How much would it cost for someone to do a discussion for me?
mg433543
PolicingAmericaChallengesandBestPractices9thEdition_9994322.pdf
Ninth Edition
POLICING AMERICA CHALLENGES AND BEST PRACTICES
Kenneth J. Peak University of Nevada, Reno
William H. Sousa University of Nevada, Las Vegas
330 Hudson Street, NY, NY 10013
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Peak, Kenneth J., author. | Sousa, William H., author.
Title: Policing America : challenges and best practices / Kenneth J. Peak, University of Nevada, Reno,
William H. Sousa, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Description: Ninth edition. | Boston : Pearson, [2018] | Includes index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016035762| ISBN 9780134526959 | ISBN 0134526953
Subjects: LCSH: Police–United States. | Law enforcement–United States.
Classification: LCC HV8141 .P33 2018 | DDC 363.20973–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.
gov/2016035762
Vice President, Portfolio Management: Andrew
Gilfillan
Portfolio Manager: Gary Bauer
Editorial Assistant: Lynda Cramer
Senior Vice President, Marketing: David Gesell
Field Marketing Manager: Thomas Hayward
Product Marketing Manager: Kaylee Carlson
Senior Marketing Coordinator: Les Roberts
Director, Digital Studio and Content Production:
Brian Hyland
Managing Producer: Cynthia Zonneveld
Manager, Rights Management: Johanna Burke
Manufacturing Buyer: Deidra Smith, Higher Ed,
RR Donnelley
Creative Digital Lead: Mary Siener
Managing Producer, Digital Studio: Autumn Benson
Content Producer, Digital Studio: Maura Barclay
Full-Service Management and Composition:
iEnergizer Aptara®, Ltd.
Full-Service Project Managers: Mickey Mankus and
Sudip Sinha, iEnergizer Aptara®, Ltd.
Project Management Support: Susan Hannahs,
SPi Global
Cover Design: Melissa Welch, Studio Montage
Cover Art: Fotolia © Patrick Rolands
Printer/Bindery: RR Donnelley/Menasha
Cover Printer: Phoenix Color
Text Font: Times LT Pro 10/12
ISBN-10: 0-13-452695-3
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-452695-9
SVE ISBN-10: 0-13-452709-7
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-452709-3
Copyright © 2018, 2015, 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliates. All Rights Reserved.
Manufactured in the United States of America. This publication is protected by copyright, and permission
should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or
transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise. For
information regarding permissions, request forms, and the appropriate contacts within the Pearson Education
Global Rights and Permissions department, please visit www.pearsoned.com/permissions/.
Acknowledgments of third-party content appear on the appropriate page within the text.
Unless otherwise indicated herein, any third-party trademarks, logos, or icons that may appear in this work are
the property of their respective owners, and any references to third-party trademarks, logos, icons, or other trade
dress are for demonstrative or descriptive purposes only. Such references are not intended to imply any sponsor-
ship, endorsement, authorization, or promotion of Pearson’s products by the owners of such marks, or any rela-
tionship between the owner and Pearson Education, Inc., or its affiliates, authors, licensees, or distributors.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To the several members of my family circle—an attorney, sheriff, police commander, assistant
sheriff, federal agent—who uphold the legal maxim “Mind your manners, tell the truth, know
the law.”
—K. J. P.
To Mom and Dad, who have always stuck by me wherever my travels have led.
—W. H. S.
iv
▼
P A R T 1 Foundations: Development of American Policing and Police Officers 1
CHAPTER 1 History: From English Origins to the United States 2
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street: Recruitment, Training, and Socialization 35
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol: Methods and Menaces 67
P A R T 2 Practices and Challenges 97
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing: “Guardians,” or “Soldiers”? 98
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation: The Science of Sleuthing 121
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices: Stress, Labor Relations, Higher Education, and Private Police 149
P A R T 3 Adhering to Law, Ethical Principles, and Public Expectations 171
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law: Expounding the Constitution 172
CHAPTER 8 Accountability: Use of Force, Ethics, Corruption, and Discipline 202
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability: Failing the Public Trust 238
P A R T 4 Agency Organization and Administration 259
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies: Protecting Our Borders and Freedoms 260
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies: Organization, Administration, and Roles 286
P A R T 5 Best Practices: Addressing Special Populations, Using Specialized Equipment 317
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations: The Changing War on Drugs, Terrorists, Cybercriminals, and Gangs 318
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems: Mental Illness, Domestic Violence, Immigrants, and Human Trafficking 346
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies: Contributions and Caveats 364
Brief Contents
v
▼
Preface xiv
Acknowledgments xx
About the Authors xxi
P A R T 1 Foundations: Development of American Policing and Police Officers 1
CHAPTER 1 History: From English Origins to the United States 2
Learning Objectives 2
Introduction 3
English and Colonial Officers
of the Law 3
Sheriff 3
Constable 5
Coroner 5
Justice of the Peace 6
The Old English and Colonial
Systems of Policing 7
Old English Traditions 7
Policing in Colonial America 8
Legacies of the Colonial Period 8
Police Reform in England 10
Policing Comes to the United
States 14
Southern Slave Patrols 15
The Political Era: 1840s
to 1930s 16
Imitating Peel 16
Early Issues
and Traditions 17
Attempts at Reform
in Difficult Times 17
Increased Politics
and Corruption 18
Meanwhile, on the American
Frontier . . . 19
The Entrenchment of Political
Influence 21
The Reform Era: 1930s
to 1980s 22
Attempts to Thwart Political
Patronage 22
The Era of August Vollmer 22
The Crime Fighter Image 25
The Wickersham
Commission 25
Police as the “Thin Blue Line”:
William H. Parker 26
1960s and 1970s: The Struggle
for Civil Rights 27
A Retreat from the Professional
Model 28
Coming Full Circle to Peel:
President’s Crime Commission
and Beyond 28
The Community Era: 1980s
to Present 29
Summary 31
Key Terms 31
Review Questions 32
Learn by Doing 32
Notes 32
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street: Recruitment, Training, and Socialization 35
Learning Objectives 35
Introduction 36
First Things First: Recruiting
Qualified Applicants 36
Contents
CONTENTS vi
▼
Wanted: Those Who Walk
on Water 36
Recruiting Problems
and Successes 38
Testing 39
Hurdle Process 39
Written Examinations: General
Knowledge and Psychological
Tests 40
Physical Agility 41
Personal Interview 42
Character Investigation 42
Polygraph Examination 43
Medical Examination and Drug
Screening 44
Assessment Center 44
Formal Entry into Policing:
Academy Training 45
Training Nature and Topics 45
New Demeanor
and Uniform 47
Suspicion: The “Sixth
Sense” 49
Postacademy Field Training 51
Field Training Officer (FTO)
Program 51
Police Training Officer (PTO)
Program 52
New Technology 52
In-Service Training 53
Working Personality: Having the
“Right Stuff” 53
Developing a Police
Personality 53
What Traits Make a
Good Cop? 55
Roles, Functions, and Styles
of Policing 56
Definition and Knowledge of the
Police Role 56
Role Conflicts 57
Policing Functions and Styles 58
Which Role, Function, and Style
Prevail? 59
Breaking Through Glass
Ceilings: Women
and Minorities 59
Women as Officers and Chief
Executives 59
Advantages 59
Minorities as Law Enforcement
Officers 61
Summary 62
Key Terms 63
Review Questions 63
Learn by Doing 63
Notes 64
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol: Methods and Menaces 67
Learning Objectives 67
Introduction 68
Studies of the Patrol Function:
An Overview 68
Patrol as Work: Culture
of the Beat 71
Purposes and Nature
of Patrol 71
Patrol Work as a Function
of Shift Assignment 73
Influence of an Assigned
Beat 74
Where Danger Lurks:
Occupational Hazards
of Patrol 75
At Their Peril 75
Suicide by Cop 76
Arms and Armor
for Duty 78
H.R. 218 79
Officers on Display:
Appearance, Uniforms,
and Dress Codes 79
Legal Aspects 80
Psychological Aspects 80
Instituting (and Enforcing)
a Dress Code 81
CONTENTS vii
▼
The Officer’s “Rolling
Office” 82
A Sanctuary 82
Patrolling on Two Wheels 83
Discretionary Use of Police
Authority 86
Myth of Full Enforcement 86
Attempts to Define
Discretion 86
Determinants of Officer
Discretion 87
Pros, Cons, and Politics
of Discretionary Authority 88
A Related Function: Traffic 89
Enforcement of Traffic Laws:
Triumph and Trouble 89
Traffic Crash Investigation 90
Pursuit of the “Phantom”
Driver 91
The Patrol Lifeline: Dispatchers
and Communications 91
Summary 92
Key Terms 92
Review Questions 93
Learn by Doing 93
Notes 93
P A R T 2 Practices and Challenges 97
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing: “Guardians,” or “Soldiers”? 98
Learning Objectives 98
Introduction 99
Lessons from History
and Ferguson 99
A Brief Reflection 99
Police Responses to
Violence: Modifications in
Tactics, Training, and
Equipment 101
How to Achieve Harmony,
Justice, and Policy? 101
Transparency and Trust
Building: Opportunities
and Challenges 103
A Change in Mindset 103
Calls for Police Body
Cameras 104
Basic Principles of Community
Policing 104
A Redefined Role 104
A Necessary Extension:
Problem-Oriented Policing 104
The Problem-Solving Process:
SARA 106
Scanning: Problem
Identification 106
Analysis: Heart of Problem
Solving 106
Response: Formulation
of Tailor-Made Strategies 108
Assessment: Evaluation
of Overall Effectiveness 109
A Broader Role for the Street
Officer 109
CompStat: Utilizing Information
Technology to Manage
Crime 109
Crime Prevention 110
Crime Prevention Through
Environmental Design 111
Repeat Victimization 112
Community Policing
and Problem Solving
at Work 113
An Emerging Paradigm:
Smart Policing 115
Origins 115
How It Works: An Array
of Strategies and Tactics 116
Summary 117
Key Terms 118
Review Questions 118
Learn by Doing 118
Notes 119
CONTENTS viii
▼
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation: The Science of Sleuthing 121
Learning Objectives 121
Introduction 122
Scope of Forensic Science
and Criminalistics 122
Definitions of Terms 122
A Word About Crime
Scenes 124
Origins of Criminalistics 125
Personal Identification:
Anthropometry
and Dactylography 125
Locard’s Exchange
Principle 128
Firearms Identification 128
Contributions of August Vollmer
and Others 128
Forensic Science and the
Criminal Justice System 129
Investigative Stages
and Activities 129
Arrest and Case
Preparation 130
Detectives: Qualities, Myths,
and Attributes 130
Officers Who “Disappear”:
Working Undercover 132
Problems with the Role 132
Return to Patrol Duties 133
Contributions of Medical
Examiners and Coroners 133
Uses of the Polygraph 134
DNA Analysis 134
Discovery and Types
of Analyses 134
CODIS 137
DNA Policy Nightmare:
Solving Property Crimes 137
Postconviction DNA Tests:
The Supreme Court Speaks 138
A Wider Net: New Law Expands
DNA Gathering 138
Familial DNA 138
Criminal Profiling
and Psycholinguistics 139
Developing Areas in Forensic
Science and Investigation 140
Using Social Networking
Sites 140
No Stone Unturned:
Cold Cases 141
Use of “Nonhuman Detectives”:
Dogs 141
Is There a “CSI Effect”? 142
Investigative Tools:
Informants, Interviews,
and Interrogations 142
Use of Confidential
Informants 142
Conducting Interviews
and Interrogations 143
Summary 144
Key Terms 144
Review Questions 145
Learn by Doing 145
Notes 145
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices: Stress, Labor Relations, Higher Education, and Private Police 149
Learning Objectives 149
Introduction 150
The Silent Epidemic:
Stress 150
Nature and Types
of Stress 150
Sources of Stress 151
Effects of Stress 153
Employee Assistance
Programs 153
Labor Relations: Officers’
Rights, Unionization,
and Collective Bargaining 154
The Continuing Discussion:
Higher Education 159
CONTENTS ix
▼
Lagging Behind 159
An Enduring Controversy 160
Rationales For and Against
Higher Education
for Police 160
On Guard: The Private
Police 162
Nature and Types 162
Attempts to Legislate
Regulation 164
An Organization at the
Forefront 165
A Sidebar Note: Arrival of the
Millennials 165
Summary 166
Key Terms 166
Review Questions 167
Learn by Doing 167
Notes 167
P A R T 3 Adhering to Law, Ethical Principles, and Public Expectations 171
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law: Expounding the Constitution 172
Learning Objectives 172
Introduction 173
Fourth Amendment 174
Probable Cause 175
Exclusionary Rule 175
Arrests 177
Searches and Seizures 180
Electronic Surveillance 191
Lineups 191
Fifth Amendment 191
Decisions Supporting Miranda:
Confessions 192
Decisions Modifying Miranda:
Interrogations 193
Entrapment 194
Sixth Amendment 195
Right to Counsel 195
What Constitutes
an Interrogation? 195
Juvenile Rights 196
Summary 198
Key Terms 199
Review Questions 199
Learn by Doing 199
Notes 200
CHAPTER 8 Accountability: Use of Force, Ethics, Corruption, and Discipline 202
Learning Objectives 202
Introduction 203
First Things First:
The Constitution as “Boss”
and Police Legitimacy 204
Police Use of Force,
Generally 205
Legitimate Purposes 205
Legal Restrictions 206
Which Type and How Much?
Use-of-Force Continuums 206
Another “Lesson Learned”:
Responding to Mass
Demonstrations 208
Police Brutality 209
Vehicle Pursuits 210
Police Shootings: Conundrum
and Controversy 210
America’s Angst 211
Wanted: A National
Database 211
Posting Information about Police
Shootings 212
The Early Intervention System:
Identifying Problem
Employees 212
Police Ethics 213
A Scenario 214
Definitions and Types
of Problems 214
CONTENTS x
▼
Police Corruption 216
History: A Long-Standing
“Plague” 216
Types and Causes 217
Code of Silence 218
Investigation
and Prosecution 219
Limitations on Officers’
Constitutional Rights 219
Alcohol and Drug Abuse 223
Brady Material 223
Social Networking: Issues
and Policy Guidance 224
Disciplinary Policies
and Practices 226
Maintenance of Public
Trust 226
Due Process
Requirements 226
Complaints 227
Level of Discipline and Type
of Sanction 229
Civilian Review Boards:
A Blessing or a Curse? 231
Extent and Rationale 231
Police Distrust 231
In Sum . . . 232
Summary 232
Key Terms 233
Review Questions 233
Learn by Doing 233
Notes 234
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability: Failing the Public Trust 238
Learning Objectives 238
Introduction 239
Incidence, Expense, Benefits,
and Nature of Lawsuits 239
Basic Terms and Concepts 240
Section 1983 Litigation 243
History and Escalation 243
Police Actions Leading to
Section 1983 Liability 244
Criminal Prosecutions for Police
Misconduct 247
Liability of Police
Supervisors 247
Other Areas of Potential
Liability 248
Less-Lethal Tools
and Technologies 248
Duty of Care 249
Failure to Protect 251
Vehicle Pursuits 251
Computer Evidence 252
Qualified Immunity
for Police 254
Summary 255
Key Terms 255
Review Questions 255
Learn by Doing 256
Notes 256
P A R T 4 Agency Organization and Administration 259
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies: Protecting Our Borders and Freedoms 260
Learning Objectives 260
Introduction 261
Federal Law Enforcement
Agencies with Arrest
and Firearms Authority 261
Department of Homeland
Security 262
Department of Justice 267
Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) 269
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms, and Explosives
(ATF) 273
CONTENTS xi
▼
Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) 274
U.S. Marshals Service
(USMS) 274
Other Federal Agencies 276
Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) 276
Internal Revenue Service
(IRS) 276
Federal Law Enforcement
Training Center (FLETC) 277
State Agencies 278
State Police and Law
Enforcement Agencies:
General Types 278
Other Special-Purpose State
Agencies 279
Why No Single, Consolidated
Police Force? 281
Career Considerations 281
Summary 283
Key Terms 283
Review Questions 283
Learn by Doing 283
Notes 284
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies: Organization, Administration, and Roles 286
Learning Objectives 286
Introduction 287
Organizations, Generally 287
What Are Organizations? 287
Organizations as
Bureaucracies: In Principle
and Perception 288
Organizational
Communication 289
Police Agencies
as Organizations 290
Chain of Command 290
Organizational Structure 291
Unity of Command and Span
of Control 292
Organizational Policies
and Procedures 294
Communication Within Police
Organizations 294
Barriers to Effective
Communication 296
Local Agencies 296
Police Departments and Sheriff’s
Offices: A Comparison 296
Executive Officers: Police Chief
and County Sheriff 297
Mintzberg Model of Chief
Executive Officers 301
Interpersonal Role 301
Informational Role 301
Decision-Maker Role 302
Middle Managers: Captains
and Lieutenants 303
First-Line Supervisors 304
Ten Tasks 305
Police and Politics 305
Good Politics,
Bad Politics 305
Police Executive Relations
and Expectations 307
Policing in Small and Rural
Jurisdictions 307
Fewer People, Greater
Needs 307
Unique Duties 308
Criminal Activity 308
Ways to Stretch
Resources 309
Consolidated Policing 310
Civilianization 310
Agency Accreditation 311
Summary 312
Key Terms 312
Review Questions 312
Learn by Doing 313
Notes 313
CONTENTS xii
▼
P A R T 5 Best Practices: Addressing Special Populations, Using Specialized Equipment 317
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations: The Changing War on Drugs, Terrorism, Cybercriminals, and Gangs 318
Learning Objectives 318
Introduction 319
The Changing War
on Drugs 319
Marijuana: Conflicting Federal
and State Laws 319
Other Controlled Drugs 320
What Works: “Pulling
Levers” 324
High Intensity Drug Trafficking
Areas Program 325
The Many Faces
of Terrorism 325
Definitions and Types 325
An International Problem 326
New Worries: Homegrown
Violent Extremists and the Lone
Wolf Terrorist 327
Bioterrorism 327
Police Approaches
and Methods 328
Also in Law Enforcement’s
Toolkit: Legislation, Planning,
and Social Media 330
Cybercriminals 331
Not Only in Film:
Extent of Victimization 331
Types, Tactics,
and Training 333
Identify Theft 335
Nature and Victim/Police
Responses 335
Toward an Effective Response
Strategy 335
Addressing Youth Gangs:
“Pulling Levers” 337
Juvenile Offending Today 337
Gang Overview 337
What Works? 338
Summary 340
Key Terms 340
Review Questions 341
Learn by Doing 341
Notes 342
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems: Mental Illness, Domestic Violence, Immigrants, and Human Trafficking 346
Learning Objectives 346
Introduction 347
Coping with the Mentally Ill
Population 347
When the Problem Becomes
Lethal 347
Front-End, Back-End
Issues 349
What Can Police Do?
The Success of CIT 349
Domestic Violence 351
Dangers and Approaches 351
Immigration to the Land
of Opportunity 354
The Changing Numbers, Faces
of Undocumented Immigrants
in the United States 354
The Role of Local
Police 356
Human Trafficking 358
“Modern Day Slavery”
for Victims 358
What Works? Collaboration
is Key 359
CONTENTS xiii
▼
The T Visa 359
The Office of Victims
of Crime 360
Additional Efforts:
The Diagnostic Center 360
Gang Involvement 361
Summary 361
Key Terms 361
Review Questions 361
Learn by Doing 362
Notes 362
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies: Contributions and Caveats 364
Learning Objectives 364
Introduction 365
Which IT Tools to Use?
Consider the Type of Task
Involved 365
IT for Problem-Oriented
Policing: A Conceptual
Framework 366
Rationale for IT 366
A Primer: IT Systems
for Acquiring Crime
Information 367
The Cry Heard ‘Round The
Country: “Wear Body
Cameras!”’ 368
Crime Mapping 370
Real-Time Crime Centers 371
Applying Social Media 372
Lessons from Boston’s Marathon
Bombing 372
A Concern: When Police
Use Facebook 373
Civic Apps
for Crime-Fighting 373
IT for Traffic-Related
Tasks 374
GPS and 3D Tech for Crash
Investigations 374
IT with High-Speed
Pursuits 375
What Must Be Done for New IT
to Improve Policing? 376
Other Caveats: Legal, Moral,
Practical Considerations 377
Selected Technologies
and Policies to Watch for 379
Addressing Texting While
Driving 379
Electronic Control Devices:
Safe—or Not? 380
Rules and Restriction
on Drones 381
You Decide: Police Use
of Drones 382
Facial Recognition:
Progress and Protest 382
Fingerprinting: Expanding
Tech and Databases 384
Uses of Robots 385
3D Apps for Crime-Fighting—
As Well As Following/Recording
Police 386
Summary 387
Key Terms 387
Review Questions 387
Learn by Doing 388
Notes 388
Index 392
xiv
▼
PrefaCe
▶ Purposes and Approaches
Famed educator John Dewey advocated the “learning by doing” approach to education
or problem-based learning. The ninth edition is written, from start to finish, with that
philosophy in mind and is ref lected in the book’s subtitle, Challenges and Best
Practices. And, as with its eight predecessors, this book benefits from the authors’
many years of combined practical and academic experience. Its chapters contain a
real-world, applied f lavor not found in most policing textbooks and ref lect the
changing times in which we live and the tremendous challenges facing federal, state,
and local agents and officers every day. And like its eight preceding editions, this
edition continues to represent our best attempts to allow the reader, to the fullest
extent possible, to vicariously experience carrying a law enforcement badge or
wearing a police uniform by providing a highly practical, comprehensive world view
of the challenging occupation. As shown above in the below “New Topics” section,
included are several beneficial additions in topics as well as changes in its organization
and content.
▶ Special Features and Attributes
The first aspect of the book that will be noted are its several pedagogical attributes. First,
to help make this textbook more reader-friendly, each chapter begins with learning
objectives and an introduction. A summary, list of key terms, review questions, “Learn by
Doing,” and endnotes are found at the end of each chapter. Other instructional aids found
in the chapters include the Career Profiles, Court Close-ups, tables and figures, and
exhibits describing police methods and news items. Finally, a detailed index at the end of
the book makes it easy to find information on specific topics.
A few additional comments are in order concerning the “Learn by Doing” and
“Career Profiles” sections of this edition, which are to further enhance its applied
nature. Coupled with John Dewey’s aforementioned “learning by doing” approach to
education, or problem-based learning, another popular learning method was espoused
by Benjamin Bloom known as “Bloom’s Taxonomy.” Bloom called for “higher-order
thinking skills”—critical and creative thinking that involves analysis, synthesis, and
evaluation. These chapter scenarios and activities place you in hypothetical situations,
shifting attention away from the textbook-centered instruction and moving the empha-
sis to student-centered projects. These activities also allow you to practice skills in
communication and self-management, act as a problem-solver, and learn about/address
current community issues. Hopefully, you will be inspired to become engaged in some
or all of these scenarios and activities.
The “Career Profiles,” appearing in several chapters contain information provided by
current police practitioners and provide the reader with their insights concerning the nature
of their duties, a “typical day,” and some career advice.
PREFACE xv
▼
▶ New Topics in This Ninth Edition
In addition to updated information throughout the book as well as new case studies and
exercises, following are other substantively new materials added to this revised ninth
edition:
Chapter 1: New material concerning the community era of policing
Chapter 2: Muir’s characteristics of a good police officer
Chapter 3: Profile of officers feloniously killed and other occupational hazards;
types of uniforms, generally, and those for female officers.
Chapter 4: Recent events involving police shootings and use of force, and their
effects on police–community relationships; officers as “guardians”
rather than “soldiers”; suggested means of achieving harmony, justice,
and policy development; changing mindset, having transparency,
building trust; calls for police body-worn cameras; problem-solving
case studies.
Chapter 5: Example of a famous cold case recently solved using modern
investigative techniques.
Chapter 6: Continuing discussions of police higher education; unique statutory
powers of private police; attempts to regulate private police; arrival,
traits, and needs of the Millennial generation in policing;
Chapter 7: U.S. Supreme Court and federal district court decisions concerning
“mistake of law,” police searching contents of cellphones (including
incidental to lawful arrest), stop and frisk vis-à-vis racial profiling; duty
to retreat laws.
Chapter 8: The Constitution as “boss”; police legitimacy; responding to mass
demonstrations; America’s angst toward police shootings, and the need for
a national database concerning same; posting shooting facts and
disciplinary outcomes on the internet; early intervention system for
identifying problem employees; civilian review boards (blessing or curse?).
Chapter 9: Soaring costs of lawsuits and wrongful death claims; use of U.S. Code
Section 242; injuries due to police pursuits.
Chapter 10: Selected federal law enforcement agencies’ priorities, expenditures,
employment, arrests; pros and cons of having a single consolidated,
national law enforcement agency (as in many foreign venues); career
considerations.
Chapter 11: New material concerning the composition of municipal police and
county sheriff’s departments
Chapter 12: The changing war on drugs; conflicting federal/state marijuana laws and
marijuana legislation in foreign venues; status of other controlled drugs;
what “works” with policing drug abuse; international terrorism and
changes in recruitment; the rise of “lone wolf ” terrorists and the Islamic
State; how a U.S. citizen becomes radicalized; federal, state, and local
strategies for addressing terrorism; methods and case studies of
cybercriminals, and federal, state, local, and INTERPOL efforts for
PREFACE xvi
▼
policing them; identity theft (same general topics as with cybercriminals);
“pulling levers” with, and problem-solving responses to gangs;
Homeboy Industries.
Chapter 13: Growing problems and issues involving, and policing methods with the
mentally ill population; problems, approaches, legal aspects of domestic
violence; contemporary immigration issues, including political
conundrums, legislation, and sanctuary cities; human, legal and societal
aspects of human trafficking, and law enforcement and gang involvement.
Chapter 14: Determining which types of IT tool to use; IT for police problem-
solving; the national demand for, problems and issues with body-worn
cameras; real-time crime centers; contemporary uses of, problems with
social media; civic apps for crime-fighting; IT for traffic crash
investigations and high-speed chases; how new IT can improve
policing; legal, moral, practical issues surrounding uses of new
technologies; arguments for and against license plate readers; selected
technologies and policies that are on the horizon for: texting while
driving, electronic control devices, unmanned aerial vehicles (drones),
facial recognition, homeland security efforts, solving cold cases, apps
for tracking police, the Internet of Things.
▶ Chapter Organization and Contents
The book’s fourteen chapters are divided into five parts; following is a description of the
organization and contents of those parts and chapters that compose this ninth edition, as
well as its supplemental attributes.
In Part 1, the foci are on the foundations—that is, evolution and development—of
policing. Chapter 1 traces policing in history, from its English origins through its migra-
tion to the United States; included are discussions of its striving for acceptance both here
and abroad as well as its struggles (e.g., political inf luence, reform, and the civil rights
movement in the United States) and transformations during this historical period. Chapter 2
charts the “making” of a police officer and begins by examining how common citizens are
prepared for doing the work of policing: recruitment (to include the testing process used to
discern whether one possesses the physical and psychological attributes that are sought),
training (both during and after the recruit academy), and the different styles and roles of
policing. Next, having hired and formed citizens into police officers, Chapter 3 takes the
officers to the street, looking at the very fundamental (and at times hazardous) function of
patrolling and its purposes and nature; the variations in patrol work by shift, beat, and
assignment; officers’ use of discretion; and the traditional traffic function.
Part 2 considers contemporary policing practices and challenges and begins with a
discussion of community policing, community-oriented policing, and problem solving
(Chapter 4), and includes this strategy’s principles, strategies, and various applications, as
well as Smart Policing, intelligence-led policing, and predictive policing. Next, Chapter 5
focuses on criminal investigation, including some discussion of how this field evolved, the
roles of detectives, working undercover, DNA and other forms of analysis and technolo-
gies, uses of behavioral science, and recent developments in the field. This part’s conclud-
ing chapter, Chapter 6, examines selected personnel issues: stress, labor relations, higher
education, and the private police.
Next, in the three chapters composing Part 3, we combine several means by which
police authority is constrained. More specifically, Chapter 7 looks at the rule of law: court
decisions and constitutional enactments that direct and constrain police actions; the focus
PREFACE xvii
▼
here is on the Bill of Rights in the Constitution, particularly the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth
Amendments. Chapter 8 considers police accountability from several perspectives, includ-
ing the issue of police ethics, use of force, corruption, and discipline (particularly in light
of recent deterioration in police–minority relations and unlawful use of deadly force).
Potential civil liability of the police is the focus of Chapter 9, to include various areas in
which officers may be liable, and the means by which citizens may seek legal redress
when they believe their civil rights have been violated.
Part 4 has as its underlying theme the fact that federal and state law enforcement as
well as local (municipal and county) policing in the United States doesn’t “just happen”
or occur in random, unplanned fashion. Such organizations are in fact organized and
administered by virtue of their sovereignty, jurisdiction, and type of assignment so as to
be more effective and efficient. Chapter 10 examines the organization and administra-
tion of U.S. federal and state law enforcement agencies, and Chapter 11 continues this
type of discussion, examining the organization and administration of local (i.e., munici-
pal police and county sheriff) agencies; included are profiles of both and comparisons
with each other. Also discussed are definitions of organizations; organizational commu-
nication; functions of police executive officers, middle managers, and supervisors;
inf luence of politics; media relations; contract and consolidated policing; and agency
accreditation.
