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Factors affecting police discretion
Factors affecting police discretion
Factors affecting police discretion
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Police officers use discretion in a broad manner. Depending on a situation I can issue a verbal warning, a citation, or an arrest. However, when taking a course of action in a situation I want to make sure I have a reason as to why I gave them the punishment that I did. Discretion in the criminal justice system is based off of efficiency, safety, and justice.
The first incident I came across was the traffic stop. A man was pulled over for speeding 10 miles per hour above the posted speed limit in a residential area. I estimated he was going about 36 miles per hour when the posted speed limit was actually 25 miles per hour. After running his license plate, he had no previous violations, no records for a stolen car, and he had valid registration and emissions for the vehicle. The logo on his uniform states, “We’re always on time”, hinted to me as the reason for the driver to be speeding. After questioning him, the story checks out to be true and he stated that his supervisor had strict rules about being at work on time. If in fact he violates that rule he could lose his job. He sounded very sincere and apologetic for knowing he went over the speed limit. He has no prior violations on file. Given the circumstances, my gut reaction is to let him off with a warning. I believe it will be a wake-up call for the driver to use more caution in the future. The driver was not a dangerous threat nor was he driving recklessly on the roadway.
However, after observing his vehicle; I noticed he had drive-thru trash in the passenger seat. The fact that there is food in his car makes me assume he drove by somewhere to get something to eat and therefore made him late. Another reason he added for speeding was that his wife works night shifts and sh...
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...econd scenario of the driver speeding through a school zone area, I ticketed the driver for the full amount. A positive to the punishment is it will deter him from speeding and have a positive effect towards the community. A negative consequence from my decision will cause the driver to be late and possibly lose his job. Another negative is I do not know his financial situation so the fine of the ticket and possibly losing his job will cause him to have a big setback at home. Moreover, he will have yet another violation added on to his record, have to pay a higher insurance rate, and have 3 point deducted from his license. A short-term consequence to my decision will be that the driver will have to pay a fine for speeding. A long-term consequence will be that I set the driver as an example to the community that speeding in a school zone will not be tolerated.
Decision Making – Police officers have considerable decision making powers at their own discretion. This is true for low ranki...
Imagine being a police officer doing your daily routine job. You are in a patrol car on the highway, watching the cars and trucks drive by. You are also looking for speeders to warn them to be more careful and maybe you’ll ticket them. It has been a very boring day for you, since you have only been called on your radio once, and it was for an accident (fender bender). Almost at the end of your shift, a blue car drives by going ninety miles an hour, but you know the speed limit is only fifty-five miles an hour. You pull the patrol car out of the gravel area that you had been sitting in and you start to follow the car. You put your lights on and catch up to them. After a few minutes you pull the person over. You get out of the car and start walking over towards the blue car. You are right about to talk to the driver and he drives off, leaving nothing but dust in your face. Now, the adrenaline is pumping in your body, but what should you do? You could call for backup or follow the blue car. Anything could happen. How far should you actually go? This is the question that will be answered in this paper. I will explain what police pursuit is and some different things officers do during a pursuit. I will also give some statistics about the fatalities that have happened in a police pursuit. I will also illustrate my opinion about how far police pursuits should go.
forced to fill up his gas tank often. However, if this same man goes at a safe speed of 55,
These outcomes are determined by the community and states. At times the community supports the police officers and at times they do not which that also depends on the state and the budgeting. The police discretion can also be limited depending on economic hardship, social services agencies for youth. Another important part that plays an important role in discretion would be changes in political climate and public
Although that gives the report a sometimes odd tone, defending a system that it admits failed badly, it also provides for some of the document's most evident soul-searching. One passage in particular warns of the consequences when police let down their guard. "Essentially, many of the problems found by this [Board of Inquiry] boil down to people failing to do their jobs with a high level of consistency and integrity," the report states. "Unfortunately, we found this to be true at all levels of the organization, including top managers, first-line supervisors and line personnel. Clearly, pride in one's work and a commitment to do things correctly the first time seems to have
United States Border Patrol has been around since 1904 enforcing and regulating laws under the immigration and Nationality Act. U.S. border patrol is now under the Department of Homeland Security, which was created as a response to the attacks of September 11, 2001. Over the years, their jurisdiction and missions have changed to better protect the safety of nation. Although border patrol is a need for any nation, their extensive acceptations to constitutional laws can often be taken advantage of. The mission of the U.S. border patrol should be to prevent illegal aliens, which are a threat to American society, from reaching their purpose. Frequently, their purpose can be confused or executed in a bias manner.
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 are given the power to take any citizens rights away and even their lives. With that kind of power comes responsibility, that’s one major concern with the amount of discretion officers have when to use force or when to use lethal force.
Drivers who speed often do not realize the enormous danger they are creating. When someone is speeding they have a higher braking time and are often going too fast to notice all of their surroundings, and fail to take all of the safety precautions a driver should use. Road conditions play a large role in the effects of speeding. Choosing to speed can also get a person’s license taken away, cost a fortune, or both.
"Proper use of discretion is probably the most important measure of a police officer or department." -- Rich Kinsey (retired police detective)
Officers are able to use discretion in many situations that their morals would guide them in. They have the right to pull a person over with probable cause or a violation and they can choose whether to give them a ticket, a warning, or nothing, depending on the situation.
Police discretion. Police discretion is defined as the decision-making power afforded to Police Officers that allows them to decide if they want to pursue police procedure or simply let someone off with a warning. Police discretion can be also defined as the individual’s ability to make a decision based on the principle of courses in the actions. Police officers are usually in the position of having to make decisions on how to handle a specific situation alone, or without immediate supervision. In other words, police discretion is the choice the officer has on how he or she enforces the law. Discretion in law enforcement includes whom to arrest, whom to investigate, whom to talk to, and whom to interview (Pollock, 2014). Use of discretion
Laws and procedures are the most common basis for officers choosing not to allow offenders to remain free based on their discretion, a study by Mendias and Kehoe (2006) has found. The study found that laws or responsibilities were the main reason for a decision to suspend discretion in eighty-two percent of cases involving an arrest. The study also found that keeping the peace and procedural implications were the primary justifications for ex...
I've researched about the volunteer program in phoenix, and it is named COPS "Citizens Offering Police support" This program is running through out all Phoenix Arizona departments. The volunteer organization is dedicated to helping the Phoenix Police Department and the community. Today, they have almost 200 volunteers working in a variety of units within COPS department. They also have university and college students interns working on their career paths with program. The COPS Program brings the community into the police family. Volunteers working shoulder to shoulder with police officers and our support staff can see the difficulty and value of the police mission. Although it isn't easy to just become apart of the support system, it's more
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).
In any given setting, police officers are responsible for maintaining order within a, sometimes overly chaotic, society. They are given the responsibility of acting as protectors of the defenseless and upholding justice, at the risk of injury to themselves or even the loss of their own life. In addition, it is inevitable that an officer will eventually come into physical contact with an individual, who may be volatile or avoiding arrest, which nonetheless increases the odds of a physical confrontation. The distressing truth is that, although being assaulted is not a requirement of their profession, it is essentially unavoidable. With that said, police officers realize this fact and readily accept the reality that at any given moment, be