A Critical Assessment In defining police ethics, ethical policing and police ethics are not synonymous or interchangeable connotations to or for one another. Aside from establishing a police role independently from establishing any definition of ethics or police ethics, the semantics tend to complicate the defining process. Some of these complications include, but are not limited to, sociological aspects, psychological conditions, or philosophical reasoning. Examples of sociological complications include historical, political, cultural, or economic aspects. Some psychological examples include one’s ability to discern sociological implications from other implications; namely, the condition of post-traumatic stress disorder, hydrophobia, or even weary dreams. Lastly, …show more content…
Fortunately, we do not know and this is a radical statement because people want assurance in that which they believe, but granting such would imply the ability to foresee, which no one possesses. Hence, if people believe that police are not ethical or that their principles do not reflect their beliefs, then the concept of defining police ethics dissolves. The next question is then, how do people develop trust and a sense of security if they are not on sociologically equal planes with the consensus or the police; because this is really what the problem of ethical policing entails egalitarianism and compliance. (Russell, 1972; Sterba, 2000; Potter, 2004) The answer lies in the educational platform and structure of academic institutions, but also in the political and economic structures and foundations dependent on a globalizing and economically driven society. In other words, people promote diversity and success, but do not understand the extrinsic or implicit natures of diversity or success. On the one hand, an extrinsically successful person is not intrinsically,
Crank & Caldero (2004) discuss the notion of the noble cause that is widely used by police officers to justify their actions. Police officers feel that there are many obstacles that prevent them to do their job efficiently. They claim that courts only hinder the process of putting criminals behind bars. They also believe that they are true patriots with a noble cause of getting rid of bad guys. To further prove their point Crank & Caldero (2004) use works of many authors, who wrote about police ethics and corruption and about how the noble cause is interpreted by police officers. Each of the authors discusses a dilemma with which polices officers have to deal when deciding what action they need to take in order to deal with criminals. Cumulatively, it seems that police conduct themselves towards criminals and citizens with hostility and with actions that maybe constituted as unlawful and corruptive in nature. But to the police officers, who are seeking justice and are driven by a noble cause, all means are good to get the bad guys. There is also a philosophical twist that puts a poli...
As stated in the textbook, police often have to make decisions on their own, with only their moral compass to guide them. Most ethical dilemmas that police officers face derive from their powers of discretion. Moral dilemmas that police officers face are often frequent and unavoidable. They are often unpopular with many people, resolved quickly, and are often dealt with alone.
Police officers often encounter situations where the decision to use discretion challenges the way and the type of job that officers would normally conduct. Each day an officer is on the job, discretion when it comes to job duties appears, sometimes without any warning. Officers constantly struggle with the appearance of discretion, and often times do not know how to handle the situation when it does appear. Discretion may take many different forms in the job duties, but it always involves the officer letting a crime “slide,” rather than questioning every suspicious person. Letting a crime “slide,” for certain offenders, is of great concern for the administrators of police departments, because there is potential for ethical issues to surface later on. This essay will examine police discretion, factors that influence discretion, whether exercising discretion is appropriate, and the concerns that administrators have when it comes to police using discretion in the field.
The dictionary definition of the police is “the organized civil force of a state, concerned with maintenance of law and order, the detection and prevention of crime, etc,” (Collins English Dictionary, 2002). This definition states the minimum of what the police actually do. Providing support for families, protecting society from criminals and responding to calls 24 hours a day 7 days a week are just some of the other roles that police have to deal with. In this essay the evolution of the police will be discussed as well as how the police are facing challenges.
Police misconduct has been in existence since the 1600’s, European Influence on American Policing. Ironically, Police Officers in modern day continue the legacy of the police “culture” (Barry, 1999). A culture of abuse of authority or discretion, code of silence amongst officers, discrimination, and a strong belief that “cops — and firefighters — stick together, in life and death situations” (Wetendorf, 2004). Regardless of the abuse of authority officers conduct, it is a clear sign of poor ethics and morals amongst officers.