Part 5, like the three previous ones, is intended to have a grouping effect in terms of
common attributes, with the emphasis here being on the problems caused by special
populations of criminals, the challenges they pose for the police, and some of the methods
and tools being used to deal with those problems. Chapter 12 examines several criminal
organizations that plague our society, including drug traffickers, terrorists, cybercriminals,
and gang members. Methods, relevant legislation, and other tools for coping with these
crime collectives is included. Chapter 13 largely moves away from this “collective”
grouping of offenders as discussed in Chapter 12 and looks instead at selected individual
offenders as well as other “people problems.” Included in this chapter are the problems
posed by the mentally ill population, domestic violence, crimes involving illegal
immigrants, and human trafficking; emphases here, as in the previous chapter, are on the
best practices, relevant legislation, and other tools that are available to the police for
coping with these crimes. Finally, Chapter 14 examines a wide array of exciting police
technologies that exist today or are on the horizon for detecting crime, analyzing evidence,
and doing everyday work.
From its beginning through the final chapter, this book provides a penetrating view of
policing in America, demonstrating that this occupation inherently continues to be one of
the most challenging and difficult occupations our society has ever witnessed.
▶ Instructor Supplements
instructor’s Manual with test Bank Includes content outlines for classroom discus- sion, teaching suggestions, and answers to selected end-of-chapter questions from the text.
This also contains a Word document version of the test bank.
testGen This computerized test generation system gives you maximum f lexibility in creating and administering tests on paper, electronically, or online. It provides state-of-the-
art features for viewing and editing test bank questions, dragging a selected question into a
test you are creating, and printing sleek, formatted tests in a variety of layouts. Select test
items from test banks included with TestGen for quick test creation, or write your own
questions from scratch. TestGen’s random generator provides the option to display differ-
ent text or calculated number values each time questions are used.
PREFACE xviii
▼
PowerPoint Presentations Our presentations offer clear, straightforward. Photos,
illustrations, charts, and tables from the book are included in the presentations when
applicable.
To access supplementary materials online, instructors need to request an instructor
access code. Go to www.pearsonhighered.com/irc, where you can register for an instruc-
tor access code. Within 48 hours after registering, you will receive a confirming email,
including an instructor access code. Once you have received your code, go to the site and
log on for full instructions on downloading the materials you wish to use.
alternate Versions
eBooks This text is also available in multiple eBook formats. These are an exciting new choice for students looking to save money. As an alternative to purchasing the printed
textbook, students can purchase an electronic version of the same content. With an
eTextbook, students can search the text, make notes online, print out reading assignments
that incorporate lecture notes, and bookmark important passages for later review. For more
information, visit your favorite online eBook reseller or visit www.mypearsonstore.com.
reVeL™ is Pearson’s newest way of delivering our respected content. Fully digital and highly engaging, REVEL replaces the textbook and gives students everything they need
for the course. Seamlessly blending text narrative, media, and assessment, REVEL enables
students to read, practice, and study in one continuous experience—for less than the cost
of a traditional textbook. Learn more at pearsonhighered.com/revel.
▶ REVEL for Policing America: Challenges and Best Practices, 9e by Peak and Sousa
Designed for the Way today’s Criminal Justice students read, think and Learn
REVEL offers an immersive learning experience that engages students deeply, while giv-
ing them the flexibility to learn their way. Media interactives and assessments integrated
directly within the narrative enable students to delve into key concepts and reflect on their
learning without breaking stride.
reVeL seamlessly combines the full content of Pearson’s bestselling criminal justice titles with multimedia learning tools. You assign the topics your students cover. Author Explan-
atory Videos, application exercises, and short quizzes engage students and enhance their
understanding of core topics as they progress through the content.
Instead of simply reading about criminal justice topics, REVEL empowers students to
think critically about important concepts by completing application exercises, watching
Point/ CounterPoint videos, and participating in shared writing (discussion board)
assignments.
track time-on-task throughout the Course
The Performance Dashboard allows you to see how much time the class or individual
students have spent reading a section or doing an assignment, as well as points earned per
assignment. This data helps correlate study time with performance and provides a window
into where students may be having difficulty with the material.
PREFACE xix
▼
neW! ever-Growing accessibility
Learning Management system integration
REVEL offers a full integration to the Blackboard Learning Management System (LMS).
Access assignments, rosters and resources, and synchronize REVEL grades with the LMS
gradebook. New direct, single sign-on provides access to all the immersive REVEL
content that fosters student engagement.
the reVeL app
The REVEL App further empowers students to access their course materials wherever and
whenever they want. With the REVEL App, students can access REVEL directly from
their iPhone or Android device and receive push notifications on assignments all while not
being tethered to an Internet connection. Work done on the REVEL app syncs up to the
browser version, ensuring that no one misses a beat.
Visit www.pearsonhighered.com/revel
xx
▼
aCknoWLeDGMents
The authors would like to extend heartfelt gratitude to those reviewers named below who
are responsible for the improvements and overall product found within this book’s covers.
Textbook authors—not unlike artists at their easels—constantly strive to upgrade the qual-
ity of our “pallet,” so as to deliver a better product to our “gallery.” Reviewers are the
unheralded heroes in this regard, examining each chapter so as to provide the author(s)
with comprehensive, thoughtful, and cogent reviews. Their incisive and insightful work
with each chapter far exceeds what we could accomplish alone, and the final product is
immeasurably improved because of those efforts. Again, many thanks to the following:
Melchor deGuzman, The College at Brockport, SUNY
Michael Freeman, Brookhaven College/Dallas County Community College
Cherly Furdge, North Central Texas College
Pearl Jacobs, Sacred Heart University
Brandon Kooi, Aurora University
Mary Pyle, Tyler Junior College
Finally, this edition, like its eight predecessors, is the result of the professional assis-
tance and forbearance of several people at Pearson Education. Specifically, we wish to
acknowledge the yeoman’s efforts of Gary Bauer, our Portfolio Manager. And the produc-
tion team of Lynda Cramer, Editorial Assistant at Pearson and Mickey Mankus and Sudip
Sinha, Project Managers at iEnergizer Aptara, Inc.
xxi
▼
aBout the authors
Kenneth J. Peak is emeritus professor and former chairman of
the Department of Criminal Justice, University of Nevada,
Reno, where he was named “Teacher of the Year” by the
university’s Honor Society. Following four years as a municipal
police officer in Kansas, he subsequently held positions as a
nine-county criminal justice planner for southeast Kansas;
director of a four-state technical assistance institute for the
Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (based at
W ashburn University in Topeka); director of university police
at Pittsburg State University (Kansas); acting director of public
safety, University of Nevada, Reno; and assistant professor of
criminal justice at Wichita State University. He has authored or
coauthored 32 textbooks (relating to introduction to criminal
justice, general policing, community policing, criminal justice administration, police
supervision and management, and women in law enforcement), two historical books (on
Kansas temperance and bootlegging), and more than 60 journal articles and invited book
chapters. He is past chairman of the Police Section of the Academy of Criminal Justice
Sciences and president of the Western and Pacific Association of Criminal Justice E ducators.
He received two gubernatorial appointments to statewide criminal justice committees while
residing in Kansas and holds a doctorate from the University of Kansas.
William H. Sousa is the Director of the Center for Crime and
Justice Policy and an Associate Professor in the Department of
Criminal Justice at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Sousa
received his B.A. from Stonehill College (Easton, MA), his
M.S. from Northeastern University (Boston, MA), and his
Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from Rutgers University (Newark,
NJ). His past research projects include evaluations of policing
programs and technologies. The focus of his writing is on
crime and disorder reduction policies implemented by police
agencies, including the New York City Police Department and
the Los Angeles Police Department. Sousa’s current projects
involve police order-maintenance practices, police manage-
ment, and community crime prevention in Las Vegas neighbor-
hoods. His recent publications appear in Police Quarterly, The
Journal of Experimental Criminology, and Police Practice and Research.
This page intentionally left blank
1
▼
In Part 1, the foci are on the foundations—that is, evolution and development—of polic-
ing. Chapter 1 traces policing in history, from its English origins through its migration to
the United States; included are discussions of its striving for acceptance both here and
abroad as well as its struggles (e.g., political influence, reform, and the civil rights move-
ment in the United States) and transformations during this historical period. Chapter 2
charts the “making” of a police officer and begins by examining how common citizens are
prepared for doing the work of policing: recruitment (to include the testing process used to
discern whether one possesses the physical and psychological attributes that are sought),
training (both during and after the recruit academy), and the different styles and roles of
policing. Next, having hired and formed citizens into police officers, Chapter 3 takes the
officers to the street, looking at the very fundamental (and at times, hazardous) function of
patrolling and its purposes and nature; the variations in patrol work by shift, beat, and
assignment; officers’ use of discretion; and the traditional traffic function.
1 History: From English Origins to the United States
2 Preparing for the Street: Recruitment, Training, and Socialization
3 On Patrol: Methods and Menaces
Part 1
Foundations: Development of American Policing and Police Officers
1 History From English Origins to the United States
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain the four major police-related offices and their functions during the early English and colonial periods
❷ Explain the old English and colonial systems of policing and their legacies
❸ Describe changes in policing in the nineteenth century in England and the United States
❹ Describe the political era of policing and list its major characteristics
▲ Landing immigrants at Castle Garden, New York City. Engraving from Harper’s
Monthly Magazine, June 1884. (Courtesy Stocksnapper/Shutterstock.)
2
▼
CHAPTER 1 History 3
▼
❺ Describe the reform era of policing and list its major characteristics
❻ Describe the community era of policing and list its major characteristics
▶ English and Colonial Officers of the Law
All four of the primary criminal justice officials of early England—the sheriff, constable,
coroner, and justice of the peace—either still exist or existed until recently in the United
States. Accordingly, it is important to have a basic understanding of these offices. The fol-
lowing section therefore discusses each of these positions, first as they functioned in
England and then as they appeared in the American colonies.
Sheriff
The word sheriff is derived from the term shire reeve—shire meaning “county” and reeve
meaning “agent of the king.” The shire reeve appeared in England before the Norman con-
quest of 1066. His job was to maintain law and order in the tithings. (Tithings will be dis-
cussed further in the next section.) The office survived in England, although the sheriff was
never a popular officer in England, and since the nineteenth century the sheriff has had no
police powers. When the office began, the sheriff assisted the king in fiscal, military, and
judicial affairs and was referred to as the “king’s steward.” As men could buy their appoint-
ment from the Crown, the office was often held by nonresidents of the county who seemed
Introduction
To understand contemporary policing in America, it is necessary to understand its antecedents; we will
gain a better understanding of this history by looking at its three eras. The police, it has been said, are
“to a great extent, the prisoners of the past. Day-to-day practices are influenced by deeply ingrained
traditions.”1 Another reason for analyzing historical developments and trends is that several discrete
legacies have been transmitted to modern police agencies. In view of the significant historical impact
on modern policing, it is necessary to turn back the clock to about A.D. 900.
Therefore, we begin with a brief history of the evolution of four primary criminal justice officers—sheriff,
constable, coroner, and justice of the peace—from early England to the twentieth century in America.
We then examine policing from its early beginnings in England to the American colonial period, when
volunteers watched over their “human flock.” The concepts of patrol, crime prevention, authority, profes-
sionalism, and discretion can be traced to the colonial period. We move on to the adoption of full-time
policing in American cities (beginning with the Southern slave patrols and then what is termed the
political era, with its predominant issues, political influences, and other problems) and on the Western
frontier. Then we consider the reform (or professional) era, the movement to professionalize the police by
removing them from politics (and, at the same time, the citizenry) and casting them as crime fighters;
included here is a look at the tumultuous 1960s and 1970s, which often saw the police pitted against
minority groups who were seeking equal rights. Next, we discuss the movement away from the profes-
sional model into the community era, centering on the influence of the President’s Crime Commission;
this portion of the chapter also briefly considers community-oriented policing and problem solving
( discussed thoroughly in Chapter 4), including its three eras. Included at the chapter’s end are a sum-
mary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportunities for
you to learn by doing.
CHAPTER 1 History 4
▼
intent only upon fattening their purses and abusing the public. In addition, English sheriffs
were often charged with being lazy in the pursuit of criminals. Indeed, by the late thir-
teenth century, sheriffs were forbidden to act as justices. The position of coroner was cre-
ated to act as a monitor over the sheriff. Thereafter, the status and responsibility of the
position began to diminish. In response, just before his death, King Edward I granted to the
counties the right to select their sheriffs. With the subsequent appearance of the justice of
the peace, the sheriff’s office declined in power even further. At the present time in
England, a sheriff’s only duties are to act as officer of the court, summon juries, and enforce
civil judgments.2
The first sheriffs in America appeared in the early colonial period, where control over
sheriffs has rested with the county electorate since 1886. Today, the American sheriff
remains the basic source of rural crime control. When the office appeared in the American
colonies, it was little changed from the English model. However, the power of appoint-
ment was originally vested in the governor, and the sheriff’s duties included apprehending
criminals, caring for prisoners, executing civil process, conducting elections, and collect-
ing taxes.3
▲ Constables (also known as leatherheads because of their
leather helmets) existed in every parish and township in
England in the early 1800s, patrolling from scattered sentry
boxes; they later existed in the early American colonies.
(Courtesy International Association of Chiefs of Police.)
CHAPTER 1 History 5
▼
In the late nineteenth century, the sheriff became a popular figure in the legendary Wild
West (discussed later in this chapter). The frontier sheriffs often used the concept of posse
comitatus, an important part of the criminal justice machine that allowed the sheriff to
deputize common citizens to assist in the capture of outlaws, among other tasks. Overall,
by the turn of the twentieth century the powers and duties of the sheriff in America had
changed very little in status or function. In fact, the office has not changed much today.
Constable
Like the sheriff, the constable can be traced back to Anglo-Saxon times. The office began
during the reign of Edward I, when every parish or township had a constable. As the county
militia turned more and more to matters of defense, the constable alone pursued felons—
hence the ancient custom of citizens raising a loud “hue and cry” and joining in pursuit of
criminals lapsed into disuse. During the Middle Ages, there was as yet no high degree of
specialization. The constable had a variety of duties, including collecting taxes, supervis-
ing highways, and serving as magistrate. The office soon became subject to election and
was conferred upon local men of prominence. However, the creation of the office of justice
of the peace around 1200 quickly changed this trend forever; soon the constable was lim-
ited to making arrests only with warrants issued by a justice of the peace. As a result, the
office, deprived of social and civic prestige, was no longer attractive. It carried no salary,
and the duties were often dangerous. In addition, there was heavy attrition in the office, so
the constable’s term was limited to one year in an attempt to attract officeholders; in 1856
Parliament completely discarded the office.4
The office of constable experienced a similar process of disintegration in the colonies.
However, the American constables, usually two in each town, were given control over the
night watch. By the 1930s, constitutions in twenty-one states provided for the office of
constable, but constables still received no pay, and like their British colleagues they
enjoyed little prestige or popularity after the early 1900s. The position fell into disfavor
largely because most constables were untrained and were believed to be wholly inadequate
as officials of the law.5
Coroner
The office of coroner is more difficult to describe. It has been used to fulfill many different
roles throughout its history and has steadily changed over the centuries. There is no agree-
ment concerning the date when the coroner first appeared in England, but there is general
consensus that the office was functioning by the end of the twelfth century.
From the beginning, the coroner was elected; his duties included oversight of the inter-
ests of the Crown, not only in criminal matters but in fiscal matters as well. In felony cases,
the coroner could conduct a preliminary hearing, and the sheriff often came to the coro-
ner’s court to preside over the coroner’s jury. The coroner’s inquest provided another
means of power and prestige, determining the cause of death and the party responsible for
it. Initially, coroners were elected for life. Soon becoming unhappy with the absence of
compensation, however, eventually they were given the right to charge fees for their work.6
As was true of sheriffs and constables, at first the office of the coroner in America was
only slightly different than what it had been in England. The office was slow in gaining
recognition in America, as many of the coroners’ duties were already being performed by
the sheriffs and justices of the peace. By 1933, the coroner was recognized as a separate
office in two-thirds of the states. Tenure was generally limited to two years. By then, how-
ever, the office had been stripped of many of its original functions, especially its fiscal
roles. In many states, the coroner legally served as sheriff when the elected sheriff was
disabled or disqualified. However, since the early part of the twentieth century, the coroner
CHAPTER 1 History 6
▼
in the 2,000 coroners’ offices in the United States has basically performed a single func-
tion: determining the causes of all deaths by violence or under suspicious circumstances.
The coroner or his or her assistant is expected to determine the causes and effects of
wounds, lesions, contusions, fractures, poisons, and more. The coroner’s inquest resem-
bles a grand jury at which the coroner serves as a kind of presiding magistrate. If the
inquest determines that the deceased came to his or her death through criminal means, the
coroner may issue a warrant for the arrest of the accused party.7
The primary debate regarding the office of coroner has centered on the qualifications
needed to hold the office. Many states have traditionally allowed laypeople, as opposed to
physicians, to be coroners. Thus, people of all backgrounds—ranging from butchers to
musicians—have occupied this powerful office.8
Justice of the Peace
The justice of the peace (JP) can be traced back as far as 1195 in England. By 1264 the
custos pacis, or conservator of the peace, nominated by the king for each county, presided
over criminal trials. Early JPs were wealthy landholders. They allowed constables to make
arrests by issuing them warrants. Over time, this practice removed power from constables
and sheriffs. By the sixteenth century, the office came under criticism because of the cali-
ber of the people holding it. Officeholders were often referred to as “boobies” and “scum
of the earth.”9 The only qualification necessary was being a wealthy landowner who was
able to buy his way into office.
By the early twentieth century, England had abolished the property-holding require-
ment, and many of the medieval functions of the JP’s office were removed. Thereafter, the
office possessed extensive but strictly criminal jurisdiction, with no jurisdiction what-
soever in civil cases. This contrasts with the American system, which gives JPs limited
jurisdiction in both criminal and civil cases.
The JP’s office in the colonies was a distinct change from the position as it existed in
England. JPs were elected to office and given jurisdiction in both civil and criminal cases.
By 1930, the office had constitutional status in all of the states. JPs have long been allowed
to collect fees for their services. As in England, it is typically not necessary to hold a law
degree or to have pursued legal studies in order to be a JP in the United States.10
▲ Justice of the Peace Roy Bean, Langtry, Texas, about 1900. (Courtesy Library of Congress.)
CHAPTER 1 History 7
▼
Perhaps the most colorful JP was Roy Bean, popularized in film as the sole peace offi-
cer in a 35,000-square-mile area west of the Pecos River, near Langtry, Texas. Bean was
known to hold court in his shack, where signs hung on the front porch proclaimed, “Justice
Roy Bean, Notary Public,” “Law West of the Pecos,” and “Beer Saloon.” Cold beer and
the law undoubtedly shared many quarters on the Western frontier.
JPs are today what they perhaps were intended to be—lay and inexpert upholders of
the law. On the whole, the office has declined from high prestige to relative obscurity. As
one observer noted, this loss of prestige can never be recovered.11
▶ The Old English and Colonial Systems of Policing
Old English Traditions
Like much of the American criminal justice system, modern American policing can be
traced directly to its English heritage. Ideas concerning community policing, crime pre-
vention, the posse, constables, and sheriffs were developed from English policing.
Beginning about a.d. 900, the role of law enforcement was placed in the hands of common
citizens. Each citizen was responsible for aiding neighbors who might be victimized by
outlaws.12 No formal mechanism existed with which to police the villages, and the infor-
mal voluntary model that developed was referred to as “kin police.”13 Slowly this model
developed into a more formalized community-based system.
After the Norman conquest of 1066, a community-based system called “frankpledge”
was established. This system required that every male above the age of twelve form a
group with nine of his neighbors. This group, called a tithing, was sworn to help protect
fellow citizens and to apprehend and deliver to justice any of its members who committed
a crime. Tithingmen were not paid salaries for their work, and they were required to per-
form certain duties under penalty of law.14 Ten tithings were grouped into a hundred,
directed by a constable who was appointed by a nobleman. The constable was the first
police official with law enforcement responsibility greater than simply protecting his
neighbors. As the tithings were grouped into hundreds, the hundreds were grouped into
shires, which are similar to today’s counties.
By the late sixteenth century, however, wealthier merchants and farmers became reluc-
tant to take their turn in the rotating job of constable. The office was still unpaid, and the
duties were numerous. Wealthier men paid the less fortunate to serve in their place until
there came a point at which no one but the otherwise unemployable would serve as con-
stable. Thus, from about 1689 on, the demise of the once-powerful office was swift. All
who could afford to pay their way out of service as constable to King George I did so.15
Meanwhile, the JP was rewarded in proportion to the number of people he convicted,
so extortion was rampant. Ingenious criminals were able to exploit this state of affairs to
great advantage. One such criminal was Jonathan Wild, who, in the early 1700s obtained
single-handed control over most of London’s criminals. Wild’s system was simple:
After ordering his men to commit a burglary, he would meet the victim and courteously
offer to return the stolen goods for a commission. That he could have operated such a
business for so long is a testimony to the corrupt nature of the magistrates of the “trading
justice” period.16
This early English system, in large measure voluntary and informal, continued with
some success well into the eighteenth century. By 1800, however, the collapse of its two
primary offices and the growth of large cities, crime, and civil disobedience required that
the system be changed. The British Parliament was soon forced to consider and adopt a
more dependable system.
CHAPTER 1 History 8
▼
Policing in Colonial America
The first colonists transplanted the English policing system, with all of its virtues and
faults, to seventeenth- and eighteenth-century America. Most of the time, the colonies
were free of crime as the settlers busied themselves carving out a farm and a living.
Occasionally, colonists ran afoul of the law by violating or neglecting some moral obliga-
tion. They then found themselves in court for working on the Sabbath, cursing in public,
failing to pen animals properly, or begetting children out of wedlock. Only two “crime
waves” of note occurred during the seventeenth century, both in Massachusetts. In one
case, between 1656 and 1665, Quakers who dared challenge the religion of the Puritan
colony were whipped, banished, and, in three instances, hanged. The second “crime wave”
involved witchcraft. Several alleged witches were hanged in 1692 in Salem; dozens more
languished in prison before the hysteria abated.17
Once colonists settled into villages, including Boston (1630), Charleston (1680), and
Philadelphia (1682), local ordinances provided for the appointment of constables, whose
duties were much like those of their English predecessors. County governments, again
drawing on English precedent, appointed sheriffs as well. The county sheriff, appointed by
a governor, became the most important law enforcement official, particularly when the
colonies were small and rural. The sheriff apprehended criminals, served subpoenas,
appeared in court, and collected taxes. The sheriff was also paid a fixed amount for each
task performed; the more taxes he collected, for example, the higher his pay.18
Criminal acts were so infrequent as to be largely ignored. Service as a constable or
watchman was obligatory, and for a few years citizens did not seem to mind this duty. But as
towns grew and the task of enforcing the laws became more difficult and time consuming,
the colonists, like their English counterparts, began to evade the duty when possible. The
“watch-and-ward” responsibility of citizens became more of a comical “snooze-and-snore”
system. New Amsterdam’s Dutch officials introduced a paid watch in 1658, and Boston tried
the concept in 1663, but the expense quickly forced both cities to discontinue the practice.19
Unfortunately for these eighteenth-century colonists, their refusal to provide a depend-
able voluntary policing system came at a time when economic, population, and crime
growth required a reliable police force. The citizen-participation model of policing was
breaking down, and something had to be done, especially in the larger colonies. Philadelphia
devised a plan, enacted into law, restructuring the way the watch was performed. The law
empowered officials, called wardens, to hire as many watchmen as needed; the powers of
the watch were increased; and the legislature levied a tax to pay for it. Instead of requiring
all males to participate, only male citizens interested in making money needed to join the
watch. Philadelphia’s plan was moderately successful, and other cities were soon inspired
to follow its example and offer tax-supported wages for watches.20
From the middle to the late eighteenth century, massive social and political unrest
caused police problems to increase even more. From 1754 to 1763, the French and Indian
War disrupted colonial society. In 1783, after the American Revolution had ended, prop-
erty and street crime continued to flourish, and the constabulary and the watches were
unable to cope with it. Soon it became evident that, like the English, the American people
needed a more dependable, formal system of policing.
Legacies of the Colonial Period
As uncomplicated and sedate as colonial law enforcement seems, especially when com-
pared to contemporary police problems, the colonial period is very important to the
history of policing because many of the basic ideas that influence modern policing were
developed during that era. Specifically, the colonial period transmitted three legacies to
contemporary policing.21
CHAPTER 1 History 9
▼
First, as just discussed, the colonists committed themselves to local (as opposed to
centralized) policing. Second, the colonists reinforced that commitment by creating a the-
ory of government called republicanism. Republicanism asserted that power can be divided,
and it relied on local interests to promote the general welfare. Police chiefs and sheriffs
might believe that they alone know how to address crime and disorder, but under republi-
canism, neighborhood groups and local interest blocs have input with respect to crime-
control policy. Republicanism thus established the controversial political framework
within which the police would develop during the next two hundred years.22
Finally, the colonial period witnessed the onset of the theory of crime prevention. This
legacy would alter the shape of policing after 1800 and would eventually lead to the emer-
gence of modern police agencies.
The population of England had doubled between 1700 and 1800. Parliament, however,
had done nothing to solve the problems that arose from social change. Each municipality
or county, therefore, was left to solve its problems in piecemeal fashion. After 1750, prac-
tically every English city increased the number of watchmen and constables, hoping to
address the problem of crime and disorder but not giving any thought to whether this
ancient system of policing still worked. However, the cities did adopt paid, rather than
voluntary, watches.23
London probably suffered the most from this general inattention to social problems;
awash in crime, whole districts had become criminal haunts that no watchmen visited
and no honest citizens frequented. Thieves became very bold, robbing their victims in
broad daylight on busy streets. In the face of this situation, English officials still contin-
ued to prefer the existing policing arrangements over any new ideas. However, three
men—Henry Fielding, his half brother John Fielding, and Patrick Colquhoun—began to
experiment with possible solutions and laid the foundation on which later reformers
would build new ideas.
Henry Fielding’s acute interest in, and knowledge of, policing led to his 1748 appoint-
ment as chief magistrate of Bow Street in London. He soon became one of England’s most
acclaimed theorists in the area of crime and punishment. Fielding’s primary argument was
▲ Henry Fielding. (Courtesy Library of Congress.)
CHAPTER 1 History 10
▼
that the severity of the English penal code, which provided for the death penalty for a large
number of offenses, including the theft of a handkerchief, did not work in controlling crim-
inals. He believed the country should reform the criminal code to deal more with the ori-
gins of crime. In 1750, Fielding made the pursuit of criminals more systematic by creating
a small group of “thief takers.” Victims of crime paid handsome rewards for the capture of
their assailants, so these volunteers stood to profit nicely by pursuing criminals.24
When Henry Fielding died in 1754, John Fielding succeeded him as Bow Street mag-
istrate. By 1785, his thief takers had evolved into the Bow Street Runners—some of the
most famous policemen in English history. While the Fieldings were considering how to
create a police force that could deal with changing English society, horrible punishments
and incompetent policing continued throughout England.
Patrick Colquhoun was a wealthy man who was sincerely interested in improving
social conditions in England. In 1792, Colquhoun was appointed London magistrate, and
for the next quarter of a century he focused on police reform. Like the Fieldings, he wrote
lengthy treatises on the police, and he soon established himself as an authority on police
reform. Colquhoun believed that government could, and should, regulate people’s behav-
ior. This notion contradicted tradition and even constitutional ideals, undermining the old
principle that the residents of local communities, through voluntary watchmen and con-
stables, should police the conduct of their neighbors. Colquhoun also endorsed three
ideas originally set forth by the Fieldings: (1) the police should have an intelligence ser-
vice for gathering information about offenders; (2) a register of known criminals and
unlawful groups should be maintained; and (3) a police gazette should be published to
assist in the apprehension of criminals and to promote the moral education of the public
by publicizing punishments such as whipping, the pillory, and public execution. To
justify these reforms, Colquhoun estimated that London in 1800 had 10,000 thieves, pros-
titutes, and other criminals who stole goods valued at more than a half million pounds
from the riverside docks alone.25
Colquhoun also believed that policing should maintain the public order, prevent and
detect crime, and correct bad manners and morals. He did not agree with the centuries-old
notion that watchmen—who, after all, were amateurs—could adequately police the com-
munities. Thus, Colquhoun favored a system of paid professional police officers who
would be recruited and maintained by a centralized governmental authority. Colquhoun
believed that potential criminals could be identified before they did their unlawful deeds.26
Thus began the notion of proactive policing—that is, preventing the crime before it occurs.
Colquhoun died before his proposals were adopted, and as the eighteenth century ended,
the structure of policing in England and America was largely unchanged. However, both
nations had experienced the inadequacies of the older form of policing. Although new
ideas had emerged, loyalties to the old system of policing would remain for some time.
