Introduction As our modern-day society is becoming increasingly complex with many things changing so to must the education and training requirements for police officers in Canada. What all must police officers in Canada change to become efficient in our modern society? Canada has recently seen a surge in immigration to our country which has only added to the diversity of this nation. This means that the police must make sure they are properly trained and aware of our diverse cultures to properly handle all of the people in our society. Frequently police officers have come under scrutiny for the way they handle people with mental health issues. This just goes to show that police in Canada must increase their training on how to handle this group …show more content…
Diverse Culture Training Policing in Canada is much different from many other nations due to the rich cultural diversity that Canada is blessed with having. The discussion on policing in a multicultural society must be viewed as a much more political question on how to respond to diversity (Ben-Porat, 2007). Policing has a problem when minority groups feel alienated from the Police or when they feel that the police are enforcing discriminating policies and unjust laws (Ben-Porat, 2007). There are many examples in Canada of racial biases on the side of the police. Recently the RCMP commissioner Bob Paulson made a public address acknowledging racial bias in Canadian Policing (Ireland, 2016). Unfortunately, credibility and legitimacy of the police among different minority groups in Canada has yet to be met due to these groups feeling that they have been unfairly treated (Ben-Porat, 2007). Most police agencies in Canada now have some form of diversity training relating to specific minority groups. Another thing that some of Canadas police agencies have done …show more content…
The Vancouver Police Service is just one example who have changed their hiring standard requiring applicants to have a minimum of 30 credits from an accredited university or college (Vancouver Police Service, 2017). Many agencies like the RCMP still only require a minimum of a high school diploma to be hired. Police agencies in Canada need to start changing their hiring process to only look for people who have obtained a diploma or a degree from an accredited post secondary school. If agencies start hiring people who have post secondary education the recruits will be entering recruit training with a wide range of skills already learnt. Canadian police agencies need to look ahead and realize how complex crimes are becoming and start hiring highly educated and trained personnel. Another aspect that will be beneficial to police agencies hiring more educated officers is the appearance it will have on the public. After all the police can only function with the support of the pubic, and many people believe that police officers should have more education than only a high school
This relation believes that the “law shapes --and is shaped by-- the society in which it operates (Elizabeth Comack,2014) As people our interactions and experiences are administered by our social positioning in society, and that social location is conditioned by three key elements: our race, class, and gender. These three elements have been used to divide, separate and categorize society. (Comeck,2014) . Racial profiling is something that I believe is extremely evident in Canada. Racial profiling is defined as targeting individuals for law enforcement based on the colour of their skin, which can lead to practices like carding. (Chan, 2007). Carding is a police practice that involves stopping, questioning and documenting people in mostly non-criminal encounters. (Chan, 2007) Stopping people on the street for no reason to ask them who they are, and what they are up to is outrageous and can have fatal consequences. On September 24, 2014, at 10:00pm Jermaine Carby was sitting in the passenger seat of his friend’s car while out for a drive. They were pulled over for a traffic stop in Brampton by a Peel police officer. This police officer went around to the passenger’s side and asked Carby for his identity so he could card him. When conducting this street check the officer discovered the Vancouver had a warrant for his arrest. Allegedly, this is when Carby started threatening officers with a large knife. A knife that witnesses nor
Wortley S., Tanner J. (2003). Data, Denials, and Confusion: The Racial Profiling Debate in Toronto. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 45(3), 367-389.
In the article “Point: Racial Profiling in Law Enforcement is Unjust”, Adele Cassola determines that racial profiling is an extensive problem in policing across Canada. She identifies that racial profiling is based on stereotypes of race, ethnicity, and cultural background with African-Canadians, Arab-Canadians, and Aboriginal Canadians being targeted most frequently. Racial profiling is not unique to law enforcement and immigration, Cassola asserts, “it is a wide spread problem within other institutions and establishments as well” (2009). She discovered a survey that showed Toronto's African-Canadian secondary school students were stopped four times more frequently and searched six times more frequently than their non-black classmates. In an article from the Toronto Star newspaper in 2002, Cassola notes that African-Canadians were subject...
