Training Day Theory

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The movie-training day is about a veteran officer who takes a rookie on his first day of training with L.A.P.D. Denzel Washington plays the L.A.P.D. detective Alonzo Harris and Ethan Hawke plays the role of rookie officer Jake Hoyte. Hoyte who was once a former security guard applied for a position as an undercover Narcotics officer. In order to be accepted as a Narcotics officer Hoyte must first endure 24 hours of training from veteran officer Alonzo Harris. Officer Harris is known to have a bad reputation on how he enforces the law, he is known for not treating victims very well, abusing suspects, mishandling drugs and other evidence. Throughout the 24-hour training period ethical dilemmas arise and Hoyte begins to question Harris’s methods …show more content…

Social Control Theory is a “theory in criminology that proposes that individuals are prevented from committing antisocial behavior or crime because of the bonds they hold to society, such as their attachment to parents or significant others (p.5)”. From the very beginning of the movie, it was obvious that Hoyte was faced with some ethical dilemmas. In many instances he had the opportunity to make his own decision and in some case he did not. Hoyte was dedicated to protecting and serving his country, but with Harris influence his moral obligations began to dwindle as the 24-hour training period progressed. You could tell that Hoyte wanted to do the right thing, but after Harris dragged him into several illegal activities Hotyt began to not even question if what he was doing was …show more content…

Hoyte forced Harris to stop the car so he could help. Hoyte bolted down the ally where he began to fight the two attackers and after gaining control of them, he began to read them their rights so he could take them into custody. As Hoyte was proceeding with protocol Harris came up and confronted the attackers then started beating them and taking their money and crack pipes. Once Harris took what he wanted and thought they had enough, he told them to get up and go. Hoyte question Harris about letting them go stating that they needed to be taken into the station, but Harris just told him to forget about it saying the gangs would take care of them. So as the attackers walked away Hoyte stood confused about what Harris had just done, yet he did not question him again about his actions. The sole idea of social control theory is that an individual's basic belief system, values, morals, commitments, and relationships foster a lawful environment. People such as officer Hoyte, who have beliefs and community commitments, are often known to have a level of self-control over their actions when it comes to acting according to the socially accepted

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