In today’s society we have seen what appears to be an increase in unethical behavior by law enforcement officers. This behavior may not have increased, but is more noticed in a media heavy environment. Law enforcement officers are placed into many high stress situations and asked to make split second decisions. This coupled with the authority and the environment within the field can lead to poor decisions. This paper will look at several leadership styles and the traits of ethical leadership. In addition the paper will identify unethical behaviors and the effects on organizations. An example will be discussed of an officer acting unethically and its consequences. The slippery slope for law enforcement will also be addressed and how to manage this to prevent unethical behavior by law …show more content…
One factor that can lead to unethical behavior is narcissism. Someone who has narcissistic have a propensity for acting unethically. These leaders are self-absorbed and their focus is on themselves and what benefits themselves (Doty & Fenlason, 2013). Unfortunately, this type of behavior creates an ego and leads to personal career building through using other employees to get ahead. Narcissistic leaders do not have the emotional intelligence which focuses on others. This creates a toxic leader that negatively impacts the organization. Not only does it negatively impact the organization but can lead to dimension the trust with the public. Narcissistic leaders will also fail to focus on the citizen within the community. Leaders that use coercion negatively impact the staff and organization. This coercive approach causes poor moral and distrust between the leader and staff. It can also lead to influencing others to do things they would not normally do. In the law enforcement field, some senior officers may coerce junior officers to act in a certain way which against their moral judgement. This environment can lead to unethical
In this case study there are a few unethical behaviors that had occurred. One unethical decision was to commit the act of conspiracy. Bell, Forrest and Sillings teamed together to steal from an active crime investigation. The second unethical decision was when these individuals stole sums of cash and personal property from the victim while executing search warrants. The three individuals committed two primary crimes: conspiracy and theft. These officers were who took the oath to protect and serve the community were doing the opposite. Bell, Forrest and Silllings belonged
The “Noble-Cause” corruption is often compared to the Dirty Harry problem asking whether it was necessary for the officer to inflict pain on a suspect in order to acquire information that would save an innocent victim (Pollock, 2015). Sometimes because of the limited resources that an officer has or the mindset that an officer has where everyone is the enemy offers them no other choices but to venture out into the unethical world.
Wood identifies that during the probationary period of the police officers first year on the force he or she can easily be fired for any cause. He specifically points to the fact that if a rookie police officer were to complain about another police officer’s ethical behavior the rookie police officer could be terminated. This constant threat of easy termination forces the police officers hand to fall in line with others. Consequently, during the officers first year he or she learns to shut up and do as others do. Therefore, by the end of the polices officers first year he or she is just as corrupt or ignorant to the corrupt actions of fellow officers. For instance, Mr. Wood alleged that another officer kicked a handcuffed and facedown suspect at the end of a chase (Wood, 2015). Two problem exist, the actions of the officer kicking an act of malfeasance and the failure to report the crime by the witnessing officer an act of nonfeasance. Although probationary periods are great policy, if not administered correctly an environment of corruption will easily be passed to another generation of police officers. Therefore, the lack of department policy to protect new officers from termination if reporting unethical actions was the driving factor the lead officers like Sgt. Wood to perform nonfeasance while the other officers kicked the suspect (Albanese, 2012). Essentially, police officer become ignorant of the unethical behavior
Each position in criminal justice holds power and responsibility, and therefore, it is very important that said people in those positions do not abuse it. Unethical behavior in the criminal justice system takes away trust and respect from authority, and as a consequence, the law is more easily disregarded if the people lack faith in the system. It can, also, contribute to crime and/or cause citizens to not report crimes. Society should have indubitable confidence in the men and women of the criminal justice system. Law enforcement officers violating even the smallest rule could lead to more serious infractions. Syed (1997) states, "Every instance of corruption bends or violates a rule or law and, similar to the granting of impunity, may contribute to an officer's perceptions of the law as applying differently to different people and increase the ease with which violations can be rationalized." Having less than ethical persons in our criminal justice system can lead to a weakened society, the ruining of lives, and even add to crime.
In this essay, I will examine the ethical issues surrounding police corruption and discretion in the criminal justice system. I will also define legality and equity and how they relate to police corruption and discretion. Police corruption and discretion are ethical issues that have been negatively impacting the criminal justice system for years. Police corruption weakens the public 's confidence in law enforcement officers. It also hinders the effectiveness of law enforcement officers whose job is to serve and protect. I will also define police corruption and discretion and the reasons behind police misconduct.
