Discretion In Policing

Everyday police officers are faced with two difficult decision to make. Whether to intervene in the situation and how to intervene when they observe something suspicious or illegal happening. Police discretion is defined as having the power to make decision, and choosing how to respond to a given situation depending on the circumstances. Even though, there are law in place it is still up to a police officer own discretion. Ultimately, police officers have the choice to enforce the law and how to carry it out in public. In the text book “Policing America” by Ken Peak he states that there are two criminal law in discretion. “the formality and the reality. The formality is found in the statute books and opinions of appellate courts; the reality is found in the practices of enforcement officers” (82). He also, demonstrate when should each criminal law be use. However, there are negative and positive aspects of police discretion. Also, there are pros and cons of allowing patrol officers to make discretionary decisions.

Discretion is defined as “ power of free decision or latitude of choice within certain legal bounds” ( merriam-webster dictionary ).Police have discretion in most jobs they take on while out in the field. This could range from a wide variety of choices from drawing his weapon to shooting his weapon, or just issuing a traffic ticket or smaller violation. With such a wide gap between little choices to life or death a policeman’s discretion can either make or break himself, his department, and how the citizens look at policing today. Regardless discretion must be used in a lot of the police officers day, and when it's used right it gives the officer and community to have a more just society.

Police officers are faced each day with a vast array of situations with which they must deal. No two situations they encounter are ever the same, even when examines a large number of situations over an extended period of time. The officers are usually in the position of having to make decisions on how to handle a specific matter alone, or with little additional advice and without immediate supervision. This is the heart of police discretion. As we shall find, the exercise of discretion by police has benefits and problems associated with such exercise. The unfettered use of discretion can

In this essay a discussion will be explored about the benefits and problems associated with police use of discretion. Which current policing strategies have the most potential for controlling officer discretion and providing accountability, and which have the least, and why is that the case? And finally, how might these issues impact the various concerns facing law enforcement today?

Since policing is a job that is usually done without much supervision and in unexpected circumstances, police officers are often required to use their discretion when it comes to giving and applying the authority given to them. Discretionary use of police authority means that a police officer is acting based on not only the explicit facts of a situation, but also on their own perceptions and judgments of a situation. It is hoped in using this discretion that officers choose the best and most ethical course of action, however, that unfortunately does not always happen. Several factors can influence the decision making process of these officers, from personal to situational factors.

In this paper, I will be writing about Police Discretion. I will start by defining Police Discretion then briefly discuss the use in domestic disturbances, minor misdemeanors, and traffic enforcement. I will also discuss the application of police discretion, the provisions it uses and how it is currently practiced. At the end of these brief descriptions, I will then present the myth that exists in regards to police discretion. And finally, I will end this paper with my personal opinion as well as a brief conclusion.

Discretion is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the ability to make responsible decisions, individual choice or judgment, power of free decision or latitude of choice within certain legal bounds.” In law enforcement discretion is left up to each individual officer on the field everyday. Police officers are given the authority to make reasonable and responsible decisions out in the field. Discretion is used in many situations, such as when an officer chooses to stop a vehicle for a small traffic violation. There are also times when the officer has no choice but to use specific discretion in certain situations. Society believes that an officer can make any choice he or she chooses

Today, police discretion is a very important aspect to the criminal justice field. There are different substances where discretion is not discipline enough or not monitored enough even though having discretion is not always bad. There are still ways to abuse it and today police officers have their own way of using police discretion for different situations. Discretion can be defined as someone having the power or authority to make a decision based on what they feel should be done in a certain situation. Police officers are taught how to handle certain situations according the law. But when the officer is on duty no one is there to make sure that they are making the right decisions that follow the law and according to the law, there are not set guidelines in the law for police discretion which give the police officer an advantage. Discretion is used by police officers when they are facing a decision with a bunch of results that could handle the situation but the officer has control to pick which result they would want to choose.

Police officers are given a lot of discretionary power that they would use to enforce the laws as they are implied or use their discretion to not enforce the law, but give a warning when necessary. This discretion has called into question their use of force. The media has displayed officers involved in use of force situation that seems unprovoked and again people of African American decent. For instance on September 4, 2014 a South Carolina Highway Patrol trooper stopped a vehicle for allegedly not having on a seatbelt. The individual was stop in a gas station and step outside his vehicle, then officer Sean Groubert asked for his license, the individual turned quickly into his vehicle to retrieve his license, officer Groubert yelled "Get

The article of 12 year-old Tamir Rice puts the audience in awe again even after the incident regarding Michael Brown. As mentioned this event happened so close to the indictment of the police officer who shot Michael Brown so it has enraged the community. Rice was at a local park aiming his gun at people, someone reported it and when police arrived and try to talk to the boy he put his hand on his waist like reaching for the gun. The police officer took two shots, to which the boy later died in the hospital. When the police inspected the gun they figured out that it was a bb gun. (Bever, 2014) One can connect this case with that of Police Discretion, one may feel that the action that the police officer took but others might think it was uncalled for. Unfortunately, stuff like this happens often and some of the times the whole situation can be avoided if it is thought out before action is taken.

This paper explores the inequality in our criminal justice system today. Several examples were cited from movies, textbooks, court cases and articles on the topics, bringing to light the controversy that our society is dealing with every day. Our police force and court systems are being manipulated by the use of money to influence outcomes in trials, and it provides a prejudicial backdrop for many in our communities today. If we are to come together as a society, and break down these barriers, we must be diligent in our efforts to reduce racial profiling casualties, where innocent people are being persecuted for

The Role of Discretion in Policing As a law enforcement officer, every situation will be handled differently. Everything is not always black and white. In fact, when it comes to policing, there are a lot of grey areas.

The term discretion has several meanings the liberty to decide what should be done in a specific circumstance is one general universal definition. But when dealing with criminal justice and police work the description changes a bit. The criminal justice definition of discretion is Police discretion discusses the authority given to a police officer that allows him or her to decide how to best handle a certain situation. This is designed at increasing the flexibility of the criminal justice system as the punishment may not always be the suitable approach of dealing with crimes. Discretion may also permit a police officer to overlook a minor offense giving the offender a warning. But with discretion the officers try not to overdue the law by

Police discretion is one of the most complicated topics. The general definition for police discretion is technically up to how one looks at it. Each police officer has their own discretion in handling every situation they go through, and of course there are guidelines on police discretion. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary definition of discretion is still broad but answers the missing parts, “The quality of having or showing discernment or good judgment: the quality of being discreet: circumspection; especially: cautious reserve in speech (Webster, 2017).” Simply put, discretion is the ability to make good logical decisions. So, police discretion is extremely important.

Yes, I believe discretion is a necessary component of policing because they need to know when to use discretion when they enforce the law in certain situations. They need to have a backup solution if a law is unclear in a situation that they need to decide what is the best. Most discretionary are on misdemeanor or traffic stop. It is important that a free society be governed by rules, not men (Waller, 13).