▶ Police Reform in England
Two powerful trends in England (and later in the United States) brought about changes in
policing in the early and mid-nineteenth century. The first was urbanization, and the sec-
ond was industrialization. These developments generally increased the standard of living
for western Europeans. Suddenly, factories needed sober, dependable people who could be
trusted with machines. To create a reliable workforce, factory owners began advocating
temperance. Clearly, a new age, a new way of thinking, had begun. Crime also increased
during this period. Thus, social change, crime, and unrest made the old system of policing
obsolete. A new policing system was needed, one that could deal effectively with crimi-
nals, maintain order, and prevent crime.27
England began witnessing food riots (due to food scarcity and high prices) and
increases in crime. The British army, traditionally used to disperse rioters, was becoming
CHAPTER 1 History 11
▼
less effective as people began resisting its commands. In 1822, England’s ruling party, the
Tories, moved to consider new alternatives. The prime minister appointed Sir Robert Peel
to establish a police force to combat the problems. Peel, a wealthy member of Parliament
who was familiar with the reforms suggested by the Fieldings and Colquhoun, found that
many English people objected to the idea of a professional police force, thinking it a pos-
sible restraint on their liberty. They also feared a stronger police organization because the
criminal law was already quite harsh, as it had been for many years. By the early nine-
teenth century, there were 223 crimes in England for which a person could be hanged.
Because of these two obstacles, Peel’s efforts to gain support for full-time, paid police
officers failed for seven years.28
Peel finally succeeded in 1829. He had established a base of support in Parliament and
had focused on reforming only the metropolitan police of London rather than trying to cre-
ate policing for the entire country. Peel submitted a bill to Parliament. This bill, which was
very vague about details, was called “An Act for Improving the Police in and Near the
Metropolis.” Parliament passed the Metropolitan Police Act of 1829. The General
Instructions of the new force stressed its preventive nature, specifying that “the principal
object to be attained is ‘the prevention of crime.’ The security of person and property
will thus be better effected, than by the detection and punishment of the offender after he
has succeeded in committing the crime.”29 The act called on the home secretary to appoint
two police commissioners to command the new organization. These two men were to recruit
“a sufficient number of fit and able men” as constables.30 Peel chose a former military colo-
nel, Charles Rowan, as one commissioner, and a barrister (attorney), Richard Mayne, as
the other. They divided London into seventeen divisions, using crime data as the primary
▲ Sir Robert Peel. (Courtesy Library of Congress.)
CHAPTER 1 History 12
▼
basis for creating the boundaries. Each division had a commander called a superintendent;
each superintendent had a force of 4 inspectors, 16 sergeants, and 165 constables. Thus,
London’s Metropolitan Police immediately consisted of nearly 3,000 officers. The commis-
sioners decided to put their constables in a uniform (a blue coat, blue pants, and a black top
hat) and to arm them with a short baton (known as a “truncheon”) and a rattle for raising an
alarm. Each constable was to wear his own identifying number on his collar, where it could
be easily seen.31
Interestingly, the London police (nicknamed “bobbies” after Sir Robert Peel) quickly
met with tremendous public hostility. Wealthy people resented their very existence and
became particularly incensed at their attempts to control the movements of their horse-
drawn coaches. Several aristocrats ordered their coachmen to whip the officers or simply
drive over them. Juries and judges refused to punish those who assaulted the police.
Defendants acquitted by a hostile judge would often sue the officer for false arrest.
Policing London’s streets in the early 1830s proved to be a very dangerous and lonely
business. The two commissioners, Rowan and Mayne, fearing that public hostility might
kill off the police force, moved to counter it. The bobbies were continually told to be
▲ A “Peeler,” c. 1829. “Peeler,” “Robert,” and “Bobby”
were all early names for a police officer, the latter remaining
as a nickname today. (Courtesy IACP National Law Enforcement Policy
Center.)
CHAPTER 1 History 13
▼
respectful yet firm when dealing with the public. Citizens were invited to lodge com-
plaints if their officers were truly unprofessional. This policy of creating public support
gradually worked; as the police became more moderate in their conduct, public hostility
also declined.32
Peel, too, proved to be very farsighted and keenly aware of the needs of both a profes-
sional police force and the public that would be asked to maintain it. Indeed, Peel saw that
the poor quality of policing contributed to social disorder. Accordingly, he drafted several
guidelines for the force, many of which focused on community relations. He wrote that the
power of the police to fulfill their duties depended on public approval of their actions; that
as public cooperation increased, the need for physical force by the police would decrease;
that officers needed to display absolutely impartial service to law; and that force should be
employed by the police only when attempts at persuasion and warning had failed, and then
they should use only the minimal degree of force possible. Peel’s remark that “the police
are the public, and the public are the police” emphasized his belief that the police are first
and foremost members of the larger society.33
During this initial five-year period, Peel endured the largest police turnover rate in his-
tory. Estimates vary widely, but the following is thought to be fairly accurate: 1,341 con-
stables resigned from London’s Metropolitan Police from 1829 to 1834; that’s roughly
half of the constables on the force. The pay of three shillings a day was meager, and prob-
ably few of the officers ever considered the position as a career.34
Peel proved very prescient, giving his early police practitioners a number of princi-
ples of policing that even today prove relevant to the policing community. As examples,
Peel argued early on that the police should be organized along military lines and under
governmental control—certainly two facets of modern policing that are prevalent. He
also believed that the distribution of crime news is absolutely essential, and that police
should not be deployed in willy-nilly fashion, but rather based on activities and calls for
service as dictated by time and area. Peel recognized as well that police officers must be
able to control their temper, present a good appearance, be properly hired and trained
(and sent out on the streets only after satisfactorily completing a probationary period),
and be identifiable with a badge number. He believed that the public should have easy
access to police headquarters—which must be centrally located and contain excellent
records. His principles also expressed the belief that crime prevention was as important
as crime suppression, and that public approval of police actions is paramount. Indeed, he
argued that the very authority given to the police is dependent on the public’s approval
of their existence, actions, and behavior. Furthermore, Peel included a principle that,
again in a very foresighted manner, stands at the heart of today’s community policing
and problem-solving era: The police must always recognize that they require the willing
cooperation of the public if there is to be public observance of laws. This principle
stands today as one of the hallmarks of Peel’s viewpoints, underscoring his aforemen-
tioned, classical statement that “the police are the public, and the public are the police.”
And, in keeping with that directive, Peel noted that the need for the police to exercise
force will decrease, as public cooperation increases. Indeed, Peel appeared to be quite
apprehensive concerning the use of force by police, arguing that such force should be
employed only as a last resort—when the officer’s powers of persuasion, warning, and
so on failed to secure public compliance. Moreover, Peel maintained that the police
should be impartial in their enforcement of the laws, without regard to one’s wealth or
public standing.35
Note that Peel’s emphasis is on the prevention of crime. Peel felt that all efforts of
the police were to be directed toward that end, and all other work of the police flowed
from attempting to prevent crimes from occurring: the security of person and prop-
erty, the preservation of the public tranquility, and ultimately the arrest, conviction,
and punishment of those who in fact commit crimes. By the same token, Peel is
CHAPTER 1 History 14
▼
implying that when many offenses are committed in a given area, police leaders and
planners must recognize that their efforts are lacking in that locus and must govern
their actions accordingly.
Also note that Peel’s principles of 1829 relate very closely to the tenets of commu-
nity policing—the current era of policing. Peel observed that the police are situated
to proactively curb criminal activity and to provide order in the community, are no dif-
ferent from the people they are to serve, and should be visible in the community and
interact with its citizens.
If Peel could speak today, however, he would likely indicate great displeasure with
both the political and the reform (professional) eras of policing that came to pass in the
United States (discussed later) because their motives and practices served to move the
police away from his views of policing and into directions that were in opposition to his
nine principles.
▶ Policing Comes to the United States
The English experiment with policing was not going unnoticed in the United States, where
Peel’s experiments with the bobbies were being closely watched. However, industrializa-
tion and social upheaval had not reached the proportions here that they had in England, so
there was not the same urgency for full-time policing. Yet by the 1840s, when industrial-
ization began in earnest in America, U.S. officials began to watch the police reform move-
ment in England more closely. Eventually, of course, policing would become entrenched
in America and evolve through three full eras: political, reform, and community (see
Table 1-1 ■).
It will be seen later that the onset of full-time policing (defined as a paid, full-time
police force with citywide jurisdiction that was charged solely with police duties)36 in the
United States is commonly said to have occurred in New York City in 1844. However, a
number of prominent police historians and experts believe that the first organized, publicly
funded, “modern” form of policing occurred in the South in the form of slave patrols.37 It
has been further argued that the Southern slave patrols not only were a precursor to today’s
system but actually marked the first real advances in American policing.38 Therefore,
because the true origins of policing in America are somewhat debated, next we briefly
discuss the Southern slave patrols.
TAbLE 1-1 The Three Eras of Policing
Political Era (1840s to 1930s) Reform Era (1930s to 1980s) Community Era (1980s to Present)
Authorization Politics and law Law and professionalism Community support (political),
law, and professionalism
Function Broad social services Crime control Broad provision of services
Organizational design Decentralized Centralized and classical Decentralized using task forces
and matrices
Relationship to community Intimate Professional and remote Intimate
Tactics and technology Foot patrol Preventive patrol and rapid
response to calls
Foot patrol, problem solving, and
public relations
Outcome Citizen and political
satisfaction
Crime control Quality of life and citizen
satisfaction
Source: Adapted from The Evolving Strategies of Policing, Perspectives on Policing by George L. Kelling and Mark H. Moore, U.S. Department of Justice.
CHAPTER 1 History 15
▼
Southern Slave Patrols
From the time Dutch slave ships began to bring slaves to the U.S. colonies as early as
1670, colonists began attempting to control slaves through informal means. For
example, in many colonies and states, anyone could legally apprehend, chastise, and
even kill any slave found off of his or her plantation, and runaway slaves could even
be killed in some states.39 The “slave codes” of the day defined slaves as mere prop-
erty of their masters who were indentured for life; slaves were valuable property, and
thus slave masters were given the right to control their “property” through discipline
and punishment.
The slave patrols eventually became the legal mechanism for enforcing these codes;
as a formal means of social control, particularly in rural areas of the Southern colonies,
these patrols were to maintain the institution of slavery as well as capture runaway
slaves and protect the white majority from slave uprisings and crimes. Members of
such patrols in South Carolina and other states could enter the home of anyone—black
or white—that was suspected of harboring slaves who were runaways or had violated
the law.40
According to Phillip Reichel, the first such patrol was probably organized as a spe-
cial enforcement arm in South Carolina in 1704.41 Unlike the watchmen, constables, and
sheriffs (discussed previously) who had some nonpolice functions, these slave patrols,
which continued operating through the antebellum period, functioned “solely for the
enforcement of colonial and state laws.”42 Slave patrols often worked in combination
with local militias and police and, although generally small in size, were well-armed and
often visited plantations where they were allowed to flog slaves who were violating the
codes.43 Indeed, the right of patrols to administer such punishment existed in a number
of states: patrols in Georgia, Arkansas, and South Carolina could administer twenty
lashes, while North Carolina, Tennessee, and Mississippi permitted fifteen lashes.44 Any
▲ Turn-of-the-century police equipment. (Courtesy International Association of Chiefs of Police.)
CHAPTER 1 History 16
▼
hopes held by slaves for a better life were no doubt dashed—and the existence of slave
patrols no doubt enhanced—by the infamous 1857 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Scott
v. Sanford, in which a slave named Dred Scott was in effect told that he could not sue
for his freedom: he was mere “property” and had no rights which white men needed
to respect.
In sum, at the very least, when trying to understand the development of modern-day
policing in America, Southern slave patrols can be said to represent a form of policing that
was neither informal nor modern; in fact, they were probably more developmental or tran-
sitional in nature and created by the dominant class to preserve its control over the minor-
ity population of their day.
▶ The Political Era: 1840s to 1930s
Imitating Peel
When the movement to improve policing did begin in America in the 1840s, it occurred in
New York City. (Philadelphia, with a private bequest of $33,000, actually began a paid
daytime police force in 1833; however, it was disbanded three years later.) The police
reform movement had actually begun in New York in 1836, when the mayor advocated
a new police organization that could deal with civil disorder. The city council denied
the mayor’s request, saying that, instead, citizens should simply aid one another in
combating crime.
Efforts at police reform thus stayed dormant until 1841, when a highly publicized mur-
der case resurrected the issue, showing again the incompetence of the officers under the old
system of policing. Mary Cecilia Rogers left her New York home one day and disap-
peared; three days later, her body was discovered in the Hudson River. The public and
newspapers clamored for the police to solve the crime. The police appeared unwilling to
investigate until an adequate reward was offered.45 Edgar Allan Poe’s 1850 short story
“The Mystery of Marie Roget” was based on this case. The Rogers case and the police
response did more to encourage police reorganization than all of the previous cries for
change. Thus began the political era of policing.
In 1844, the New York State legislature passed a law establishing a full-time pre-
ventive police force for New York City. However, this new body came into being in a
very different form than in Europe. The American version, as begun in New York City,
was deliberately placed under the control of the city government and city politicians.
The American plan required that each ward in the city be a separate patrol district,
unlike the European model, which divided the districts along the lines of criminal activ-
ity. The process for selecting officers was also different. The mayor chose the recruits
from a list of names submitted by the aldermen and tax assessors of each ward; the
mayor then submitted his choices to the city council for approval. This system adhered
to the principles of republicanism and resulted in most of the power over the police
going to the ward aldermen, who were seldom concerned about selecting the best peo-
ple for the job. Instead, the system allowed and even encouraged political patronage
and rewards for friends.46
The law also provided for the hiring of 800 officers—not nearly enough to cover the
city—and for the hiring of a chief of police, who had no power to hire officers, assign them
to duties, or fire them. Furthermore, the law did not require the officers to wear uniforms;
instead, they were to carry a badge or other emblem for identification. Citizens would be
hard-pressed to recognize an officer when they needed one. As a result of the law,
New York’s officers would be patrolling a beat around the clock, and pay scales were high
enough to attract good applicants. At the same time, the position of constable was
CHAPTER 1 History 17
▼
dissolved. Overall, these were important reforms over the old system and provided the
basis for continued improvements that the public supported.47
It did not take long for other cities to adopt the general model of the New York City
police force. New Orleans and Cincinnati adopted plans for a new police force in 1852,
Boston and Philadelphia followed in 1854, Chicago in 1855, and Baltimore and Newark
in 1857.48 By 1880, virtually every major American city had a police force based on
Peel’s model.
Early Issues and Traditions
Three important issues confronted these early American police officers as they took to the
streets between 1845 and 1869: whether the police should be in uniform, whether they
should be armed, and whether they should use force.
The issue of a police uniform was important for several reasons. First, the lack of a
uniform negated one of the basic principles of crime prevention—that police officers be
visible. Crime victims wanted to find a police officer in a hurry. Further, uniforms
would make it difficult for officers to avoid their duties since it would strip them of their
anonymity. Interestingly, police officers themselves tended to prefer not to wear a uni-
form. They contended that the uniform would hinder their work because criminals
would recognize them and flee and that the uniform was demeaning and would destroy
their sense of manliness and democracy. One officer went so far as to argue that the sun
reflecting off his badge would warn criminals of his approach; another officer hired an
attorney and threatened to sue if he were compelled to don a uniform. To remedy the
problem, New York City officials took advantage of the fact that their officers served
four-year terms of office; when those terms expired in 1853, the city’s police commis-
sioners announced they would not rehire any officer who refused to wear a uniform.
Thus, New York became the first American city with a uniformed police force. It was
followed in 1860 by Philadelphia, where there was also strong police objection to the
policy. In Boston (1858) and Chicago (1861), police accepted the adoption of uniforms
more easily.49
A more serious issue confronting politicians and the new police officers was the car-
rying of arms. At stake was the personal safety of the officers and the citizens they
served. Nearly everyone viewed an armed police force with considerable suspicion.
However, after some surprisingly calm objections by members of the public, who noted
that the London police had no need to bear arms, it was agreed that an armed police force
was unavoidable. Of course, America had a long tradition that citizens had the right—
sometimes even the duty—to own firearms. And armed only with nightsticks, the new
police could hardly withstand attacks by armed assailants. The public allowed officers to
carry arms simply because there was no alternative, which was a significant change in
American policing and a major point of departure from the English model. Practically
from the first day, then, the American police have been much more open to the idea of
carrying weapons.50
Eventually the use of force, the third issue, would become necessary and commonplace
for American officers. Indeed, the uncertainty about whether an offender was armed per-
petuated the need for an officer to rely on physical prowess for survival on the streets. The
issue of use of force will be discussed further in Chapter 8.
Attempts at Reform in Difficult Times
By 1850, American police officers still faced a difficult task. In addition to maintaining
order and coping with vice and crime, they would, soon after putting on the uniform, be
separated from their old associates and viewed with suspicion by most citizens.
CHAPTER 1 History 18
▼
With few exceptions, the work was steady, and layoffs were uncommon. The nature of
the work and the possibility of a retirement pension tied officers closely to their jobs and
their colleagues. By 1850, there was a surplus of unskilled labor, particularly in the major
eastern cities. The desire for economic security was reason enough for many able-bodied
men to try to enter police service. New York City, for example, paid its police officers
about twice as much as unskilled laborers could earn. Police departments had about twice
as many applicants as positions. The system of political patronage prevailed in most cities,
even after civil service laws attempted to introduce merit systems for hiring police.51
In New York, the police reform board was headed by Theodore Roosevelt, who sought
applications for the department from residents in upstate areas. When these officers, later
called bushwhackers, were appointed, they were criticized by disgruntled Tammanyites
(corrupt New York City politicians) who favored the political patronage system. The
Tammanyites complained that the bushwhackers “could not find their way to a single sta-
tion house.”52 Roosevelt’s approach violated the American tradition of hiring local boys
for local jobs.53 Citizens saw these new uniformed anomalies as people who wanted to
spoil their fun or close their saloons on Sunday.
Tradition became the most important determinant of police behavior: A major teaching
tool was the endless string of war stories the recruit heard, and the emphasis in most
departments was on doing things as they had always been done. Innovation was frowned
upon, and the veterans impressed on the rookies the reasons why things had to remain the
same.54 The police officers of the late nineteenth century were kept busy with riots, strikes,
parades, and fires. These events often made for hostile interaction between citizens and the
police. Labor disputes often meant long hours of extra duty for the officers, for which no
extra pay was received. This, coupled with the fact that the police did not engage in collec-
tive bargaining, resulted in the police having little empathy or identification with strikers
or strikebreakers. Therefore, the use of the baton to put down riots, known as the “baton
charge,” was not uncommon.55
During the late nineteenth century, large cities gradually became more orderly
places. The number of riots dropped. In the post–Civil War period, however, ethnic
group conflict sometimes resulted in individual and group acts of violence and disorder.
Hatred of Catholics and Irish Protestants led to the killing and wounding of over one
hundred people in large eastern cities. Still, American cities were more orderly in 1900
than they had been in 1850. The possibility of violence involving labor disputes
remained, and race riots increased in number and intensity after 1900, but daily urban
life became more predictable and controlled. And then American cities absorbed millions
of newcomers after 1900.56
Increased Politics and Corruption
A more developed urban life also promoted order. Work groups and social clusters pro-
vided a sense of integration and belonging. Immigrants established benefit societies,
churches, synagogues, and social clubs. Irish Americans constituted a heavy proportion of
the police departments by the 1890s; they made up more than one-fourth of the New York
City police force as early as the 1850s. Huge proportions of Irish officers were also found
in Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, and San Francisco.57
Ethnic and religious disputes were found in many police departments. In Cleveland,
for example, Catholics and Masons distrusted one another, while in New York, the Irish
officers controlled many hirings and promotions. And there were still strong political influ-
ences at work. Politics were played to such an extent that even nonranking patrol officers
used political backers to obtain promotions, desired assignments, and transfers.
Police corruption also surfaced at this time. Corrupt officers wanted beats close to the
gamblers, saloonkeepers, madams, and pimps—people who could not operate if the
CHAPTER 1 History 19
▼
officers were “untouchable” or “100 percent coppers.”58 Political pull for corrupt officers
could work for or against them; the officer who incurred the wrath of his superiors could
be transferred to the outposts, where he would have no chance for financial
advancement.
In New York, officers routinely committed perjury to protect one another against civil-
ian complaints. An early form of “internal affairs” thus developed in the 1890s: the
“shoofly,” a plainclothes officer who checked on the performance of the patrol officers.
When Theodore Roosevelt served as police commissioner in New York, he frequently
made clandestine trips to the beats to check on his officers; any malingerers found in the
saloons were summoned to headquarters in the morning.59
Meanwhile, on the American Frontier . . .
While large cities in the East were struggling to overcome social problems and establish
preventive police forces, the western half of America was anything but passive. Many
historians believe that the true character of Americans developed on the frontier. Rugged
individualism, independence, and simplicity of manners and behavior lent dignity to
American life.
▲ Some police historians argue that the first organized, publicly
funded, “modern” form of policing occurred in the South in the
form of slave patrols. (Courtesy North Wind Picture Archives/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 1 History 20
▼
Most Americans are fascinated by this period of police history, a time when heroic
marshals engaged in gunfights in Dodge City and other wild cowboy towns. But this period
is also riddled with exaggerated legends and half-truths. During the second half of the
nineteenth century, the absence of government created a confusing variety of forms of
policing in the West. Large parts of the West were under federal control, some had been
organized into states, and still others were under American Indian control, at least on
paper. Law enforcement was performed largely by federal marshals, and their deputies.
Once a state was created within a territory, its state legislature had the power to attempt to
deal with crime by appointing county sheriffs. Otherwise, there was no uniform method for
attempting to control the problems of the West.
When the people left the wagon trains and their relatively law-abiding ways, they
attempted to live together in communities. Many different ethnic groups— Anglo-
Americans, Mexicans, Chinese, American Indian, freed African Americans, Australians,
Scandinavians, and others—competed for often scarce resources and fought one another
violently, often with mob attacks. Economic conflicts were frequent between cattlemen
and sheepherders, and they often led to major range wars. There was constant labor strife
in the mines. The bitterness of slavery remained, and many men with firearms skills learned
during the Civil War turned to outlawry after leaving the service. (Jesse James was one
such person.) In spite of these difficulties, westerners did manage to establish peace by
relying on a combination of four groups who assumed responsibility for law enforcement:
private citizens, U.S. marshals, businessmen, and town officials.60
Private companies, such as the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, played an impor-
tant role in frontier regions as they were often contracted to provide security or fugitive
apprehension services. Private citizens also helped to enforce the law by joining a posse,
offering services for a fee (such as bounty hunting), or otherwise making individual efforts.
An example of citizen policing was the formation of vigilante committees. Between 1849 and
1902, there were 210 vigilante movements in the United States, most of them in California.61
While throughout history many vigilante groups have practiced “informal justice” by
Career Profile Name: Francis O’Neill, Chicago
Position: Chief of Police, Chicago, Illinois, 1903
The watchman of a century ago with his lantern and
staff who called out the passing hours in stentorian
tones during the night is now but a tradition. He has
been succeeded by a uniformed constabulary and
police who carry arms and operate under semi-
military discipline. The introduction of electricity as a
means of communication between stations was the
first notable advance in the improvement of police
methods. I remember the time when the manipulation
of the dial telegraph by the station keeper while send-
ing messages excited the greatest wonder and admi-
ration. The adoption of the Morse system of telegraphy
was a long step forward and proved of great advan-
tage. In 1876, all desk sergeants were required to take
up the immediate study of the Morse “Code” . . .
Scarcely one-fourth of them became proficient before
modern science, advancing in leaps and bounds,
brought forth that still more modern miracle—the tele-
phone. Less than one-quarter century ago, the police-
man on post had no aid from science in
communicating with his station or in securing assis-
tance in case of need. When required by duty to care
for the sick and injured or to remove a dead body, an
appeal to the owner of some suitable vehicle was his
only resource. These were desperate times for police-
men in a hostile country with unpaved streets. The
patrol wagon and signal service have affected a revo-
lution in police methods. The forward stride from the
lanterned night watch, with staff, to the uniformed and
disciplined police officer of the present, equipped with
telegraph, telephone, signal service, and the Bertillon
system of identification (discussed in Chapter 5), is
indeed an interesting one to contemplate.
Source: From Proceedings of the International Chiefs of Police,
Tenth Annual Convention, May 12-14, p. 67, published by
International Association of Chiefs of Police
CHAPTER 1 History 21
▼
illegally taking the law into their own hands, breaking the law with violence and force, they
also performed valuable work by ridding their communities of dangerous criminals. The
Career Profile that is presented is an essay written at the dawn of the twentieth century and
reflects the changes in technologies and methods of that era.
Federal marshals were created by congressional legislation in 1789. As marshals began
to appear on the frontier, the vigilantes tended to disappear. The marshals enforced federal
laws, so they had no jurisdiction over matters not involving a federal offense. They could
act only in cases involving theft of mail, crimes against railroad property, murder on fed-
eral lands (much of the West was federal property for many decades), and a few other
crimes. Their primary responsibility was in civil matters arising from federal court deci-
sions. Federal marshals obtained their office through political appointment; therefore, they
did not need any prior experience and were politically indebted. Initially, they received no
salary but were instead compensated with fees and rewards. Because chasing outlaws did
not pay as much as serving civil process papers, the marshals tended to prefer the more
lucrative, less dangerous task of serving court paperwork. Congress saw the folly in this
system and, in 1896, enacted legislation providing regular salaries for marshals.62
When a territory became a state, the primary law enforcement functions usually fell to
local sheriffs and marshals. Train robbers such as Jesse James and the Dalton Gang were
among the most famous outlaws to violate federal laws. Many train robbers became legendary
for having the courage to steal from the despised railroad owners. What is often overlooked in
the tales of these legendary outlaws is their often total disregard for the safety and lives of their
victims. To combat these criminals, federal marshals found their hideouts, and railroad com-
panies and other businesses often offered rewards for information leading to their capture.
Occasionally, as in the case of Jesse James and the Daltons, the marshals’ work was done for
them—outlaws were often killed by friends (usually for a reward) or by private citizens.63
Gunfights in the West actually occurred very rarely; few individuals on either side of
the law actually welcomed stand-up gunfights. It was infinitely more sensible to find cover
from which to have a shootout. Further, handguns were not the preferred weapon—a
double-barreled shotgun could do far more damage than a handgun at close range.
Local law enforcement came about as people settled into communities. Town meetings
were held during which a government was established and local officials were elected.
Sheriffs quickly became important officials, but they spent more time collecting taxes,
inspecting cattle brands, maintaining jails, and serving civil papers than they did actually
dealing with outlaws. In addition, with the growing use of U.S. marshals to uphold the law
(some of the more storied ones being Wyatt Earp, “Wild Bill” Hickok, and William “Bat”
Masterson), most people were inclined to be law abiding.64
Only forty-five violent deaths from all causes can be found in western cow towns from
1870 to 1885, when they were thriving. This low figure reflects the real nature of the cow
towns. Businessmen had a vested interest in preventing crime from occurring and in not hir-
ing a trigger-happy sheriff or marshal. They tended to avoid hiring individuals like John
Slaughter, sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona, who never brought a prisoner back alive for
eight years. Too much violence ruined a town’s reputation and harmed the local economy.65
The Entrenchment of Political Influence
Partly because of their closeness to politicians, police during the early twentieth century
began providing a wide array of services to citizens. In some cities, they operated soup
lines, helped find lost children, and found jobs and temporary lodging in station houses for
newly arrived immigrants.66 Police organizations were typically quite decentralized, with
cities divided into precincts and run like small-scale departments, hiring, firing, managing,
and assigning personnel as necessary. Officers were often recruited from the same ethnic
stock as the dominant groups in the neighborhoods and lived in the beats they patrolled,
CHAPTER 1 History 22
▼
and they were allowed considerable discretion in handling their individual beats. Detectives
operated from a caseload of “persons” rather than offenses, relying on their charges to
inform on other criminals.67
Officers were integrated into neighborhoods. This strategy proved useful; it helped
contain riots, and the police helped immigrants establish themselves in communities and
find jobs. There were weaknesses as well: The intimacy with the community, closeness to
politicians, poor recruitment and training standards, and decentralized organizational
structure (and its inability to provide supervision of officers) also led to police corruption.
The close identification of police with neighborhoods also resulted in discrimination
against strangers, especially ethnic and racial minorities. Police officers often ruled their
beats with the “end of their nightsticks” and practiced “curbside justice.”68 The lack of
organizational control over officers also caused some inefficiencies and disorganization;
thus, the image of the bungling Keystone Kops was widespread.
▶ The Reform Era: 1930s to 1980s
Attempts to Thwart Political Patronage
During the early nineteenth century, reformers sought to reject political involvement by
the police, and civil service systems were created to eliminate patronage and ward influ-
ences in hiring and firing police officers. In some cities, officers were not permitted to live
in the same beat they patrolled in order to isolate them as completely as possible from
political influences. Police departments became one of the most autonomous agencies in
urban government.69 However, policing also became a matter viewed as best left to the
discretion of police executives. Police organizations became law enforcement agencies
with the sole goal of controlling crime. Any noncrime activities they were required to do
were considered “social work.” The reform era of policing (also termed the professional era
of policing) would soon be in full bloom.
