It sponsors the Citizen's Academy where selected community leaders attend sessions one night a week for eight weeks to learn about all aspects of police operations. Neighborhood Fight Back is headed by the Deputy City Manager, and it includes the police as one of the many city departments represented. Together with community groups, they identify problem areas and work together to develop strategies to clean up the neighborhoods and fight crime. In 1986, they determined that they would never have enough agents or resources to work on all groups, so they concentrated on finding the significant players in the drug-trafficking world. As a result, they developed the National Drug Strategy, which focuses on identifying and accessing the key players and areas where drugs come in, primarily in Los Angeles, New York, and Miami.
Prime targets are individuals who deal out of Columbia and Mexico.
By aiming at the wholesale level and above, they hope to impact street-level supply. Research assistance provided by MSU doctoral student Mark Lanier.