Introduction
The term “zero tolerance” has been interpreted and used widely in public debate. For this reason there are arguments as to whether it is beneficial to incorporate zero tolerance policing into justice systems globally. The term “Zero Tolerance Policing” is ambiguous. To some, it suggests aggressive law enforcement under which no anti-social behaviours will be tolerated. To others, it refers to a policing strategy carefully designed to combat the crime problems of a specific locality (Australian Institute of Criminology 1999, 1). The purpose of this report is to provide a critical analysis of both the strengths and the weaknesses that the zero tolerance policing model has. This is done by presenting the strengths – targeting minor offences reduces the rate of serious crimes; zero tolerance policing prevents police officer discretion and how the concentration of police power into ‘hot spots’ reduces crime rates. As well as this weaknesses of zero tolerance policing is also discussed – implementing zero tolerance policing is costly; increased police power can affect their relationship with the public and racial and ethical minority groups are targeted under zero tolerance policing. In order to judge the effectiveness of zero tolerance policing, it is important that both its strengths and weaknesses are taken into consideration.
Strengths of Zero Tolerance Policing
It is argued that many minor offences often have relations to more serious criminal activity. Under zero tolerance policing it is believed that the increased risk of arrest for minor offences discourages offenders from committing more deviant crimes (Punch 2008, 17). This increased risk of arrest also discouraged the carrying of firearms, which lead to a ...
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...ates through targeting minor offences and ‘hot spots’ as well as the elimination of individual discretion in regards to domestic violence. However, the introduction of zero tolerance policing also brought with it problems such as discrimination towards minority groups, power abuse and cost. By recognising the links that zero tolerance policing has with these problems, there is already hope for a solution. Though concerning the debate as to whether zero tolerance policing does more harm than good it is suggested that the problems it brings outweighs the strengths it has and as a result the effectiveness of this policing model is negatively impacted on. Zero tolerance policing is by no means the perfect model of policing. In order to be effective it must target both the needs of the public and the police force, at this point however it is not successfully doing so.
Do the institution and also those officers serve it act discriminately to different race group? On the one hand, it has to be admitted that some actions taken by the police are leading to the greater involvement of young black people in the criminal justice system but they cannot be recognised as discriminative behaviours. For example, the police tend to give priority and more effort into certain crime categories and some deprived areas, depending on local and central first concern. As a consequence, some criminals of ethnic groups and ethnic minority residences living in certain areas are inevitably more likely to come into contact with the
The issue of stop and search is considered to be an extremely controversial area. There is significant debate on the legitimacy and the accountability of police powers when conducting stop and search, which has led to concerns about the effectiveness of policing. Reiner (2000: 80) has stated that policing is ‘beyond legitimation’ as a result of consistent complaints concerning the abuse of police powers within stop and search. The cause for concern is not only raised by the public, or other agencies, but is now recognised by senior British police officers (Ainsworth, 2002: 28). The cause of concern has been raised through complaints that police target ethnic minorities through stop and search and public opinion, that stop and search is a form police harassment of black individuals (Home Office, 19897). It is said that this is a causal factor of the disproportionate in policing (Delsol and Shiner, 2006). Throughout this essay the effectiveness and legitimacy of stop and search and the negative relationship it has built with the public will be critically discussed.
Looking back on my own educational experience the words, “zero tolerance” vaguely strike a chord. If I am not mistaken I believe that our district adopted the zero tolerance policy between my junior and senior year (96/97-97/98 respectfully) as a means to hinder bullying/violence among the students. As I consider my years in high school I do not recall violence being a normal occurrence, with the exception of your random argument turned, “meet me at short stop,” dispute, nor do I remember drugs being a large concern among parents and/or school personnel. Perhaps I was naïve or maybe it turns out that it just wasn’t something to be considered a problem. There is an exception to every rule; however, I trust that during my high school career violence and drug abuse and its distribution was not the norm…
Akers, R, & Sellers, C. (2009). Criminological theories: introduction, evaluation, and application. New York: Oxford University Press, USA.
One of the most critical to understand in the society we live in is the Positivist School of Criminology’s theory. Unlike the Classical School of Criminology theory which focuses on rational choice and deterrence, the positivist school theory ‘considers the circumstances of individuals and states that some people are influenced to offend because of determinism” (Fuller, 2015). Determinism is the philosophical doctrine that human action is determined by external forces and is not a result of free will. The Positivist Theory recognizes that the impoverished and minority populations are more likely to break the law because of the social disadvantages that they face. In many impoverished families and communities, delinquency and incarceration is unfortunately an ongoing cycle and it can feel like it is the only
The need for the police and the public to work together was recognized as far back as the 19th century. In 1829, the Metropolitan Police of London was established by Sir Robert Peel. Peel worked in many areas of government during his career striving to pass legislation to reform child labor laws and other statutes to help protect working Londoners. However, he is recalled by many as the “Founder of Modern Policing” (Jones, 2004). During his time as British Home Secretary, Peel took on lowering London’s rising crime rate, in addition to reforming the criminal code of the time. Peel’s police force was uniformed and its members were taken from the people it served. He believed this, along with strict discipline, was a key to keeping law and order in the streets of London (Jones, 2004).
While on the job, police must put all their personal opinions aside. They must provide everyone with an equal and fair chance. It is important in a democratic society for police to not know too much about the community they are policing. It allows them to ...
Hennessy, Patrick. (2011) David Cameron: It’s time for a zero tolerance approach to street crime. The Telegraph [online] 13 August. Available from:// www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/8700243/David-Cameron-on-UK-riots-its-time-for-a zero-tolerance-approach -to-street-crime.html
Third, problem-oriented policing entails a greater and closer involvement by the public in police work. Communities must be consulted to ensure that police are addressing the...
Schmalleger, F. (2013). Policing: History and Structure. Criminal Justice Today An Introduction Text For the 21st Century (12th ed., ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Both of these articles were focused on the Strategy of Policing, but the author’s approaches to the ‘hot topics,’ couldn’t be more difficult. Williams and Murphy focused on the different eras of policing, and how the racial conflicts have overlapped policing efforts. Whereas, Kelling and Moore focused on how police have evolved with the eras. The articles were dramatically different, however, the policing eras: Political, Reform, and Community Orientated eras were influenced largely as the main focuses for each academic article.
...T., Reiner, R. (2012) ‘Policing the Police’ in The Official Handbook of Criminology. Ed. By Maguire, M., Morgan, R., Reiner, R. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 806- 838
That is a very simple explanation of public criminology that incorporates much of its diversity. This quote is of great importance to gaining an understanding of public criminology, as it is not only about incorporating the public in the generation of knowledge, but more about activism. It is about directly gaining knowledge through different people’s experiences and eventually changing opinions through public presentations. Through many sources, this broad term will be analyzed and described as clearly as possible, drawing from course presenters’, course readings, and research.
This essay will talk about what Situational Crime Prevention( SCP) is, it will also discuss the theoretical assumptions that underpin this approach, for example, the nature of the offender as well as examining how the SCP strategy has been used to deal with crime as well as the general pros and cons of such an approach.
The communities, in which we live, work and raise our children demand the safest environment possible. A common approach to crime fighting is to respond after the event and incarcerate the offender. The results of this approach have been increasingly burdensome on law enforcement, th...