Private Policing in the 21st Century

1
Private Policing in the 21st Century
2
Historical Context and Scope

• Early 19th Century Crime Detection a Private
  Matter
• 19th to Early 20th Centuries Patrol as
  Governmental Detective Work Private
• Mid-20th Century Detective Work Moves to Public
  Patrol to Private
• 21st Century Quiet Private Revolution Boom
  Industry

3
Faces of Private Policing
4
Four Faces and The Blur

• Protective Policing Safeguarding private
  property
• Intelligence Policing Private Detective Work
• Publicly Contracted Policing Outsourcing by
  government agencies
• Corporate Policing Replicate Public Policing in
  Private Environment
• Public-Private Blur

5
Legal Powers
6
Citizen Arrest Powers Outside Criminal
Procedural Protections

• Three Cases
• Misdemeanor Committed in Presence
• Felony Arrest if Probable Cause
• Private Searches Not 4th Amendment Protected
• Private Interrogations, No Miranda Rights
• Not Immunized Limited Tort Liability
• Resisting Arrest Not a Crime But Tortious

7
Arguments for the Benefits of Private Policing in
America
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Private Policing and the American Way

• The Right of Self Defense
• The Right of Ownership
• Empowering of those It Protects
• More Flexible than Public Law Enforcement
• Accountable to the Discipline of the Market

9
Tensions with American Democracy
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Tensions with American Democracy

• Few legal checks on Coercive Powers of Private
  Policing
• Consumers, Massive Private Space and Public Use
• Lack of Transparency Media to Research
• Hiring, Training, and Accountability
• Displacement
• Protection as a Commodity
• Public Interest vs. Bottom Line