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Ethics and professionalism in law enforcement
Violation of ethics in law enforcement
Violation of ethics in law enforcement
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Domestic violence is a prevalent issue that society is still facing. Domestic violence still goes unreported in the UCR the FBI publishes yearly. As for domestic violence which occurs in policing homes, there is an increase risk that the family faces. In the novel Breaking Rank by author Norm Stamper covers multiple ethical issues the police face when serving. At the beginning of the book, Stamper discusses the topic of domestic violence in policing homes and the power/upper hand an officer has over their family. Stamper also goes into detail on how the officer can instill fear in his/her love ones and portray there selves as a protector of the community they serve. Unfortunately these characteristics of domestic violence is faced by many families …show more content…
that deal with that form of violence in the home. Police departments must be aware of the ethical issues police departments face, the increase threat by officers that carry firearms, manipulation of the system, and implementing new polices. Stamper starts off his novel by telling the story of the chief of police that murdered his wife and himself. On April 26th, 2003, Tacoma Police chief David Brame shot and Killed his estranged wife, then turned the gun on himself. His eight-year-old daughter and five-year-old son witnessed the event (Stamper pg.1). The town was in complete shock and horror when the news came out about the violent actions the chief of police enacted. This story became known across the country and internal affairs started investigations against the Tacoma police department. People of the community wanted to know why this happened and “Who really is David Brame?” David Brame was accused of raping a women which he dated in 1998; internal affairs and his boss failed to hand information about the charges over to the prosecutor’s office. (Stamper pg. 2). Brame also had other accusations of sexual assault held against him by a women that work in the police department with him. The failure to report sexual assault and other seriously convictions resulted in a murder/ suicide, which could have been prevented if the supervisor of Brame been more aware of who Brames past history. Police departments must pay close attention to the officers to which they are hiring and take any past accusations into account. They must also perform psychologically examination a police officers because they have access to weaponry. Police officers are authorized to carry firearms as part of their work uniform. Police Departments are required to have police carry firearms and in many cases law enforcement officers take their weapons home with them. Any victims of officer involved domestic violence are in constant fear due to their abusers having access to a gun. The victim is constantly reminded that his or her abuser carries a gun, in some cases the abuser will remind their victims that they have a weapon. Stamper addresses this very issue in his book and how problematic it can be when dealing with officer involved domestic violence.
Stamper argues in the book by saying this common threat of force is common, he states, “The pushing, the threats to kill her, the choking (four episode in the year before you murdered her), the angry display of your firearm-I hate to say it but that stuffs not all that uncommon among male cops, or men in general” (Stamper pg.3). The police are trained to handle firearms and other weapons, and also know how to restrain a person without leaving any visible marks on the person’s body. So what will occur if a victim wants to speak and report the abuse that they are receiving from their spouse that happens to be a police officer? The spouses of police officers knows that reporting their abuse to the police department is going to be a risky task. If an officer is charged and convicted of domestic violence will lose their gun. What can happens if the police department ignores the reporting of officer involved …show more content…
violence? Some police departments are willing to protect their own by making sure that anything that may effect their officers be covered up. The “Blue Curtain of Secrecy”, is known to be commonly used between officer to officer, basically you protect your own no matter what. Since many officers secretly follow this code, who can the victims go to when they are enduring this threat of violence from there policing husbands? The abusing officer knows the inter workings of the law can easily manipulate those who are around them into thinking that they are not doing any wrong doings. Law enforcement officers are familiar with the mechanics of the courts, they also know the judges and the prosecutors. Can easily manipulate the people that he is victimizing and the people that he/she works with out in the community. What is the reason that officer involved domestic violence occurs? The daily routines and long shifts can cause an officer to go through emotional stress and stressful situations that police departments place on officers. In some cases if the police officer is having issues at work, the officer is unable to take his anger out on his supervisor and instead takes that anger out on others. Police officers may experience displacement of anger defined as individuals which are unable to let out their frustration on the source of their aggression so they take it out on others. Unfortunately the people that get the aggression is family members that live in the home of the aggressor. Tanya Brannan discusses the issue of domestic violence in policing homes in an article called Domestic Violence in Police Families, she states, “Domestic Violence is 2 to 4 times more common in police families than in the general population”. Not many people are aware of these statistics due to the subject of domestic violence is still an under reported crime. Although domestic violence goes under reported normally, in many cases of officer involved domestic violence is almost non existent.
