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The effects that discrimination can have on police officers
Police use of force introduction
Police use of force introduction
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Police use-of-force and allegations of discriminatory behavior continues to be a source of interest and concerns to both citizens and scholars alike. Whether police actions are justified or unnecessary, police authority without accountability has the potential to tarnish police/community relationship. Furthermore, whether police actions are seen as legitimate is based on the public’s perceptions of whether they trust the police. The Body Worn Camera (BWC) is a tool that holds both police and the public accountable for their actions while instantly documenting and collecting evidence. According to the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF, 2014), citizens’ opinions of the police is based on past encounters they have with the police, how …show more content…
A three tier inspection consist of Sergeant, Lieutenant, and Captain must be implemented for the deployment of BWCs. In order to protect the organization and hold the officers accountable while being transparent, supervisors will conduct monthly inspections to ensure operability and recordings are within policy. Moreover, supervisors will randomly select two dates each month that their employees were working and ensure the number of enforcement contacts matches up with the number of videos submitted. Any discrepancies will require written explanation and if warranted, an investigation by the immediate supervisor. The Lieutenant will conduct monthly unit inspection of all supervisors directly under him; further, he is responsible for ensuring the aforementioned inspections are completed in a timely manner and discrepancy corrected. Lastly, a written report will be submitted to the command Captain for review and approval. The Captain will ensure the report is thorough and all BWC deployment were in compliance with policy and procedures before submitting it to the Chief of Police. With proper use and careful management, the implementation of BWCs can dissuade unethical behaviors, fulfill the public concerns, build trust, and increase citizen’s respect for police
“A body-worn camera in public policing is a miniature audio and video recording device which allows recording of officers’ duties and citizen interaction,” notes Thomas K. Bud. Police body-cameras are significantly growing in popularity across Canada. While legislation has not confirmed definite rules regarding the use of body-cameras, local police departments have begun their implementation. Canadian police services involved in these projects include Toronto, Victoria, Edmonton, Calgary, and Amherstburg Police Services. The results of these projects have revealed mixed thoughts regarding body-camera effectiveness. Is it a good idea for police to wear body-cameras? While the cost of police wearing body cameras seems prohibitive, police wearing
By law enforcement wearing body cameras can be the first step into taking disciplinary action tour wards police brutality. Body cameras will encourage police officers to be more responsible on handling stressful situation and have more control on themselves, because their actions, he or she are in the public eye. For example study shows, when body cameras where issued police, officers decreased 60 percent of excessive force in the first year initiating of cameras.”(Donovan). The body cameras can control a serious situation
Although that gives the report a sometimes odd tone, defending a system that it admits failed badly, it also provides for some of the document's most evident soul-searching. One passage in particular warns of the consequences when police let down their guard. "Essentially, many of the problems found by this [Board of Inquiry] boil down to people failing to do their jobs with a high level of consistency and integrity," the report states. "Unfortunately, we found this to be true at all levels of the organization, including top managers, first-line supervisors and line personnel. Clearly, pride in one's work and a commitment to do things correctly the first time seems to have
Since their inception, police body cameras have been a controversial topic as many do not agree on their effectiveness and legality. To the trained eye, body cameras clearly have no negatives other than the sheer cost of their implementation. Some people, nonetheless, do believe that it is an encroachment of privacy for police to record private and/or public interactions even though it is purely legal. While that may be seen as a negative, it is wholly subjective and must be completely ignored when considering the factual analysis of police body camera use that is necessary to verify their validity. When only taking fact into account, there is no way to deny the nearly infinite benefits of body cameras.
Police officers should be required to wear body cameras because it will build a trust between law enforcement and the community, it will decrease the amount of complaints against police officers, and lastly it will decrease the amount of police abuse of authority. In addition, an officer is also more likely to behave in a more appropriate manner that follows standard operating procedures when encountering a civilian. “A 2013 report by the Department of Justice found that officers and civilians acted in a more positive manner when they were aware that a camera was present” (Griggs, Brandon). Critics claim that the use of body cameras is invasive of the officers and civilians privacy.
After considering the information in this week’s instructor guidance and readings, I have selected the research topic:
The New York Police Department has a mission to "preserve peace, reduce fear, maintain order," and protect its civilians in their communities (NYPD, 2016). On the contrary, civilians do not see the police officers as individuals who are there to protect them because they do not trust the police officers or the justice system. In the past few decades, police officers have not been held accountable for their actions in a few incidents where a few unarmed young black males were killed by the police. Communities responded to this issue with the Black Lives Matter movement with protests nationwide to show support for the unarmed young black men who were killed by police. In response to the aggressive policing, methods of using body cameras and detailed incident reporting ...
