Chapter 7

Issues in Policing

Chapter 7

Who Are the Police

Police and Education

Race and Ethnicity

Women in Policing

Who Are the Police?Police and Education

About 16% of departments have some type of college requirement

About 9% require a two-year degree Only 1% of local police department

required a four-year degree The jury is still out on whether educated

officers are more effective

Who Are the Police? Benefits of higher education for police

Better Communication with the Public Better Writers Generation of Fewer Citizen Complaints Greater Self Confidence Behave More Professionally Less Inclined to Use Force

Race and Ethnicity of Full-Time Sworn Personnel in Local Police Departments, by Size of Population Served

Who Are the Police? Minorities in Policing

Over the past several decades, police departments have made a concerted effort to attract minority police officers

Minority officers help to gain the confidence of the minority community

Qualities that can improve police performance Spanish speakers (any foreign language)

Who Are the Police? Minorities in Policing

The African American experience Discrimination Double marginality

Minority representation today Almost 25% of local police officers today are

minorities More aggressive and self-assured Job-related stress

Who Are the Police?Women in Policing

About 15% of sworn officers are female Still struggling for acceptance Higher levels of job-related stress Many female officers report that policing

is male-dominated and not very woman friendly

Who Are the Police?Women in Policing

Female officers are less likely than male officers to be charged with improper conduct.

Female officer recruits are more likely to fail the entrance physical exam than male officer recruits.

Female officers tend to receive harsher punishments than male officers if cited for disciplinary action.

Female officers are less likely to use force than male officers.

Percent of Full-Time Sworn Law Enforcement Officers Who Are Women Among Local Police Departments and Sheriffs’ Offices

The Police Culture

Personalities

Policing Styles

Police Culture Six core beliefs are viewed as being at

the heart of the police culture:a. Police are the only real crime fighters

b. No one else understands

c. Loyalty to colleagues counts above everything else

d. The war against crime cannot be won without bending the rules

e. Members of the public are basically unsupportive and unreasonably demanding

f. Patrol work is the pits

Police PersonalitySome experts believe that police

officers develop a unique set of personality traits that distinguish them from the average citizen This working personality is shaped by

constant exposure to danger, and the need to use force and authority, to reduce and control threatening situations

Thinking Point• Think about the issue of the

“police personality.” Based on what you have read, seen, and

generally been exposed to about the police, do you believe a distinct “police personality” exists? Why or why not?

Do you know someone in law enforcement? Do they have this “police personality”?

The Police ProfessionPolice styles

Working personalities adopted by police officers that can range from being a social worker in blue to being a hard-charging crime fighter

Police styles: The crime fighter The social agent The law enforcer The watchman

Thinking Point• Police Style

What police style do you believe is represented most frequently as associated with policing in the media?

Based on your personal experience with the police, what is the style of policing you have encountered?

Do you believe there is a style of policing that “most” police officers exhibit?

Police Discretion

Police Discretion

Police DiscretionDiscretion

The use of personal decision making and choice in carrying out operations in the criminal justice system Most police officers use a high degree of

personal discretion in carrying out daily tasks

Low-visibility decision making

Police Discretion Factors Influencing Discretion

Crime factors Victim factors Environmental factors Departmental factors Peer factors Suspect behavior and characteristics Officer characteristics

Probably the greatest example of the use of police discretion: The discretion police officers use in traffic stops.

compared to the use of discretion in Homicides, Aggravated Assaults, or Hostage Situations.

Thinking Point• Find 1-2 articles on a case of

racial profiling that occurred in the past 5 years in your state. Discuss the lack of discretion used in that

case. Where “could” discretion have been used?