When looking into ethics of the justice system, one would need to look into the ethical systems that can be applied and used to better the system. The ethically system that can be used to determine if a police officer involved in domestic violence good or bad, or if it is ethical for an officer that is aware of his partners domestic ways a fails to report it good or bad. The Ethics of Virtue is an ethical system that bases ethics largely upon character and possession of virtue as defined in the book Ethical dilemmas and decisions in criminal justice ,by author Joycelyn M. Pollock. When defining the ethical system of Ethics of Virtue there are two parts virtue of honesty and virtue of loyalty. An example of virtue of honesty in the case of officer involved domestic violence can be: if a spouse of a police officer approaches another police officer working in the same department reporting that her husband is abusing her, do the officer inform the department and report the incident or does he push it to the side? An example of virtue of loyalty in the case of officer involved domestic violence can be: if a the spouse approaches the officer with the same scenario above and he is aware of these issues because he sees his fellow officers aggressive ways does he stay loyal to the blue curtain of secrecy and ignore the report? I believe that is this
case it can be apparent that domestic violence is a serious issue and should not be taken lightly and the officer she follow the virtue of honesty because it can save a life or multiple lives. If an officer decides to choose virtue of loyalty, it can lead to someone loosing their life due to domestic violence. When questioning the head of the Tacoma Police department before David committed this act against his wife, is David a law abiding law enforcement officer that serves and protects. What would the head of the department say based on pass convictions that David has against him? That Brames supervisor acted on the virtue of loyalty which resulted in Crystals death, Brame's wife. Sad as the case is this event very much could have been prevented if the supervisor of Brame followed the right procedures and took into consideration Brame's past convictions.
In this research paper Amy Homan McGee’s case study of domestic violence will be discussed along with research done that signifies that police intervention alone does not produce adequate results for the prevention of intimate partner violence. A case study was chosen in order to specifically focus on one victim’s story and highlight the intervention methods rather than the criminal act itself. This approach was chosen in order to examine and analyze multiple methods of prevention and intervention tactics that may help future, or current victims of domestic violence. The methods and programs discussed, such as safety orders and community coordinated responses, may result in women receiving sufficient assistance.
Domestic violence affects the victim physically often times causing injuries that could lead to hospitalization or death, psychologically involving gaining control over the victim as well, and socially by isolating them from family and friends. When we think of the effects of domestic violence it becomes clear that it not only affects the victim and the family but as in recent years, the violence can spill beyond the walls of the home into the neighborhood and the workplace resulting in what has become more and more common, domestic violence related workplace shootings. Domestic v...
Each position in criminal justice holds power and responsibility, and therefore, it is very important that said people in those positions do not abuse it. Unethical behavior in the criminal justice system takes away trust and respect from authority, and as a consequence, the law is more easily disregarded if the people lack faith in the system. It can, also, contribute to crime and/or cause citizens to not report crimes. Society should have indubitable confidence in the men and women of the criminal justice system. Law enforcement officers violating even the smallest rule could lead to more serious infractions. Syed (1997) states, "Every instance of corruption bends or violates a rule or law and, similar to the granting of impunity, may contribute to an officer's perceptions of the law as applying differently to different people and increase the ease with which violations can be rationalized." Having less than ethical persons in our criminal justice system can lead to a weakened society, the ruining of lives, and even add to crime.
The State of Texas and TCFV along with the city of Houston have recently hosted a program called “Partner to Protect: A Leadership Summit for Family Violence Programs and Law Enforcement.” This conference was formed to help victim advocates and law enforcement come up with better ways to respond to family violence in the community. The summit allowed advocated and law enforcement to share their expertise on domestic violence while explaining the in’s and out’s of associated with their jobs in order to help victims better understand any type of flaws that could happen during and emergency situation.
Police brutality is hypocrisy; as the police are meant to protect society from harm, not cause further damage and stress. Police should be trained properly so they do not resort to violence and abuse of power. Many cases of police brutality and not sanctioned and are undertaken by a group of police as a form of "mob mentality". Police are placed on a pedestal of authority and respect by the rest of society. To maintain this image, rules and codes of ethics within the police force should be maintained at all possible times. If police are using brutality to resolve issues, it doesn't set much of an example of dispute resolution between individuals. Over the past decade police abuse remains one of the most serious human rights violation in the United States. Police officers are trusted and expected to respect society as a whole and enforce the law. There is a time a place for aggressive force if needed, apprehending a suspect, however the environment and situation might influence the moment thus resulting in the brutal and barbaric behavior from the cop. The important thing to do is to understand the circumstances when excessive force can be used and times where the use of force has to be abstained. Police officers follow a strict guideline in how to handle encounters from escalating into something much more serious. The use of excessive force, in this case police brutality brings liabilities that cannot be taken lightly with the department and the community. Usually the high crime rates tend to revolve around low-income minority areas and officers tend to assume that minorities living in the areas are guilty. Police brutality that does exist is most likely result of emotional exhaustion.
Police brutality has become a widespread and persistent problem in the United States. Police brutality occurs when a law enforcement officers use excessive or unlawful force while on or off duty. "Established: A Pattern of Abuse" is an article in The Humanist, written by Barbara Dority. She states, "Thousands of individual complaints are reported each year and local authorities pay out millions of dollars to vicitms in damages and lawsuits" (5). Dority also describes some of the types of abuse that officers have done. "[They] have beaten and shot unresisting suspects; they have misused batons, chemicals sprays, and electro-shock weapons; [and] they have injured or killed people by placing them in dangerous restraint holds" (5). There have been many cases throughout the country where police officers have been far too brutal and someone has been injured or killed. There have been many hundreds of cases like this and many people are wondering when it will end or even if it will end. Most citizens of the United States agree that it is wrong and needs to be reduced if not eliminated. So it all comes down to one question: what can be done about it? Unfortunately, prosecution has not been sufficiently effective in stopping the brutality. Police forces throughout the U.S. should be made more accountable for their actions. The greatest problem that has developed from police brutality is that the guilty officers are not punished, which leads to another incident of abuse. Authorities should give more effective punishment to officers who abuse citizens. Such punishment would help prevent abuse from happening again and again.
