Trust In Law Enforcement

Society in general have showed the distrust, protests and many questions for the like hood of the police profession. The reputation of the police profession is that of the 6 pillars of policing in the modern world as outlined by the President’s Task Force on the 21st Century Policing, which sought to recommend steps forward. Under the banners of ‘Building Trust and Legitimacy’, ‘Policy and Oversight’, ‘Technology and Social Media’, ‘Community Policing and Crime Reduction’, ‘Officer Training and Education’, and ‘Officer Safety and Wellness’ – here are concise definitions for each one and what they mean for American policing ("Final report of the resident’s task force on 21st century policing," 2015).

Policing by its very nature is reactive; citizens make the call and police officers respond. In an effort to transition from the traditional method of policing and improve the relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve, police agencies across the country are implementing community policing strategies and social media campaigns. The lack of trust the public has in the police is a problem and the only way to address this issue is to identify the concern and research the topic, while simultaneously considering the different perspectives from every angle. In recent years, there have been several police officer involved shootings and incidents that gained national media attention based on the justification of the force used to subdue the suspect(s). These incidents were scrutinized because they involved officers who allegedly used excessive or deadly force, when less than lethal options may have been available. These types of incidents have fostered concern amongst Americans and rattled the public’s trust in police departments across the country. This is unfortunate because law enforcement is designed to protect and serve citizens from hurt, harm, and danger, while preserving the liberties of Americans in the “land of the free, home of the brave,” (Key, 1814). The skepticism in the hearts and minds of Americans regarding police conduct is a serious social issue.

There are many reasons why the police have a difficult time interacting with the communities they are supposed to protect and serve. These issues did not occur overnight however the string of police involved shootings throughout the United States seems to wedge a bigger gap between the pubic and the police, along with poor communication skills and lack of positive engagement with the community. Police officers deal with many types of people from different cultures and age groups and should be able to adapt no matter where they are. When these officers take an interest in the communities they patrol, there is generally a sense of peace, when officers don’t care and aren’t in sync with the residents residing in the communities the disengagement is apparent. By finding ways to improve the relationship and actually applying them, there may be a chance to bring a positive light back the police-community relationship.

Pillar one references to building a bridge which joins the community and law enforcement together. Building trust and legitimacy between police and citizen play a fundamental role in the law enforcement agencies as well as the communities they serve. Many studies have shown and proven that people/citizens will uphold the law/s of the country when the ones who have the authority to enforce the law are proven to be legitimate. Law enforcement officer will not gain the trust of the people/ community if they are view as controlling and corrupted. The community on a whole wish for a guardian rather than a warrior within the police force. The mindset of all police officer should be to gain the trust and legitimacy within their community. To build

In order to bridge the gap between police officers and the community, trust needs to be established. The community needs to feel secure that the officers are there to serve and protect them from harm. Ozkan, Worrall, and Piqueri (2016) article called " Does Minority Representation in Police Agencies Reduce Assaults on the Police?" analyzed the hypothesis that minority representation in the police departments is inversely associated with assaults against the police (p. 402). For this study, data was collected from several official databases such as 2007-2009 Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA), 2000 Census, 2007 Uniform Crime Reports Offenses Known as Clearances by Arrest (UCR), and the 2007 Law Enforcement Management and Administrative

Trust and confidence must exist between public and law enforcement. Law enforcement need to develop and maintain community-based relationship with the people; public in many cases are the eyes for the law enforcement, and vital resources in an effort to prevent crime and thwart terrorist activities. Since report form people in the community can make a difference in an effort to track terrorist suspect(s) before causing harm, therefore public must be made aware that terrorism must be prevented in order to have a safe community. I believe no one want to live in a community where there is no safety and security. People should feel comfortable approaching law enforcement with information. If community feels confidence and trusting when interacting

It has been consistently shown in research that minorities are more likely to be mistreated by the police compared to other people (Dunnaville, 2000). Recent incidents have seen the police use excessive force on people and mistreat minorities. As such, the legitimacy of the police has been put under scrutiny and questioned. Many communities in the United States have demonstrated in reaction to recent incidents of police misconduct and excessive use of force. The people have lost trust in the police because of these issues. The police force has been accused of mistreating people, sexual harassment, violent and careless arrests among people particularly the minorities. As demonstrated in the movie ‘Policing the Police’ police officers are seen mistreating people for instance the scene where the police sexually harassed a teenager by touching sensitive areas. Community members are not willing to trust or work with the police to fight crime. As such, it is critical for the police agencies and department to make improving police-community relationship a top police priority. Policies should be developed that will strengthen the mutual trust between the police and the community. This relationship is critical because the police depend on information from the community to fight crime in the society.

