Journal 5: The Problem Of Testilying In Law Enforcement

Police departments undergo an immense amount of scrutiny. Many members of society question their motives, if they are performing their jobs adequately, and if they are using police discretion appropriately. Over the years there have been many cases that have involved members of law enforcement or the entire police department, that have placed law enforcement in a negative light. This negative light is attention that neither society nor the police departments will benefit from. One major case that has been in the media is the case of Kelly Thomas. Kelly Thomas was beaten and eventually died from injuries he had sustained from local law enforcement. This case is a major case because it brings awareness to society about police overstepping their boundaries, the lack of training police officers receive with dealing with the mentally ill, and how the mentally ill are treated in the criminal justice system.

When an officer of the law violates the law in which it enforces it creates mayhem and they lose the trust of the people. By obeying the laws just like the rest of the United States, they gain the social legitimacy that is needed in communities.

In the last several years, too many people in the United States have been wrongfully sentenced with the death penalty. Several accused have their sentence overturned or they have been totally exonerated. There are at least 8 people who were executed by United States and later proven innocent (http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org). Over a 20 year period, 68% of all death sentences were reversed (http://karisable.com). A noteworthy example is of Jerry Banks who was convicted and sentenced with the death penalty for two counts of murder in 1975. Five years later, in 1980, Banks' conviction was overturned on the basis of newly discovered evidence which was allegedly known to the state at the time of trial. Another example was the case of Lawyer Johnson who was sentenced to death in 1971 by an all white jury for the murder of a white victim. Later in 1982, Johnson’s conviction was overturned and Johnson exonerated when a previously silent eyewitness identified the state’s chief witness as the real murderer. (http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org) Human error is inevitable, particularly

More than two centuries ago, the death penalty was commonplace in the United States, but today it is becoming increasingly rare. In the article “Should the Death Penalty Be Abolished?”, Diann Rust-Tierney argues that it should be abolished, and Joshua Marquis argues that it should not be abolished. Although the death penalty is prone to error and discrimination, the death penalty should not be abolished because several studies show that the death penalty has a clear deterrent effect, and we need capital punishment for those certain cases in which a killer is beyond redemption.

A big worry that the supreme courts have to deal with is the fear of accidentally convicting and executing an innocent person. To prevent this from happening they have to

United States Law Enforcement officers are constantly under pressure. Their job requires them to serve and protect mankind, under any circumstances, at all times. Because of this, officers run the risk of putting themselves in harmful situation. This may include apprehending a violent assailant, or entering harmful locations. In this study, I used books and articles such as, Criminal Justice Today, to get an understanding of the dangers Law Enforcement Officer face in the line of duty. When performing task outside the prescient, office4rs are put into dangerous situations because of their surroundings, offender’s actions, and officer mistakes. Due to the high stress of this job, it not only affects their performance, but their health as well.

Today, there are over three thousand prisoners on death row. “Between 1972 and 1996, 68 death row inmates were released because proof of their innocence was found” (Acker, Bohm, and Lanier 232). Only after struggling

Each year citizens die in encounters with law enforcement officers. It is reported that “Americans are eight times more likely to be killed by a police officer than by a terrorist” (Rucke, 2013). Although there is no official data base tracking these occurrences it is estimated that between 500 and a 1,000 people are killed by police officers each year. To put this in greater perspective this number equals approximately 5,000 since the 9/11 terror attack which is roughly the same number as U.S. soldiers who have been killed in the line of duty in Iraq (Rucke, 2013). This statistic is justifiably concerning. The cause of police related killings are multifold and cannot be attributed to only one factor. Many deaths may be unavoidable and perhaps, dependent on the situation, necessary. I contend, however, that many of these deaths may very well be preventable.

In Jonah Goldberg’s article, Why Death Penalty Opponents Can’t Win, he dwells on how opponents of capital punishment may seem selective with the cases they bring up to challenge the death penalty. In his article, Goldberg expresses how he believes that abolitionists base their opinions of capital punishment, more or less, off of the fact that there is no way to be absolutely certain of a person’s guilt. He then goes on to state that these opponents cannot win because the cases they make public are more sympathetic in nature (12). While he calls this a good strategy (12), Goldberg goes on to express how he and many advocates believes that one wrongly accused person’s execution does not invalidate the need to lawfully execute the men and women who

An integral training of today’s police officers duties is the physical skill of the application of use of force. This is needed skill requirement to detain and arrest a person who has committed a crime and resisting. Police officers must be trained to use force properly when the skill is required on a subject who is resisting police officers efforts to place them under arrest. This skill has the potential for the officer to exceed the needed amount of force to place them under arrest that can lead to civil suits alleging the officer use of excessive force. Police use of force is a controversial topic with not only the community as well as leadership in the department. Concerns about excessive and unnecessary uses of force continue to require the researcher to locate what indicators police officers react to when the application of using force or threaten to use force.

The lack of proper resources during a trial can make the difference between the innocence and guilt of a person. The death penalty does not always show the innocence or guilt of a person. It shows how much he or she is willing to spend to help the trial go his or her way. The death penalty is an unfair system to those who cannot afford the “evidence” they need to help free them.

Every day, law enforcement officers encounter danger while carrying out their duties. The foremost duty of law enforcement officers are to serve and protect citizens. Most law enforcement agencies do this successfully. However, many people view law enforcement officers as the enemy. People need to be better informed about law enforcement and why officers take specific actions in certain circumstances. In our society, police are in a very dangerous position when it comes to the amount of force they can use when dealing with an individual. Officers use discretion when deciding the best course of action for the situation, whether it be physical force, persuasion, or coercion. They must take the correct course of action, because if they are too lenient or to forceful, even when dealing with petty things, they can be reprimanded by superiors and the public. Should police use force? Which circumstances warrant use force and what are the limits of force they can use? These questions are often asked when police are compelled to use force.

Many prisoners in the past have been known to be killed before they were proven innocent. Many documented cases where DNA testing showed that innocent people were put to death by the government. This sometimes happens because there are defendants who are given minimal legal attention by often minor qualified individuals. The government has made many mistakes which are being wrong about convicting someone for something they didn’t do, and killing this person for the wrong reason. Putting the wrong person to death is the biggest mistake that can be made and the government cannot afford to make this mistake.

When you hear the words ‘police officer’, what is the first thing that comes to mind? The people that protect us from the bad guys, right? Well, that might be the stereotypical answer, but is that really what we all think? Most would agree that in today 's society, the words do not have the same positive correlation anymore. It is actually almost the complete opposite. Police officers and others in the criminal justice system have created a poor reputation for themselves from the actions they have taken. Crooked cops seem to be the headliners of countless news stories. Now, that is not to say there are not any stories of people of the law doing their jobs to the best of their abilities, but lately, those stories are like finding a needle in a haystack, abnormal. It is not hard to search for a story on a legal personalities questionable conduct. Now, here 's something to think of: if these are the people that know the ins and outs of the law and are put in their positions to help protect us, why does it seem like us citizens are the victims of their actions in a greater part of these stories? How are we supposed to put our trust in these so-called notable people if they are the ones putting us in danger? The people within our criminal justice system are corrupt by brutality, drugs, money, and just overall abusing their powers.

Police deviance is an unfortunate fact of life. What is the difference between misfeasance, malfeasance, and nonfeasance? To what extent does Plato's notion of the "tri-partite soul" help account for these misbehaviors?