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The Evolution of the Police Force in England
The history of the police in England is long and complex. Many things the United States learned have come from, how England has evolved as a good example of a best in class police force that focuses on using less violent means to contain and control.
Prior to the Norman Conquest in 1066, the majority of England did not have a specialized police force or public office to maintain order. The lack of structure caused an environment where there were civil unrest and a lack of order. “After the Normans invaded and gained control over the land and the English hostile population, they created a centralized government structure based on feudalism.” (Travis, 2008)
With feudalism in place, the larger parcels
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(Brown, 2011)””
In 1822, the most famous person in the history of the London police system was Sir Robert Peel. He titled Home Secretary. By witnessing the industrial revolution in London becoming larger geographically and economically significant, it was clear that constables and “watchmen” were ineffective in detecting and preventing crime. Soon, he was able to reform the police system gradually so people would not become aroused and have fear. By doing so, Peel believed to make police official; it had to be standardized and had to be a paid profession.
““Peel is credited for establishing the first modern police force in England under the
Metropolitan Police Act, a bill passed in Parliament in 1829. This act created a single authority responsible for policing within the city limits of London. The force began with one thousand officers divided into six divisions, headquartered at
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All police officers started at the rank of constable and wore a uniform. The constables used the rear entrance that opened to Scotland Yard, a very familiar name, even today.
This was such an important step to instill law and order; parliament supported the process to be in the Metropolitan Police, which had very demanding requirements. To be a police officer, you had to be able to read and write, strong and healthy, over 5’7” tall, and younger than 35 years of age. The police department recruited over 1,000 men. As soon as the Metropolitan Police was officially formed and ready for duty, they became the third largest police force in the world behind the Glasgow Police in Scotland and the Paris Police in France.
The initial force consisted of two commissioners, eight superintendents, 88 sergeants, and 895 constables. Though their numbers were vast, they did not want to run the risk of being confused as a strong military power. Their primary purpose, of course, was to prevent crime, but also to be civil servants to all people. If they were not careful, it could cause other countries to think they were mobilizing their power. The material for their uniforms carefully yet intentionally designed more in blue than red. By 1839, the radius of the police district was seven miles from Charging Cross. Because of the respect that the police
The population grew and ‘breakdown in law and order marched in step with the industrial revolution’ (Critchley, 1978: 21). The industrial revolution meant technological progression, better education and an increase in capital stock. As a result, the population grew, with more new people moving into the area, meaning there was less informal social control. Due to these factors, 1829 saw the introduction of the ‘New Police’ to London, the Metropolitan Police were brought in to solve the issue of crime and disorder. The poor initially feared that the introduction of the Metropolitan police would mean that they would be controlled and oppressed by the powerful to a much larger extent. By the same token, the orthodox view is that the old system was failing and that this was an effective step that had to be taken in order to respond to the diversity of this more cultured society. The working class were content as the New Police looked out for their welfare Melville Lee (1901: xxx) claimed that the New Police were ‘guardians of the weak against the strong […] designed to stand between the powerful and the weak, to prevent oppression, danger and crime’. In contrast, the revisionist view is that the New Police were necessary to cope with the needs of the modern capital class. Although, at first the New Police were treated with great hostility by everyone within society, somewhat
...f door-to-door enquires, disguising detectives, laying on extra man power and using coroners and police surgeons for accurate reports. However these methods became a problem, the public’s mistrust and dislike of the force resulted in difficulty in solving crimes. With the lack of experience and scientific knowledge solving crime had a poor success rate, technological and scientific advancement aided with investigations. In addition the Metropolitan Police gradually became an expected presence on the streets.
* Policemen were typically young: “In the Metropolitan Police the mean age of recruits fell to twenty-four in 1850” (Taylor 49).
The police was set up originally in 1829 by Robert Peel, who was home secretary at the time. It was created because as society became more complex, they needed a way to deal with civil disorder without using the military (Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime 2014). To date, there are 43 police forces in England and Wales. The police are used “to prevent crime, protect life and
The first police department in America developed in New York and began the first era of policing which spanned from the 1830s to 1900 and is known as the political era (Walker & Katz, 2012). As emphasized by Walker (1999) not only did the political era of policing revolve around politics but provided officers with little to no training, education or recruitment standards (as cited in Police: History, 2014). The era also forced shaky job security for law enforcement and officers could be fired and hired at any point with little to no reason. Even men with criminal records were foot patrolling and women were only seen as “matrons” for the jail; they did not carry weapons and often times had very little arrest discretion (Walker & Katz, 2012). According to Walker and Katz (2012), “a $300 payment to the Tammany Hall poli...
