Why Are Police Departments Too Militarized

Police brutality has been a growing issue in the United States of the past century. The unique thing about police brutality is it does not discriminate. With that said some races have it worse than others. Such as the African American race they are continently in the news for African Americans being shot and killed by the police. Many look at police brutality as a physical abuse, but it is much more than that. Some people have suffered from mental issues to, such as thinking back to a incident with the police or having anxiety everytime they see a police officer. With that in mind if the police are viewed as a threat in the eyes of some of the public it can only get worse.

Police officers once were called peace keepers however now they seem to be nothing more than law enforcing officers. Most still do their jobs but they are more concerned about quotas and making arrests on Innocent people rather than keeping peace. Which as a following result has brought up a lot of apprehensiveness between the police and their citizens. With increasing violence in cities and states, police officers methods have slowly become more aggressive, bringing a rise in unnecessary police brutality. It is a big problem, and it just looks like the abuse of an officer’s power.

The argument about the use of less lethal weapons and police use of force has been prevalent in society for decades. Although the idea and use of less lethal weapons has been embraced and approved by more than eight thousand different law enforcement agencies across the United States, there is a minute amount of empirical analysis regarding the use of less lethal weapons by law enforcement officials. This research paper assesses and provides a thorough portrayal of the large variety of options officers have when choosing less lethal weapons over opting for lethal weapons and the use of physical police force. There are a numerous amounts of hazardous, practical and operational concerns that are fundamental when deciding to acquire or use less

M-16 's and Mine Resistant Ambush Protection vehicles (MRAPs) raise very serious questions, as this equipment is created for use in a war-zone. The magnitude of these weapons can change the mentality of the police, brutality has been present through our society before this equipment was ever acquired. What is this equipment believed to change? The pubic is in greater fear of the police seeing them resemble military personnel. The police were created to protect and serve the people of our nation and now as they are purchasing military assault weapons it brings into question the objective of the enforcements.

In the most recent years the United States police forces has been growing as a whole. From local departments to federal agencies, law enforcement personnel have more equipment and weapons. Thanks to the high government budget it allows departments to equip their officers very well. The main concern with citizens is that heavily arming police makes them seem very militaristic. Police now have access to M4 and AR-15 style assault rifles, Kevlar body and head armor, and armored vehicles. Although many citizens believe that the police are over equipped with high tech gear, it is necessary for officer to have it for their own safety. Most people don’t understand that this type of gear allows officers to better handle close quarter combat and mass

As stated by Rizer and Hartman, “When police officers are dressed like soldiers, armed like soldiers, and trained like soldiers, it’s not surprising that they are beginning to act like soldiers. And remember: a soldier’s main objective is to kill the enemy.” The authors of this article argue that while it is logically understandable, these new policing methods blur the distinction between soldier and law enforcement. Their new training and technology is no longer limited to counter terrorism, it is involved in daily patrolling now. Officers walk around in full armor, armed with M-16 and M-4 Rifles. Also, previously, only the largest of America's big-city police departments maintained S.W.A.T. teams. Today, almost every police department has

Now officers are wearing camera’s on themselves rather just in the police patrol car for evidence that the vehicle camera may have not caught. Each time these advancements are implemented, police officers have to ensure they complete classes to ensure they are functioning and working the more advance equipment properly (Charles, 2002). They also have different weapons. Some of their weapons could be considered lethal and some are considered less than lethal but again it all is part of new developments and they have to be trained to use them. With all of the new technology advancements and new weapons police are constantly faced with dangers and new challenges (Charles,

Very insightful post! You made several interesting points in your discussion. I do agree that the mass majority of American law enforcement personnel have become militarized in their attire, as well as their approach in addressing various community issues. There is certainly a degree public intimidation whenever law enforcement gets involved in local matters. There is a value system that is supposed to permeate a police department. Working with the community, local leaders, individual citizens and public/private organizations should be at the fore front of any police department. However, the increased workloads and loss of confidence in police departments have made it difficult to foster such relationships. According to Tom Casady, “Community-based

The war on drugs is what initially gave birth to the militarization of police in communities across America. Unfortunately, post 9/11 war on terror has strengthened the military persona. Innocent citizens including children have fallen victim to this new military of law enforcement in our homeland. With legislations and procedures like a capability in defense resources that allowed the Pentagon to transfer excess military equipment to police, local law enforcement agencies are using weapons found in the combat zone of foreign lands. Since our current President Obama has been in office police agencies have reportedly received over tens of thousands of assault rifles; and roughly 200,000 ammunition magazines; thousands of pieces of concealment and night-vision equipment; and hundreds of silencers, along with armored cars and military type aircraft. The result is that police agencies around the country possess the military-level equipment, turning officers who are supposed to fight crime and shelter communities into what appears to be an invading force of an army. Moreover, military-style police raids have increased in the past years (Apuzzo, 2014). When should protect and serve public safety and civil liberties out weight the badge?