The scientific theory of administration was adopted, as advocated by Frederick Taylor
during the early twentieth century. Taylor first studied the work process, breaking down
jobs into their basic steps and emphasizing time and motion studies, all with the goal of
maximizing production. From this emphasis on production and unity of control flowed the
notion that police officers were best managed by a hierarchical pyramid of control. Police
leaders routinized and standardized police work; officers were to enforce laws and make
arrests whenever they could. Discretion was limited as much as possible. When special
problems arose, special units (e.g., vice, juvenile, drugs, tactical) were created rather than
problems being assigned to patrol officers.
The Era of August Vollmer
The policing career of August Vollmer has been established as one of the most important
periods in the development of police professionalism (see Exhibit 1-1 ■). In April 1905 at
age twenty-nine, Vollmer became the town marshal in Berkeley, California. At that time,
policing had become a major issue all across America. Big-city police departments had
become notorious for their corruption, and politics rather than professional principles
dominated most police departments.70
Vollmer commanded a force of only three deputies; his first act as town marshal was to
request an increase in his force from three to twelve deputies in order to form day and
night patrols. Obtaining that, he soon won national publicity for being the first chief to
order his men to patrol on bicycles. Time checks he had run demonstrated that officers on
bicycles would be able to respond three times more quickly to calls than men on foot
possibly could. His confidence growing, Vollmer next persuaded the Berkeley City
CHAPTER 1 History 23
▼
Council to purchase a system of red lights. The lights, hung at each street intersection,
served as an emergency notification system for police officers—the first such signal system
in the country.71
In 1906, Vollmer, curious about the methods criminals used to commit their crimes,
began to question the suspects he arrested. He found that nearly all criminals used their
own peculiar method of operation, or modus operandi. In 1907, following an apparent
suicide case that Vollmer suspected of being murder, Vollmer sought the advice of a
exhibit 1-1
A chronology of August Vollmer and the Berkeley Police Department:
1905 Vollmer is elected Berkeley town marshal. Town trustees appoint six police
officers at a salary of $70 per month.
1906 Trustees create detective rank. Vollmer initiates a red light signal system to
reach beat officers from headquarters; telephones are installed in boxes. A
police records system is created.
1908 Two motorcycles are added to the department. Vollmer begins a police school.
1909 Vollmer is appointed Berkeley chief of police under a new charter form of
government. Trustees approve the appointment of a Bertillon expert and the
purchase of fingerprinting equipment. A modus operandi file is created,
modeled on the British system.
1911 All patrol officers are using bicycles.
1914 Three privately owned autos are authorized for patrol use.
1915 A central office is established for police reports.
1916 Vollmer urges Congress to establish a national fingerprint bureau (later
created by the FBI in Washington, D.C.), begins annual lectures on police
procedures, and persuades biochemist Albert Schneider to install and direct a
crime laboratory at headquarters.
1917 Vollmer has the first completely motorized force; officers furnish their own
automobiles. Vollmer recruits college students for part-time police jobs.
He begins consulting with police and reorganizing departments around the
country.
1918 Entrance examinations are initiated to measure the mental, physical, and
emotional fitness of recruits; a part-time police psychiatrist is employed.
1919 Vollmer begins testing delinquents and using psychology to anticipate
criminal behavior. He implements a juvenile program to reduce child
delinquency.
1921 Vollmer guides the development of the first lie detector and begins developing
radio communications between patrol cars, handwriting analysis, and use of
business machine equipment (a Hollerith tabulator).
Following his retirement from active law enforcement in 1932, Vollmer traveled
around the world to study police methods. He continued serving as professor of police
administration at the University of California, Berkeley, until 1938, and authored or coau-
thored four books on police and crime from 1935 to 1949. He died in Berkeley in 1955.
THE CRIB OF MODERN LAW ENFORCEMENT
CHAPTER 1 History 24
▼
professor of biology at the University of California. He then became convinced of the
value of scientific knowledge in criminal investigation.72
Vollmer’s most daring innovation came in 1908: the idea of a police school. The first
formal training program for police officers in the country drew on the expertise of univer-
sity professors as well as police officers. The school included courses on police methods
and procedures, fingerprinting, first aid, criminal law, anthropometry, photography, public
health, and sanitation. In 1917, the curriculum was expanded from one to three years.73 In
1916, Vollmer persuaded a professor of pharmacology and bacteriology to become a full-
time criminalist in charge of the department’s criminal investigation laboratory. By 1917,
Vollmer had his entire patrol force operating out of automobiles; it was the first completely
mobile patrol force in the country. And in 1918, to improve the quality of police recruits in
his department, he began to hire college students as part-time officers and to administer
a set of intelligence, psychiatric, and neurological tests to all applicants. Out of this group
of “college cops” came several outstanding and influential police leaders, including
O. W. Wilson, who served as police chief in Wichita and Chicago and as the first dean of
the school of criminology at the University of California. Then, in 1921, in addition to
experimenting with the lie detector, two of Vollmer’s officers installed a crystal set and
earphones in a Model T touring car, thus creating the first radio car.
These and other innovations at Berkeley had begun to attract attention from municipal
police departments across the nation, including Los Angeles, which persuaded Vollmer to
serve a short term there as chief of police beginning in August 1923. Gambling, the illicit
sale of liquor (prohibition was then in effect), and police corruption were major problems
in Los Angeles. Vollmer hired ex-criminals to gather intelligence information on the
criminal network. He also promoted honest officers, required 3,000 patrol officers to take
an intelligence test, and, using those tests, reassigned personnel.74 He was already unpopu-
lar with crooks and corrupt politicians, and these personnel actions made Vollmer very
unpopular within the department as well. When he returned to Berkeley in 1924, he
had made many enemies, and his attempts at reform had met with too much opposition to
▲ August Vollmer as Town Marshal, police chief and criminalist. (Courtesy Samuel G. Chapman.)
CHAPTER 1 History 25
▼
have any lasting effect. It would not be until the 1950s, under Chief William Parker,
that the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) would become a leader in this reform
era of policing.75
Vollmer, although a leading proponent of police professionalism, also advocated the
idea that the police should function as social workers. He believed the police should do
more than merely arrest offenders-that they should also seek to prevent crime by “saving”
offenders.76 He suggested that police work closely with existing social welfare agencies,
inform voters about overcrowded schools, and support the expansion of recreational
facilities, community social centers, and antidelinquency agencies. Basically, he was
suggesting that the police play an active part in the life of the community. These views
were very prescient; today, his ideas are being implemented in the contemporary
movement toward community policing and problem-oriented policing. Yet the major
thrust of police professionalization had been to insulate the police from politics. This
contradiction illustrated one of the fundamental ambiguities of the whole notion of
professionalism.77
In the late 1920s, Vollmer was appointed the first professor of police administration in
the country at the University of Chicago. Upon returning to Berkeley in 1931, he received
a similar appointment at the University of California, a position he held concurrently with
the office of chief of police until his retirement from the force in 1932. He continued to
serve as a university professor until 1938.78
The Crime Fighter Image
The 1930s marked an important turning point in the history of police reform. O. W. Wilson
emerged as the leading authority on police administration, the police role was redefined,
and the crime fighter image gained popularity.
Wilson, who learned from J. Edgar Hoover’s transformation of the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) into a highly prestigious agency, became the principal architect of the
police reform strategy.79 Hoover, appointed FBI director in 1924, had raised the eligibility
and training standards of recruits and had developed an incorruptible crime-fighting orga-
nization. Municipal police found Hoover’s path a compelling one.
Professionalism came to mean a combination of managerial efficiency and techno-
logical sophistication and an emphasis on crime fighting. The social work aspects of the
policing movement fell into almost total eclipse. In sum, under the professional model of
policing, officers were to remain in their “rolling fortresses,” going from one call to the
next with all due haste. As Mark Moore and George Kelling observed, “In professional-
izing crime fighting . . . citizens on whom so much used to depend [were] removed from
the fight.”80
The Wickersham Commission
Another important development in policing, one that was strongly influenced by August
Vollmer, was the creation of the Wickersham Commission. President Calvin Coolidge had
appointed the first National Crime Commission in 1925, in an admission that crime control
had become a national problem. This commission was criticized for working neither
through the states nor with professionals in criminal justice, psychiatry, social work, or the
like. Nevertheless, coming on the heels of World War I, the crime commission took advan-
tage of FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover’s popular “war on crime” slogan to enlist public
support. Political leaders and police officials also loudly proclaimed the “war on crime”
concept; it continued the push for police professionalism.
Coolidge’s successor, President Herbert Hoover, became concerned about the lax
enforcement of Prohibition, which had taken effect in 1920. It was common knowledge that
CHAPTER 1 History 26
▼
an alarming number of American police chiefs and sheriffs were accepting bribes in exchange
for overlooking moonshiners; other types of police corruption were occurring as well.
Hoover replaced the National Crime Commission with the National Commission on
Law Observance and Enforcement—popularly known as the Wickersham Commission
after its chairman, former U.S. Attorney General George W. Wickersham. This presi-
dential commission completed the first national study of crime and criminal justice,
issued in fourteen reports. Two of those reports, the “Report on Police” and the “Report
on Lawlessness in Law Enforcement,” represented a call by the federal government for
increased police professionalism.
The “Report on Police” was written in part by August Vollmer, and his imprint on this
and other reports is evident. The “Report on Lawlessness in Law Enforcement” concerned
itself with police misconduct and has received the greatest public attention, both then and
now. The report indicated that the use by the police of third-degree suspect interrogation
methods (including the infliction of physical or mental pain to extract confessions) was
widespread in America. This report, through its recommendations, mapped out a path of
professionalism in policing for the next two generations. The Wickersham Commission
recommended, for example, that the corrupting influence of politics should be removed
from policing. Police chief executives should be selected on merit, and patrol officers
should be tested and should meet minimal physical standards. Police salaries, working
conditions, and benefits should be decent, the commission stated, and there should be ade-
quate training for both preservice and in-service officers. The commission also called for
the use of policewomen (in cases involving juveniles and females), crime-prevention units,
and bureaus of criminal investigation.
Many of these recommendations represented what progressive police reformers had
been wanting for the previous forty years; unfortunately, President Hoover and his admin-
istration could do little more than report the Wickersham Commission’s recommendations
before leaving office.
Police as the “Thin blue Line”: William H. Parker
The movement to transform the police into professional crime fighters found perhaps its
staunchest champion in William H. Parker, who began as a patrol officer with the LAPD in
1927. Parker used his law degree to advance his career, and by 1934 he was the LAPD’s
trial prosecutor and an assistant to the chief.81
Parker became police chief in 1950. Following an uproar over charges of police brutal-
ity in 1951, he conducted an extensive investigation that resulted in the dismissal or pun-
ishment of over forty officers. Following this incident, he launched a campaign to transform
the LAPD. His greatest success, typical of the new professionalism, came in administra-
tive reorganization. The command structure was simplified as Parker aggressively sought
ways to free every possible officer for duty on the streets, including forcing the county
sheriff’s office to guard prisoners and adopting one-person patrol cars. Parker also made
the rigorous selection and training of personnel a major characteristic of the LAPD. Higher
standards of physical fitness, intelligence, and scholastic achievement weeded out many
applicants, while others failed the psychiatric examinations.
Once accepted, recruits attended a thirteen-week academy that included a rigorous
physical program, rigid discipline, and intensive study. Parker thus molded an image of a
tough, competent, polite, and effective crime fighter by controlling recruitment. During the
1950s, this image made the LAPD the model for reform across the nation; thus, the 1950s
marked a turning point in the history of professionalism.82
Parker conceived of the police as a “thin blue line”—a force that stood between civili-
zation and chaos and protecting society from barbarism and Communist subversion. He
viewed urban society as a jungle, needing the restraining hand of the police; only the law
CHAPTER 1 History 27
▼
and law enforcement saved society from the horrors of anarchy. The police had to enforce
the law without fear or favor. Parker opposed any restrictions on police methods. The law,
he believed, should give the police wide latitude to use wiretaps and to conduct search and
seizure. For him, the Bill of Rights was not absolute but relative. Any conflict between
effective police operation and individual rights should be resolved in favor of the police,
he believed, and the rights of society took precedence over the rights of the individual.
He thought that evidence obtained illegally should still be admitted in court and that the
police could not do their jobs if the courts and other civilians were continually second-
guessing them.
Basically, Parker believed that some “wicked men with evil hearts” preyed on society
and that the police must protect society from attack by them. But Parker’s brand of profes-
sional police performance lacked total public support. Voters often supported political
machines that controlled and manipulated the police in anything but a professional man-
ner; the public demanded a police department that was subject to political influence and
manipulation and then condemned the force for its crookedness. The professional police
officer was in the uncomfortable position of offering a service that society required for its
very survival but that many people did not want at all.83
1960s and 1970s: The Struggle for Civil Rights
Certainly any review of the history of policing would be lacking if it did not discuss the
civil rights movement that predominated the late 1960s and 1970s and pitted the nation’s
police against many of its college-age youths and minority groups (with many members of
both groups viewing the police as “pigs” and representing the “establishment”). National
groups (e.g., Students for a Democratic Society, Black Panthers, Student Nonviolent
Coordinating Committee) represented both sides, some violent, others nonviolent. As
Benjamin Disraeli once said, “No man will treat with indifference the principle of race. It
is the key to history.”84
The 1960s were a time of great tumult, civil disobedience, social turbulence, and tre-
mendous progress in civil rights. Inner-city residents rioted in several major cities, protes-
tors denounced military involvement in Vietnam, and assassins’ bullets ended the life of
President John F. Kennedy (1963) as well as those of his brother U.S. Senator Robert F.
Kennedy (1968) and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1968). The country was witnessing tre-
mendous upheaval, and incidents such as the Democratic National Convention (1968) in
Chicago raised many questions about the police and their function and role; each night
Americans witnessed scenes on national television of Chicago police officers gassing and
clubbing protesters, news photographers and reporters, and other citizens in what was sub-
sequently termed in the investigative Walker Report and in many other accounts as the
Chicago “police riot.”85
The reform (or professional) era of policing was in bloom, however, so the police were
firmly ensconced in their patrol vehicles, being reactive to crime and quite removed from
personal contact with the public while on random patrol and focusing on quantitative mea-
sures of their effectiveness: numbers of arrests, response time, calls for service, numbers of
officers in patrol cars, numbers of miles officers drove per shift, and so on. Police training
and university police science programs were booming, the latter making campuses rich
with these “cash cow” programs taught largely by practitioners, with federal grants and GI
benefits paying for officers’ tuition, books, and often their living expenses. But the failure
of the professional era became most apparent during the aforementioned urban riots, sit-
ins, sniper attacks against police, gang violence, and other forms of unrest and upheaval of
the time.
Specifically, Harlem, Watts, Newark, and Detroit all were scenes of major race riots
during the 1960s. There were seventy-five civil disorders involving African Americans
CHAPTER 1 History 28
▼
and the police in 1967 alone, with at least eighty-three people killed, mostly African
Americans. In addition, many police officers and firefighters were killed or injured.
Property damage in these riots totaled hundreds of millions of dollars. The 1970s busing
programs that were introduced to integrate schools resulted in white “backlash” and more
interracial conflict.
In the late 1980s, police–community relations appeared to worsen, with a major riot in
Miami, Florida, in 1989. Also in the 1980s, affirmative action programs led to charges of
reverse discrimination and more dominant-group backlash. More recent decades have wit-
nessed burning and looting in Miami, Florida; Los Angeles, California; Atlanta, Georgia;
Las Vegas, Nevada; Washington, D.C.; St. Petersburg, Florida; Ferguson, Missouri; and
other cities. These incidents have demonstrated that the same tensions that found tempo-
rary release on the streets of African-American communities in the past still remain
with us.
The police, viewed by many during the professional era as the “thin blue line” per
William Parker, were involved in all of the social changes described previously. Although at
times police were used to prevent minority group members from demonstrating on behalf
of civil rights, at other times the police were required to protect those same protesting
minorities from the wrath of the dominant group and others who opposed peaceful demon-
strations. Over time, alienation developed from these contacts. Thus, members of both
groups had an uneasy coexistence with a good deal of emotional “baggage” based on what
they had seen, heard, or been told of their interactions throughout history.
History has shown that problems in police–community relations are actually part of a
larger problem of racism in American society. The highly respected National Academy of
Sciences concluded nearly two decades ago that “black crime and the position of blacks
within the nation’s system of criminal justice administration are related to past and present
social opportunities and disadvantages and can be best understood through consideration
of blacks’ overall social status.”86 More recent mass gatherings throughout the United
States, engendered by such groups as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the
Rainbow Coalition, and the Black Lives Matter movement, have involved protests against
racial profiling (discussed later), police brutality, and other perceived prejudices toward
people of color; such assemblies would indicate that the Academy’s statement is still valid
today. Minority group members remain frustrated because the pace of gains in our society
has not kept pace with their expectations.
▶ A Retreat from the Professional Model
Coming Full Circle to Peel: President’s Crime Commission and beyond
Until the period described previously, the 1960s and 1970s, there had been few inquiries con-
cerning police functions and methods for two reasons.87 First was a tendency on the part of
the police to resist outside scrutiny. Functioning in a bureaucratic environment, the police,
like other bureaucrats, were sensitive to outside research. Many police administrators per-
ceived a threat to their career and to the image of the organization, and they were also
concerned about the legitimacy of the research itself. There was a natural reluctance to
invite trouble. Second, few people in policing perceived a need to challenge traditional
methods of operation. The “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” attitude prevailed, particularly
among old-school administrators. Some ideas were etched in stone, such as the belief that
more police personnel and vehicles equaled more patrolling and, therefore, less crime, a
quicker response rate, and a happier citizenry. A corollary belief is that the more officers
riding in the patrol car, the better. The methods and effectiveness of detectives and their
investigative techniques were not even open to debate.
CHAPTER 1 History 29
▼
As Herman Goldstein stated, however, “Crises stimulate progress. The police came
under enormous pressure in the late 1960s and early 1970s, confronted with concern about
crime, civil rights demonstrations, racial conflicts, riots, and political protests.”88
Concurrent with, and because of, the aforementioned turmoil, five national commis-
sions attempted to examine police methods and practices during the 1960s and 1970s, each
viewing them from different perspectives. Of particular note is a commission whose find-
ings are still widely cited today and that provided the impetus to return the police to the
community: the President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of
Justice. Termed the President’s Crime Commission, this body was charged by President
Lyndon Johnson to find solutions to America’s internal crime problems, including the root
causes of crime, the workings of the justice system, and the hostile, antagonistic relations
between the police and civilians. Among the commission’s recommendations for the
police were hiring more minority members as officers to improve police–community rela-
tions, upgrading the quality of police officers through better-educated officers, promoting
to supervisory positions college-educated individuals, screening applicants more rigor-
ously, and providing intensive preservice training for new recruits. It was proposed that a
higher caliber of recruits would raise police service delivery, promote tranquility within
the community, and relegate police corruption to a thing of the past.89
The President’s Crime Commission brought policing full circle, restating several of
the same principles that were laid out by Sir Robert Peel in 1829: that the police should be
close to the public, that poor quality of policing contributed to social disorder, and that the
police should focus on community relations. Thus, by 1970 there had been what was
termed a systematic demolition of the assumptions underlying the professional era of
policing.90 Few authorities on policing today could endorse the basic approaches to police
management that were propounded by O. W. Wilson or William Parker. We now know
much that was still unknown by the staff of the President’s Crime Commission in 1967.
For example, as will be seen in Chapter 3, we have learned that adding more police or
intensifying patrol coverage does not reduce crime and that neither faster response time
nor additional detectives will improve clearance rates.
Peel’s principles still resonate throughout American policing today. For example,
William Bratton, the former Commissioner of the New York City Police Department and
one of the most influential police leaders of the early twenty-first century, often quoted Peel’s
principles in his speeches.91 For Bratton and other police executives, Peel’s ideas on col-
laboration with citizens and the prevention of crime and disorder are very much consistent
with the principles of community policing.
▶ The Community Era: 1980s to Present
In the early 1970s, it was suggested that the performance of patrol officers would improve
by redesigning their job based on motivators.92 This suggestion later evolved into a con-
cept known as team policing, which sought to restructure police departments, improve
police–community relations, enhance police officer morale, and facilitate change within
the police organization. Its primary element was a decentralized neighborhood focus for
the delivery of police services. Officers were to be generalists, trained to investigate crimes
and basically attend to all of the problems in their area; a team of officers would be assigned
to a particular neighborhood and would be responsible for all police services in that area.
In the end, however, team policing failed for several reasons. Most of the experiments
were poorly planned and hastily implemented, resulting in street officers who did not
understand what they were supposed to do. Many mid-management personnel felt threat-
ened by team policing and did not support the experiment.
There were other developments for the police during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Foot patrol became more popular, and many jurisdictions (such as Newark, New Jersey;
CHAPTER 1 History 30
▼
Boston, Massachusetts; and Flint, Michigan) even demanded it. In Newark, an evaluation
led to the conclusions that officers on foot patrol were easily seen by residents, produced a
significant increase in the level of satisfaction with police service, led to a significant
reduction of perceived crime problems, and resulted in a significant increase in the per-
ceived level of neighborhood safety.93
These findings shattered several long-held myths about measures of police effective-
ness. In addition, research conducted during the 1970s suggested that information could
help police improve their ability to deal with crime. These studies, along with studies
of foot patrol and fear reduction, created new opportunities for police to work with
citizens to do something about crime problems. Police discovered that when they asked
citizens about their priorities, citizens appreciated their asking and often provided
useful information.
Simultaneously, the problem-oriented approach to policing was being tested in
Madison, Wisconsin; Baltimore County, Maryland; and Newport News, Virginia. Studies
there found that police officers have the capacity to do problem solving successfully and
can work well with citizens and other agencies. Also, citizens seemed to appreciate work-
ing with police. Moreover, this approach gave officers more autonomy to analyze the
underlying causes of problems and to find creative solutions. Crime control remained an
important function, but equal emphasis was given to prevention.
In sum, following are some of the factors that set the stage for the demise of the profes-
sional era and the emergence of the community era of policing (discussed in Chapter 4):
• Narrowing of the police mission to crime fighting
• Increased cultural diversity in our society
• Detachment of patrol officers in patrol vehicles
• Increased violence in our society
• Scientific view of management, stressing efficiency more than effectiveness, quantita- tive policing more than qualitative policing
• Increased dependence on high-technology equipment rather than contact with the public
• Isolation of police administration from community and officer input
• Concern about police violation of the civil rights of minorities
• Burgeoning attempts by the police to adequately reach the community through crime prevention, team policing, and police–community relations
Today, problem-oriented policing is recognized as being on the cutting edge of what is
new in policing.94 In Chapter 4, for example, we introduce new concepts such as CompStat
and intelligence-led policing, which represent a shift to a more proactive style of policing
and help to make agencies accountable to the communities they serve. In addition, advances
in crime mapping and geographic profiling (discussed in Chapter 14) allow agencies to
maximize resources by focusing on locations with higher risk of criminal activity. Also in
Chapter 14, we discuss some technical innovations, such as aerial drones, body-worn cam-
eras, and less-lethal force devices that together help to improve police tactics in the areas of
search and rescue, surveillance, investigation, and use of force.
Overall, advancements associated with community policing (and the community era in
general) have demonstrated a great deal of promise in terms of improving police practice
and managing problems in neighborhoods. Many concerns still remain in the community
era, however:
• The growing reliance on private sector policing (discussed in Chapter 6) has given rise to concerns about recruitment and training standards for private police, as
CHAPTER 1 History 31
▼
well as questions about the relationship between citizens, public police, and private
police agencies.
• While some of the policing tactics linked to the community era have been credited with reducing crime, they have also been criticized for being overly aggressive toward
c itizens—especially citizens living in minority communities.
• Although agencies have greatly increased the amount of training and equipment dedi- cated to the prevention of terrorism in recent years (discussed in Chapter 12), some
worry that this has contributed to the further “militarization” of police—a process that
can alienate police from the communities they serve.
• Recent cases of controversial deaths involving police–citizen interactions, including Keith Scott in Charlotte, North Carolina, Terence Crutcher (Oklahoma), Michael Brown in
Ferguson (Missouri), Tamir Rice in Cleveland (Ohio), Walter Scott in North Charleston
(South Carolina), Freddie Gray in Baltimore (Maryland), Eric Garner in New York, and
others, have generated calls for greater transparency in police work and stricter limits on
police use of force.
As we will see in the following chapters, community era strategies and tactics hold
significant advantages over those from past policing paradigms. Nevertheless, as the pre-
ceding examples illustrate, there are still many challenges and areas for improvement. The
early twenty-first century is thus an important time in the history of American policing.
Summary This chapter has presented the evolution of policing through its three eras, and some of the
individuals, events, and national commissions that were instrumental in taking policing
through those eras. It has also shown how the history of policing may be said to have come
full circle to its roots, wherein it was intended to operate with the consent and assistance of
the public. Policing is now attempting to throw off the shackles of tradition and become
more community oriented.
This historical overview also reveals that many of today’s policing issues and problems
(most of which are discussed in subsequent chapters) actually began surfacing many cen-
turies ago: graft and corruption, negative community relations, police use of force, public
unrest and rioting, general police accountability, the struggle to establish the proper roles
and functions of the police, the police subculture, and the tendency to withdraw from the
public, cling to tradition, and be inbred. All in all, however, it would seem that the police
learned well their lessons from history, as these problems do not pervade the nation’s
17,000 agencies or their 800,000 officers. As we will see, the community era is spreading
and thriving in today’s police world.
Key Terms
August Vollmer
civil rights movement
community era of policing
constable
coroner
Democratic National Convention
(1968)
justice of the peace (JP)
modus operandi
political era of policing
President’s Crime Commission
principles of policing
professional era of policing
reform era of policing
republicanism
sheriff
slave patrols
team policing
Wickersham
Commission
William H. Parker
CHAPTER 1 History 32
▼
Review Questions
1. What were the major police-related offices and their
functions during the early English and colonial periods?
2. What legacies of colonial policing remained intact
after the American Revolution?
3. List the three early issues of American policing, and
describe their present status.
4. What unique characteristics of law enforcement
existed in the Wild West? What myths concerning
early western law enforcement continue today?
5. Explain the function of slave patrols, and how it might
be argued that they were the first form of policing in
the United States.
6. What were some of the major characteristics of the
political and reform eras of policing? How did they
square with the earlier principles of policing as set
forth by Sir Robert Peel?
7. What led to the development of the contemporary
community-oriented policing and problem-solving
era, and what are some of its main features?
8. How can it be said that policing has come full circle,
returning to its origins?
Learn by Doing
As indicated in the Preface, this section (here and at the
end of all the other chapters of this book) comports
with the early 1900s teaching of famed educator John
Dewey, who advocated the “learning by doing”
approach to education, or problem-based learning. It
also comports with the popular learning method
espoused by Benjamin Bloom in 1956, known as
Bloom’s Taxonomy, in which he called for “higher-
order thinking skills”—critical and creative thinking
that involves analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.95 The
following scenarios and activities will shift your atten-
tion from textbook-centered instruction and move the
emphasis to student-centered projects. By being placed
in these hypothetical situations, you can thus learn—
and apply—some of the concepts covered in this chap-
t e r, d eve l o p s k i l l s i n c o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d
self-management, solve problems, and understand and
address current community issues.
1. You have been tasked by the police chief to develop—
and present—a one-hour History of Policing class as
part of the curriculum at the Regional Police Academy.
Prepare an outline, timeline of police history, and pre-
sentation that will satisfy this request. Be sure to
include the major developments for each policing era.
2. Your criminal justice professor assigns you to exam-
ine your local police organizations and then, if they
exist, to compare the duties of the four early English
policing offices (e.g., sheriff, constable, justice of the
peace, coroner) with their present status and function
(or, if more appropriate, at the time of their demise) in
your particular area.
3. Assume that, as part of an assigned research paper on
the history of policing, you seek to interview a retired
police officer(s) concerning the changes in police
methods and philosophy over the past several decades
(as well as areas in which policing has remained
unchanged); hopefully, you would be particularly
determined to locate and interview a woman who
entered the field as a sworn officer in the 1970s or
1980s, and learn the unique challenges that were faced.
Notes
1. Samuel Walker, The Police in America: An Introduction
(New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983), p. 2.
2. Bruce Smith, Rural Crime Control (New York:
Columbia University, 1933), p. 40.
3. Ibid., pp. 42–44.
4. Ibid.
5. Ibid.
6. Ibid., pp. 182–184.
CHAPTER 1 History 33
▼
7 Ibid., pp. 188–189.
8. Ibid., p. 192.
9. Ibid., pp. 218–222.
10. Ibid., pp. 245–246.
11. Ibid.
12. Craig Uchida, “The Development of American
Police: An Historical Overview,” in Critical Issues in
Policing: Contemporary Readings, eds. Roger G.
Dunham and Geoffrey P. Alpert (Prospect Heights,
IL: Waveland Press, 1989), p. 14.