In the line of police force it is imperative to think outside of the box. Many people confuse a police officer’s curiosity as racial profiling and racism. However, this is how a police officer often finds the majority of their evidence. In many neighborhoods, there a dominant races that live within the community. For example, if a wealthy white man was driving around a predominantly minority-based community, it would be acceptable for a police officer to grow skeptical at this situation. It is obvious that man is out of place, and it is the police officer 's duty to further investigate the
The influence of higher education on police officer habits would surprise many according to Matthew D. Bostrom, D.P.A of the Saint Paul Police Department in “Police Chief Magazine-The Professional Voice of Law Enforcement”. Although a degree is required for some agencies and considered ideal for any person looking to join the law enforcement field, surveys show otherwise says Bostrom. According to a study conducted in St. Paul, Minnesota there were more on-duty vehicle collisions by officers with formal education beyond high school than those who only obtained a high school diploma. The article also shows figures indicating more disciplinary actions towards officers with college degrees and a significant difference in those of officers with high school diplomas only. The measurements of work habits shown indicate that perhaps a college degree in general is not necessary to be an effective police officer. Traffic Officer James Dunn of the California Highway Patrol in an interview said, “a degree can be beneficial, but some people are very eloquent and knowledgeable even without attending college-a person can learn the specific duties of any job, but college does not teach you the responsibilities of being a police officer. You learn that by hands-on training”. Although a degree is helpful, Officer Dunn admits that he has been very successful in the law
On Tuesday, September 23rd, I had the opportunity to do a ride along with the Takoma Park police department. My ride along was quite interesting. I rode with Officer Carl, a twenty-six-year-old officer who has been with the police department for six months. During the ride along we engaged in so many conversations concerning his work routine, and some the important things to be aware of as a police officer. Officer Carl and I were about the same age group so I felt much comfortable talking to him. Before I went for the ride along I had a different perspective about police work, I thought police work was much amusing and entertaining, but after the ride along with Officer Carl, I have realized that there is much more to police work and it often
Dr. Weisburd makes a point on how not only we need to fix crimes that are lurking in the streets, but also how money and time needs to be spent on training these officers. In order to have a successful team is to have a strong army, which is done with the right amount of training done. As Dr. Weisburd believes this can be another key factor in benefiting for the community to know officers are highly trained and not having poorly skilled
Police reform should start by giving proper training to the new recruits and veterans in the force. During their training, “Law enforcement agencies should adopt and enforce policies prohibiting discrimination based on race, ethnicity immigration status, etc.” (Cops, p.90). It is apparent
Authors of this document had written an evidence that proves the tensions between the minorities and the police. In their article, there were unanswered questions of the behavior of the police. Statistics were involved explaining how characteristics of police and communities affect the incidence of filed complaints on police violence. There were two hypotheses on threatening minorities made relatively to complaints. These authors had made analytical theories behind
This paper will show four different police departments that are currently hiring or recruiting for police officers. There will be a summary on the research found on the process used to recruit police officers. It will also show their current hiring trends and what hiring practices they have that are successful or not successful. The paper will also go over the different methods departments use to train their new officers and their values.
The ability of police to exercise discretion was originally designed to allow officers to maintain the peace by allowing certain types of crime to remain unpunished in certain circumstances. This essay will aim to explore the issue of police discretion that suggests that the application of discretion works against the interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In drawing this conclusion, this essay will examine the relationship between policing ideals and the use of discretionary powers and the relationship between policing attitudes and the use of discretionary powers. A discussion regarding the use of police discretion towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples can scarcely be mentioned without making reference to arguably the greatest failing by a police officer since indigenous Australians were formally recognised as citizens. Further to this, the case of Mulrunji Doomadgee (Cameron) will be examined from the point of view of officer discretionary powers. The penultimate point to be made will involve the Anglo Australian response to this case as well as the ongoing relationship between indigenous Australians and the institutions that govern them. As mentioned, the first point will involve policing ideals and their relationship to discretionary powers.
The readings presented unique practicalities behind policing. I have learned that future forecasting is necessary to understand different trends so we can predict how it will impact future crime rates. I liked how the reading broke down different factors that might contribute to the increase in crimes. Addressing the futures wheel, it looked at past crime rates from 1984 to 1994 where the increase in crime rates resulted from gangs, drug trade and the necessity to use firearms in order to protect their possession of drugs.
This includes whether or not police departments feel that this type of training is necessary. Sometimes police departments will not offer this type of training until and unless they are convinced that it is actually needed. They are sometimes unwilling to make the commitment to spend money, time and personnel to accomplish this. In cases like this, cultural sensitivity training should be made mandatory for every police department that way there is no longer the factor of trying to convince administrators and supervisors of its importance. Another obstacle is gauging how well officers grasped the information and skills during training, and how that will convert into how effective they work out in the field. An easy way to explain this would be to compare it to a college course. Student A gets an A as his overall grade for the course, while student B receives a C as his overall grade for the course. Both students pass the course and seem to have some knowledge about what was taught. If these were officers, both would be allowed to work out in the field, but whether or not the officer that scored higher actually does better than the other officer how scored lower is yet to be found for two reasons. Firstly, being able to pass exams with high scores does not necessarily mean that they comprehend more, it may mean that they are better at memorization and test taking. On the other had
Throughout the years, issues have been brought up whether a police officer have the proper education or level of training to perform the job that the public have entrust them with. As many individuals know, education is an important qualification that employers look for nowadays. The question arises whether law enforcement agencies should require their officers to possess a two-year, or a four-year college degree along with a police academy certification in order to become employed as a police officer. Additionally, other issues arises of whether an officer’s education level play a major role in their ability to understand and protect the rights of the public they serve. Critics may often argue that an officer without any type of education
Police psychology is broadly defined as the application of psychological principles and methods to law enforcement. With the popularity of television shows like Criminal Minds and Law & Order: SVU, the job of a police psychologist has become more well known and even popular. As seen on these shows, a police psychologist can be helpful in profiling a criminal, but they also provide many other services to the members of a police department. Although the development of this field has a long history, police psychology as a separate entity is still relatively recent and growing. This intimate relationship between psychology and law enforcement can be traced back to almost a century ago.[1] It first developed out of a need for a variety of psychological services in the law enforcement field, including screening applicants and counseling during grief and stress situations. In the time that it has been around, it has proved to be a valuable resource for the law enforcement profession.