Police Officer Training

Police brutality and office involved shootings have sparked national debate and created a strain between police officers and citizens. Recently, there have been more home videos that display acts of aggression by police officers. These police officers often use excessive forces or a condescending tone towards people of color which is why there needs to be a better way to mend police and civilian relationship. People should be able to trust the police in their communities rather than fear them.

Lack of training and policing standards are closely linked to the myriad problems bedeviling police work, especially in small departments (Brodeur, 2010). All over the country, police departments report cases of officers being caught in uncompromising and unprofessional situations, resulting in disciplinary actions such as redeployment, suspension or sacking. These cases of unprofessionalism have led to questions being asked about policing, occasioned by recurring series of questionable and controversial encounters with police officers (Brodeur, 2010). The consequence of such encounters is increasing public distrust in law enforcement agencies.

Media bias affects just about anything in a society. It can portray certain people from different ethnic, culture, and religious backgrounds as second class citizens and deteriorates their images as a peaceful law abiding citizen. However, media bias also affects law enforcement. In the last few years, the media has painted police officers as a negative image. With the unfortunate events of Travon Martin, Mike Brown and others, the media has depicted law enforcement as a whole to be the bad guys. The story of Travon Martin is what brought attention to certain unnecessary forces that a few police officers had choose to use. On the night of February 26, 2012, Martin was shot by a police officer, George Zimmerman, whom was not charged for murder.

“When you have police officers who abuse citizens, you erode public confidence in law enforcement. That makes the job of good police officers unsafe.” (Berry) Recently police brutality has become an alarming issue in society. At the end of 2015, thousands of deaths resulted in accusing victims dying in police custody. Individuals in communities across the state are beginning to lose faith in law enforcement in their ability to properly do their jobs. Providing police officers with extensive and innovative training to give them the adequate length of experience and training will decrease police brutality.

As of September 1, 2015, in the United States police officers have killed 776 people and 161 of those people were unarmed at the time of their death (MintPress). There have been too many incidents where police officers have injured or killed someone that could have been prevented. Using maximum force with a suspect has become a routine in many confrontations. Officers have not been given the proper training to deal with individuals and how to handle them without using a weapon. If they were given more training on how to deal with situations resulting in using a weapon to stop an individual during certain scenarios police brutality situations would decrease, lives would be saved, and police would get their good reputation back. However, police departments would have to spend more money on re-training. Some people agree with police brutality and think that a civilian deserved their punishment, which is not right because no one deserves to be beaten or killed. Situations involving police brutality have been increasing throughout the years, which is a problem that must to be solved.

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.

This research will look at data collected by multiple surveys and field research that has been carried out over the past decade. The data that is collected will be able to give us a better look at the amount of media the public consumes and what their perceptions are on police brutality. This proposal will review the research and data collected by others who have previously studied this topic and outline a new study. Prior studies have examined the media’s effect on the public’s perception on how effective the police are. The proposed study will attempt to look deeper into how much the media truly effects how often the public perceives that misconduct and brutality incidence occur among police forces.

Have you ever asked yourself what it would be like to become a police officer. Becoming a police officer isn’t an easy take because they have to risk their life everyday to protect and serve the community. They have to go through the dangers of arresting criminals when there is a chance that they could die. However, in today’s society only a small amount of the police officers actually serves their community and protect citizens from danger. Right now, most police officers abuse their power to the point where they don’t seem to care for the safety of the community. They would usually arrest innocent people, make accusations, and even use their power as a source to show their dominance. If you think about, whenever you are stuck in traffic

The majority of individuals don’t interact personally with law enforcement. Those with negative views of police often don’t want them in their neighborhoods. In the article Racially Biased Policing: Determinants of Citizen Perceptions the authors point out that, “leaders within the minority community often criticize the police in public, which may reinforce whites’ impressions that minorities are trying to interfere with crime control”(Weitzer and Tuch, 2005). When a crime occurs, the police are often blamed for not being around. If individuals were able to form their own opinions based off of their own experiences, they may be more willing to cooperate with them. Press’s portrayal of police can have a major impact on their day-to-day work. For instance, when police try to locate a suspect and ask for help from locals only to be ignored. Media can sometimes give the image that a certain group of individuals, such as police, have particular biases. The most prominent bias people are labeled with is race. While biases do exist, people often don’t acknowledge the ones that can play a part in how an officer acts. Perhaps they were on duty at night, or in a neighborhood known to be particularly dangerous. Media often helps individuals from their opinions, but they could also help to bridge the gap between civilians and law

The use of force is often under scrutiny in todays world. With cameras always focused on the negative actions of those in law enforcement it is difficult for the public to understand several things. First off, what is it like to be a police officer, what is it like to have the power to legally take a life when deemed necessary? What is it like to have to use force and possibly deadly force to control a situation? Many people do not see the world of law enforcement in this way, many just see a senseless shooting, or a beating. Now I will admit this does happen, but it is rare. However when the media portrays the police force in a certain light it can take years for the departments affected to recoup the losses within the community. Misunderstood use of force in recent conflicts like Ferguson, where an officer shot an assailant who had just committed a robbery and assaulted him, can be spun and sensationalized both on purpose and subconsciously to make a bad guy out of the officer. In the Ferguson case I believe false eyewitness accounts and false accounts being used as credible sources caused the community and nation to riot against the department, city, and county officials. These actions fueled by the mass media coverage caused weeks of unrest and community turmoil.

A growing number of entry-level criminal justice practitioners have college degrees. This paper will explore whether or not law enforcement agencies should require applicants to have a post secondary degree as a condition of employment and will college-educated police officers will be resistant to organizational change.

The study shows, “This shift in discourse has been motivated by two factors—first, the recognition by public officials that increases in the professionalism of the police and dramatic declines in the rate of crime have not led to increases in police legitimacy, and second, greater awareness of the limits of the dominant coercive model of policing and of the benefits of an alternative and more consensual model based on public trust and confidence in the police and legal system.” Tyler, Tom R., et al. "The Impact of Psychological Science on Policing in the United States." Psychological Science in the Public Interest, vol. 16, no. 3, Dec. 2015, pp. 75-109. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1177/1529100615617791. There are also statements of how a police officer’s behavior has effects on the community and how the perceive the

This paper will identity the types of training and education required throughout the career in law enforcement, the steps a law enforcement officer can take to become a trainer and instructor, and the civil and criminal liabilities and issues that can be present during the process of both.

Lawyers and psychologists require even more schooling, a minimum of around eight years. Police officers end up being all of these things, and more. To obtain the real goal of law, and prevent crime, officers must have the trust and respect of the community they serve. "Instead, policing has been defined as uneducated people's work" (Fyfe, 262). Many citizens feel that the people protecting them are not as smart as they are. This leads to disrespect, and a sense of superiority within the community. With disrespect comes uncooperation, something any department would be worlds better without. If officers were required to obtain more basic schooling, and focus on social issues and psychology more during training, they would be better equipped to take up the position of law enforcement in any community. Besides the obvious benefit of being more adept at dealing with citizens, there would be added bonuses in police departments requiring more strenuous schooling. With four years of general education, officers would inherently become acquainted with a wide range of topics that they might not otherwise be exposed to with the minimal curriculum now required. Foreign language, art, and psychology classes would be especially useful in exposing up and comers to the varied environments they might encounter in their careers. Most importantly, people in the community would have a new respect for the

The police have lost trust among the people they serve. This is because of the controversial use of excessive force when handling people. In some