During this period, police officials were not just selectively hand-picked by political leaders based on favoritism or status quo as before. The new potential officers were required to pass background checks and partake in civil service examinations before being hired and training expanded with the formation of police academies. Professional and competent police officials was now a goal with strong education placed on learning the penal code and case law and the correct application no matter the individual. Officers who were found to engage in behavior that constitutes bad conduct were now investigated and held accountable. The Chain of command was generally not followed in the past, was now strongly adhered to and higher ranking officials made sure lower level subordinate officers maintained a professional demeanor and appearance at all times. This required officers to keep polished shoes and brass along with neatly trimmed hair and behave in a more structured and commanding military style way. Unlike the political era, this new era held the ideology that police professionals would now keep a detached relationship with the public, much like the military, in efforts to provide an unbiased, objective approach in their duties and application of the law. Playing favorites towards certain individuals or groups and receiving payoffs like their predecessors was strongly discouraged and inexcusable. This era brought about much change to the profession and closely resembled the structure and model of the
Recently in the United States there has been in increase in deaths that have come from police officers using deadly force. The use of force is inevitable as a police officer, many times their own lives or the life’s civilians are at risk when it comes to determine what type of force a officer should use. There are many incidents where police officer have to react in a matter of seconds and has to choose between his own life or that of the individual causing the disturbance. When a Police Officer uses deadly force has caused outraged with the public, stirring up protests and creating a scandal for the police officer and the Police Department. Many do not know when it is right for an officer to use deadly force and what constitutes it, or what happens when the officer does not use the appropriate amount of force that is required to control the situation. There has been many changes in Police Departments around the country to try to reduce the use of deadly force in response to the issues that have occurred because of it.
How do police departments come to existance people would ask? Dr. Gary Potter writer and professor for Eastern Kentucky Univercity
Since English colonizers were the first to establish an extravagant, European society in North America, it is unsurprising that many of the aspects of the American administration of justice stemmed from its mother country. In England, law enforcement was an unorganized mess until the year 1200 (Schmalleger 137). The police system remained static from 1285 to 1829, until when Sir Robert Peel instituted the modern police force (Schmalleger 139). However, early American law enforcement was bound to be different, due to the differences of American and English life and environment. In the beginning of the colonial law enforcement, towns and cities inaugurated versions of the English day ward and night watch, but these processes did not remain in place for long (Schmalleger 139).
During the 1820s, the London police primarily consisted of the Bow Street Day Patrol and the Night Watch. Due to the rapid population growth that occurred throughout England, crime increased, and the police was unable to patrol all areas. Many feared that their property was in danger, which caused them to complain to the government about the lack of an effective police force. Following his position as Chief Secretary of Ireland, Robert Peel became Home Secretary of England, where he began to reform the police system. Robert Peel’s experience in politics along with the government’s need to end the chaos of the 1820s enabled him to successfully develop the Metropolitan Police Force in 1829.
According to the New York Times, Sir Robert Peals had nine principles of policing. The first one states, “The basic mission for which the police exist is to prevent crime and disorder.” The next principle says “the ability of the police to perform their duties is dependent upon public approval of police actions.” The third principle is “police must secure the willing cooperation of the public in voluntary observance of the law to be able to secure and maintain the respect of the public.” Principle number four “the degree of cooperation of the public that can be secured diminishes proportionately to the necessity of the use of physical force.” Number five “police seek and preserve public favor not by
Young people and the police have, for many years, experienced a tense and confrontational relationship (Borgquist & Johnson et al., 1995). This has led to a great wealth of literature based upon the notion of police-youth interaction. Much of this literature has tended to focus upon juvenile criminality and the reasons why young people commit such seemingly high levels of crime. Whilst the relationship between young people and the police force has been widely theorised and explained, there is very little literature on juvenile attiudes towards the police. Research that concerns societies attitudes towards the police force tends to focus upon the views and opinions of adults (Hurst and Frank, 2000). In this first section of my literature review I am going to focus upon work that allows us to gain a deeper understanding of why young people are so important when looking at crime. This section will allow us to comprehend the ways in which, literature suggests, young people view the police. This knowledge will provide a basis for my research in which I look more specifically at youth attitudes towards PCSO’s.
In the Political Era, which is between 1840 and 1920, the police formed close ties with the political leaders. The police worked for the mayor's political party rather than the citizens. The ranks in the police force were for sale to the highest bidder. In 1845, New York was the first to establish a full-time paid police force. Then other cities like Chicago began to follow. The police sought to prevent crimes and keep order through
American law enforcement agencies are based off the English models which began in the early 1800’s. In 1829, the English Parliament passed the Metropolitan Police Act (Walker, 1983). Sir Robert Peel who has been credited as the father of modern policing introduced this act to Parliament (Walker, 1983). This act established the London Metropolitan Police which was the model for American policing. This method of policing incorpor...
The tradition was first established in London, where the world’s first police force was in London, United Kingdom of 1829. The first worn uniforms were red and white, so citizens can easily detect an officer, the decision was changed to dark blue. Dark colors make law enforcers easily detectable when out in public (Why are Police Uniforms blue?, 2012). Psychological studies that dark colors signify power. Unconsciously the color of authority uniforms changes the way people view them. Also darker shades have the advantage of being worn, as darker colors hide stains ensuring a clean look at all times. The style of police uniforms contributes to how society sees them. The shoulder always carry extra material, creating an illusion to broad shoulders. The uniforms are never form fitting, and the pants are in a cargo style, making legs look bulky and large. These features can create a muscular look that isn’t really there. The gold police badges worn on the left side of the chest right over the heart, symbolizes honor. Producing more honorable, muscular-looking officers creating a far more respected and imitating