13. Charles Reith, A New Study of Police History
( London: Oliver and Boyd, 1956).
14. Carl Klockars, The Idea of Police (Beverly Hills,
CA: Sage, 1985).
15. Ibid., pp. 45–46.
16. Ibid., p. 46.
17. David R. Johnson, American Law Enforcement
History (St. Louis, MO: Forum Press, 1981), p. 4.
18. Ibid., p. 5.
19. Ibid.
20. Ibid., p. 6.
21. Ibid., p. 1.
22. Ibid., pp. 8–10.
23. Ibid., p. 11.
24. Ibid., p. 13.
25. David A. Jones, History of Criminology: A Philo-
sophical Perspective (Westport, CT: Greenwood
Press, 1986), p. 64.
26. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History,
pp. 14–15.
27. Ibid., pp. 17–18.
28. Ibid., pp. 18–19.
29. Leon Radzinowicz, A History of English Criminal
Law and Its Administration from 1750, vol. IV,
Grappling for Control (London: Stevens and Son,
1968), p. 163.
30. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History, p. 19.
31. Ibid., pp. 19–20.
32. Ibid., pp. 20–21.
33. A. C. Germann, Frank D. Day, and Robert R. J.
G allati, Introduction to Law Enforcement and
Criminal Justice (Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas,
1962), p. 63.
34. Clive Emsley, Policing and Its Context, 1750–1870
(New York: Schocken, 1983), p. 37.
35. For more information concerning Peel ’s princi-
ples, see Pamela D. Mayhall, Police–Community
Relations and the Administration of Justice, 3rd ed.
(New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1985), p. 425;
also see Charles Reith, A Short History of the
British Police (London: Oxford University Press,
1948).
36. Selden D. Bacon, The Early Development of
American Municipal Police: A Study of the Evolution
of Formal Controls in a Changing Society, unpub-
lished dissertation, Yale University, University
Microfilms No. 6646844, 1939.
37. See, for example, Samuel Walker, A Critical History
of Police Reform: The Emergence of Professionalism
(Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1977); Samuel
Walker, Popular Justice (New York: Oxford University
Press, 1980); also see Phillip Reichel, “Southern Slave
Patrols as a Transitional Police Type,” A merican Jour-
nal of Policing 7(2) (1988): 51–77.
38. M. P. Roth, Crime and Punishment: A History of the
Criminal Justice System (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth,
2005).
39. Phillip Reichel, “Southern Slave Patrols as a Transi-
tional Police Type,” American Journal of Police 7(2)
(1988): 57.
40. Sally Hadden, Slave Patrols: Law and Violence in
Virginia and the Carolinas (Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press, 2001), pp. 185–187.
41. Phillip Reichel, “Southern Slave Patrols as a Transi-
tional Police Type,” American Journal of Police 7(2)
(1988): 59.
42. Ibid., p. 68.
43. Sally Hadden, Slave Patrols: Law and Violence in
Virginia and the Carolinas, pp. 185–187.
44. Phillip Reichel, “Southern Slave Patrols as a Transi-
tional Police Type,” American Journal of Police 7(2)
(1988): 72.
45. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History, p. 26.
46. Ibid., pp. 26–27.
47. Ibid., p. 27.
48. Ibid.
49. Ibid., pp. 28–29.
50. Ibid., pp. 30–31.
51. James F. Richardson, Urban Policing in the United
States (London: Kennikat Press, 1974), pp. 47–48.
52. James F. Richardson, The New York Police: Colonial
Times to 1901 (New York: Oxford Press, 1970),
p. 259.
53. Richardson, Urban Policing in the United States, p. 48.
54. Richardson, The New York Police, pp. 195–201.
55. Richardson, Urban Policing in the United States, p. 51.
56. Ibid.
57. Ibid., pp. 53–54.
58. Ibid., pp. 55–56.
59. Ibid., pp. 59–60.
60. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History, p. 92.
61. Ibid.
62. Ibid., pp. 96–97.
63. Ibid., p. 98.
CHAPTER 1 History 34
▼
64. U.S. Department of Justice, United States Marshals
Service, “The Marshals Service Turns 215,” www.
usmarshals.gov/monitor/215-0402.pdf.
65. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History,
pp. 100–101.
66. Eric H. Monkkonen, Police in Urban America,
1860–1920 (New York: Cambridge University Press,
1981), p. 158.
67. John E. Eck, The Investigation of Burglary and
Robbery (Washington, D.C.: Police Executive
Research Forum, 1984).
68. George L. Kelling, “Juveniles and Police: The End of
the Nightstick,” in From Children to Citizens, vol. II,
The Role of the Juvenile Court, ed. Francis X.
H artmann (New York: Springer-Verlag, 1987).
69. Herman Goldstein, Policing a Free Society
(C ambridge, MA: Ballinger, 1977).
70. August Vollmer, “Police Progress in the Past Twenty-
Five Years,” Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology
24 (1933): 161–175.
71. Alfred E. Parker, Crime Fighter: August Vollmer
(New York: Macmillan, 1961).
72. Nathan Douthit, “August Vollmer,” in Thinking
About Police: Contemporary Readings, ed. Carl B.
Klockars (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983), p. 102.
73. Ibid.
74. Paul Jacobs, Prelude to Riot: A View of Urban
America from the Bottom (New York: Random
House, 1966), pp. 13–60.
75. Ibid.
76. Samuel Walker, A Critical History of Police Reform:
The Emergence of Professionalism (Lexington, MA:
Lexington Books, 1977), p. 81.
77. Ibid., pp. 80–83.
78. For a chronology of Vollmer’s career and a listing of
his publications, see Gene E. Carte and Elaine H.
Carte, Police Reform in the United States: The Era of
August Vollmer, 1905–1932 (Berkeley, CA: University
of California Press, 1975).
79. Orlando Wilson, Police Administration (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1950).
80. Mark H. Moore and George L. Kelling, “‘To Serve
and Protect’: Learning from Police History,” The
Public Interest 70 (Winter 1983): 49–65.
81. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History,
pp. 119–120.
82. Ibid., pp. 120–121.
83. Richardson, Urban Policing in the United States,
pp. 139–143.
84. Benjamin Disraeli, Endymion (New York:
D. Appleton & Co., 1880), pp. 249–250.
85. Daniel Walker, Rights in Conflict: The Violent Con-
frontation of Demonstrators and Police in the Parks
and Streets of Chicago During the Week of the Dem-
ocratic National Convention of 1968—A Report Sub-
mitted to the National Commission on the Causes
and Prevention of Violence (Steubenville, OH:
Braceland Brothers, 1968), p. 233; also see “Chicago
Examined: Anatomy of a Police Riot,” Time,
December 6, 1968, www.time.com/time/magazine/
article/0,9171,844633-5,00.html.
86. G. D. Jaynes, R. M. Williams, Jr., Common Destiny:
Blacks and American Society by Gerald David
Jaynes, published by National Academies © 1989.
87. Peter K. Manning, “The Researcher: An Alien in the
Police World,” in The Ambivalent Force: Perspectives
on the Police, 2nd ed. (Hinsdale, IL: Dryden Press,
1976), pp. 103–121.
88. Herman Goldstein, Problem-Oriented Policing
(New York: McGraw-Hill, 1990), p. 9.
89. William G. Doerner, Introduction to Law Enforce-
ment: An Insider’s View (Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 1992), pp. 21–23.
90. Samuel Walker, “‘Broken Windows’ and Fractured
History: The Use and Misuse of History in Recent
Police Patrol Analysis,” in Classics in Policing, eds.
Steven G. Brandl and David E. Barlow (Cincinnati,
OH: Anderson, 1996), pp. 97–110.
91. Joseph Goldstein and J. David Goodman, “A London
Guide for 1 Police Plaza,” New York Times, April 15,
2014, http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/16/
nyregion/a-london-guide-for-1-police-plaza.html.
92. Thomas J. Baker, “Designing the Job to Motivate,”
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 45 (1976): 3–7.
93. Police Foundation, The Newark Foot Patrol Experi-
ment (Washington, D.C.: Author, 1981).
94. Ibid., p. 71.
95. Benjamin S. Bloom, Taxonomy of Educational
Objectives, Handbook I: The Cognitive Domain
(New York: David McKay, 1956).
35
▼
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Describe some of the problems confronting today’s police recruiters and some unique measures being tried to obtain a viable applicant pool
❷ Explain the general hiring process and types of tests and examinations employed to hire and train police officers
❸ List the kinds of skills and knowledge that are imparted to police trainees during their academy training, including the typical subjects or topics that are found in the curriculum
❹ Describe the methods and purposes of both the FTO and PTO programs
2 Preparing for the Street Recruitment, Training, and Socialization
(Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff ’s Office.)
35
▼
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 36
▼
❺ Describe what is meant by the term working personality and how it is developed and functions
❻ Describe the primary functions and styles of policing
❼ Explain the status and advantages of women and minorities serving in police ranks
Introduction
This chapter generally describes how an officer’s career begins and, to a large extent, how his or her
occupational personality is formed. Studying the subculture of the police helps us define the “cop’s
world” and the officer’s role in it; this subculture shapes the officer’s attitudes, values, and beliefs.
The idea of a police subculture was first proposed by William Westley in his 1950 study of the Gary,
Indiana, Police Department, where he found, among many other things, a high degree of group cohe-
sion, secrecy, and violence.1 It is now widely accepted that the police develop traditions, skills, and atti-
tudes that are unique to their occupation because of their duties and responsibilities.2
We begin at the threshold, looking at some of the methods, challenges, and problems connected with
the recruitment of qualified individuals. Then we track the typical police applicant’s progression
through what has been termed the “hurdle process,” or various types of tests that may be employed—
written, psychological, physical, oral, character, and medical screening—and also discuss the assess-
ment center.
Next we examine formal police training at the academy, where the initiation of the officer-to-be into the
police subculture commences in earnest; included are their typical curriculum and some of the informal
learning that takes place there. We then look at postacademy training—the field training officer concept—
and in-service training later in one’s career. Following that, we take a look at how officers adopt their
working personality: formal and informal rules, customs, and beliefs of the occupation. This portion of the
chapter includes an assessment of the traits that make a good officer. Then we examine the roles, func-
tions, and styles of policing, following which we consider women and minorities in policing. A summary,
review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportunities to learn by doing con-
clude the chapter.
▶ First Things First: Recruiting Qualified Applicants
Wanted: Those Who Walk on Water
Recruiting that results in an adequate pool of applicants is an extremely important facet of
the police hiring process. August Vollmer stated:
[Law enforcement candidates should] have the wisdom of Solomon, the courage of David,
the patience of Job and leadership of Moses, the kindness of the Good Samaritan, the diplo-
macy of Lincoln, the tolerance of the Carpenter of Nazareth, and, finally, an intimate
knowledge of every branch of the natural, biological and social sciences.3
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 37
▼
Many people believe that the police officer has the most difficult job in America. Police
officers are solitary workers, spending most of their time on the job unsupervised. Also,
people who are hired today will become the supervisors of the future. For all these reasons,
police agencies must attempt to attract the best individuals possible.
Police applicants typically come from lower-middle-class or working-class back-
grounds4; they generally have a high school education and a history of employment. They
also tend, at the application stage, to be enthusiastic, idealistic, uninformed about the real-
ity of police work, and very different from the stereotype of the police officer as authoritar-
ian, suspicious, and insensitive.5
Some studies indicate that police applicants are primarily motivated by the need for job
security.6 Other researchers have found that both males and females listed the same six
factors—desire to help people, job security, crime fighting, job excitement, prestige, and a
lifetime interest—as strong positive influences in their career choices.7 Joel Lefkowitz
concluded that police candidates were lower than average in their desire to do autonomous
work,8 and other studies have indicated that applicants tend to favor a more directive lead-
ership style. Such findings are not unusual, given that most police agencies are highly
structured and paramilitary in nature. Studies do not establish that police candidates fit the
stereotypes of harsh, controlling people who wish to dominate others. Leadership, or the
ability to take charge of situations, is a desirable attribute, however. Some researchers
have found that the typical police applicant is very similar to the average college student.9
Bruce Carpenter and Susan Raza, using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI), found that police applicants differed from the general population in
several important ways.10 Police applicants, they learned, are somewhat more psychologi-
cally healthy, are generally less depressed and anxious, and are more assertive and inter-
ested in making and maintaining social contacts. Furthermore, few police aspirants have
emotional difficulties, and they have a greater tendency to present a good impression of
themselves than the general population does. They are a more homogeneous group.
Female police applicants tend to be more assertive and nonconforming and to have a
higher energy level than male applicants; they are also less likely to identify with tradi-
tional sex roles than male applicants. Older police applicants tend to be less satisfied, have
more physical complaints, and are more likely to develop physical symptoms under stress
than younger applicants. Applicants to large city police forces are generally less likely to
have physical complaints and have a higher energy level than applicants to small- or
medium-sized agencies. (This is probably explained by the fact that applicants in large cit-
ies are significantly younger.11) Some departments are under a mandate to recruit special
groups of people, such as women, African Americans, and Hispanics; several cities have
also actively recruited from the LGBT community.
▲ Classroom, firearms, and physical agility training are staples of the police recruit academy training process. (Courtesy Washoe
County Sheriff’s Office; Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department; and Western Nevada State Peace Officer Academy.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 38
▼
What psychological qualities should agencies seek? According to psychologist
Lawrence Wrightsman,12 it is important that police applicants be incorruptible and have
high moral character. They should be well adjusted, able to carry out the hazardous and
stressful tasks of policing without “cracking up,” and be thick-skinned enough to operate
without defensiveness. They should have a genuine interest in people and a compassionate
sense of the innate dignity of others. Applicants should also be free of emotional reactions,
they should not be impulsive or overly aggressive, and they should be able to exercise
restraint. This is especially important given their active role in crime detection.
Finally, they need logical skills to assist in their investigative work. An interesting
example of some of the logical skills needed for police work is provided by Al Seedman,
former chief of detectives in the New York City Police Department (NYPD):
In the woods just outside of town they found the skeleton of a man who’d been dead for
three months or so. I asked whether this skeleton showed signs of any dental work. But
the local cops said no, although the skeleton had crummy teeth. No dental work at all.
Now, if he’d been wealthy, he could have afforded to have his teeth fixed. If he’d been
poor, welfare would have paid. If he was a union member, their medical plan would
have covered it. So this fellow was probably working at a low-paying nonunionized job,
but making enough to keep off public assistance. Also, since he didn’t match up to any
family’s missing-person report, he was probably single, living alone in an apartment or
hotel. His landlord never reported him missing, either, so most likely he was also behind
on his rent and the landlord probably figured he had just skipped. But even if he had
escaped his landlord, he would never have escaped the tax man. The rest was simple.
I told these cops to wait until the year is up. Then they can go to the IRS and get a printout
of all single males making less than $10,000 a year but more than the welfare ceiling
who paid withholding tax in the first three quarters but not in the fourth. Chances are the
name of their skeleton will be on that printout.13
Other desirable traits of entry-level officers are discussed later in this chapter.
Recruiting Problems and Successes
Certainly the recruitment of quality police officers is a key to the values and culture of any
police organization. The current “cop crunch” is exacerbated in many cities by exploding
growth, a competitive job market, fiscal challenges, and struggles to retain diversity.14
Furthermore, this crunch comes at a time when today’s police need a stronger focus on
problem-solving skills, ability to collaborate with the community, and a greater capacity to
use technology.15 Adding to the problems are today’s higher incidence of obesity, major
debt, drug use, and criminal records that are found among potential recruits.16 Also com-
plicating recruitment efforts, policing in America has become greatly scrutinized in light
of current events around the nation, giving many people the perception that the occupation
has become much more difficult in recent times.17
Leaving no stone unturned, however, agencies are using all types of techniques to
locate and attract applicants. Agencies in many cities are disseminating their latest recruit-
ing news, updates, and hiring information on social networking sites, and urge citizens to
go to their recruiting unit’s Facebook page. Furthermore, some agencies are asking job
candidates to waive their privacy rights and even provide their passwords, text messages,
and identities in order that background investigators may access their social media sites.
Perhaps another factor relating to recruitment concerns entry-level salaries. According to a
federal survey, the entry-level average salary of police officers ranges from an average of
about $30,900 in smaller jurisdictions to about $50,700 in jurisdictions that serve popu-
lations of 100,000 to 249,000.18
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 39
▼
Recruiting and retaining women and minorities in police service remain particularly
problematic. Gender bias (reflected in the absence of women being hired and promoted to
policy-making positions) and sexual harassment concerns prevent many women from
applying and cause many female officers to leave—and quickly: About 60 percent of
female officers who leave their agency do so during their second to fifth years on the job.19
Police agencies now use various practices for attracting women and minorities to the appli-
cant pool and/or to increase the likelihood of their being hired. Studies show that one of the
most effective means to do so—even more important than raising starting salaries—is for
agencies to enhance their recruiting budget so that targeted recruitment activities can be
accomplished. Police agencies typically do not give specific advantages—such as lower
fitness standards or preference in the waiting list—to women or minorities; however,
targeted recruitment strategies have been shown to be beneficial for generating larger
recruitment pools and hiring underrepresented groups.20 Examples of such strategies
include: conducting career fairs, travelling to other cities and states to recruit, advertising
heavily on the Internet, and so on; the U.S. Border Patrol has advertised during televised
professional football games and even sponsored a NASCAR race car.21 Women and
minorities in policing are discussed in detail later.
▶ Testing
Hurdle Process
Even though a person meets the minimum qualifications for being a police officer (age,
education, no disqualifying criminal record), much work still remains to be done before he
or she is ready to be put to work as a police officer. The new recruit must successfully
complete what is known as the hurdle process. In this section, we consider some kinds of
tests that are used to weed out undesirable candidates.
Tables 2-1 ■ and 2-2 ■ show the kinds of tests and background checks that are used in
selecting new officer recruits. Both tables are organized by agency size, from under 2,500 to
more than 1 million. A study by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics (see Tables 2-1 and
2-2) found that nearly all local police agencies use criminal record checks, and nearly all
employ background investigations (99 percent), and driving record checks (99 percent) to
screen applicants. Personal interviews (99 percent), psychological evaluations (72 percent),
written aptitude tests (48 percent), personality inventory (46 percent), and polygraph exams
(26 percent) are also used.22 Certainly not all types of tests shown in Figure 2-1 ■ are
employed by all of the 17,000 police agencies in America, nor are these tests necessarily
given in the sequence shown. Under affirmative action laws and court decisions, a burden
rests with police administrators to demonstrate that the tests used are job related. This
so-called hurdle process23 shown in Figure 2-1 can require more than three months to com-
plete, depending on the number and types of tests used and the ease of scheduling and
performing them.
Application Is Filed
Polygraph Exam
Medical/Drug Screening
Written Exam
Psychological Exam
Recruit Academy
Agility Test
Oral Exam
Character Investigation
Probationary Status
Career Status
FIGURE 2-1 Major Elements of the Police Hiring Process
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 40
▼
TablE 2-1 Interviews, Tests, and Examinations Used in Selection of New Officer Recruits in local Police Departments, by Size of Population Served
Interviews, Tests, and Examinations Used to Select New Officer Recruits
Population Served
Personal
Interview
Psychological
Evaluation
Written
aptitude Test
Personality
Inventory
Polygraph
Exam
Voice Stress
analyzer
All sizes 99% 72% 48% 46% 26% 5%
1,000,000 or more 100 100 100 85 77 0
500,000–999,999 97 100 90 68 74 13
250,000–499,999 96 100 96 67 83 7
100,000–249,999 98 99 88 64 77 13
50,000–99,999 99 100 87 66 63 13
25,000–49,999 100 98 83 64 51 9
10,000–24,999 100 94 76 57 42 11
2,500–9,999 100 82 56 44 26 5
Under 2,500 98 48 20 38 10 2
Note: List of selection methods is not intended to be exhaustive.
Source: Interviews, Tests, and Examinations Used in Selection of New Officer Recruits in Local Police Departments, by Size of Population Served” from Local
Police Departments, 2007 (Washington, DC). Published by Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010.
TablE 2-2 background Checks Used in Selection of New Officer Recruits in local Police Departments, by Size of Population Served
background Checks Used to Select New Officer Recruits
Population Served
Criminal Record
Check
background
Investigation
Driving Record
Check
Credit History
Check
All sizes 100% 99% 99% 61%
1,000,000 or more 100 100 100 85
500,000–999,999 100 100 100 97
250,000–499,999 100 100 98 96
100,000–249,999 100 100 100 94
50,000–99,999 100 100 100 93
25,000–49,999 100 100 100 90
10,000–24,999 100 100 100 78
2,500–9,999 100 99 99 65
Under 2,500 100 99 97 41
Note: List of selection methods is not intended to be exhaustive.
Source: Background Checks Used In Selection of New Officer Recruits In Local Police Departments, By Size of Population
Served, Local Police Departments, 2007 (Washington, DC: Author, December 2010), Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2010.
Written Examinations: General Knowledge and Psychological Tests
Measures of general intelligence and reading skills are the best means a police agency can
use for predicting who will do well in the police academy.21 Of course, any such test must
be reliable and valid. To achieve reliability and validity, many (if not most) police agen-
cies purchase and use “canned” test instruments—those prepared by professional individu-
als or companies.
Larger police departments and state police agencies use four types of written tests:
cognitive tests (measuring aptitudes in verbal skills and mathematics, reasoning, and
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 41
▼
related perceptual abilities), personality tests (predominantly the MMPI), interest invento-
ries (the Strong-Campbell, the Kuder, and the Minnesota Interest tests), and biographical
data inventories.22
Over time, research findings have been mixed concerning the implications of writ-
ten examinations. For example, a 1962 study of deputy sheriffs found that candidates
with written test scores above the 97th percentile were most apt to be successful in
their careers.24 However, a study of the Tucson, Arizona, Police Department deter-
mined that the IQ scores of officers who dropped out of the force were significantly
higher than those of a norm group. The study concluded that one can be too bright to
be a cop, unless an alternate career development program can be developed to chal-
lenge and use highly intelligent people.25 Of course, there is much more to police work
than reading skills.
General intelligence tests are often administered and scored by the civil service or the
central personnel office. Most frequently, those who fail the entrance examination (i.e.,
they do not make the minimum score, which is usually set at 70 percent) will go on to other
careers, although most jurisdictions allow for a retest after a specified period of time. The
names of those who pass are forwarded to the police agency for any further in-house test-
ing and screening.26
Another form of written examination for police applicants is the psychological
screening test. There are two major concerns in using such tests to screen out appli-
cants: stability and suitability. Candidates must be carefully screened in order to
exclude those who are emotionally unstable, overly aggressive, or suffering from some
personality disorder. The two primary tests of suitability of police candidates are the
MMPI and the California Personality Inventory (CPI).27 Stability is a major legal con-
cern. If an officer commits a serious, harmful, and inappropriate act, the question of his
or her stability will be raised, and the police agency may be asked to provide documen-
tation about why the officer was deemed stable at the time of employment. It has been
found that 2 to 5 percent of the police applicant pool may be eliminated due to severe
emotional or mental problems.28
Physical agility
Entry-level physical examinations range from a minimally acceptable number of push-ups
to timed running and jumping tests to tests of strength and agility, such as dragging
weights, pushing cars, leaping over six-foot walls, walking on horizontal ladders, crawling
through tunnels, and negotiating monkey bars. The problem is that very few of these activ-
ities are actually performed by police officers on the job.
The challenge for police executives, and an area of lawsuit vulnerability, is selecting a
truly job-related physical agility test. Police agencies must determine the nature and extent
of physical work performed by police officers and use that information to develop an
instrument to measure applicants’ ability to perform that work. One such test is based on
the theory that police officers must perform three basic physical functions: getting to the
problem (possibly needing to run, climb, vault, and so forth), resolving the problem (per-
haps needing to fight or wrestle with an opponent), and removing the problem (often
requiring that the officer carry heavy weights). To establish the testing protocol for a given
jurisdiction, the officers fill out written forms concerning the kinds of physical work that
they performed each workday for one month. Information from the forms is then analyzed
by computer and used to develop a physical agility test that accurately measures the
recruit’s ability to do the kinds of work performed by police officers in that specific
locale.29 If challenged in court, agencies using such tests can show that they test for the
actual job requirements of their jurisdiction and do not discriminate on the basis of gender,
race, height, age, and physical condition.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 42
▼
Personal Interview
As noted in Table 2-1, the personal interview is used by 99 percent of all police agen-
cies as part of the selection process.30 Candidates appear individually before one or
more boards that are composed of members of the police agency, and often the com-
munity. Candidates may also be asked to participate in a clinical interview with a psy-
chologist; studies have indicated that the clinical interview complements the written
psychological test.31
The purpose of the interview is to assess aspects of the candidate that cannot be
measured on other tests, such as appearance, ability to communicate and reason (often
using situational questions), and general poise and bearing. The interview is not normally
well suited for judging character, dependability, initiative, or other such factors.
A primary advantage of the interview is that evaluators can ask applicants to explain
how they would behave and use force in given situations because any number of possible
scenarios exist. Following are five examples of the kinds of situations that might be posed
to police applicants to see how well they think on their feet, develop appropriate responses,
and prioritize their actions:
1. You are dispatched to a neighborhood park to check out a young man who is
acting strangely. Upon arrival, you see the youth standing near a group of chil-
dren playing on a merry-go-round. He is holding a .22-caliber rif le. What is your
next action?
2. You are in the men’s locker room at the end of your shift. You hear another male
officer talking about a female officer’s body. What do you do?
3. You are at home watching a football game on a weekend. Your neighbor comes to
your door and frantically claims that his door has been kicked in and that he believes
someone is inside. What do you do? What if the neighbor tells you that his daughter
is upstairs in his house? How would you proceed?
4. You are in a downtown area making an arrest. A crowd gathers and you begin to
hear comments about “police harassment.” Soon the crowd becomes angry. How
do you react?
5. You and another officer are responding to a burglary call at an office building. While
searching the scene, you observe the other officer remove an expensive fountain pen
from the top of a desk and put it in his pocket. What do you do?
Character Investigation
As indicated earlier, nearly all (99 percent) local police departments use background
checks or character investigations—probably the most important element of the selection
process. If done properly, the character investigation will also be one of the most time
consuming and costly elements of the process.
Character is one of the most subjective yet most important factors an applicant brings
to the job, and it cannot be measured with data and interviews. A character investigation
involves talking to the candidate’s past and current friends, coworkers, teachers, neigh-
bors, and employers. The applicant should be informed that references will be checked
and that in the course of reviewing them, the investigation may spread to other refer-
ences and others who are known to the applicant. No expense should be spared in talking
with anyone who has personal knowledge of the candidate and can provide crucial infor-
mation; if the job is done properly, the investigator will not only have a complete knowl-
edge of the person’s character but will also know where any skeletons may be buried in
the applicant’s background.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 43
▼
Polygraph Examination
As shown in Table 2-1, 26 percent of the nation’s police agencies—and much higher pro-
portions of larger agencies—conduct polygraph examinations as part of their selection
process.32 These agencies are willing to devote the extra resources necessary to help them
determine that their applicants are honest and to secure higher-quality employees.
A survey of the benefits of polygraph examinations for police applicants by Richard
Arther, director of the National Center of Lie Detection, supported the need for the poly-
graph for police recruitment:33
• An applicant for a police position in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania, came to that agency highly recommended by a police lieutenant and his employer at a home for blind,
retarded children. During the polygraph examination, however, the applicant admitted
to at least fifty instances of sexually abusing the children under his care.
• An applicant with the Wichita, Kansas, Police Department admitted to the polygra- phist that he had been involved in many burglaries. The detective division was able to
clear eight unsolved crimes as a result of the applicant’s confession.
• A police officer in one California police department applied for employment in the Salinas, California, Police Department. He appeared to be a model police officer, was
in excellent physical condition, and was familiar with state codes. His previous experi-
ence made him a potentially ideal candidate. However, during the polygraph exam, he
admitted to having committed over a dozen burglaries while on duty and to having
used his patrol car to haul away the stolen property. He also admitted to planting stolen
narcotics on innocent suspects in order to make arrests and to having had sexual inter-
course with girls as young as sixteen, in his patrol car.
• An applicant for the San Diego Sheriff’s Department admitted to that agency’s polyg- raphist that on weekends he would go from bar to bar pretending to be drunk. He
would then seek out people to pick fights with, since he could only have an erection
and orgasm while inflicting pain on others. In addition to these sadistic tendencies,
he also admitted that he got rid of his frustrations by savagely beating “niggers,
Chicanos, and long-haired pukes who cause all the trouble.”
▲ The polygraph, which measures several physiological features, is used
during recruitment to detect lies and deception and uncover any inappropri-
ate and/or criminal activities by the applicant. (Courtesy pefostudio5/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 44
▼
These are but a few examples of how the investment of time and money for polygraph
examinations can spare the public and police agencies a tremendous amount of trouble and
expense later. It is doubtful that few (if any) of these behaviors would have surfaced during
the course of a personal interview or a background investigation. Polygraph testing will be
discussed in greater detail in Chapter 5 in connection with criminal investigations.