Any cop can tell you they have never had an incident where a person in their charge was hurt, but how can one know for sure whether or not the officer is telling the truth? Body cameras help to regulate the behavior of police officers. By having evidence of their day to day proclivities, offers have an incentive to behave a certain way when viewed. The camera acts as a psychological guide to help ensure the best performance and behavior from an officer. A case study was made to see how cameras affect the police officers psychologically which shows that, “People adhere to social norms and alter their behavior because of the awareness that someone else is watching.
Undoubtedly race and ethnicity plays a key role in whether perceptions of law enforcement is positive or negative. Most of the research presented finds that police contact with white’s vs blacks shapes their attitudes. Although contact with police plays a role, it is not the only component. Perceptions of police not only come from contact with police officers but from hearsay and media portrayal. As stated by (Callanan & Rosenberger, 2011) “most citizens are probably not likely to establish their opinions of law enforcement solely based on an occasional encounter, but also from other sources of information about the police, which for most members of the public is chiefly derived from the media.” Also, minorities are more likely than whites to believe that minorities are treated worse by police, and minority communities receive inferior police services (Graziano, Schuck & Martin 2010).
When one thinks of police misconduct many not too distant stories might go through our heads. Most adults will remember how they felt when they saw the brutal beating of Rodney King on their local news station; or the outrage they experienced when they heard that the evidence in the OJ Simpson trial had been tampered with. But thanks to new guidelines, procedures and even civilian groups who now “police” the police, instances of police misconduct may soon start seeing a decline.
Body cameras have been the new initiative over the past few years. Barack Obama announced that in 2014 allocated millions of dollars for federal funding to allow police officers to wear body cameras and to increase their training (Harvard Law Review). There are many organizations that have voiced their opinion of the use of body cameras. Many have stated that body cameras are a good idea and they should be implemented. The American Civil Liberties Union has stated that they are believe body cameras should be used across the country, but the public should still have their privacy (Harvard Law Review).
The author focuses on the U.S. Task Force on 21st Century Policing and Police Data Initiative or PDI to determine if it helps to restore trust and the broken relationship between and communities and police officers. The Task Force made by Barack Obama recommended the analysis of department policies, incidents of misconduct, recent stops and arrests, and demographics of the officers. The PDI has tasked 21 cities to comprehend the police behavior and find out what to do to change it. Also PDI was said to have data and information on vehicle stops and shootings by police officers. The use of statistics has a purpose to help rebuild trust and the relationship between and communities and police officers.
Since the police officers have a lot of say in dealing with calls and crimes, they all vary in their approaches to doing so. For instance, one officer may think a call is not as important as another, while a separate officer may decide the first call was more serious and he/she may respond to that one first. This is the same problem with whether or not to use force. There are many factors that affect not only the officer’s decision to use force, but also the criminal’s choice of actions. If an officer is being rude or discriminating against a suspect, then that suspect may act in a more vicious manner. This could result in the officer deciding to use force. All officers may see a threat differently, resulting in different disciplinary actions. The use of force rules vary in different police departments. This is concerning to some because the citizens may feel that they are not being treated as equal as others. Other issues include illegitimate investigations, spying, which could result in an unfair judgement of individuals that result in the officer’s use of force (Walker 1993, 24). Some officers will report an unfounding crime, which affects the true data of lowering the official crime rate (Walker 1993, 24). These issues are occurring in society today and are common topics in the news. Citizens want to know how we can better our systems to create a safer environment for
Means, R. (2007). Getting on the Same Page: Minimizing Supervisory Inconsistency. Police Chief Magazine, 74, 10.
Because officers wear body cameras each and every day, they have a huge potential to invade the privacy of people’s lives that they come in contact with. While entering the people’s homes, these men face witnesses, suspects, and victims in a broad assortment of stressful and sometimes even extreme situations (Stanley, 2015). Officers have the ability to turn their cameras on and off whenever they please, essentially providing the corrupt officers with a decision to completely ignore the policies set in place (Mottram, 2015). Because body cameras offer a wide-angle view of what is happening in front of merely just the camera lens, anything that happens on the sides of behind the officer fails to be recorded. Therefore, the officer may turn his head while his body is still facing whatever is in front of him, failing to record what he might be witnessing (Weaver, 2015). There are many loopholes in the technology and policies of body cameras, but it is safe to say that this is becoming the new reality for many police departments around the