The Main Role Of Police In A Civilized Government

Police officers are faced each day with a variety of situation in which they must deal; therefore we should ask ourselves the following questions: Should police officers enforce the law equally in all situations? In what situations should police officers be allowed to not enforce the law? What types of situations would they be required to fully enforce the law? Why does police discretion exist? What are its strengths and weaknesses? And what is the relationship between police discretion and police ethics?

There are many factors that contribute to today’s American policing. Once such factor that contribute tremendously to today’s policing came in 1829 when Sir Robert Peel’s concept of policing came into effect. This would change the way policing would be performed in not only England, but the United States (U.S) and around the world. Another huge factor that impacts policing is the relationship the U.S. Government has with policing. These factors affect every policing organization in the U.S.

Police legitimacy is composed of two elements: trust and acceptance of authority. The public needs to know they can trust the police officers. We have to know if they are honest and are really concerned with our well-being, which would lead to respect and accepting their directives knowing it is for our own well-being or the neighborhood’s. I personally experience both sides of this concept, due to my residential situation, as I live both in El Paso and Juarez. In El Paso I truly trust the police officers that I have encountered, but I cannot say the same about the Juarez police officers. In Juarez many police officers are corrupt and do not care about our well-being. I’m not saying that in El Paso they all do, but their authority is more accepted by its community.

While being a police officer, you have guidelines and rules that you need to follow just as if you worked as a chef or even a sales associate you have rules

As a police officer, the major objectives are to maintain order, enforce the law, protect one’s property, and to save lives. In addition, police are divided into two roles based on how they perform their duties. The two roles of a police officer are a public servant and a crime fighter. A police officer whose role as a public servant is to serve all types of people, as well as criminals. Public servants regularly provide advice and make judgments as to the degree of risk they should take with the public. Many decisions involving risk are relatively easy to make, but others are complex and significant consequences (Kernaghan and Langford, 2016). These risks may involve using force and the consequences could be media backlash or a potential termination. Public servants abide by the oath and uphold the integrity and honor of the organization as an officer. Also, public servant officers like to play it safe because they like to be known as ordinary citizens who like to go home to their

With the implementation of a formal system of policies, procedures, rules and regulations, and discipline the behavior of the officers can be modified to emulate the values and objectives of the department. Assuring first that the command staff / Chief of Police and his subordinates are compliant and fully knowledgeable of all current rules, regulations, policies, and standards, the delegation of authority for specific actions would relieve the burden on chief. As a result, more attention can be placed on the officers and their activities in the field.

Law enforcement officers have the freedom to make quick decisions on what to do in a particular situation without having to check with their supervisors. Discretion is an important contributor to the integrity of a police officer, and just as much, the compromise of the use of this discretion discredits the integrity of the police officer and the reliability to be an enforcer of the law. The working definition provides a contextual look at the concept of discretion for a law enforcement authority, along with the situations, which may cause a law enforcement officer to act in an unethical manner including issues like the difference in gender and race. Included are the instances where the officers cross the ethical line when dealing with their

As technology continues to advance, the people in this world tend to follow those changes to improve their quality of life. It is important for law enforcement agencies to evolve and adapt to those changes. A quasi-military structured law enforcement organization is a great way to adapt to new policies and changes. Law enforcement agencies and the military share very similar rank and command structures. A military structured police agency is often times looked at in a negative way. Policing is a dangerous occupation; one you might find yourself placed in a situation where you may legally have to take the life of another human being. Although a quasi-military law enforcement agency is more disciplined and better prepared for a crisis situation, it is not ideal for daily law enforcement operations.

Police executives have always had different issues within the police department. Most police executives try to find a quick fix in order to solve the issue of police misconduct. Police misconduct is defined as inappropriate action taken by police officers in relation with their official duties (Police Misconduct Law & Legal Definition, n.d.). In order to solve this issue, one must acknowledge their different challenges, overcome the “code of silence”, and find out the role of organizational culture.

When this loyalty to the subculture becomes too strong, the unity that follows can adversely affect the ethical values of the officers (Martin 2011). This type of work environment causes officers to feel like they are doing what is wanted by their organizations and the public and the officers may continue with the behavior because the pressure to produce results is greater than that to follow the rules. A law enforcement department might choose to punish an individual, but the fear of punishment usually is not enough to change unwanted behavior (Martin 2011).

Numerous police agency’s and police officials work on a distinctive local, state, and federal level and role. It has its individual area, sectors, and function, and work according to local streets parts inside policing. In order for any local, state, and federal police division to work successfully it must hire chiefs, deputy’s, and sheriffs who retain leadership and who uses creative thinking skills to teach comprehensive, and aggressive instruction to make the police division a tougher department by holding all its workers tasks for doing his or her job according to its agency’s guidelines and procedures known as code of conduct. “Municipal police work for municipalities such as towns or cities, county police and deputy sheriffs work for counties, state police work for states, and federal police work for the federal government. Some have the same duties as one another or very similar duties, and some have different or additional duties. Their jurisdiction is sometimes the main difference. For example, a municipal police officer normally has primary

Police are needed to enforce the law and protect the society, but how they go about doing so is constantly judge by the public who ultimately passes the judgement

In the United States of America, law enforcement has the ability to make their own judgement, while encountering criminals. Although discretion is at all levels of the police department, law enforcement agencies can easily make unlawful decision. Researchers determined that police officers are prohibited from using offensive language or speaking discourteously, abusing their authority, and using unnecessary force (Carroll, Kovath, & Pereira, 2004). Law enforcement officers are expected to respect their community and ensure that all citizens are kept safe. Some police activity can occur in a private view without supervision from the public, which allow police officers to make a reasonable decision. Police often make quick reaction when it comes

There are many limits on the private ownership of property. Government power further reduces the number of rights through taxation, escheat, eminent domain, and police power. In matters of taxation, the federal government is precluded from direct taxation of real property. This right of taxation is reserved to state and local governments. Escheat deals with the state taking over ownership of property if the property owner dies without a will. Eminent domain limitations set out in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments at the very least prohibit government expropriation without payment for the taking. Police power relates to government regulation of property in accordance with that ambiguous term general welfare. Examples of major government intrusions

The Core Function of Police in Reference to Wilson and Keeling's Broken Windows Thesis In considering whether the core function of the Police should be to maintain order, there are a number of issues, both historic and current, which need to be taken into consideration. For example, the maintenance of what constitutes “order” can be interpreted differently by different communities i.e. urban and rural. The expectations of police performance and in how they deploy their resources to meet conflicting demands need to satisfy both nationally set targets and meet locally driven priorities.