Medical Examination and Drug Screening
Someone once said that some police medical examinations are often of the “Can you hear
thunder/see lightning?” variety—meaning that they are cursory at best. It is also widely
believed that policing is only for those young people who are in peak physical condition.
Whether these statements are facetious or not, it is certainly true that policing is no place
for the physically unfit. Such officers would be a hazard not only to themselves but also
to their coworkers. The job, with its stress, shift work, many hours of inactivity during
patrol time, and other factors, can be physically debilitating even for veteran officers,
especially those who fail to exercise and eat properly, so police administrators certainly
do not want applicants who are unfit. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), for
example, will not consider applicants whose weight exceeds the norm for their height and
body type. Unfit personnel are thought to have lower energy levels, to give less attention
to duty, and to take more sick days. Early retirement and disability often result, as do
increased operating expenses for replacing ill officers and hiring and training new perma-
nent replacements.
More and more often, police agencies, like private-sector businesses, the military, and
other sensitive government agencies, are compelling prospective employees to submit to a
drug test. Substance abuse remains a very real problem in the workplace, resulting in poor
productivity, lowered agency morale, and increased accidents and injuries.
assessment Center
Recently, the use of an assessment center has become more popular with police agencies.
While used by many departments for promotional testing and for hiring a chief executive,
some agencies also use this method for hiring new personnel. An assessment center may
include interviews; psychological tests; in-basket exercises; management tasks; group dis-
cussions; role-playing exercises, such as simulations of critical incidents or interviews
with subordinates, the public, and news media; fact-finding exercises; oral presentation
exercises; and written communication exercises. Behaviors and skills that are important to
the successful performance of the position are identified and possibly weighted, and each
candidate is evaluated on his or her ability to perform them.
Individual and group role-playing provides a hands-on atmosphere during the selection
process. For example, candidates may be required to perform in simulated police–
community problems (such as having candidates conduct a “meeting” to hear concerns of
local minority groups), react to a major incident (such as a simulated shooting or riot situ-
ation), hold a news briefing, or participate in other such exercises. They may be given an
in-basket situation, for example, assuming the role of the new chief or captain who receives
an abundance of paperwork, policies, and problems to be prioritized and dealt with in a
prescribed amount of time. To evaluate candidates’ writing abilities, they may be given a
specified amount of time (thirty minutes, for example) to develop a new use-of-force pol-
icy for a hypothetical or real police agency, allowing raters to assess candidates’ written
communication skills and their understanding of the technical side of police work, as well
as the ways they think and build a case.
During each exercise, several assessors or raters analyze each candidate’s performance
and record some type of quantitative or qualitative evaluation score, which is then turned
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 45
▼
over to the hiring or promoting authority. Raters selected are typically those who have held
and now supervise the position for which candidates are testing. For example, if the assess-
ment center is used to hire new officers, it would minimally be best that sergeants serve as
raters (for promotion to sergeant, lieutenants should be raters, and so on).
Assessment centers are obviously more difficult logistically to conduct and are nor-
mally more labor-intensive and costly than traditional (mere interviewing) procedures, but
they are well worth the extra investment. Monies invested at the early stages of a hiring or
promotional process can help the agency to make the best hiring decisions and save untold
problems for years to come.
▶ Formal Entry into Policing: Academy Training
Training Nature and Topics
Receiving an offer of employment in policing obviously is not immediately accompanied
by a badge, uniform, and set of keys to your new cruiser. Completion of an academy and
field training program will be one’s final hurdles to becoming a full-fledged officer.
Each state and each jurisdiction has different training requirements. In some areas, one
can attend basic police training at the local community college or other state-sponsored
institution first and then apply to the agency of his or her choice. Other jurisdictions may
require individuals to complete their in-house training program after successful comple-
tion of their hiring process or sponsor them to attend an academy elsewhere. Still others
may accept one’s external academy certificate but also require completion of an abbrevi-
ated version of their academy. Regardless, people must receive extensive training prior to
working alone on patrol. The majority of their initial training will be classroom based,
supplemented by practical exercises and scenarios. They will hold the rank of “cadet” or
“police trainee” during this time, and if sponsored by a hiring agency, receive their first
paycheck and be eligible to receive benefits.
▲ Role-playing scenarios are very effective for training academy
recruits to address domestic violence and other challenging situations.
(Courtesy L J Mil/Alamy.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 46
▼
▲ Police academy recruits engage in a variety of training activities and scenarios. (Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff’s Office.)
There is no standard national academy curriculum, but the state may guide agen-
cies in developing training programs. Each state has a Commission on Peace Officers
Standards and Training (POST) or similar entity that establishes minimum selection
standards for law enforcement officers, sets minimum education and training stan-
dards, and serves as the certification or licensing authority for sworn personnel.
These agencies may be helpful in obtaining an idea of the state’s approach to law
enforcement training.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics,34 about 648 state and local police acade-
mies are operating in the United States and offering basic law enforcement training to
individuals recruited, or seeking to become law enforcement officers. These include local
police officers, sheriff’s deputies, campus police officers, state police or highway patrol
officers, constables, and tribal police officers. About 40 percent of academies provided
preservice training for individuals not sponsored by an employing agency and nearly
90 percent provide in-service training, especially for such units as K-9 or special weapons
and tactics (SWAT) units. Some also train first-line (e.g., sergeant) or higher supervisors
and field training instructors.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 47
▼
The average duration of basic recruit training for new municipal police and county dep-
uty recruits is about 760 hours, with the most time being spent learning firearms skills
(median instruction time of 60 hours) and self-defense skills (51 hours). The median class
size among all academies was 18 recruits, and overall, 86 percent of the recruits who began
the academy successfully completed their studies and graduated. Some academies also pro-
vide training for jail officers (25 percent), corrections officers (23 percent), probation and
parole officers (16 percent), fire marshals and arson investigators (16 percent), private
security officers (10 percent), firefighters (8 percent), emergency medical technicians
(7 percent), and animal control officers (6 percent).35
Table 2-3 ■ includes a summary of training topics, the percentage of academies pro-
viding each topic, and the median number of hours of instruction per topic.
New Demeanor and Uniform
As academy training begins, recruits adopt a new identity and a system of discipline in
which they learn to take orders and not to question authority. They learn that loyalty to fel-
low officers, a professional demeanor and bearing, and respect for authority are all highly
valued in this occupation. The classroom teaches the recruit how to approach situations.
Outside the classroom, as recruits share war stories discussed with academy staff, they
informally transmit the proper attitudes to one another. Thus, the recruits begin to form a
collective understanding of policing and how they are supposed to function, and they grad-
ually develop a common language and demeanor. Many people also believe that the police
develop a swagger: a confident, authoritarian way of walking and presenting themselves.
This is the beginning of the police officer’s working personality.36
Recruits may wear a uniform for the first time during academy training, which is typi-
cally an awe-inspiring experience for them. The uniform sets recruits apart from society at
▲ A recruit is sprayed with oleocapsicum. Officers often must learn from personal experience the
effects of less-lethal weapons they will be carrying. (Courtesy Western Nevada State Peace Officer Academy.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 48
▼
TablE 2-3 Topics Included in basic Training of State and local law Enforcement Training academies
Topics
Percentage of academies
with Training
Median Number of Hours
of Instruction
Operations
Report writing 100% 20 hours
Patrol 99 40
Investigations 99 40
Basic first aid/CPR 99 24
Emergency vehicle operations 97 40
Computers/information systems 58 8
Weapons/Self-defense
Self-defense 99% 51 hours
Firearms skills 98 60
Nonlethal weapons 98 12
Legal
Criminal law 100% 36 hours
Constitutional law 98 12
History of law enforcement 84 4
Self-improvement
Ethics and integrity 100% 8 hours
Health and fitness 96 46
Stress prevention/management 87 5
Basic foreign language 36 16
Community Policing
Cultural diversity/human relations 98% 11 hours
Basic strategies 92 8
Mediation/conflict management 88 8
Special Topics
Domestic violence 99% 14 hours
Juveniles 99 8
Domestic preparedness 88 8
Hate crimes/bias crimes 87 4
Source: State and Local Law Enforcement Training Academies, 2006, Bureau of Justice Statistics.
large and conveys a sense of authority and responsibility to them and to the public. “Image
is everything,” according to a popular saying, and the choice of agency uniform can go a
long way toward setting the image and tone of the department. Police uniforms come in
various colors, styles, and fabrics. Some agencies even have their officers wearing blue
jeans or shorts and T-shirts (e.g., for beach patrol).
The belt is one of the most important components of the patrol uniform and is certainly one
of the heaviest. It often exceeds twenty pounds when laden with weapon, cuffs, baton, radio,
flashlight, extra ammunition, chemical weapons, and so on. The uniform hat comes in several
styles and is probably the piece of equipment that most readily identifies the officer and the
department’s image; each type of hat makes a certain statement to the public about the officer
and his or her authority. The officer’s badge also conveys a tremendous sense of authority; the
most popular are customized shields, incorporating everything from the state motto and seal to
symbols that convey the agency’s image and philosophy. When designing its badge, a police
department considers its tradition and history as well as those of the community.37
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 49
▼
Suspicion: The “Sixth Sense”
Police recruits are taught to nurture a sixth sense: suspicion. A suspicious nature is as impor-
tant to the street officer as a fine touch is to a surgeon. The officer should not only be able to
visually recognize but also be able to physically sense when something is wrong or out of the
ordinary. A Chicago Police Department bulletin stated the following:
Actions, dress, [and] location of a person often classify him as suspicious in the mind of a
police officer. Men loitering near schools, public toilets, playgrounds and swimming pools
may be sex perverts. Men loitering near . . . any business at closing time may be robbery
suspects. Men or youths walking along looking into cars may be car thieves or looking for
something to steal. Persons showing evidence of recent injury, or whose clothing is dishev-
eled, may be victims or participants in an assault or strong-arm robbery.38
Officers are trained to be observant, to develop an intimate knowledge of the territory
and people, and to “notice the normal. . . . Only then can [they] decide what persons or cars
under what circumstances warrant the appellation ‘suspicious.’”39 They must recognize
when someone or something needs to be checked out. The following observations often
warrant a field investigation40:
• People who do not “belong” where they are observed.
• Automobiles that do not “look right” (such as dirty cars with clean license plates or a vehicle with plates attached with wire or in another unusual fashion).
• Businesses that are open at odd hours or that are not operating according to routine or custom.
• People who exhibit exaggerated unconcern over contact with the officer or who are vis- ibly “rattled” when near the officer.
• Solicitors or peddlers who are in a residential neighborhood.
• Lone males who sit in cars near a shopping center or near a school while paying unusual attention to women or children.
• Persons who are hitchhikers.
• Persons who wear a coat on a hot day.
The academy also teaches neophyte officers that their major tool is their body; like
mountain climbers, acrobats, or athletes, their body is an essential tool for the performance
of their trade. The gun and nightstick initially fascinate the recruits, but until they
are adequately trained, officers using them would be more a menace to society than a pro-
tector. Proper handling and safety measures are drilled into the recruits—the message is
unequivocal that recruits will not be trusted with these potentially lethal weapons until
they become proficient in their use. The new officers must be taught to measure their
capacity to do the job, to assess carefully the physical capabilities of people they confront
on the street, and to determine whether someone can be subdued without assistance or the
risk of injury if a physical altercation should develop.41
The officers are also told, however, that they cannot approach every situation with the
holster unsnapped or baton raised or twirling; they must demonstrate poise and not be
eager to use force. The fact that the days of the club-swinging cop are gone is constantly
instilled in officers. Thus, knowing that the body is a tool, the recruits are taught how to
position themselves unobtrusively, whether at a vehicle stop or while engaged in a discus-
sion on the street, in order to gain a physical advantage should trouble arise. They are
taught when to use force and when to relent, to always keep control of the situation, and to
feel that they would emerge victorious should force be required. Thus, in addition to
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 50
▼
weapons training, they may be given some weaponless defense training, including some
holds that can be applied to subjects to bring them into compliance.
Recruits are taught some aspects of human nature and are encouraged not to be preju-
dicial in their actions or speech. They learn to deal with criminal suspects, offenders,
victims, and witnesses and to be suspicious of “eyewitness” accounts (e.g., twenty-five
“witnesses” claimed that they helped carry Abraham Lincoln from the Ford Theater into
the little house where he died; eight different people said they held his head, and eighty-
four people said they were in the room that night.42).
Recruits often participate in hands-on training, practicing their new techniques in the
field in simulated situations. Quite possibly the ultimate in hands-on training occurs at the
Hogan’s Alley complex at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, which opened in 1987
and covers almost thirty-five acres. This facility combines training, office, and classroom
space on one site, increasing training effectiveness. Hogan’s Alley (the name given to many
early-twentieth-century training facilities, apparently after an old comic strip about mischie-
vous Irish kids) resembles a fully developed urban area. The set includes a business area and
a residential street with townhouses and apartments. The use of movie-set techniques gives
the illusion of depth and space. All furnishings—including a fleet of cars, furniture, desks,
and even a pool table—were forfeited by convicted criminals. Federal agents are trained in
the practical skills of crime-scene investigation and photography, surveillance techniques,
arrest mechanics, and investigative skills. Trainees participate in paintball gunfights with
persons role-playing criminals.
Other methods of police training that are currently used include computer-based training
(CbT), electronic bulletin boards, satellite training and teleconferencing, online computer
forums, and correspondence courses. With computer costs declining, CBT is becoming increas-
ingly popular and has been shown to be very effective. As CBT simulates real-life situations
through the use of computer-modeled problems, it closely duplicates the way we think. One
study found that police officers that learned about the exclusionary rule (discussed in Chapter 7)
through CBT understood the material significantly better than the non-CBT control group.43
Virtual reality is another available (although very costly) form of police training. Trainees
wear a head-mounted device that restricts their vision to two monitors and projects a
computer-generated three-dimensional illusion that engulfs the senses of sight, sound, and
▲ The FBI’s “Hogan’s Alley.” (Courtesy Western Nevada State Peace Officer Academy; Federal Bureau of
Investigations.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 51
▼
touch. Virtual reality may one day be commonly used for training police officers in such areas
as pursuit driving, firearms training, critical-incident management, and crime-scene processing.
Finally, graduation day arrives, and the academy experience becomes a rite of passage.
Graduation also means new uniforms, associates, and responsibilities and a raise in pay
and status. As Arthur Niederhoffer observed, for many officers academy graduation is a
worthy substitute for a college education. But “the very next morning the graduate is
rudely dumped into a strange precinct where he must prove himself.”44
▶ Postacademy Field Training
Field Training Officer (FTO) Program
Once the recruits leave the academy, their knowledge of and acceptance into the police
subculture are not yet complete. Another very important part of this acquisition process is
assignment to a veteran officer for initial field instruction and observation in what is some-
times called a field training officer (FTO) program. The oldest formal FTO program began in
the San Jose, California, Police Department in 1972.45 This training program provides
recruits with an opportunity to make the transition from the academy to the streets under
the protective arm of a veteran officer. Recruits are on probationary status, normally rang-
ing from six months to one year; they understand that they may be immediately terminated
if their overall performance is unsatisfactory during that period.
Most FTO programs consist of four identifiable phases: an introductory phase (the
recruit learns agency policies and local laws), the training and evaluation phases (the recruit
is introduced to more complicated tasks that patrol officers confront), and a final phase
▲ The federal Office of Community Oriented Policing
Services publishes a manual on the PTO approach for
training new police officers. (Courtesy U.S. Department of
Justice.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 52
▼
(the FTO acts strictly as an observer and evaluator while the recruit performs all the functions
of a patrol officer).46 The National Institute of Justice (NIJ), surveying nearly six hundred
police agencies, found that 64 percent had an FTO program and that such programs had
reduced the number of civil liability suits filed against their officers and against standard-
ized training programs.47 The length of time rookies are assigned to FTOs will vary; a for-
mal FTO program might require close supervision for a range of one to twelve weeks.
Police Training Officer (PTO) Program
Another new approach to training new officers is slowly gaining traction across the nation; as
with the FTO program discussed earlier, it is multifaceted and is an in-depth method: the police
training officer (PTO) program. A PTO program seeks to take the traditional FTO program to a
higher level, one that embraces new officers and evaluates them on their understanding and
application of community-oriented policing and problem solving (discussed in Chapter 4).
With a half million dollars in federal assistance, training needs were assessed and a
new PTO program was recently initiated in the Reno, Nevada, Police Department and at
five other national sites. Its theoretical underpinnings include adult and problem-based
learning. The PTO program covers two primary training areas: substantive topics (the
most common policing activities) and core competencies (the required common skills
that officers engage in and that are required in the daily performance of their duties).
New officers must successfully pass fifteen core competencies, specific skills, knowl-
edge, and abilities that have been identified as essential for good policing. A learning
matrix serves as a guide for trainees and trainers during the training period and demon-
strates the interrelationships between the daily policing activities and core competencies
during the eight phases of the PTO program.48
New Technology
New technology in the training function includes software known as ADORE (Automated
Daily Observation Report and Evaluation). FTOs in several agencies now field testing the
software find that it saves them time because they do not have to write reports by hand for
each recruit. ADORE, which can be accessed through either a laptop or a smart phone,
allows FTOs to take computerized notes while watching trainees at work; it also reduces
paperwork by allowing trainers to easily compile numbers for evaluating performance in
▲ Technologies assist in recruit and ongoing in-service training. Here, officers participate in
computer-simulated emergency vehicle operations and use of firearms (Courtesy Washoe County
Sheriff’s Office; Cincinnati Police Department.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 53
▼
dozens of categories. The software is credited with reducing FTO burnout, which is often
a part of the paper-intensive evaluation process.49
Another new form of technology for police training that is being tested involves pursuit
simulation. The training simulator is thought to be an effective means of determining how and
when a vehicle pursuit should be halted. In one scenario, trainees in a simulated pursuit swerve
around computerized images of a transit bus, a produce truck, a minivan, and a child on a skate-
board before the chased vehicle enters a school zone, where the officer should end the hot pur-
suit. These simulated pursuits also allow supervisors to see how well trainees conduct themselves
in accordance with their agency’s pursuit policy, which is often several pages long.50
In-Service Training
Changes in departmental policies and procedures, court decisions, the specter of liability,
and operational strategies and techniques demand that training be an ongoing process
throughout a police officer’s career. It is simply unreasonable to expect that the knowledge
gained during basic academy training or specialized training can serve an officer for an
entire career. As Roger Dunham and Geoffrey Alpert put it, “Whether an officer is
overweight or out of shape, a poor shot, uses poor judgment, or is too socialized into the
police subculture to provide good community policing, in-service training can be used to
restore the officer’s skills or to improve his attitude.”51
In-service training is used to recertify, refresh, or provide new information to officers
in the most critical areas of their job, including weapons qualification, driving, defensive
tactics, first aid, and changes in the law. Most states require a minimum number of hours
of in-service training for police officers, and many departments exceed the minimum
requirement. News items, court decisions, policy changes, and other relevant information
can be covered at roll call before the beginning of each shift. Short courses ranging from a
few hours to several weeks are available for in-service officers through several means,
such as videos and nationally televised training programs.
▶ Working Personality: Having the “Right Stuff”
Developing a Police Personality
Since William Westley first wrote about the police subculture in 1950, the notion of a
police personality has become a popular area of study. In 1966, Jerome Skolnick52
described what he termed the working personality of the police. He determined that the
police role contained two important variables: danger and authority. Danger is a constant
feature of police work. Police officers, constantly facing potential violence, are warned
at the academy to be cautious and are told many war stories of officers shot and killed at
domestic disturbances or traffic stops. Consequently, they develop a “perceptual short-
hand,” Skolnick said, that they use to identify certain kinds of people as “symbolic
assailants”—individuals whom the officer has come to recognize as potentially violent
based on their gestures, language, and attire.
The police, as Skolnick stated, represent authority, but unlike doctors, ministers, and the
like, they must establish their authority. The symbols of that authority—the gun, the badge,
and the baton—assist them, but officers’ behavior and confidence are more important in social
situations. As William Westley said, an officer “expects rage from the underprivileged and
the criminal but understanding from the middle classes: the professionals, the merchants,
and the white-collar workers. They, however, define him as a servant, not as a colleague, and
the rejection is hard to take.”53 Thus, officers cannot even depend on their symbols and posi-
tion of authority in dealing with the public; they are often confused when the public does not
automatically observe and accept their authority.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 54
▼
Considerable research has compared the personality characteristics of the police with
those of the general public,54 and a number of differences have been discovered. One study
found the average officer to be more intelligent, assertive, dependable, straightforward,
and conscientious than civilians.55 Other researchers who studied state traffic officers and
deputy sheriffs using the MMPI and CPI scales reported that the officers scored high on the
values of achievement, strong work ethic, ambition, leadership potential, and organiza-
tional skills.56 Studies have also found conservatism and a high degree of cynicism among
officers, although those traits are found to be present in much of the society at large. The
late LAPD Chief William Parker asserted that police were “conservative, ultraconserva-
tive, and very right wing.”57
Niederhoffer reported his classic study of police cynicism in 1967, using the NYPD as the
site of a longitudinal study.58 He found that although typical recruits begin their career without
a trace of cynicism, police cynicism spikes most dramatically immediately after they leave the
basic academy. This is probably because they confront the reality of the streets—the pain and
criminality of society—and perhaps lose friends. Cynical veteran peers frequently reinforce
the worst aspects of the job. In the period of about two to six years of service, the cynicism
level continues to increase, but at a slower rate. The recruit has begun to adapt to the occupa-
tion and the people to be dealt with every day. At about mid-career (about eight to thirteen
years of service), the cynicism level actually begins to decline, possibly because the officer
has accepted the job and possibly has been promoted, earns a decent salary and benefits, and
realizes that he or she is about halfway to retirement. Toward the end of the career, the degree
of cynicism levels off; for many officers, this is a period of coasting toward retirement.
A police officer’s view of humanity may become distorted and cynical because
many of the people the police deal with are offenders. They see what they feel are
miscarriages of justice, such as improper or lenient court decisions, perjury on the
witness stand, plea bargaining (where defendants are allowed to plead guilty to less
serious offenses than charged or to fewer counts than charged), and observe fellow
officers who do not live up to their code of ethics. Cynicism does have a protective
feature, however: It can help to make the officer callous, allowing him or her to
observe things that would sicken or horrify the average citizen without becoming
mentally debilitated.
John Broderick59 presented another view of the working personality of the police.
He believed that there are actually four types of police personalities: enforcers, idealists,
realists, and optimists.
Enforcers are officers who believe that the job of the police consists primarily of
keeping their beats clean, making good arrests, and sometimes helping people. These
officers have sympathy for vagrants, the elderly, the working poor, and others whom they
see as basically good people. However, drug users, cop haters, and others frustrate the
efforts of enforcers to make them “good,” which makes the enforcers very unhappy.
Thus, they have high job dissatisfaction and an attitude of resentment, feeling that a lot
of people are hostile toward them.
Idealists, according to Broderick, are officers who put high value on individual rights
and due process. They also believe that it is their duty to keep the peace, protect citizens
from criminals, and generally preserve the social order. With a high percentage of college
graduates, idealists’ commitment to the job is the lowest of the four groups, and they are
less likely to recommend the job to a son or daughter.
Realists place relatively little emphasis on either social order or individual rights,
Broderick says. They seem less frustrated, having found a way to come to terms with a diffi-
cult job. For them, the reality of the job consists of manila envelopes and properly completed
forms. Realists see many problems in policing, such as special privileges given to politicians.
Reality is not warm bodies to be dealt with but rather the paperwork that the bodies leave
behind. They work well in the ordered, predictable environment of a police records room.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 55
▼
Broderick’s last group, the optimists, also places a relatively high value on individual
rights. Like idealists, they see their job as people oriented instead of crime oriented. They
see policing as providing opportunities to help people; they view the television version of
policing as totally unrealistic and find it rewarding to spend the majority of their time in
service activities. Optimists have the lowest amount of job resentment, are committed to
the job, and would choose policing as a career all over again. They enjoy the mental
challenge of problem solving.
What Traits Make a Good Cop?
It is not too difficult to identify a bad cop through his or her unethical or criminal behavior.
It is probably more difficult to identify the traits of good officers. In 1977, political scientist
William K. Muir attempted to describe a good police officer in theory by examining two
characteristics: “passion” (loosely defined as the willingness to use coercive force for the
greater good) and “perspective” (the ability to see and appreciate both good and bad in the
world). According to Muir, a “professional” police officer possesses both passion and per-
spective. The “professional” can also be distinguished from other types of officers: the
“enforcer”—an officer who is morally comfortable with the use of force, but who lacks
perspective; the “reciprocator”—an officer who possesses perspective, but who is genu-
inely uncomfortable with the use of coercive power; and the “avoider”—an officer who
lacks both passion and perspective.60
Muir’s ideas of passion and perspective represent one way to think about the character-
istics that a good officer should possess, but the difficulty comes in measuring those char-
acteristics in practice. How can a quantitative measure assess the work of police? Is it
possible to judge the quality of an officer’s work? These are challenging questions for
police supervisors.
A major obstacle to assessing police performance rests with the nature of police work
generally and the variation in the kinds of work performed on different shifts. The police role
varies according to whether the officer is assigned to the day shift, evening (swing) shift, or
night (graveyard) shift (see Chapter 5 for a description of how police work varies by shift).
Dennis Nowicki61 acknowledged that while certain characteristics form the foundation
of a police officer—honesty, ethics, and moral character—no scientific formula can be
used to create a highly effective officer. However, he compiled twelve qualities that he
believes are imperative for entry-level police officers:
1. Enthusiasm. Believing in what one is doing and going about even routine duties with
a certain vigor that is almost contagious.
2. Good communication skills. Having highly developed speaking and listening skills
and interacting equally well with a wealthy person or someone lower on the socio-
economic ladder.
3. Good judgment. Having wisdom and the ability to make good analytic decisions
based on an understanding of the problem.
4. Sense of humor. Being able to laugh and smile in order to help oneself cope with
regular exposure to human pain and suffering.
5. Creativity. Using creative techniques to place oneself in the mind of the criminal
and accomplish legal arrests.
6. Self-motivation. Making things happen, proactively solving difficult cases, and cre-
ating one’s own luck.
7. Knowing the job and the system. Understanding the role of a police officer and the
intricacies of the justice system, knowing what the administration requires, and
using both formal and informal channels to be effective.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 56
▼
8. Ego. Believing one is a good officer and having the self-confidence that enables one
to solve difficult crimes.
9. Courage. Being able to meet physical and psychological challenges, thinking
clearly during times of high stress, admitting when one is wrong, and standing up
for what is right.
10. Discretion. Enforcing the spirit of the law (not the letter of the law), giving people a
break, showing empathy, and not being hard-nosed, hardheaded, or hard-hearted.
11. Tenacity. Staying focused, seeing challenges rather than obstacles, and viewing
failure not as a setback but as an experience.
12. Thirst for knowledge. Being aware of new laws and court decisions and
always learning (from the classroom but also via informal discussions with
other officers).
▶ Roles, Functions, and Styles of Policing
Definition and Knowledge of the Police Role
Why do the police exist? What are they supposed to do? Often these questions are given
oversimplified answers such as “They enforce the law” or “They ‘serve and protect.’”62
But policing is much more complex. As Herman Goldstein put it, “Anyone attempt-
ing to construct a workable definition of the police role will typically come away with
old images shattered and with a newfound appreciation for the intricacies of police
work.”63 Even with all of the movies and television series depicting police in action,
most Americans probably still do not have an accurate idea of what the police really do.
This confusion is quite understandable because the police are called on to perform an
almost countless number of tasks. Police are even used as prosecutors in some states,
such as New Hampshire.
Who defines the police role? There are several groups and individuals who do64:
• Private citizens influence the nature of the police role through their contacts with the police, by participation in community policing programs (discussed in Chapter 4),
and through the election of public officials who set policy, and appoint police
administrators.
• Legislative bodies influence the role of the police by enacting statutes, both those that govern the police and those that the police use to govern others. In addition, legislative
bodies determine police department budgets.
• The courts actively “police the police” by handing down decisions that regulate police conduct.
• Executives such as city managers and prosecutors help to define the police role by determining the types of cooperative agreements and evidence necessary for a prose-
cutable case.
• Police officers themselves define their roles by choosing to intervene in some incidents while ignoring others.
One of the greatest obstacles to understanding the American police is the crime
fighter image. Many people believe that the role of the police is confined to law
enforcement: the prevention and detection of crime and the apprehension of criminals.
This is not an accurate view of contemporary policing.65 It does not describe what the
police do on a daily basis. First, only about 20 percent of the police officer’s typical
day is devoted to fighting crime per se.66 As Jerome Skolnick and David Bayley point
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 57
▼
out, the crimes that terrify Americans the most—robbery, rape, burglary, and homicide—are
rarely encountered by police on patrol: “Only ‘Dirty Harry’ has his lunch disturbed by
a bank robbery in progress. Patrol officers individually make few important arrests.