When examining the fundamentals of police legitimacy, the adoption of evidence based policing is one proven to be preferred. Proven ethical standers of transparency within police agencies back this practice of policing. The fundamental of this practice includes goals, objectives, and plans for the community. This also includes the development of the agencies employees using the latest proven techniques such as deescalating tactics. (Swanson 2017)
As a free nation law officials are looked to for justice but also restraint within the judicial system. This canon ascertains that officers enforce the law and understand and abide by the limitations of their authority. As Barker (2011) states in regard to the duty of police officers, “They must perform their duties and exercise their authority within the constraints of the law. All actions they take are subject to review for their legality” (p.23). The limitation of authority for which peace officers must operate at times presents ethical dilemmas; these same limitations also push officers to experiment within the limits of the law, through investigative and interrogation techniques. On whole peace officers understand their authoritative rights; however, these same rights have acted as a catalyst for other ethically questionable behavior. Officers are expected to solve cases and obtain confessions whenever possible which has required officer to resort to tactics that upon first glance serve a utilitarian purpose. Officers approach the use of questionable but legal interrogation tactics from a utilitarian approach, one in which looks at the outcome and positive effect of actions to produce the most good for the most people. This utilitarian approach to solving
O'Connor, T (2010). Topics in Police Ethics, MegaLinks in Criminal Justice. Retrieved February 25, 2011 from http://www.drtomoconnor.com
As a result of the recent rise of the use of excessive force cases against police and law enforcement, I have chosen to research the definition of that excessive force. When is it considered justifiable? What training do officers receive? What liability issues are there? In an ABC news article, Sascha Segan states there is no specific definition of excessive force. A part of everyday police work is to subdue criminal and suspects. Another everyday task of police officers is personal discretion - making the right decision based on the specific situation. It has been documented in multiple viral videos that law enforcement officer’s discretion is not always favorable in the public eye and is quick to be judged. Yet shouldn’t we be asking if the officer’s actions were justifiable within the court system and if
In order to have effective policing I believe integrity and ethics play a huge part in helping build trust within communities. Sound conduct by police improves community interactions, enhances communication, and promotes shared responsibility for addressing crime and disorder. There are three ways that police departments can strengthen community relationships just by training officers about procedural justice, bias reduction, and racial reconciliation. If we implement these concepts, we can create an environment in which effective partnerships between the police and citizens can flourish.
Ethics is grounded on right and wrong, as well as character. If a police officer doesn’t have character, then he/she is more often to act in an unethical manner compared to someone who has character. The cornerstone of policing has always been proper ethical behavior and is what society expects from our police officers. As citizens we rely on police officers to protect and serve in line with justice as we give up the right to enforce laws or take the law into our own hands. If we didn’t have police officers, then we would be a society of “only the strongest survive” as you see in various Third World Countries throughout the world. When we look at police officers and their responsibilities we can often associate their actions are drawn
Every day Police officers are faced with fight or flight situations putting morals constantly into question with every choice. This isn’t to say however, that fight or flight situations are the only situations where the ethics of an officers are challenged. In some cases, ethics can also be more planned and objective oriented (Sherman, 1982). Ethics play a pivotal role in determining the boundaries in which officers must operate. When applied to the police, high moral standards and integrity are the key to societies trust however. “It also constitutes one of the most significant obstacles to positive police-public relations in today’s society” (Grant, 2002:12). If a working relationship between society and law enforcers is the desired end
Delattre, E. (2011). Character and Cops: Ethics in Policing [VitalSouce bookshelf version]. Retrieved from http://online.vitalsource.com/books/9780844772264
The role of police in their communities and society as a whole, is an interesting and unique position. They are citizens that are responsible for policing fellow, equal citizens and are the extensive arm of the government. Police are required to enforce laws set by the state, regardless of the effectiveness or rationality of the laws and any negative consequences they cause. These consequences often result in racial disparities in the criminal justice system between blacks and whites or an unequal concentration of poor Americans in police interactions. With such apparent injustices, it shouldn’t be a surprise that people of races that are disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system are uneasy and distrusting with the police, which in turn makes the police equally uncooperative. This relationship is mutually negative for both parties because according to lecture, it is “simply impossible for police to do their job if they do...
Police decisions can affect life, liberty, and property, and as guardians of the interests of the public, police must maintain high standards of integrity. Police discretion concerning how to act in a given situation can often lead to ethical misconduct (Banks 29).