period of time. The idea is that the increased footprint raises the perceived risk of getting caught and gives officers more immediate opportunities to intervene and apprehend offenders. It differs from blending, which relies on being covert and less conspicuous; from split-force patrol, which allocates resources across multiple areas rather than concentrating them; and from swatting, which is a malicious false report used to trigger an emergency response. In practice, saturation patrol can produce short-term crime reductions and rapid arrests in the chosen area, though it requires substantial personnel and can lead to displacement of crime to other locations if overused.