The ‘good collar’ is a rare event. Cops spend most of their time passively patrolling
and providing emergency services.”67 As Donald Black famously noted in an early
observational study of police, “selecting arrest as a subject of study implicitly misre-
presents routine police work” and “a study of arrest flatters the legal significance of
the everyday police encounter.”68
The crime fighter image persists, although it is extremely harmful to the public and
individual officers.69 The public suffers from this image because it gives rise to unrealistic
expectations about the ability of the police to catch criminals. The image harms individual
officers, who believe that rewards and promotions are tied only to success in capturing
criminals. Also, many individuals enter policing expecting it to be exciting and rewarding,
as depicted on television and in the movies. Later they learn that much of their time is
spent with boring, mundane tasks that are anything but glamorous, that much of the work
is trivial, and that paperwork is seldom stimulating.
Role Conflicts
Role conflicts may develop with officers and their departments. A family disturbance is a
good example. Assume that Jane Smith reports to the police that her husband, John, is assault-
ing her. Police officers must respond to the disturbance, and the law empowers them to inter-
vene, to enforce the law, and to maintain order. For the combatants, it is a very trying
experience, not only because their family is dysfunctional but also because the police have
been summoned to their home. Veteran officers might view the domestic call as trivial and
inconvenient, leaving the scene as quickly as possible to go perform “real” police duties.
By the same token, the role of the police is often in the eye of the beholder. For exam-
ple, the domestic argument just described might seem to fit best the category of maintain-
ing order. However, if the responding officers are trained in crisis intervention or if they
refer the couple to counseling, they are providing a social service. On the other hand, if
John is found to have assaulted Jane, it is likely a criminal matter. If the police make an
arrest or even just assist Jane in swearing out a warrant, the matter becomes a law enforce-
ment issue. The category to which this incident is assigned will vary greatly from agency
to agency, officer to officer, and researcher to researcher, making it difficult to draw any
solid conclusions about the police role.
Still, it is important to be as explicit as possible about the police role for several rea-
sons. First, we can recruit and select competent police personnel only when we have a
clear vision of what the police are supposed to accomplish. Second, evaluation for reten-
tion and promotion is useful only to the extent that we evaluate in terms of what the police
are supposed to do. Third, budgetary decisions should be based on an accurate analysis of
police roles. Fourth, efficiency and effectiveness in police organizations depend on accu-
rate task descriptions. Fifth, public cooperation with the police depends on developing
reasonable expectations of the roles of the police and the public.70
The police must identify those crimes on which police resources should be concentrated,
focusing on the crimes that generate the most public fear and economic loss. The chief execu-
tive should have written policies to ensure that the police mission and the objectives used to
achieve that mission are maintained by the police department. In other words, it is not enough
for the police to “maintain order” or “provide justice.” A police department may use many
methods to maintain order and provide justice. In China or Saudi Arabia, those methods
would be far different from those generally employed in the United States. But would “jus-
tice” result? In America, the police must maintain order without resorting to extralegal means
or violating human rights.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 58
▼
Policing Functions and Styles
Officers may be said to perform four basic policing functions: (1) enforcing the law, (2)
performing services (such as maintaining or assisting animal-control units, reporting
burned-out street lights or damaged traffic signs, delivering death messages, checking the
welfare of people in their homes, delivering blood), (3) preventing crime (patrolling, pro-
viding the public with information on crime prevention), and (4) protecting the innocent
(by investigating crimes, police are systematically removing innocent people from consid-
eration as crime suspects).
James Q. Wilson71 looked at the functions of the police differently, determining that
the police perform two basic functions: maintaining order (peacekeeping) and enforcing
the law. Maintaining order constitutes most of the activities of the police; as noted earlier,
less than 20 percent of the calls answered by police are directly related to crime control or
law enforcement. Much of an officer’s time is spent with such service activities as traffic
control and routine patrol. Indeed, in some cases, the police deliberately avoid enforcing
the law in an attempt to maintain order. For example, if the police know of a busy street
where many drivers speed, they may desist from setting up a speed trap during rush hours
so as not to impede the flow of traffic and possibly cause accidents.
Enforcing the law means upholding the statutes, but this is not as simple and straightfor-
ward a function as it might seem. First, the police are really not very good at performing the
law enforcement function; they have not traditionally been successful at preventing crime or
providing long-term solutions to neighborhood disorder (although the relatively new commu-
nity-policing and problem-solving concepts are addressing this shortcoming). Second, there
are several types of crime—such as white-collar crime—with which the local police seldom
deal. Third, the police, representing only about 2.3 officers per 1,000 population in the United
States, cannot effectively control the public alone. Finally, the police are successful in solving
only a fraction of the property and personal crimes that occur.72
Wilson also maintained that there are three distinctive policing styles73:
1. Watchman style. The watchman style involves the officer as a “neighbor.” Here,
officers act as if order maintenance (rather than law enforcement) is their primary
function. The emphasis is on using the law as a means of maintaining order rather
than regulating conduct through arrests. Police ignore many common minor viola-
tions, such as traffic and juvenile offenses. These violations and so-called victimless
crimes, such as gambling and prostitution, are tolerated and will often be handled
informally. Thus, the individual officer has wide latitude concerning whether to
enforce the letter or the spirit of the law; the emphasis is on using the law to give
people what they “deserve.” It assumes that some people, such as juveniles, are occa-
sionally going to “act up.”
2. legalistic style. A legalistic style casts the officer as a “soldier.” This style takes a
much harsher view of law violations: Police officers issue large numbers of traffic
citations, detain a high volume of juvenile offenders, and act vigorously against
illicit activities, and large numbers of other kinds of arrests occur as well. Chief
administrators want high arrest and ticketing rates not only because violators
should be punished but also because it reduces the opportunity for their officers to
engage in corrupt behavior. This style of policing assumes that the purpose of the law
is to punish.
3. Service style. The service style views the officer as a “teacher.” This style falls
between the watchman and legalistic styles. The police take seriously all requests for
either law enforcement or order maintenance (unlike in the watchman-style depart-
ment) but are less likely to respond by making an arrest or otherwise imposing formal
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 59
▼
sanctions. Police officers see their primary responsibility as protecting public order
against the minor and occasional threats posed by unruly teenagers and “outsiders”
(tramps, derelicts, out-of-town visitors). The citizenry expects its service-style offic-
ers to display the same qualities as its department store salespeople: They should be
courteous, neat, and deferential. The police will frequently use informal sanctions
instead of making arrests.
Which Role, Function, and Style Prevail?
As we have seen, the role, function, and style of the police will differ by time and place.
They will also be fluid within the agency, changing with the times, the political climate,
and the problems of the day. Most police agencies do not determine which problems they
address; rather, they respond to the problems that citizens believe are important, and the
police agencies depend on the goals set by the community, the chief executive, and
the individual officers. Sometimes roles, functions, and styles overlap, but most of the time
they are distinct.
▶ Breaking Through Glass Ceilings: Women and Minorities
Some challenges and successes with recruiting women (and minorities) into policing were
discussed earlier. Here, we basically consider why it is important to have them engaged in
police work.
Women as Officers and Chief Executives
Over the last thirty years, the proportion of women police officers has grown steadily.
During the 1970s, some formal barriers to hiring women were eliminated, such as height
requirements; in addition, subjective physical agility tests and oral interviews were
modified.74 Some job discrimination suits further expanded women’s opportunities.
Women now represent about 12 percent of the sworn personnel in local (municipal and
county) police agencies.75 State agencies as a whole have a much lower percentage of
female officers than either local or federal law enforcement agencies, 6.5 percent.76 Women
account for about 15 percent of all federal sworn officers, which is a bit higher than
local agencies.77
Although this representation of women officers is low compared to their overall
proportion in the total population, it becomes even more evident in leadership positions,
where women represent less than 10 percent of first-line supervisors and number an esti-
mated 3 percent of the police chiefs in the United States.78 However, inroads are being
made: approximately forty women now serve as sheriffs in the United States,79 and
women serve or have served as chiefs of police in Orlando, Florida; Newark, New
Jersey; Washington, D.C.; San Francisco; Boston; Detroit; and Milwaukee, as well as in
a number of other cities, as “mayors are looking for sophisticated CEOs who can over-
see large budgets, negotiate thorny management problems, and set sound department-
wide policy.”80
advantages
In addition to helping the police labor force to diversify, there are certainly practical
advantages to having women in uniform as well; according to a report by the National
Center for Women & Policing:
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 60
▼
1. Female officers are proven to be as competent as their male counterparts. The Center
notes that several evaluations of the effectiveness of female officers in a number of
work-related areas in several large cities (e.g., Washington D.C., St. Louis, New York
City, Denver, Philadelphia) concluded that men and women were equally capable of
successful performance as patrol officers.
2. Female officers are less likely to use excessive force. As with their competency,
research both in the United States and international venues demonstrates that female
officers utilize a less authoritarian style of policing that relies less on physical
force—and their communications skills allow them to defuse situations.
3. Female officers implement “community-oriented policing.” Community policing and
problem solving emphasizes communication and cooperation with citizens as well
▲ There are many advantages to having women serve in today’s law
enforcement agencies, such as being as competent as male officers
and less likely to use excessive force (Courtesy Michigan State Police.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 61
▼
as informal problem solving. The Center believes that, in addition to their communi-
cation skills, women officers demonstrate empathy toward others and interact in a
way that is not designed to “prove” something.
4. More female officers will improve law enforcement’s response to violence against
women. It is critical that the police properly respond to problems of sexual and physi-
cal assaults against women; the price of failure is high, not only in terms of crimes
against the victims but also the risk of litigation (particularly in domestic violence).
The Center cites studies indicating that female officers have long been viewed as more
effective in responding to crimes against women than their male counterparts.
5. Increasing the presence of female officers reduces problems of sex discrimination and
harassment within a law enforcement agency. Although studies show, according to the
Center, that women in law enforcement continue to face a variety of obstacles such as
negative attitudes, gender discrimination, and sexual harassment, increased representa-
tion of women in policing can transform the climate within a police agency and reduce
the prevalence of gender discrimination, underutilization, and sexual harassment.81
Minorities as law Enforcement Officers
Certainly as the United States becomes more diversified in its population, it is increasingly
important and advantageous to have minorities as police officers serving communities in
police uniforms as well. Minority citizens will naturally feel more secure in their commu-
nities when they see and know police officers of their own race, as well as (hopefully)
believe that their sons and daughters can enjoy a successful career in the police service.
In short, a community’s having a diversified police organization can contribute to its
minorities feeling “at home” with their police, rather than believing that the police are a
mere necessary evil or unwanted presence.
▲ Police departments must strive to diversify their ranks, to be more representative of their
communities and to incorporate a broader set of employee cultures, cultures, and viewpoints.
(Courtesy RosaIreneBetancourt 9/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 62
▼
And, as noted earlier with women, the representation and recruitment of minorities
also pose challenges for policing and remains a difficult task, although it is absolutely
essential for agencies to be well represented in this area. At present, only about 12 percent
of all local police officers are African American, and about 12 percent are Hispanic/
Latino.82 Perhaps the most difficult barrier has to do with the image that police officers
have in the minority communities. Unfortunately, police officers have been seen as sym-
bols of oppression in some communities and have been charged with using excessive
brutality; they are sometimes seen as an army of occupation.
African-American police officers face problems similar to those of women who
attempt to enter and prosper in police work. Until more African-American officers are
promoted and can affect police policy and serve as role models, they are likely to be
treated unequally and have difficulty being promoted—a classic catch-22 situation.
African Americans considering a police career may be encouraged by a survey of
African-American officers, which found that most believed their jobs were satisfying
and offered opportunities for advancement.83
An influential coalition of African Americans is the National Organization of Black
Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), which was founded in 1976 and has fifty-nine
chapters in the United States. Its purposes are to unify African-American law enforcement
officers at executive and command levels; to conduct research in relevant areas of law
enforcement; to recommend legislation relating to the criminal justice process; to establish
means and strategies for dealing with racism in the field of criminal justice; to sensitize
people to the problems of the African-American community; to facilitate the exchange of
information among African-American police executives; and to articulate the concerns of
African-American executives in law enforcement.84
Summary We began this chapter with a look at the officer’s world and an explanation of how private
citizens are socialized into their role as police officers and prepared for working the street;
an emphasis was placed on viewing these officers as individuals rather than in the aggre-
gate, as is often the case. The reader has seen how people are recruited, tested, and trained
for their role as police officers through a series of “hurdles”; during this process they are
transformed psychologically, physically, and emotionally to become competent and to
function in the very challenging world of the police.
We have established that a working personality develops in police officers. Both formal
training and peer relations are instructive and helpful in teaching the novice officer how to
act, think, and view certain elements of the job. Unfortunately, it was shown that danger,
suspicion, constantly witnessing the seedy side of humanity, and other factors also tend to
inculcate in police officers another common trait: cynicism.
This chapter also examined the roles, functions, and styles of the local police in America.
More than a century and a half after the adoption of the early British model of policing
(discussed in Chapter 1), disagreement, conflict, and debate are still widespread concerning
what we truly want our police to do, represent, and become.
The hiring process described in this chapter is certainly the ideal rather than the real.
Probably few of the seventeen thousand American police agencies compel their applicants
to successfully complete the entire battery of tests and screening examinations described
here, nor do all departments have the inclination or resources to engage in a full-fledged
FTO or PTO program that would monitor and further train new recruits. It is also doubtful
that formal education requirements are being elevated for or acquired by police at the rate
of the society at large. Yet, the present recruitment and training process seems to work well
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 63
▼
overall, except in those instances where a jurisdiction, sorely needing personnel, engages
in rapid hiring and can easily bring substandard people into the field.
Women and minorities in policing also were discussed. The incorporation of
community-oriented, problem-solving strategies of policing (which will be discussed in
C hapter 6) has changed the focus of policing from a highly physical, quantitative, and hard-
ware-oriented field to one that requires officers with communication skills, an understanding
of our diverse society, and problem-solving capabilities. Women and minorities, in both philo-
sophical and quantitative terms, are not yet well represented in this occupation, even though
studies have shown their tremendous value to the field. The argument seems compelling that
until enough women and minorities are employed at all levels of a police force, policy deci-
sions about hiring and promoting them will be ineffective or nonexistent. Strategies to encour-
age them to enter the field are still being developed; much more can obviously be done toward
enhancing their visibility, presence, and usefulness in this occupation.
Key Terms
academy training
assessment center
computer-based training (CBT)
field training officer (FTO)
program
hurdle process
in-service training
minority police officers
police cynicism
police training officer (PTO)
program
policing functions
policing styles
recruiting
sixth sense
traits of good officers
women police officers
working personality
Review Questions
1. What are some of the problems confronting today’s
police recruiters and some of the unique measures
they use to obtain a viable applicant pool?
2. What is generally the hiring process for new police
officers and the kinds of tests that are commonly
given to applicants?
3. Which kinds of skills and knowledge are imparted to
police trainees during their academy training, and
what are the typical subjects that are taught in a police
academy curriculum?
4. What are the methods and purposes of the FTO and
PTO programs?
5. What is meant by the term working personality,
how was the concept developed, and what is its
function?
6. What is police cynicism, and how does it operate?
7. What are the ideal traits of police officers?
8. Why is the crime fighter image possibly the greatest
obstacle in accepting a realistic view of the police role?
9. What are the primary functions and styles of
policing?
10. What is the status of women and minorities in polic-
ing as well as some advantages of having them rep-
resented in this occupation?
learn by Doing
1. You are consulting with a medium-size police depart-
ment that has been criticized in the media for its high
levels of recruit dropouts from the basic academy as
well as high percentages of recruits being failed by their
field training officers (FTOs) during their probationary
period. It appears at first glance that local police–com-
munity relations are such that there are not large pools
of police applicants. You are to recommend better
recruitment methods that will overcome these academy
and FTO problems. What would you recommend?
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 64
▼
Notes
1. William A. Westley, Violence and the Police
(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1970).
2. Geoffrey P. Alpert and Roger G. Dunham, Policing
Urban America, 2nd ed. (Prospect Heights, IL:
Waveland Press, 1992), p. 80; for an excellent
description of the evolving police role, also see
Roger G. Dunham and Geoffrey P. Alpert, Critical
Issues in Policing: Contemporary Readings, 5th ed.
(Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, 2005), pp. 1–9.
3. Quoted in V. A. Leonard and Harry W. More, Police
Organization and Management, 3rd ed. (Mineola,
NY: Foundation Press, 1971), p. 128.
4. Joel Lefkowitz, “Industrial-Organizational Psychol-
ogy and the Police,” American Psychologist 32(5)
(May 1977): 346–364.
5. R. B. Mills, “Use of Diagnostic Small Groups in
Police Recruit Selection and Training,” Journal of
Criminal Law, Criminology and Police Science 60
(1969): 238–241; John Van Maanen, “Police Social-
ization: A Longitudinal Examination of Job Attitudes
in an Urban Police Department,” Administrative
Science Quarterly 20 (1975): 207–228.
6. C. Gorer, “Modification of National Character: The
Role of the Police in England,” Journal of Social
Issues 11 (1955): 24–32; Arthur Niederhoffer, Behind
the Shield: The Police in Urban Society (New York:
Anchor, 1967), p. 140.
7. M. Steven Meagher and Nancy A. Yentes, “Choosing
a Career in Policing: A Comparison of Male and
Female Perceptions,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 14 (1986): 320–327.
8. Lefkowitz, “Industrial-Organizational Psychology
and the Police.”
9. J. D. Matarazzo, B. V. Allen, G. Saslow, and A. N.
Wiens, “Characteristics of Successful Policemen and
Firemen Applicants,” Journal of Applied Psychology
48 (1964): 123–133.
10. Bruce N. Carpenter and Susan M. Raza, “Personality
Characteristics of Police Applicants: Comparisons
Across Subgroups and with Other Populations,”
Journal of Police Science and Administration
15 (1987): 10–17.
11. Carpenter and Raza also compared police applicants
with other similar occupational groups and found
that police applicants appear to be most like nuclear
submariners and least like air force trainees and
security guards.
12. Lawrence S. Wrightsman, Psychology and the Legal
System (Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole, 1987), pp. 85–86.
13. Al Seedman and P. Hellman, Chief! (New York:
Arthur Fields, 1974), pp. 4–5.
14. Jeremy M. Wilson and Clifford A. Grammich, Police
Recruitment and Retention in the Contemporary
Urban Environment: A National Discussion of Per-
sonnel Experiences and Promising Practices from the
Front Lines (Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation,
2009), p. 5; also available at: www.rand.org/pubs/
conf_proceedings/2009/RAND_CF261.pdf.
15. Ibid., p. 2.
16. Stephanie Slahor, “RAND Study Suggests Strategies
to Address Recruiting Shortage,” Law and Order,
December 8, 2008, p. 32.
2. Assume the same scenario as earlier, in #1. Now,
however, the emphasis shifts to the kinds of tests that
should be employed during the initial hurdle process
or hiring phase. While admitting the need for
improvement, the chief of police argues that there
simply is not enough time, money, or other resources
to employ the full range of test methods, one that
would include for each recruit in a large agency a
written examination, psychological test, physical
agility test, personal interview, character investiga-
tion, polygraph examination, medical examination,
and drug screening. The chief asks you to consider
each type of entry-level examination in terms of its
contribution to the hiring process and the overall
mission of the agency, and then—due to cost
limitations—make recommendations for six forms of
testing that should minimally be employed for hiring
new officers. Which six types of tests would you rec-
ommend (defend your choices)?
3. Still assuming the same scenario as in #1 and #2, the
emphasis now shifts to training. Because of a number of
recent incidents involving police errors in procedure
and revelations of inappropriate use of force, the
department has been criticized in the media for its
recruit training requirements. Looking at the nature of
the curriculum and topics included in Table 2-3,
which training topics do you think might be added to
the curriculum? Expanded in their duration? Deleted?
Defend your answers.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 65
▼
17. Karl Vick, “What Cops Say about Policing Today,”
Time (August 13, 2015), http://time.com/3996100/
cops-policing-america-ferguson/
18. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2013: Personnel,
Polices, and Practices, (Washington, D.C.: Author,
May 2015), p. 6.
19. “Plenty of Talk, Not Much Action,” Law Enforce-
ment News, January 15/31, 1999, p. 1.
20. William T. Jordan, Lorie Fridell, Donald Faggiani, and
Bruce Kubu, “Attracting Females and Racial/Ethnic
Minorities to Law Enforcement,” Journal of Criminal
Justice 37(4) (July–August 2009): 333–341,
http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.innopac.library.unr.
edu/science/article/pii/S0047235209000658.
21. Alicia Caldwell, “Border Patrol Gets Creative to Try
to Find More Recruits, Tighten Border,” Associate
Press, January 11, 2008, http://www.gadsdentimes.
com/article/20080111/NEWS/801110325.
22. Hans Toch, Psychology of Crime and Criminal Justice
(Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1999), p. 44.
23. Philip Ash, Karen B. Slora, and Cynthia F. Britton,
“Police Agency Officer Selection Practices,” Journal
of Police Science and Administration 17 (December
1990): 259–264.
24. S. H. Marsh, “Validating the Selection of Deputy
Sheriffs,” Public Personnel Review 23 (1962):
41–44.
25. William H. Thweatt, “A Vocational Counseling
Approach to Police Selection” (unpublished disserta-
tion, University of Arizona).
26. W. Clinton Terry III, Policing Society (New York:
John Wiley & Sons, 1985), p. 194.
27. George E. Hargrave, “Using the MMPI and CPI to
Screen Law Enforcement Applicants: A Study of
Reliability and Validity of Clinicians’ Decisions,”
Journal of Police Science and Administration
13 (1985): 221–224.
28. Dunham and Alpert, Critical Issues in Policing:
Contemporary Readings, p. 80.
29. For a complete discussion of the Sparks Police Offi-
cers Physical Abilities Test (POPAT), see Ken Peak,
Douglas Farenholtz, and George Coxey, “Physical
Abilities Testing for Police Officers: A Flexible, Job
Related Approach,” Police Chief 59 (January 1992):
51–56.
30. Terry Eisenberg, D. A. Kent, and C. R. Wall, Police
Personnel Practices in State and Local Governments
(Gaithersburg, MD: International Association of
Chiefs of Police, 1973), p. 15.
31. George E. Hargrave and Deirdre Hiatt, “Law
Enforcement Selection with the Interview, MMPI,
and CPI: A Study of Reliability and Validity,” Jour-
nal of Police Science and Administration 15(2)
(1987): 110–117.
32. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2007, (Washington,
D.C.: Author, December 2010), p. 8.
33. Quoted in Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and
Robert W. Taylor, Police Administration, 2nd ed.
(New York: Macmillan, 1988), pp. 202–203.
34. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Sta-
tistics, “Census of State and Local Law Enforce-
ment Agencies, 2008” (July 2011), p. 1, http://bjs.
ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/csllea08.pdf; U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2007, p. 6, http://
bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/lpd07.pdf; also
see U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Assistance, “Discover Policing: Training/Academy
Life,” discoverpolicing.org/what_does_take/?fa=
training_academy_life.
35. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, State and Local Law Enforcement Training
Academies, 2006, (February 2009), pp. 1–6, http://
bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=77.
36. Swanson et al., Police Administration, pp. 6, 8.
37. Lois Pilant, “Enhancing the Patrol Image,” Police
Chief 59 (August 1992): 55–61.
38. Wrightsman, Psychology and the Legal System, p. 86.
39. Quoted in Jerome Skolnick, “A Sketch of the Police-
man’s Working Personality,” in The Police Community,
ed. Jack Goldsmith and Sharon S. Goldsmith (Pacific
Palisades, CA: Palisades Publishers, 1974), p. 106.
40. Thomas F. Adams, “Field Interrogation,” Police,
March–April 1963, pp. 1–8.
41. Jonathan Rubenstein, “Cop’s Rules,” in Police
Behavior: A Sociological Perspective, ed. Richard J.
Lundman (New York: Oxford University Press,
1980), pp. 68–78.
42. Bruce Catton, “Eyewitness Reports on the Assassi-
nation of Abraham Lincoln,” in Criminal Justice:
Allies and Adversaries, ed. John R. Snortum and
Ilana Hader (Pacific Palisades, CA: Palisades Pub-
lishers, 1978), pp. 155–157.
43. Tom Wilkenson and John Chattin-McNichols, “The
Effectiveness of Computer-Assisted Instruction for
Police Officers,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 13 (1985): 230–235.
44. Niederhoffer, Behind the Shield, p. 51.
45. Dunham and Alpert, Critical Issues in Policing,
p. 112.
46. Ibid., p. 111.
47. Ibid., pp. 112–115.
CHAPTER 2 Preparing for the Street 66
▼
48. Kenneth J. Peak, Steven Pitts, and Ronald W. Glensor,
“From ‘FTO’ to ‘PTO’: A Contemporary Approach to
Post-Academy Recruit Training” (paper presented at
the annual conference of the Academy of Criminal
Justice Sciences, Seattle, WA, March 22, 2007).
49. “Field Trainers Have Reports Well in Hand,” Law
Enforcement News, November 15, 2000, p. 5.
50. “Pursuit Simulation Training Is No Ordinary Crash
Course,” Law Enforcement News, November 15,
2000, p. 6.
51. Alpert and Dunham, Policing Urban America, p. 58.
52. Skolnick, “A Sketch of the Policeman’s Working
Personality,” p. 106.
53. Westley, Violence and the Police, p. 56.
54. Elizabeth Burbeck and Adrian Furnham, “Police
Officer Selection: A Critical Review of the Litera-
ture,” Journal of Police Science and Administration
13 (1985): 58–69.
55. Matarazzo et al., “Characteristics of Successful
Policemen and Firemen Applicants.”
56. George E. Hargrave, Deirdre Hiatt, and Tim W.
Gaffney, “A Comparison of MMPI and CPI Profiles
for Traffic Officers,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 14 (1986): 250–258.
57. Quoted in Seymour M. Lipset, “Why Cops Hate
Liberals—and Vice Versa,” Atlantic Monthly 223
(March 1969): 76.
58. Niederhoffer, Behind the Shield, p. 140.
59. John J. Broderick, Police in a Time of Change
(Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1987), p. 215.
60. William Ker Muir Jr., Police: Streetcorner Politicians,
(Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 1977).
Also see Ellen Hochstedler, “Dimensions of Police
Types: A Study of Perspective and Passion,” Criminal
Justice and Behavior 8, 3 (1981): 303–323.
61. Adapted from Dennis Nowicki, “Twelve Traits of
Highly Effective Police Officers,” Law and Order,
October 1999, pp. 45–46.
62. Samuel Walker, The Police in America: An Introduction,
2nd ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1992), p. 61.
63. Herman Goldstein, Policing a Free Society (Cambridge,
MA: Ballinger, 1977), p. 21.
64. Steven M. Cox, Police: Practices, Perspectives,
Problems (Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 1996), pp. 18–19.
65. Ibid., p. 61.
66. See Albert Reiss, The Police and the Public (New
Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1971), p. 96.
67. Jerome H. Skolnick and David H. Bayley, The New
Blue Line: Police Innovation in Six American Cities
(New York: Free Press, 1986), p. 4.
68. Donald J. Black, “The Social Organization of Arrest,”
Stanford Law Review, 23 (1971): 1087–1111.
69. Patrick V. Murphy and Thomas Plate, Commissioner:
A View from the Top of American Law Enforcement
(New York: Simon and Schuster, 1977). Also see
Walker, The Police in America, pp. 55–56.
70. Cox, Police, pp. 18–19.
71. James Q. Wilson, Varieties of Police Behavior
(Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1968),
pp. 140–226.
72. Cox, Police, pp. 18–19.
73. Wilson, Varieties of Police Behavior, pp. 140–226.
74. Barbara Raffel Price, “Sexual Integration in American
Law Enforcement,” in Police Ethics: Hard Choices in
Law Enforcement, ed. William C. Heffernan and Timo-
thy Stroup (New York: John Jay Press, 1985), see also
Vivian B. Lord and Kenneth J. Peak, Women in Law
Enforcement Careers: A Guide for Preparing and Suc-
ceeding (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2005).
75. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2013, p. 5.
76. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
Women in Law Enforcement, 1987–2008 (Washington,
D.C.: Author, June 2010), p. 3; also see U.S. Department
of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, Recruiting &
Retaining Women: A Self-Assessment Guide for Law
Enforcement (June 2001), https://www.ncjrs.gov/
pdffiles1/bja/188157.pdf.
77. Ibid., p. 2.
78. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2013, p. 5.
79. Dana Parsons, “Ready for a female sheriff?” Los
Angeles Times, http://articles.latimes.com/2008/
jun/05/local/me-parsons5.
80. Jacqueline Mroz, “Female Police Chiefs, a Novelty
No More,” The New York Times (April 6, 2008),
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/06/nyregion/
n y r e g i o n s p e c i a l 2 / 0 6 R p o l i c e . h t m l ? _ r = 1 &
pagewanted=all&.
81. Kim Lonsway, Margaret Moore, Penny Harrington,
Eleanor Smeal, and Katherine Spillar, Hiring &
Retaining More Women: The Advantages to Law
Enforcement Agencies (Beverly Hills, CA: National
Center for Women & Policing, 2003); also see Sandra
Wells and Betty Sowers Alt, Police Women: Life with
the Badge (Westport, CT: Praeger, 2005).
82. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics, Local Police Departments, 2013, pp. 5–6.
