Essay on Police and Corruption - 1393 Words

Police and Corruption The police. Twenty-four hours a day, three hundred sixty-five days a year, this division of our government has a mandate to enforce the criminal law and preserve public peace. Understood in this mandate is an obligation to police everyday life matters that originate in the daily lives and activities of citizens within their community. Police interact in some form with the average citizen more often than any other government official. In society today the police play a key role in maintaining a civil society. This role assumes a substantial amount of power and authority over the general public. With power comes corruption and/or misuse of power. The question that is presented is, how and why do the police†¦show more content†¦That also leads to the fact that citizens who behave antagonistically towards an officer are more likely to be arrested than those who are civil or very differential. Donald J. Black reported in â€Å"Police control of Juveniles†, American sociolo gical Review February 1970, that when Complaints are present 72 percent of adults who behave antagonistically toward the police are arrested in the field while only 45 percent who are civil and 40 percent who are differential toward the police are arrested. This is an obvious misuse of discretion. When a police officer treats a citizen antagonistically there is not much the citizen can do, but when it is the citizen acting antagonistically it more than likely will be a determination of guilt. When a police officers judgment is constantly questioned and his sense of justice is not validated he may lose his commitment to the system. Police are often alienated in the criminal justice system, in a sense there status is demeaned by the decisions of lawyers and judges. They are treated as less of a professional. To see a person who in the officers discretion was guilty be released time after time, it is difficult for the officer to keep his commitment to the system. â€Å"Where moral commitment is lost, subcultural practices take over. One such practice that exacerbates the relationship of the police with the public is harassment† (Reiss, p.138) Therefore police create their ownShow MoreRelatedThe Corruption Of Police Corruption1484 Words   |  6 Pagesconcerning police officers, police corruption has become a major topic. Police officers seem to be making more questionable and unethical decisions according to the media. With these questionable actions, the idea that police officers are corrupt has been a steadily growing opinion. I will be focusing this literature review on the history of police corruption, mostly in major cities/countries; the nature of police corruption; the ethics involved in law enforcement; causes for police corruption and finallyRead MorePolice Corruption And Corruption1538 Words   |  7 Pagesbeen around for as long as the police have, is corruption. Police corruption has been defined as the abuse of police authority for personal gain (Police Corruption and Misconduct. Wests Ency clopedia of American Law, edition 2. 2008. The Gale Group 4 Dec. 2017) . Corruption can be as limited as one officer, or can be group of officers as well. There is the rotten apple theory, which attempts to explain police corruption and where it comes from. While all corruption fits under abuse of authorityRead MorePolice Corruption969 Words   |  4 PagesPolice Corruption Second Essay for AJ 101 Krystal Lamas Victor Valley Community College Author Note This paper was prepared for AJ 101 for Mr. Ronald M. Field .M.A. Abstract Police corruption is a complex issue. Police corruption or the abuse of authority by a police officer, acting officially to fulfill personal needs or wants, is a growing problem in the United States today. Things such as an Internal Affairs department, a strong leadership organization, and community support are justRead MorePolice corruption770 Words   |  4 Pagesdefinition of Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct designed to obtain financial gain, other personal gain, or career advancement for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest. One common form of police corruption is taking bribes in exchange for not reporting organized drug or prostitution rings or other illegal activities. Another example is police officers misusing the police code of conductRead MorePolice Corruption968 Words   |  4 Pageselection law violations; (13) corruption of public officials; (14) copyright violations; (15) computer crimes; (16) environmental crimes; and (17) receiving stolen property This assignment requires us to write a paper on a form of white-collar crime that we feel is the must dangerous form and why. I feel the most dangerous form of white-collar crime is police corruption, which is also defined as public corruption. Public or police corruption is defined as; Public corruption involves a breach of publicRead MorePolice Corruption1032 Words   |  5 Pages In Edwin J. Deltarres book Character and Cops he explores three hypotheses for police corruption in the United States. Some are somewhat historical, but they are still relevant to the problem of corruption today. The first hypothesis is called the society at-large theory by former Chicago Police Superintendent O. W. Wilson. Wilson was superintendent of the Chicago Police Department during the early nineteen sixties. The second hypothesis is called the structural theory. The thirdRead MorePolice Corruption2291 Words   |  10 Pagesand discretion in police work produces great potential for abuse. Police corruption has been a problem in American society since the early days of policing. An ancient natural tendency of human beings is to attempt to placate or win over those in positions of authority over them. This tendency is complicated in today’s materialistic society by greed and by the personal and financial benefit to be derived from evading law. The temptations toward illegality offered to police range from freeRead MorePolice Corruption2879 Words   |  12 PagesStanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy corruption is defined as the abuse of power by a public official for private gain. Police corruption is the abuse of power by a police officer for their own personal gain. Police officers become corrupt mainly for monetary gain because most feel that police officers do not make enough money and they want to make more. Police corruption can be costly to society and it can even violate the rights of society. Police corruption can show favoritism to some and unfairness Read MorePolice Corruption3338 Words   |  14 PagesAnalysis of Police Corruption Police corruption is a complex phenomenon, which does not readily submit to simple analysis. It is a problem that has and will continue to affect us all, whether we are civilians or law enforcement officers. Since its beginnings, may aspects of policing have changed; however, one aspect that has remained relatively unchanged is the existence of corruption. An examination of a local newspaper or any police-related publication on any given day will have an articleRead MorePolice Corruption9501 Words   |  39 PagesPolice Corruption: A Perspective View Into the Definition, Cause, Harm Randy Botelho BSLS Capstone, LS498-01 – Unit 9 Professor Odim December 17, 2011 Thesis Statement Corruption in law enforcement is not victimless and creates a negative perception of the United States legal system. Introduction There are few professions in the United States that are entrusted with protecting society’s safety and system of laws that have been established throughout the course of American