Problems in Policing

Role Ambiguity

Job Stress

Violence and Brutality

Corruption

Problems of Policing The role ambiguity, social isolation,

and threat of danger present in working the streets are the police officer’s constant companions The most significant negative effects are

job stress, fatigue, violence and brutality, and corruption

Job Stress Difficulties maintaining social and family

relationships, considering their schedule and workload Some stressors are job related Internal conflict with administrative policies

that deny officers support and a meaningful role in decision making

Stressors are typically: External Organizational Duty Individual

Job StressControlling police fatigue

Review policies, procedures, and practices

Assess how much of a voice officers are given in work-hour and shift-scheduling decisions

Assess the level of fatigue officers experience

Review recruit and in-service training programs

Violence and BrutalityBrutality

Refers to actions such as using abusive language, making threats, using force or coercion unnecessarily, prodding with nightsticks, and stopping and searching people to harass them

Evidence shows that only a small proportion of officers are continually involved in problem behavior

Corruption Corruption

Consists of exercising legitimate discretion for improper reasons or using illegal means to achieve approved goals

Two types of corrupt officers:a. Meat eaters

Aggressively misuse police power for personal gain by demanding bribes, threatening legal action, or cooperating with criminals

a. Grass eaters Accept payoffs when their everyday duties place

them in a position to be solicited by the public

Corruption Types of corruption include:

Internal corruption Selective enforcement or nonenforcement Active criminality Bribery and extortion

Causes of corruption include: Police personality Institutions and practices Moral ambivalence Environmental conditions Corrupt departments Officer characteristics

Video: Public Corruption

What types of corruption were evident in the video?

What is the impact of corruption on society’s trust short term?

What about the impact long term?

Video: Discussion Questions

Controlling CorruptionStrengthen the internal administrative

review process within police departments Accountability system

A system that makes police supervisors responsible for the behavior of the officers in their command

Outside reviews boards Change the social context of policing Special prosecutor

Use of Force

Use of Force Continuum

Deadly Force

Non-Deadly Force

Use of ForcePolice use of force may not be as

common as previously believed, but it still remains a central part of the police role There is still debate over whether police

are more likely to get rough with minority suspects

Suspect behavior may be a more important determinant of force than race or ethnicity

A Use-of-Force Continuum

Deadly Force Deadly force

Force that is likely to cause death or significant bodily harm Non-deadly force

Force that is unlikely to cause death or significant bodily harm Such as Pepper Spray which shuts the eyes of a suspect and

automatically induces shortness of breath. Tasers (may change in the future)

Factors related to police shootings Local and national violence levels Exposure to violence Workload Firearms availability Social conflict Administrative policies Race

Controlling Deadly Force One of the most difficult problems that

undermined the control of deadly force was the continued use of the fleeing-felon rule in a number of states Tennessee v. Garner (1985)

Outlawed the indiscriminate use of deadly force against an unarmed and non-dangerous fleeing felon

Individual state jurisdictions still control police shooting policy and some states have adopted statutory policies that restrict the police use of violence

Internal review and policy making by police administrative review boards are used

Nondeadly ForceCan range from the use of handcuffs

and suspect compliance techniques to rubber bullets and stun guns Researchers have found that the crime in

question is strongly linked to the type of nondeadly force used

Officers are also influenced by past experience, the presence of other officers, and the presence and behavior of bystanders

Nondeadly Force Graham v. Connor

Created reasonableness standard

Less lethal weapons Designed to subdue suspects Among the most widely used nonlethal

weapons are impact munitions Used to stun or otherwise incapacitate

uncooperative suspects so they can be subdued

Police As Victims

Less Deadly for both Public and Police

Below 100

Police Officer Memorial

Trooper James Sauter (28)

Law Enforcement Officers Feloniously Killed or Assaulted

Police as VictimsFewer people are being killed by

police, and fewer officers are being killed in the line of duty than ever before The National Law Enforcement Officers

Memorial The nation’s monument to

police officers who have died in the line of duty

Illinois Police Officer Memorial Illinois 1st Thursday in May Springfield, Illinois

Below 100The 5 Tenets

Wear Your Belt Wear Your Vest Watch Your Speed WIN—What’s Important Now? Remember: Complacency Kills!

www.below100.com

Trooper James Sauter

Illinois State Trooper

28 Years Old

Newly Married

Lived in Vernon Hills