DORAL, Fla. -- Budget cuts can mean fewer police officers patrolling some areas of South Florida, but neighborhood organizations are taking matters into their own hands.

"People want to know their neighborhood. They want to know who belongs and who doesn't," said Citizen's Crime Watch Director Carmen Caldwell.

Caldwell said people are calling and e-mailing in record numbers because they want to start their own Crime Watch groups.

"Twelve to 20 calls for service a week," she said.

Caldwell believes the spike in numbers has everything to do with the dip in the economy.

"We are so preoccupied and overwhelmed with our own life -- whether we have a job whether we don't have a job -- we're doing stupid things," Caldwell said.

She said people are tired of giving criminals the upper hand. They are warning their friends, families and neighbors. They are also bonding together through community policing.