Police Officers are members of Law Enforcement whose primary responsibilities are to protect citizens and their properties, deter crime while ensuring the rights of equality and justice for all (8). It is the responsibility of Police officers to deter crime in an ethical manner by adequately patrolling their assigned beats and promoting public relations on a persistent basis. Police officers are compensated to uphold the law by removing the freedom, reputations and lives of those whom violate or attempt to violate the law (5). Although, police officers have immense authority they shall not use their position for personal or financial gain nor to evade the law (5). Police officers should conduct themselves in a professional manner with the utmost
Positive relationships are genuinely instituted between the police and the public for this purpose. The sometimes public tend to show their appreciation by providing officers with freebies or discounted merchandise (2). On the contrary police officers are already compensated by their employer for their labor. In addition, sometimes gratuities can even constitute as a large percentage of an officer’s income if obtained on a continual basis (7). Gratuities can be idealized as an initial corruptor because people will then expect to be treated differently (7). For example, a police officer was assigned to patrol the Central Business District (CBD) for seven days and has received a free meal for five of those days. On the sixth day the officer is moved to the French Quarter due to a local festival needing additional coverage. On the sixth day the restaurant in the CBD contacts the police department complaining that there is no security in the area nor have they seen the assigned police officer whom they had been supplying with free food. Sometimes gratuities can be given to promote police presence by advertising that the environment is safe, to deter problematic patrons and to ensure future cooperation (4). Police officers should not indulge in gratuities because they impede on the performance of an officer’s official responsibilities and morality within the law
"A policeman’s first obligation is to be responsible to the needs of the community he serves…The problem is that the atmosphere does not yet exist in which an honest police officer can act without fear of ridicule or reprisal from fellow officers. We create an atmosphere in which the honest officer fears the dishonest officer, and not the other way around.", -Frank Serpico.
The job of a law enforcement officer sometimes can be tough. Officer are sometimes plagued with situation that test their ability to enforce the law and maintain order. Police officers today face a constant battle to maintain higher ethical standards. This mission becomes tougher each day when one considers the importance of fighting terrorism, drugs, human trafficking,
It is not uncommon for citizens, particular store or business owners to show their gratitude to officers by offering free cups of coffee, free meals, or discounts in exchange for their attentiveness and presence at the store. While the giving of a free cup of coffee may be an innocent gesture and certainly is not the sole contributor to ethical violations, or police corruption, the expectation, by the storeowner, of something in return is what establishes a “slippery slope” (Cheeseman, 2011). What makes a gift a gratuity is the reason it is given; what makes it corruption is the reason it is taken. The acceptance of even the smallest “perks,” such as free coffee, is problematic because it changes the mindset of officers. The slippery slope is corruption that begins with harmless, well intentioned practices and leads, over time, to all manner of crimes-for-profit (Delattre, 2004). If the reason the gratuity is given and taken leads to favoritism, impartiality, and prejudice, then this begins the downward spiral of unethical behavior.
The duties of a police officer are to ensure that there is maintenance of public peace and order. In order to perform their duties and obligations they require certain powers, authority in order to perform their duties and this extends the power to arrest. This paper focuses on the decision of the court in DPP v Carr, the amendments on Law Enforcement (Powers and Responsibilities) Act (LEPRA) section 99 and a critical evaluation of statements made by Sentas and Cowdery.
A police officer’s duty is to protect and serve their community. They also hold high standards for themselves. I believe the most valuable trait a police officer holds is integrity. This must be maintained because they are in a position of trust. Police officers are also very professional in what they do.
It is a myth to believe that an officers job is spend fighting dangerous crimes, in reality officers spend more time handing smaller cases. For example, police officers spend a lot of time doing daily tasks such as giving speeding tickets and being mediators in disputes (Kappeler & Potter, 2005). Handing out speeding tickers and handling minor disputes are far from fighting crime. Police officers spend more time doing preventive measures (Kappeler & Potter, 2005). Preventive measures involve officers intervening to prevent further altercations. Victor Kappeler and Gary Potter discussed the myth of crime fighting as invalid and misleading notions of an officer’s employment.
At some point in our lives, everybody eventually comes in contact with a law enforcement officer, some people for different reasons. Law enforcement officers work around the clock to keep citizens safe. Many people do not know a lot of things about law enforcement, some of those will be discussed. Those topics are agency administration, issues with law enforcement in today’s society, and law enforcement history.
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 ...
The primary duty of a police officer is to protect the public (Duties of a Police Officer. 2015.). To accomplish this task, police officers are assigned specific job duties on a daily basis, which vary depending on the size and type of their department. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, common duties of a police officer include patrolling designated areas, answering calls for help, enforcing laws, arresting suspected criminals, issuing citations, testifying in court and conducting traffic stops. Police officers also complete detailed reports regarding incidents after all traffic stops or house calls (Duties of a Police Officer.
Monetary profit is the first thing an individual recalls when corruption in the police department is discussed, mainly because officers are subjected to enticing opportunities, such as reclamation of missing property and bribes from owners and managers of restaurants. Because of new policies and improvements regarding the department and system of selecting new officers, this level of corruption has been hindered. Currently, officers are hired because of their dedication to their principles, which makes them susceptible to the noble cause corruption theory (Dempsey and Frost, 2012)
To get into the different types of corruption and misconduct, Pollock discusses six. You have gratuities, professional courtesy, use of alcohol and drugs on the job, graft, sexual misconduct, and criminal cops. Gratuities are basically items that are given to individuals, not because of the relationship between the receiver and the giver, but rather on the receiver’s role or position. A common example of this would be the accepting of free coffee. Many stores offer such things for appreciation of the officer’s work. An excellent example of this is the Holiday Gas Station in Marquette. The store gives free coffee to the officers of the Marquette area. Police courtesy is a common practice of not giving an...
Ethical decisions are involved with policing as officers often find themselves faced with ethical decisions when offered gratuities. Because of the risk officers take on a daily basis, it may seem ethical for them to accept gratuities offered. For example, officers may be offered free cups of coffee by store owners because the store owner is appreciates the officers service or he may want a ticket he receiv...
The focus is on the issues of police accountability in modern society, and in particular why their accountability is more important than other professions. This is not surprising considering the amount of power and discretion police officers have, and the level of trust that the public holds with these civil servants. Police officers accountability is the biggest thing in their profession which has been an issue of concern they have to be accountable to the police department who want the officer to be an effective and responsible person, to people in the community who have best expectation from an officer and being accountable to themselves for their acts. An ordinary citizen of a country cannot obtain the powers that police officer’s have.
It is true that police officers have absolute control over their own integrity and professionalism; however, a portion of the responsibility lies with the police administration. The “six pillars” of character are trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, justice/fairness, caring, and civic virtues/citizenship which is the type of character a police officer should ultimately possess to properly perform the honorable profession of law enforcement. As my research has revealed, that is not always the case, and because of that I am proposing some policy changes to improve the policies currently in place. Understanding the causes of police misconduct is critical to prevent distrust, fear and cynicism among citizens and their views of police officers.
When you think of police what does it mean to you? The responsibility of a police officer is to protect the public and to serve the community. Also, they detect and to prevent crime, police officers strive to maintain the law. New police officers work with the general duty as patrol divisions, that provides a range of experiences and assignments. The General duty of policing involves patrolling in assigned areas to enforce laws, protect public safety, and arrest criminal suspects either by car, foot, bicycle, or in some cases, horse. Police officers can also do some of the following: they Investigate accidents and crime scenes; to secure evidence and interview any witnesses; they collect notes and reports; they can provide emergency assistance to victims an disaster, crime, and accidents;