Peace keeping is a solution to unnamed problems arrived at by undesignated means.
The decision not to make an arrest is not a decision not to act, it is a decision to act alternatively. Officers assigned to skid-row districts possess a detailed, factual knowledge of the area and those who reside there. This knowledge allows the officer to enter places where he or she would normally be unwelcome and permits the officer to prevent a situation which may become problematic. The article concludes that peace keeping in skid-row areas occasionally acquires the external aspects of law enforcement. The majority of arrests are made due to the circumstances of a particular social situation, not necessarily a law violation.