The definition of “corruption” is when an officer uses their position to acquire unprofessional benefits, mainly through bribes (Goldstein, 1977). The abuse of power transpires in three separate fields, psychological, physical, and legal misconduct (Carter, 1985). Psychological misconduct happens through disdain, coercion, scorn, and terror, while physical misconduct uses unrestrained force and physical intimidation. Lastly, legal misconduct occurs through illegal search and seizure methods or fabricating proof.
In an article by Wolfe & Piquero (2011), research was focused on the relationship between organizational justice and police corruption. Previous research suggested that organizations perceived by employees as unjust or unfair would have higher instances of employee deviance. Police officers were thought to be more inclined to violate policy when management
One may ask themselves, if law enforcement officers are working to protect the public, why would they commit corruption like they do? As it is described above, corruption is a big part in the law enforcement sector of society. The entire concept is quite complex although it may seem self explanatory to many people. Learning the many types of corruption and misconduct is only the beginning, then, to understand why the officers commit the conduct for which they do. With all this, it becomes apparent to the certain measures that need to be taken to rid society and police departments of the conduct that is constantly present.
The chapter about police corruption and responses by Joycelyn Pollock focuses on misconduct in law enforcement agencies. Despite multiple cases of corruption being highlighted and broadcast in the media, most police officers are ethical and perform their job with honesty and integrity. It is the select few officers who engage in corruption that need to be addressed, so that unethical actions can be stopped and prevented. Police misconduct can occur in one of two ways, economic corruption or abuse of authority. Economic corruption is when police use their power to benefit financially.
Martin, Rich. "Police Corruption: An Analytical Look into Police Ethics." The FBI Enforcement Bulletin May 2011: 11+. Academic OneFile. Web. 9 Feb. 2015.
It is often said that power brings corruption, but in reality it is an individual’s lack of character, self-discipline, and integrity that leads to corruption. Law enforcement can bring many temptations on the job, and maintaining an up most level of personal integrity can often times be very difficult. The very nature of the job surrounds officers with all of the bad things that society, produces. There can be an endless amount of training and rules put into place to try and deter officers from committing unethical acts, but in the end it really just comes down to the specific individual and their willingness to do the right thing.
The mindset of officers must change in order for the behavior to change. Corrupt behavior undermines the efforts of those who are committed to just ends. (Martinelli, 2011) In the meantime, there should be severe punishment if it is proven that an officer has broken the law and should not be overlooked at any level. Instead of planting evidence an officer could chose to do further investigation to try and gain evidence that is legitimate.
Corruption in law enforcement has been a nationwide problem for many years. Not only is corruption held in one level of law enforcement, but throughout the three levels including the state, local and federal. The formation of the first police departments were the model by the early english society. The early years of policing began to contribute various forms of misconduct from police officers. Soon thereafter, Sir Robert peel established early modern policing which influenced the colonial america policing to the english society. Yet, even after following the model of other countries of law enforcement, Colonial America corruption still continued. In the mid 1800's, corruption continued to widely affect society as a whole. It was until August Vollmer, who marked the contribution of professionalism to policing, that a notable difference began to diminish corruption. Misconduct occurs at all policing levels and continues to spread worldwide. The most common types of corruption are bribes, kickbacks, shakedowns, opportunistic theft, physical abuse, protection of illegal activities and physical abuse. These types of corruption are seen throughout all levels of law enforcement. Corruption is more prominent among higher ranking officers. Not only is misconduct found among those holding higher positions, but it is also seen in rookies who are just entering law enforcement. Corruption is induced not only from individual corrupt officers or chiefs, but occurs as a result of inadequate leadership structures and administrative policies. Eliminating reducing misconduct must be done by demonstrating integrity, better organization within the policies, stricter recruitment and training.
Police decisions can affect life, liberty, and property, and as guardians of the interests of the public, police must maintain high standards of integrity. Police discretion concerning how to act in a given situation can often lead to ethical misconduct (Banks 29).
Rich, Martin. “An Analytical Look into Police Ethics.” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin. Vol.80. Issue 5. May 2011. 11-17. EBSCOhost. Web. 12 Nov 2013