2. History of Policing
England:
-Watch system
-Hue and Cry
1829: Sir Robert Peel
-uniformed officers
-decreased force
-”Police are the public and the public are the police”
In 1703 pay in the sum of 35 shillings a month .In 1796, the Watch was reorganized and the watchmen carried a badge of office, a rattle, and a six-foot pole, which was painted blue and white with a hook on one end and a bill on the other. The hook was used to grab fleeing criminals, and the rounded “bill” was used as a weapon. The rattle was a noise-making device used for calling for assistance.
The LEAA’s Exemplary Projects Program recognized outstanding innovative efforts to combat crime and to provide victims with assistances. Exemplary Projects served as examples to other police departments. Examples: Street Crimes Unit (NYC) The Hidden Cameras Project (Seattle) The Kansas City Experiment
The LEAA’s Exemplary Projects Program recognized outstanding innovative efforts to combat crime and to provide victims with assistances. Exemplary Projects served as examples to other police departments. Examples: Street Crimes Unit (NYC) The Hidden Cameras Project (Seattle) The Kansas City Experiment
The frontier was home to many outlaws. Frontier lands lacked established police forces, so many settlers took to vigilantism .
In 1750, Sir Henry Fielding became magistrate of London’s Bow Street region. He attracted a number of dedicated men to serve as officers, patrolling streets and highways leading to London. They became known as the Bow Street Runners.
The purposes of policing in democratic societies is to: Enforce and support the laws Investigate crimes/apprehend offenders 3. Prevent crime Ensure domestic peace and tranquility Provide the community with enforcement–related services
Only about 10 – 20% of all calls to the police require a law enforcement response. Police cannot enforce all of the laws. Resources are limited. Law enforcement priorities are significantly affected by community needs. Individual discretion also impacts them. Police are expected to support the laws they enforce.
Offenders may be apprehended: While committing a crime Shortly after committing a crime After an extensive investigation
Crime prevention is proactive . It aims to: Reduce crime and criminal opportunities Lower the rewards of crime Lessen the fear of crime Law enforcement’s ability to prevent crimes relies in part on their ability to predict crime. Determining when and where crimes will occur Allocating resources accordingly Crime mapping, as with CompStat , h
The dominant operational policing strategy is preventive patrol, which places uniformed officers on the street in the midst of the public. Patrol is designed to: Deter crimes Interrupt crimes in progress Position officers for quick response to emergencies Increase the public’s feeling of safety and security
Emergency responses (or critical incidents ) occur in response to crimes in progress, serious injuries, natural disasters, and other situations in which human lives may be in jeopardy.
Routine incident responses include restoring order, documenting information, or provide another immediate service to the parties involved in routine occurrences such as minor traffic accidents. This is the second most common police activity. Having a good response time is strongly linked to citizen satisfaction.
Criminal investigations dominate media attention but constitute a relatively small proportion of police work. An investigation involves discovering, collecting, preparing, identifying, and presenting evidence to determine what happened and who is responsible.
First responding officers: Provide assistance to the injured and in capturing suspects. Secure the crime scene. Conduct the preliminary investigation. Sometimes, special crime-scene investigators will come in to assist. Follow-up investigations are based on solvability factors.
Problem solving policing requires: Gathering knowledge of problem causes Developing solutions in partnership with the community Responding with a workable plan Assessing the progress
Consistent with service policing, community policing emphasizes the idea that police must partner with the community to help fulfill the community needs. Police actively work with citizens and with social services to help solve problems.
Community policing involves at least one of four elements: Community-based crime prevention Reorientation of patrol activities to emphasize nonemergency services Increased police accountability to the public A decentralization of command, including greater use of civilians at all levels of police decision making
The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks changed the role of police departments. The core mission has not changed, but all police departments now devote much more resources to preparing for a possible terrorist attack and intelligence gathering. Local police departments play an especially important role in responding to the challenges of terrorism.
Law enforcement agencies use a variety of applicant screening methods, including: Personal interviews Basic skills tests Physical agility measures Medical exams Drug tests Background investigations Psychological testing
Modern police education programs involve training in areas like: Human relations Firearms Communications Legal issues Patrol Investigations Report writing A post-academy field training program (PTO) is a recent development in police training.
Today’s demands for police professionalism require that police officers have specialized knowledge and they adhere to professional standards and police ethics . Accreditation is a step toward greater professionalism. Ethics training is integrated into most basic training programs.
Opportunities for women and minorities in policing are expanding. Although ethnic minorities are now employed in policing in significant numbers, women are still significantly underrepresented, especially in top command positions.
There are a number of factors that influence police decision making, including: Officer’s background Suspect’s characteristics Department policy Community interest Pressure from victim Disagreement with the law
The Police Foundation recommends: Involving underrepresented groups in departmental affirmative action and long-term planning programs. Encouraging the development of an open promotion system. Periodic audits to make sure that female officers are not being underutilized by ineffective tracking into clerical and support positions.