POLICING: ISSUES AND TRENDS

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CHAPTER 6

• POLICING ISSUES AND TRENDS

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THEMES

• Police Recruitment and training
• Movements toward diversity
• The Development of the Police Subculture
• Factors that Affect the Police Personality
• Police Use of Force
• Police Corruption

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POLICE TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT

• Recruitment requirements, training, and pay have
  all risen considerably in recent years.
• Although police usually receive substantial
  formal training, many claim real training
  occurs on job.
• Process of socialization where police learn
  informal aspects of job

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DIVERSITY IN POLICING

• Spurred by rioting and community demands, most
  police departments instituted policies to
  increase the numbers of minorities and women.
• From 1983-1992, the number of African American
  police officers increased 50, and Hispanics 20
• In Detroit, for example, more than 20 of
  officers are women.
• The question remains, however, what type of
  special accommodations should police agencies
  make for women?
• How about female cops and violence (COPS episode)?

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POLICE SUBCULTURE

• Certain characteristics of police work result in
  the formation of a police subculture
• The symbols, beliefs, and values shared by
  members of a subgroup within the larger society
  (p. 209).
• Subculture produces a working personality set
  of emotional and behavioral characteristics
• What factors effect this working personality?

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POLICE WORKING PERSONALITY

• Skolnick (1966) identified two characteristics of
  policing that most dramatically effect this
  personality
• The Threat of Danger even minor situations can
  result in extreme danger
• Need to establish and maintain ones authority
  police need to not only control suspects, but
  often onlookers also.

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Other Factors Affecting Police Work

• Sense of Mortality
• Inherent contradictions in need to control crime
• Need to use discretion to control situations
• They will invariably act against someones will
• Sense of Isolation
• Police tend to isolate themselves and form strong
  in-group ties.
• See page 212.

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Other Factors.

• Job Stress
• The working environment and subculture can
  increase stress.
• Four Primary types of stress
• External Stress
• Organizational Stress
• Personal Stress
• Operational Stress
• Some states have instituted liberal disability
  and retirement rules for police

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POLICE DISCRETION Traffic Enforcement D.W.B

• Increasing attention has been paid to the issue
  of police profiling.
• Arent shortcuts important to nearly ever job?
• What if experience gives the police the ability
  to make educated guesses?
• As a community, how do we determine if police
  profiling is a problem?

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POLICE AUTHORITY

• The police have the authority to utilize forceful
  measures to gain citizen compliance.
• Force can be characterized as either legitimate
  or excessive
• Professionalization requires police to know when
  force is appropriate.
• Force can be arranged on a continuum
• When is Police Use of Force Excessive?

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EXCESSIVE FORCE

• Tennessee v. Garner (1985) fleeing felon law
  Police cannot shot a fleeing felon unless there
  is reason to believe individual poses a
  significant threat to officers or others.
• Graham v. Connor (1989) courts clarified Garner
  by providing objective reasonableness standard
• See pp. 222-223 Should be judged from the point
  of view of the police
• Case of Amodou Diallo (Court TV excerpt)
• Case of Rodney King (Video)

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POLICE CORRUPTION

• Police corruption is not easily defined, and
  disagreements exist about what it includes.
• Grass eaters officers who accept payoffs as
  part of their routine work
• Meat Eaters officers that actively use their
  power for personal gain.
• Book claims grass eaters are the heart of the
  problem. Why?

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Forms of Corruption

• Mooching, bribery, chiseling, extortion,
  shopping, shakedown, premeditated theft,
  favoritism, perjury, and prejudice (p. 225).
• Question on page 224 Is turning down a free
  6.50 meal that important?

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CIVIC ACCOUNTABILITY

• Many departments still have no formal complaint
  procedures
• Internal Affairs Units
• An officer charged with misconduct can face
  criminal prosecution or disciplinary action
• In some departments, internal affairs receives
  and investigates complaints
• Many officers report this assignment difficult
  because it prevents them from maintaining close
  relationships with other officers

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Accountability

• Standards and Accreditation
• Civil Liability Suits
• U.S. Supreme Court (1961) ruled citizens were
  allowed to sue public officials for violation of
  civil rights.
• Use is on the increase
• Tend to be simple and severe ordered to pay a
  sum of money
• Cases can have a profound impact on how police do
  their jobs