It is easy to say that one of the most common complaints civilians have about police officers is that their communication problems. When officers embrace such an attitude, they run the risk of sending a message that was not meant to be in a bad way. Police officers with communication problems will cause the public to lack trust in the police officers. The profession that we are in, we rely on the public for information to help the police in fight crimes. In today’s society, police departments have to deal with socio-demographic issues. Some of the issues such as race, sex and age had a major effect on the attitudes toward police officers. Police officers with no communication problems will cause the public to trust them and make our job easy.

In recent years, society has heard cases of police brutality at an increasingly shocking rate, thus creating a sense of distrust among communities towards police officers and other authority figures. As the first line of defense against crimes such as home invasions or crimes against persons, police officers are expected to be an ally towards victims; however, it seems that society is now viewing officers as the perpetrators of crimes as opposed to the protectors. This has already posed an issue because community members are choosing not to seek police help when needed, and when they do decide to seek help, forgoing police assistance results in being uncertain of where else to go.

To gain the willing cooperation of the public, the law enforcement must first achieve respect and trust. Respect is earned over a long period of time from doing heroic and fair acts of justice. Most Americans have a tremendous amount of respect for police officer, however, racial biased events in the past have skewed that respect. America needs its officers to be viewed with respect, but they must earn it first. That may sound very selfish and naive but it is crucial for trust between citizens and officers. The Rand Corporation writes an article that explains the importance of the trust. "Events in recent months have focused national attention on profound fractures in trust between some police departments and the communities they are charged with protecting"(Jackson 2015). The current role of police officers has a potential to create the fractures between police departments and their communities. Ultimately, the health of the American democracy is the most important thing. If the trust between the police departments and the communities is fractured then the American democracy will be fractured. The article goes on to talk about how our culture lives in an era where technology is a major key in being able to increase transparency of police activities in many different ways. To make this happen it requires steps taken by both police and citizens that helps them both understand each others relationship. Completing this will help sustain trust when tragic events take place in

The field of police work is a complex discipline. It is assuredly not as simple as “catch the bad guys.” Policing and criminal justice as a whole have come a long way in their slightly less than two century history. And yet, comparatively speaking, it is still considered a relatively new field, one that continues to grow, stretch, and change. Despite the fact that large volumes of research have been done studying varying aspects of police work, there still exists massive gaps in solutions to issues facing the police and criminal justice initiatives.

There are six stages of morality in Kohlberg’s theory of moral development. “The fourth stage of morality is maintaining social order” (Khana Academy, 2014). Ethics are essentially a moral roadmap that helps guide a person’s actions. A person’s integrity is based on how they adhere to these morals. Preserving trust between law enforcement and citizens is the utmost importance, due to law enforcement is entrusted by the people to uphold laws that were created by the majority to be justice.

During such embattled times when the public’s confidence in our nation’s law enforcement officers is being sensationalized by media outlets, it is only prudent to embrace a sense of responsibility of refuting these negative stereotypes. By having constructive relations outside of typical police/public investigative encounters, police officers will enjoy an increased sense of trust and standing within the communities they police (President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing, 2015). In applying this principle, the Seymour Police Department will see improvements in community relations. By implementing S.O.L.V.E., statistically the number of citizen contacts for the department will compound exponentially revealing a positive outcome for all involved. In committing to this community policing initiative, the Seymour Police Department will serve as a model for other agencies to emulate. The S.O.L.V.E. initiative is a tremendous step toward remaining dedicated to the mission of the Seymour Police Department while providing the highest quality policing service possible to the residents of

Police officers have a huge impact on others, but no one takes the time to realize the impact of having the career of being an officer has on an individual. In today 's society, police officers are accused of outrageous circumstances and being in the wrong. Through media and the things people say, police officers have gained the reputation of being intimidating and scary. No one seems to take in account what officers actually go through on a daily basis, and the risky situations they encounter. Police officer and Plattsburg high school’s SRO, Officer Little, explained terrifying experiences that has left an impact that he has had to go through while being an officer.

Police integrity and ethics are essential to effective policing, and these fundamentals help form trust within communities. Comprehensive behavior by police helps build community interactions, improves communication, and encourages common responsibility to deal with crime and disorder. Police departments can help repair and reinforce community relationships by understanding and training officers on three crucial concepts: “procedural justice, bias reduction, and racial reconciliation”. (Unknown, 2016) When applied these theories generate an environment in which operational collaborations between the police and citizens can grow. It is essential to provide these resources to guarantee that integrity and ethics are well-understood and rooted in the culture of policing.