“When crime rate goes up there is a further dip in the public perception of the police resulting in a greater antagonism towards the police on the part of the public “(1985). Peacemaking is the basic duty of the police force; if police is caught doing things that is not ethical in the community eyes the situation in the community will not change. The public perception of the police is the criminal justice system should work on the factors that cause the public to lower their trust in the way police treats their communities. Making better police in the community can result if there is better cooperation from the criminal justice system. The way police handles combating crime and brutality most attempts to redeem police image would involve education for both public and the police on the effectiveness crime control measures.
In chapter five of Ethical Dilemmas and Decisions in Criminal Justice, Pollock states when one asks most people what the role of policing is in society, the response is some version of “catch criminals” or “fight crime”. (p.105) The majority of police officers are professional and ethical; however a small minority abuses their power. This leads to close suspicion by the public of all police. Police have great power in our society to arrest, use force and also have the power of life and death. Police have two types of perceptions of the police mission, either a crime fighter or public servant.
Personality Traits of a Police Officer Policing today is very complex. Police officers are expected to be all things to all people and to make split second decisions under varying stress conditions. Police officers must be effective at what they do. The decisions made by a police officer could potentially affect the lives of many people. Being an officer of the law takes a certain quality of person and some personality types certainly do better in positions of authority than do others.
It's clear that in every single case police officers are overreacting. But the question here is: Is it because of racism? The chairman of the police union Washington D.C. says that deadly use of force where race is a factor does not equal racism. Furthermore the debate is about the punishment of Slager. If the fault is not on the police, Slager has to be punished.
The police officer who savagely killed Michael Brown was also involved in other police brutality incidents prior to this one. Friends and family have stated that sometimes it’s how a child is raised and how they view different races and cultures. This statement shows that racism and pre-consumed thoughts of people are not good when you’re an official of the law. Thinking like this has to stop; lifelong learning of race has to be evaluated at the hiring process. Knowing who you have patrolling the streets and protecting the public is very important.
Stereotyping happens every day. People in the community started to watch the police when they would conduct routine stops and searches. They began to claim racism and claim that police officers were discriminating. Police must prove of their reason to justify a stop and arrest. If the only reason to pull someone over depends on his or her race, this causes a discriminatory impact.
To start off the Sean Bell case was an example of Police brutality. Police Brutality is one of the most serious issues of human violation that is unaddressed because of the cover up by fellow police officers during internal investigations. There are many instances when police officers engage in the activities of rough physical behaviors such as shooting, beating, torture and other unnecessary brutal acts among citizens which often result in injury or sometimes even death. Suspects of a crime, the victims, as well as their families, who are seeking justice, are usually disregarded. Usually if not always the people who deserve to be held accountable by the brutal violation of human rights getaway from the due punishment and continue to do their foul crimes (Collins 1).
An integral component to the infrastructure of government is law enforcement. In recent years, police actions, particularly police abuse has come into view of a wide, public and critical eye. While citizens worry about protecting themselves from criminals, it has now been shown that they must also keep a watchful eye on those who are supposed to protect and serve. This paper will discuss the types of police abuse prevalent today, including the use of firearms and recovery of private information. I will also discuss what and how citizens’ rights are taken advantage of by the police.
Police corruption is a problem that can be traced back to the early days of policing. It is a serious problem within most police forces today, as it is widely know that is it something that is not only hard to calculate, but also hard to reduce and near impossible to eradicate. The following will explore what corruption is defined as and reasons for why police corruption occurs. Reasons that will be covered that can be deemed as the cause of corruption are, the police cultures’ solidarity and loyalty, that a high level of discretion is used, which cannot be monitored, and that there is a corrupt hierarchy within the police force that is difficult to control. Methods to prevent corruption will then be explored, such as more rigorous recruitment procedures and the reinforcement of the motivation to do what is right.
Police departments’ effectiveness depends on its organization. Local police are assigned to areas, also known as beats, with the responsibility of maintaining order, ensuring that the law is upheld, and providing needed assistance to citizens. If communities are going to be safe to live in, then the police department must be well organized. As we continue to experience an increase in crime, police organization becomes more and more important, as it determines the police department’s effectiveness. One of the advantages of patrolling is that it gives potential criminals the fear of being caught in the act and citizens the peace of knowing that they are being protected against crime.