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Boston Watch System

Decent Essays

The first form of policing in the United States emerged in the 1600’s as the watch system. This watch system was made up of volunteers watching over communities but this system turned out to be ineffective (Potter, 2013). It wasn’t until the 1830’s when the modern police was formed as a result of the rising crime in cities as watch groups were no longer adequate. The city of Boston created the first modern police force in 1838 because of the inability of citizens to deal with riots, disorderly behavior, and public drunkenness (Liebman & Polen, 1978, p.347).

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