The two topics that I decided to research are the Militarization of the police which was first presented in Chapter 1 (Module 1.2) and Diversity in Police Departments presented in Chapter 3 (Module 3.5) and Chapter 7 (Module 7.4 and 7.5). I chose these two topics because they are actively being discussed, many issues and questions are centered around how militarized the police have become and how they, the police officers, handle themselves and other civilians. Another issue that has been receiving a lot of attention is the misrepresentation of certain communities within the police force. Using my Ronald G. Burns textbook and the outside sources that I’ve found, I will do an in-depth analysis each topic.

I chose to do this second paper on the militarization of American police departments. This will lend to the thesis Greg and I intend to submit for our final presentation – so we are beginning our research now. As discussed in class, the militarization of police departments is leading American police departments – city or small towns – to act like occupational forces. This is due to several different factors ranging from the availability of weaponry and tanks, to the training of the police departments, to the accessibility of locating crime by advanced surveillance and tracking systems. To further our exploration, Greg and I chose two episodes of the HBO show Vice to watch and elaborate on. For our final presentation we will incorporate these as well as a book Greg has read and some interesting research we will find online. Not only is the militarization of police departments a controversial subject, the consequences of such a transition of our police is detrimental to many. The episode of Vice, and something we are all aware of and have discussed extensively in our courses, reference that the consequences are felt far more severely on the African American population and in low income areas. The two episodes of vice interview several different people about the effects this has on them individually and their communities. These effects, in turn, lead to lack of faith in law enforcement.

Supplying law enforcement with military-style gear can lead to citizens losing their trust in the police force. While President Obama visited Camden, New Jersey he said in a speech that "we have seen how militarized gear can sometimes give people the feeling like there 's an occupying force- as opposed to a force that 's part of the community that 's protecting them and serving them" (Obama quoted in Johnson). By seeing law enforcement with equipment that is used against an enemy, it creates the image that the public is the enemy. People become defensive in run-ins with the police because of the equipment being used. Not knowing whether or not the officer will see you as a citizen or an enemy causes the public to be hesitant to trust the police. The equipment is an addition to the officer, but sometimes the officer themselves are not the best to begin with. There is a lack of diversity in the police force not just regarding race but also intelligence. When hiring many police departments cap “acceptable” general intelligence test scores. The average points scored on the test is 21 to 22, the equivalent of an IQ of 104, which is a little above average (“Courts Ok Barring High IQs for Cops”). They do this in order to “reduce turnover rates, fearing smarter candidates would quickly get bored with day-to-day policing” (Rizer). This also limits the emotional intelligence, “one’s ability to perceive, use, manage and understand their emotions as well as the emotions of those around

Today most would argue that police do indeed use force that is not suitable when dealing with the public, but according to an article called “Do U.S. Police Departments use Appropriate Force when Dealing with the Public?,” the author expresses that “Police do have a hard job, and use excessive force only in the most extreme circumstances.” (p. 3) It is hard to disagree with this

Police officers are a sign of protection, safety and justice. Their presence around a community is to help establish the feeling that the community is under watch all the time, helping some feel at ease, while making others feel tension and hatred. The past activities of a police force have left everlasting impressions in some people’s minds, making them feel that the police is out to get them, not help them, then pushing these feeling of animosity onto the next generation. This type of behavior is a continuous chain reactions, making the police out to be the bad guys, making the police work harder to prove that the past does not define the present or the future.

The militarization of law enforcement alludes to the utilization of military gear and strategies by law authorization officers. In the past decade, reported incidents of violence between police officials and citizens has become more frequent. Reason being is police officials and their uniform. People feel threatened or uncomfortable when being around police officers with threatening weapons. “These weapons and defensive items being introduced mask the human features of officers, and makes them seem more like objects than actual people. This dehumanizing effect makes them seem more threatening, and creates a greater contrast between the police and the average person. (“The Militarization of the Police and How it's Making Us Less”, 2017)” A research study has also shown that when an individual is exposed to weapons, they are likely to react in a violent and unmannerly fashion. On a typical police officer, their weapons aren’t big, they can put their weapons on the side of their uniform, so, it isn’t very noticeable. However, if an officer is standing with a rifle, that act, is very visible so people may feel threatened. Now, at this rate, where both the police officer as well as the civilian will feel threatened, arguments are more likely to occur and as a result, could lead into a serious issue amongst the two.