In the past, when officers have responded to domestic violence calls from police officer’s wives, they would identify with the officer and favor their colleague rather than treating the incident as a criminal offense (Wetendorf, 1998:1). In many situations officers wo...
Over the years, this country has witnessed many cases of police brutality. It has become a controversial topic among communities that have seen police brutality take place in front of their homes. Officers are faced with many threatening situations everyday forcing them to make split second decisions and to expect the worst and hope for the best. Police officers
Domestic violence, also referred to as intimate partner violence, intimate partner abuse or domestic abuse, affects over one million people in the United States alone. It can be carried out in any number of ways including physically, emotionally, sexually, psychologically and/or financially. Its legal definition considers it to be “any assault, battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, or any criminal offense resulting in physically injury or death of one family member or household member by another who is residing in the same single dwelling unit” (Brown, 2008). In the United States it is considered a major health problem so much so that it was declared the number one health concern by the U.S. Surgeon General in 1992 (Peterman & Dixon, 2003). Not only is it a rapidly growing health problem but it is a growing societal concern as well. Extending beyond the effect felt by the victims and their families, it impacts our communities, government, law enforcement and public service agencies.
It wasn’t until recently that attitudes regarding domestic violence have been taken seriously. Historically, the predominant thought was to blame the victim and give into myths and stereotypes. However, there has been a push to reevaluate these attitudes and begin to retrain law enforcement to understand domestic violence (Grover, Paul, and Dodge 626). In a study regarding attitudes of police officers towards domestic violence, it was found that “most of the officers (84%) felt that domestic violence calls take too much of their time and effort” (Grover et al 626). Officers “showed a high level of frustration with repeat calls to the same address (93%), and believed that too many domestic violence calls are for verbal arguments (93%)” (Grover et al 626). However, the same study also found that 87% of officers disagreed with the statement that domestic violence cases should be handled as private matters and 64% agreed with the statement, “Domestic violence offenders must be arrested even when the victims don’t feel it is necessary” (Grover et al 626). Evidence suggests that officer respect policies and procedures that have been created to assist the victim as well as protect the community.
Domestic violence consists of verbal, financial, emotional, sexual, and physical abuse within the household, generally involving partners and families. This occurrence of violence is acted to gain and maintain control over somebody. Abusers have the tendency to enforce fear, guilt, shame and intimidation to brainwash and maintain power. The...
The Boston Police Department has started enforcing new laws that require an officer to make an arrest when responding to cases of domestic violence. This is a strict new law that is being enforced. Previously, it was not necessary to make an arrest for such an incident. The officer had to make sure that the parties were safe and could judge on what action to carry out next. Now, it is a requirement by law to make an arrest if they respond to any case of domestic violence. It is important to study whether enactment of this new law has led to a change in behavior of people in intimate relationships regarding domestic violence.
Criminal Justice professionals are in positions of power and exercise power and authority over others. Therefore, it is important for them to study ethics because they must be aware of the ethical standards needed in making critical decisions involving discretion, force, and due process. It is also a fact that criminal justice professionals who exercise power and authority over others can be tempted to abuse their powers.
“Domestic violence is a violent confrontation between family or household members involving physical harm, sexual assault, or fear of physical harm” (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). In most places domestic violence is looked on as one of the higher priorities when trying to stop crime. Domestic Violence cases are thought to be influenced by the use of alcohol, drugs, stress or anger but in reality, they are just learned behaviors by the batterer. These habits can be stopped as long as one seeks help (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). For instance, a child is brought up in a household that is constantly involved in criminal acts. As this child grows up, the criminal lifestyle will be synonymous with his/her behavior. With that being said, it is also a given fact that if a household and its members are surrounded with violence, the relationships between one another will be strained. Eventually this will end up in a divorce or even worse, death, depending on how far the violence goes. If there is violence in a family, then the ones who are affected by it may feel like they deserve it because of what the batterer is accusing them of doing. Battering occurs among people of all races, ages, socio-economic classes, religious affiliations, occupations, and educational backgrounds (Stewart & Croudep, 1998-2012). Domestic violence can affect families in more aspects than one; the husband-wife relationship, the children, and also the financial stability.
Domestic violence is skyrocketing in our society. In the U.S., as many as 1.5 million women and 850,000 men were physically assaulted by their intimate partner last year, and numerous children abused by their parents. These sad criminal acts will continue to grow in our society, unless our community takes action to stop these crimes. First of all, the most important tool we have available against this type of crime are the authorities, which include the police department, hospital, and social workers. If they manage to work together as a team to make the whole process of protecting a victim more efficient, it will encourage victims to actually phone for help.