83. Lena Williams, “Police Officers Tell of Strains of
Living as a ‘Black in Blue,’” New York Times,
February 14, 1988, pp. 1, 26.
84. National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Exec-
utives, “About NOBLE,” http://www.noblenational.org/
aboutus.html.
67
▼
3 On Patrol Methods and Menaces
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Describe the nature of patrol and list what research has revealed concerning the patrol function
❷ Explain what dangers may be confronted while on patrol
❸ Describe the roles of agency dress codes, uniforms, and patrol vehicles in officer performance
❹ Define what is meant by police discretion, to include its advantages, disadvantages, and factors that can enter into the officer’s decision- making process
(Courtesy photokup/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 68
▼
Introduction
The patrol function has long been viewed as the backbone of policing, the most important and visible
part of police work. It is the primary means by which the police fulfill their mission. Patrol officers are
the eyes and ears of the police organization, the worker bees of community policing and problem solv-
ing, the initial responders and protectors of the crime scene, and typically the first police representative
whom citizens meet. All other specialized units either directly or indirectly support the patrol function.
Patrol is where the art of policing is learned, citizens go to lodge concerns and complaints, and the
needs of the community are met. Significantly, all police chiefs, sheriffs (unless elected without prior
experience), and other high-ranking personnel began their careers as patrol officers.
Indeed, this chapter serves as a prologue to many different kinds of police activities described in later
chapters, all of which branch off from the patrol function. Because patrol duties normally involve 60 to
70 percent of a police agency’s workforce, this task has been a topic of considerable interest and analysis.
In addition to the patrol function, the work of policing also revolves around the discretionary use of
authority: whether or not to stop and question or cite someone, to arrest, to use force, or to shoot. From
the relatively innocuous traffic stop to the use of lethal force, many choices are involved, including some
with serious consequences.
This chapter begins with an overview of what research has revealed concerning the patrol function.
Next is a description of the culture of the beat: the purposes and nature of patrol, patrol work as a func-
tion of shift and beat assignment, and the dangers that may be confronted while on patrol. Then we
consider an often overlooked yet extremely important tool for patrolling: the patrol vehicle, including
automobiles, motorcycles, and other means. Following that is an examination of the discretionary use of
police authority, with a view toward the various considerations that can enter into an officer’s decision-
making process. Then we discuss another function that is closely related to patrol—traffic. Following
this discussion are reviews of two important aspects of patrol that, like the patrol vehicle, are seldom
examined: the legal and psychological aspects of police officers’ uniforms (to include agency dress
codes and litigation involving the codes), and the roles of police dispatchers—the lifeline—to patrol
officers. The chapter concludes with a summary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and
activities that provide opportunities for you to learn by doing.
Two closely related topics that are at the heart of the patrol function are discussed in later chapters:
community-oriented policing and problem solving (Chapter 4) and the less-lethal and high-technology
tools used by patrol officers in the performance of their duties (Chapter 14).
▶ Studies of the Patrol Function: An Overview
Because of the vast resources devoted to the patrol function and a desire to make patrolling
more productive, many patrol studies have been conducted and have helped us to better
understand this key police function.
The best-known study of patrol efficiency, the Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment,
was conducted in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1973, by George Kelling and a research team at
the Police Foundation. The researchers divided the city into fifteen beats, which were then
categorized into five groups of three matched beats each. Each group consisted of neighbor-
hoods that were similar in terms of population, crime characteristics, and calls for police
services. Patrolling techniques used in the three beats varied: There was no preventive patrol
❺ Explain the nature and importance of the traffic function in patrol work
❻ Describe the role of police dispatchers
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 69
▼
P = proactive C = control R = reactive
R C P C R
P C R C
P
R
P
C
P
R
FIGURE 3-1 Schematic Representation of Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment
in one beat (police only responded to calls for service), increased patrol activity in another
(two or three times the usual amount of patrolling), and the usual level of service in the
third. Citizens were interviewed and crime rates were measured during the year the experi-
ment was conducted. This experiment challenged several traditional assumptions about ran-
dom police patrol. The study found that the deterrent effect of policing was not weakened by
the elimination of random patrolling. Citizens’ fear of crime and their attitudes toward the
police were not affected, nor was the ability of the police to respond to calls. The Kansas
City Preventive Patrol Experiment (depicted in Figure 3-1■) indicated that the old sacrosanct
patrol methods were subject to question. As one of the study’s authors stated, “[It showed]
that the traditional assumptions of ‘Give me more cars and more money and we’ll get there
faster and fight crime’ is probably not a very viable argument.”1 In the mid-1970s, it was
suggested that the performance of patrol officers would improve by redesigning the job
based on motivators rather than by attempting to change the individual officer selected for
the job (by such means as increasing education requirements).2
This suggestion later evolved into a concept known as “team policing,” which differed
from conventional patrol in several areas. Officers were divided into small teams that were
assigned permanently to small geographic areas or neighborhoods. Officers were to be
generalists, trained to investigate crimes and to attend to all the problems in their area.
Communication and coordination between team members and the community were to be max-
imized; team involvement in administrative decision making was emphasized as well. This
concept, later abandoned by many departments (apparently because of its strain on resources),
was the beginning of the 1980s movement to return to community-oriented policing.
Two more attempts to increase patrol productivity, generally referred to as “directed
patrol,” occurred in 1975. The New Haven, Connecticut, Police Department used com-
puter data of crime locations and times to set up deterrent runs (D-runs) to instruct officers
on how to patrol. For example, the officer might be told to patrol around a certain block
slowly, park, walk, get back in the car, and cruise down another street. A D-run took up to
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 70
▼
an hour, with each officer doing two or three of them per shift. Support for patrol officers
was generally low, and the program did not reduce crime but rather displaced it. After a
year, the experiment quietly died.3 Wilmington, Delaware, instituted a split-force program,
whereby three-fourths of the 250 patrol officers were assigned to a basic patrol unit to
answer prioritized calls. The remaining officers were assigned to the structured unit and
were deployed in high-crime areas, usually in plainclothes, to perform surveillances, stake-
outs, and other tactical assignments. An evaluation of the project found that police produc-
tivity increased 20 percent and crime decreased 18 percent in the program’s first year.4
In the late 1970s, a renewed interest in foot patrol—in keeping with Peel’s view that
police officers should walk the beat—compelled the Police Foundation to evaluate the
effectiveness of foot patrol in selected New Jersey cities between 1977 and 1979. It was
found that, for the most part, crime levels were not affected by foot patrol, but it did have a
significant effect on the attitudes of area residents. Specifically, residents felt safer, think-
ing that the severity of crimes in their neighborhoods had diminished. Furthermore, evalu-
ations of the Neighborhood Foot Patrol Program in Flint, Michigan, in 1985 found that foot
officers had a higher level of job satisfaction5 and felt safer on the job than motor officers.6
Other studies have illuminated the patrol function as well. A long-standing assumption was
that as police response time increased, the ability to arrest perpetrators proportionately decreased.
▲ Today’s police use several methods of transportation other than the automobile for patrolling, arriving at calls for service, and
crowd control. (Courtesy Jim West/Alamy Stock Photo; L. Kragt Bakker/Shutterstock; Rodolfo Arpia/Alamy Stock Photo; Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 71
▼
Thus, conventional wisdom held, more police were needed on patrol in order to get to
the crime scene more quickly and catch the criminals. In 1977, a study examined police
response time in Kansas City, Missouri, and found that response time was unrelated to the
probability of making an arrest or locating a witness. Furthermore, neither dispatch nor
travel time was strongly associated with citizen satisfaction. The time it takes to report a
crime, the study found, is the major determining factor of whether an on-scene arrest takes
place and whether witnesses are located.7 It has also been found that two-person patrol cars
are no more effective than one-person cars in reducing crime or catching criminals.
Furthermore, injuries to police officers are not more likely to occur in one-person cars. In
addition, most officers on patrol do not stumble across felony crimes in progress.8
While these studies should not be viewed as conclusive—different results could be
obtained in different communities—they do demonstrate that old police methods should be
viewed very cautiously. Many police executives have had to rethink the sacred cows of
patrol functions.
▶ Patrol as Work: Culture of the Beat
Purposes and Nature of Patrol
In this chapter section, we look at the beat culture, or some of the methods and problems
that are connected with the patrol function—all of which has certainly changed since
Leonard Fuld observed in 1910 that “the policeman’s life is a lazy life in as much as his
time is spent doing nothing.”9 Today the patrol officer performs myriad duties, and danger
is a constant adversary.
When not handling calls for service, today’s officers frequently engage in problem-
solving activities (see Chapter 4) and in preventive patrol, hoping to deter crime with
a police presence. The various forms of preventive patrol include automobile, foot,
bicycle, horse, motorcycle, marine, helicopter, and even snowmobile patrols. During
all of these duties, the officer is alert for activities and people who seem out of the
ordinary. The method of deployment of patrol officers should take into account where
and when crimes occur, attempting to distribute available personnel at the places and
the times of day and days of the week when trouble and crime seem to occur with
greatest frequency.
Patrol officers should also attempt to effect good relations with the citizens on their
beat, realizing that they cannot apprehend criminals or even maintain a quiet sector with-
out public assistance. In many ways, the success of the entire police agency depends on the
skill and work of the patrol officers. For example, upon arriving at a crime scene, police
must protect and collect evidence, treat and interview victims, locate and interview sus-
pects and witnesses, and make important discretionary decisions such as whether to arrest
someone and even perhaps whether to use their weapons. Officers must also become very
knowledgeable about their beat assignment: They must be familiar with such details as
where the doors and windows of buildings are, where the alleys are, where smaller busi-
nesses are located, and how the residential areas they patrol are laid out. Officers must
learn what is normal on their beat and thus be able to discern people or things that are
abnormal; in short, they should develop a kind of sixth sense that is grounded on
suspicion—an awareness of something bad, wrong, harmful, without solid evidence. This
is often termed “JDLR” (things “Just Don’t Look Right”).
Patrol officers may also develop certain informal rules pertaining to their beat. For
example, they may adopt the belief that “after midnight, these alleys belong to me.” In
other words, an officer may take the position that any person who is observed in “his” or
“her” alley after midnight must be checked out—especially if that person is wearing dark
clothing or is acting in a furtive or surreptitious manner.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 72
▼
Several authors have described, often in colorful but realistic terms, the kinds of situa-
tions encountered by officers on patrol. For example, as W. Clinton Terry III put it:
Patrol officers respond to calls about overflowing sewers, reports of attempted suicides,
domestic disputes, fights between neighbors, barking dogs and quarrelsome cats, reports of
people banging their heads against brick walls until they are bloody, requests to check
people out who have seemingly passed out in public parks, requests for more police protec-
tion from elderly ladies afraid of entering their residence, and requests for information and
general assistance of every sort.10
Contrary to the image that is portrayed on television, some (or even much) of the time
officers devote to patrolling consists of gaps of inactivity. During those periods of time (par-
ticularly on the graveyard shift, when even late-night people and partygoers submit to fatigue
and go home to sleep), patrol officers engage in a variety of activities to pass the time:
• They create “private places” for themselves—fire stations, hospitals, and other places where they can wash up, have a cup of coffee, make a phone call, or simply relax for a
few moments.
• They engage in police-related activities, such as completing reports, checking license plates of vehicles that are parked at motels (to locate stolen vehicles or wanted per-
sons), or meeting with other officers. Other more relaxing activities might include
exercising in the station house workout room.
• The officer is often encouraged (beginning during recruit training) to make good use of this slack time, even while engaged in random patrol, by engaging in “what-if ” mental
exercises: “What if an armed robbery occurred at (location)? How would I get there
most rapidly? What would I do after arrival? Where would I find available cover?” Of
course, officers can concoct any number of scenarios and types of calls for service to
keep themselves mentally honed and ready to respond in the most efficacious manner.
• An often overlooked part of policing is that patrol officers must also spend a lot of time—especially during the early part of their careers—memorizing many things: the
“Ten Code,” for example, and the numbering systems of streets and highways within
their jurisdiction. (Indeed, new recruits can and do “wash out” during the field training
phase of their careers because of their inability to read an in-car map of the city, thus
preventing them from arriving at their destination promptly.)
Indeed, as Terry noted earlier, patrolling officers will encounter all manner of things while
engaged in patrol—things they stumble onto as well as problems phoned in by citizens. They
are assigned “attempt to locate” calls (usually involving missing persons, ranging from juve-
niles who have not returned home on time to elderly people who have wandered away from
nursing homes); “attempt to contact” and “be on the lookout” calls (e.g., an out-of-town indi-
vidual asks police to try to locate someone in order to deliver a message); and “check the
welfare of ” calls (involving a person who has not been seen or heard from for some time).
Finally, although the campaign begun by police in the mid-1990s encouraging the use
of a nationally recognizable number—311—to alleviate the burden of nonemergency 911
calls, they remain a problem. Studies consistently show that 60 to 90 percent of them are
for nonemergencies.11 A study in New York found that 40 percent of all 911 calls were
accidental (what they termed “butt calls”—calls made by people sitting on their phones).12
Departments must continue to fight what has been called the “tyranny of 911”: nonstop
calls that can send officers bouncing from one nonemergency call for service to the next.
Indeed, the range of “emergencies” 911 callers report boggles the mind: Some people call
because they want to know when the National Football League game begins that day, some
people want to know the weather report.13 (One of the authors witnessed one such call to a 911
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 73
▼
dispatcher during a consulting visit in the Midwest, in which the caller was reporting a
goat standing on their front porch).
Patrol Work as a Function of Shift Assignment
Although the following analysis does not apply to all jurisdictions, the nature of patrol
work is very closely related to the officer’s particular shift assignment. Following are gen-
eral descriptions of the nature of work on each of the three daily shifts.
Officers working the day shift (approximately 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) probably have the
greatest contact with citizens. Officers may start their day by watching school crossings
and unsnarling traffic jams. Speeding and traffic accidents are more common as people
hurry to work in the morning. Officers also participate in school and civic presentations
and other such programs. Most errands and nonpolice duties assigned to the police are
performed by day-shift officers, such as unlocking parking lots, escorting people, deliver-
ing agendas to city council members, transporting evidence to court, and seeing that main-
tenance is performed on patrol vehicles. Day-shift officers are more likely to be summoned
to such major crimes as armed robberies and bomb threats. This shift often has lulls, as
most people are at work or in school. Usually, the officers with the most seniority work the
day shift.
Officers of the swing (or evening) shift (4:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m.) report to duty in time to
untangle evening traffic jams and respond to a variety of complaints from the public. Youths
are out of school, and shops are beginning to close; as darkness falls, officers must begin
checking commercial doors and windows on their beat (new officers are amazed at the fre-
quency with which businesspeople leave their buildings unsecured). Warm weather brings
increased drinking and partying, along with noise complaints. Domestic disturbances begin
to occur, and the action at bars and nightclubs is beginning to pick up—soon fights will
break out. Many major events, such as athletic events and concerts, occur in the evenings,
so officers often perform crowd and traffic control duties. Toward the end of the shift, fast-
food restaurants and other businesses begin complaining about loitering and littering by
teenagers. Arrests are much more frequent than during the day shift, and officers must
attempt to take one last look at the businesses on the beat before ending their shift to ensure
that none have been burglarized during the evening and night hours. That done, arrest and
incident reports must be completed before officers may leave the station house for home.
The night (or graveyard) shift (12 a.m. to 8 a.m.) is an entirely different world. For
many people, this shift has adverse effects, causing physical and psychological problems
as it affects one’s Circadian rhythm (also termed the “biological clock” of humans, which
regulates bodily functions such as eating, sleeping, and even body temperature and hor-
mone production) and, quite possibly, one’s social life as well. The night shift is usually
worked by newer officers with less seniority (who also must work most weekends and
holidays). While few officers probably like working this shift enough to want to devote
much of their career working it, many officers actually thrive on working nights because it
offers: a flurry of activity and calls for service at the outset, followed by a period of calm;
less traffic on the streets to deal with; fewer errands to run; cooler nights; and more free
time to do other things such as completing offense and traffic crash reports. (Some officers
would add that another benefit is having fewer departmental “brass” [administrative per-
sonnel] around.) After dark the “night people” begin to come out—those who sleep in the
daytime and prowl at night, including the burglars—and thus begins the nightly cat-and-
mouse game between the police and the “bad guys.” Night-shift officers spend much of the
night patrolling alleys and businesses, working their spotlights in search of open doors and
windows in businesses and never knowing what might be lurking around the next dark
corner. Such patrol work is inevitably eerie and dangerous in nature, as these officers typi-
cally work alone under the cover of darkness, often without hope of rapid backup units.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 74
▼
Even at three or four o’clock in the morning, when boredom and fatigue begin to set in,
these officers must be mentally prepared for action; when a call comes over the radio dur-
ing those “wee hours,” it is often a major incident or crime.
Influence of an Assigned Beat
Just as the work of the patrol officer is influenced by his or her shift assignment, the nature
of that work is determined by the beat assignment. Each beat has its own personality,
which may be quite different from other contiguous beats in terms of its structure and
demographic character, as seen in the following hypothetical examples:
• Beat A contains a university with many large crowds that attend athletic and concert events; it also contains a number of taverns and bars where students congregate, result-
ing in an occasional need for police presence. A large hospital is located in this sector.
Residents here are predominantly middle class. A large number of shopping malls and
retail businesses occupy the area. The crime rate is quite low here, as are the number of
calls for service. The university commands a considerable amount of officer overtime for
major events as well as general officer attention for parking problems. During university
homecoming week and other major events, officers in this beat will be going from call to
call while officers assigned to other beats may find themselves completely bored. One
portion of the beat contains several bars that attract working-class individuals and gener-
ate several calls for service each week due to fights, traffic problems, and so forth.
• Beat B is almost totally residential in nature and is composed of the “old money” peo- ple of the community: upper- and upper-middle-class people who “encourage” random
patrols by the police. Some of the community’s banks, retail businesses, and industrial
complexes are also located in this area. Most people have their homes wired for secu-
rity, either to a private security firm or to the local police department. The crime rate
and calls for service are relatively low in this beat, but patrol covers a large amount of
territory, and a major thoroughfare runs along the beat’s perimeter, generating some
serious traffic accidents.
• Beat C is composed primarily of blue-collar working-class residents. It generates a low to medium number of calls for service relative to the other beats, and much of its geo-
graphic area is consumed by a small airport and a large public park with a baseball
diamond/golf course complex.
• Beat D is the worst in the city in terms of quality of life, residents’ income levels, and police problems. Though smaller in size than the other beats, it generates a very high
number of calls for service. It contains a large number of residents living on the mar-
gins of the economy, lower-income housing complexes, older mobile home parks and
motels, taverns, barely surviving retail businesses, and a major railroad switching yard.
Officers are constantly driving from call to call, especially during summer weekend
nights. At night, officers who are engaged in calls for service—even traffic stops—are
given backup by fellow officers whenever possible.
Of course, even the normal ebb and flow of beat activity is greatly altered when a criti-
cal incident occurs; for example, an act of nature (such as a tornado, an earthquake, or a
fire) or a major criminal event (such as a bank robbery or a kidnapping) can wreak havoc
on a beat that is normally the most placid in nature.
Three “cops’ rules” are also a part of the beat culture:
1. Don’t get involved in another officer’s sector; “butt out” unless asked to come to a
beat to assist. Each officer is accountable for his or her territory, and each officer
must live with the consequences of decisions that pertain to his or her beat.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 75
▼
2. Don’t leave work for the next duty shift; take care of such practical matters as putting gas
in the patrol car and taking all necessary complaints before leaving the station house.
3. Hold up your end of the work: Don’t slack off.14
▶ Where Danger Lurks: Occupational Hazards of Patrol
At Their Peril
Although several occupations—commercial fishing, logging, and piloting airplanes in
particular—have workers dying at much higher rates than policing,15 police officers’ lives
are still rife with occupational hazards. Police officers never know if the citizen they are
about to confront is armed, is high on drugs or alcohol, or plans to engage in a relatively
recent phenomenon known as “suicide by cop” (discussed later). Certainly an entire community, not only its police agency, is stunned when one of its officers is murdered.
Police work has always been hazardous, but an alarming spike in fatal ambushes of
police officers, even while violent crime is decreasing across the nation, is weighing heav-
ily on police executives, officers, and trainers who believe a reassessment of high-risk fugi-
tive and drug raids is in order. A U.S. Department of Justice study during 2011 found that
in 63 of 65 shooting deaths analyzed, nearly three-fourths of them (73 percent) were the
result of ambushes or surprise attacks. Such an attack occurred in Dallas, Texas in mid-
2016, when five police officers were killed by a sniper during a downtown peace march.
Indeed, the first six months of 2016 saw an increase in killings of police officers due, a
number of police and authors say, to the so-called “Ferguson effect” (the perceived break-
down of national law and order and increases in crime and murder since events of 2014 in
Ferguson, Missouri). Such a “hunter mentality” resulting in an increase of such deaths
comes at a time when officers are better trained and, in most cases, wearing body armor.
However, wearing body armor is no guarantee of officer safety (see Exhibit 3-1 ■);
exhibit 3-1
Following is a profile of the fifty-one officers (state,
local, federal, tribal, and campus) who were feloni-
ously killed during 2014:
• The average age of the slain officers was thirty- nine years; they had worked in law enforcement for
about thirteen years.
• Most of the fifty-nine alleged offenders (50, or 85 percent) identified in connection with these
cases had prior arrests; they averaged thirty-one
years of age, and all but five were male.
• The officers were typically murdered with a firearm (46, or 90 percent); most of the firearms in question
(33 of the 46) were handguns.
• The majority of the fifty-one victim officers were either feloniously killed while responding to a
disturbance call (11, or 22 percent), during a traf-
fic pursuit or stop (9, or 18 percent), while inves-
tigating suspicious persons or circumstances
(7, or 14 percent), or in an ambush (7, or 14
percent).
• Over half of the slain officers were employed in either the South (17, or 33 percent) or the West (14,
or 27 percent).
Note that an additional forty-five officers died in
accidents during 2014; twenty-eight (62 percent) of
these deaths involved traffic accidents—and about
48,000 officers were assaulted while on duty.
Source: Uniform Crime Reports: Law Enforcement Officers Killed
and Assaulted, Federal Bureau of Investigation.
OFFICERS KILLED IN THE UNITED STATES: A PROFILE
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 76
▼
a majority of officer slayings involve shooters who ambush officers from behind and
shoot at the officers’ head or other unprotected areas of the body. At minimum, experts
are recommending that such tactics as knocking down doors and charging inside during
drug raids be replaced with either luring suspects out into the open or simply “waiting
them out.”16
Exhibit 3-1 shows the general demographic characteristics or “profile” of police offi-
cers who were feloniously killed in the line of duty in 2014. It will be seen that these offi-
cers were not of the “rookie” variety, as on average they had served for about thirteen
years; they also tended to be slain during potentially perilous situations—with a large pro-
portion of the killers in those situations having prior arrests.
What can be learned from data that examine officers who are feloniously killed and
assaulted? Researchers determined that while no single, absolute offender profile
emerged, most killers of police officers had been diagnosed as having some sort of per-
sonality disorder. Next, the victim officers were generally good-natured and more con-
servative than their fellow officers in the use of physical force. Finally, the killings often
were facilitated by some type of procedural miscue (e.g., an improper approach to a
vehicle or loss of control of a situation or individual). In sum, the study determined that
these three factors combined into a “deadly mix”: an easy-going officer who would use
force only as a last resort, confronting an offender of aberrant behavior, and in an uncon-
trolled, dangerous situation.17
The message to officers is clear: be watchful, follow good “officer survival” procedures
and training at all times, and be prepared to use some level of appropriate force if neces-
sary. In sum, “go home safely at shift’s end.” A final note on the dangers of felonious
assaults on officers: Although federal agents are not engaged in patrol functions, the
Federal Bureau of Investigation announced in early 2013 that it would be modifying its
three-decade-old firearms training regimen. Following a review of nearly 200 shootings
found that about three-fourths of incidents in which agents confront suspects occur at
point-blank range—within three yards of agents when shots are fired—the simulated fire-
arms training exercises that agents undergo will now have agents firing two-thirds of their
rounds at targets that are from between three and seven yards away.18 State and local agen-
cies would be wise to examine such data and their firearms training regimens as well.
It is also important to note that in addition to the dangers that officers face from
offenders who intentionally seek to do them harm, there are numerous other occupa-
tional hazards that police encounter while on patrol. About as many officers are killed
accidentally each year as are killed feloniously. Officers are killed, for example, during
rescue attempts, while directing traffic, during training mishaps, and as the result of
“friendly fire.” By far the leading cause of accidental deaths of officers, however,
involves traffic accidents. Of the 45 police officers who died as the result of accidents in
2014, 34 (76%) were the result of automobile or motorcycle crashes.19 The dangers of
driving on the roadways—and especially the perils of vehicle pursuits (discussed more
in Chapter 9)—have caused departments to develop policies that limit high-speed
chases, adopt stricter rules on the use of seatbelts by officers,20 and consider technologi-
cal innovations that both encourage responsible driving on the part of officers (such as
software that monitors police driving habits)21 and reduce the need for high-speed pur-
suits (such as GPS tracking “tags” that allow officers to remotely track vehicles fleeing
the police).22
Suicide by Cop
A type of incident that certainly poses serious potential for danger to the police is suicide
by cop, which is defined as “an act motivated in whole or in part by the offender’s desire
to commit suicide that results in a justifiable homicide by a law enforcement officer.”23
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 77
▼
▲ Shown is a small portion of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
museum in Washington, D.C.; in mid-2016, there were 20,789 names engraved on the memo-
rial’s walls, including that of 1,102 federal officers, 668 correctional officers, and 36 military
law enforcement officers. (Courtesy The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.)
▲ The patrol function often takes officers to places that are
“brutish” and dangerous. (Courtesy Andreas Meyer/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 78
▼
Presently, the extent of the suicide-by-cop phenomenon remains unknown for two
reasons:
1. Lack of both a clear definition and established reporting procedures
2. Immediate removal of suicide attempts from the criminal process and placement
within the mental health arena, causing the police investigation to cease and prevent-
ing an agency from identifying a potential threat to its officers
Although it is difficult to measure, one study by a medical organization of deputy-
involved shootings in the Los Angeles County, California, Sheriff’s Department found that
suicide-by-cop incidents accounted for 11 percent of all deputy-involved shootings and
13 percent of all deputy-involved justifiable homicides. The report concluded that suicide
by cop constitutes an actual form of suicide.24
Case Study While each case of suicide by cop is different, following is an actual example of how such incidents occur:
An officer is dispatched to an apartment building in response to a woman yelling for help.
Upon arriving at the location, the officer observes a woman standing on the front steps. The
officer is waved inside, and as she enters the apartment she hears a man yelling, then sees
him standing in the kitchen area. When the male observes the female officer, he produces a
large butcher knife and holds the blade of the knife firmly against his stomach with both
hands; he appears highly intoxicated, agitated, and angry. The officer draws her service
weapon and orders the man to put down the knife. The offender responds by stating,
“[Expletive] you, kill me!” The officer attempts to talk with the offender, who responds by
turning around and slicing himself severely on his forearm, bleeding profusely. The officer
repeatedly asks him to drop the knife. The offender begins to advance toward the officer,
telling her to shoot him while still ignoring her commands to drop the knife. From a dis-
tance of approximately 12 feet, he raises the knife in a threatening manner and charges the
officer; she fires her weapon, striking him in the chest and hand, killing him.25
Arms and Armor for Duty
Jerome Skolnick and David Bayley describe how officers prepare to face the beat’s dan-
gers on their tour of duty:
Policing in the United States is very much like going to war. Three times a day in countless
locker rooms, large men and a growing number of women carefully arm and armor them-
selves for the day’s events. They begin by strapping on [body armor]. Then they pick up a
wide, heavy, black leather belt and hang around it the tools of their trade: gun, mace, hand-
cuffs, and bullets. When it is fully loaded, they swing the belt around their hips with the
same practiced motion of the gunfighter in Western movies, slugging it down and buckling
it in front. Inspecting themselves in a full-length mirror, officers thread their night sticks
into a metal ring on the side of their belt.26
As John Crank states, “This is not a picture of American youth dressing for public ser-
vitude. These are warriors going to battle, the New Centurions, as Wambaugh calls them.
In their dress and demeanor lies the future of American policing.”27 As Crank also
observes, police recognize many citizens for what they are: “Dangerous, unpredictable,
violent, savagely cunning . . . in a world of capable and talented reptilian, mammalian . . .
predators.”28
This depiction of the people officers confront on the beat may seem overly contrived,
exaggerated, or brusque. Many in policing are also concerned with the “warrior” metaphor
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 79
▼
for police, believing that it could negatively impact the ways that police interact with citi-
zens and may hinder community-policing efforts.29 Most patrol officers with any length of
service, however, can attest to the fact that certain members of our society are, as one
officer put it, “irretrievable predators that just get off . . . on people’s pain and on people’s
crying and begging and pleading. They don’t have any sense of morality, [and] they don’t
have any sense of right and wrong.”30 During their careers, most patrol officers are ver-
bally threatened by such individuals; they take the great majority of such threats with a
grain of salt. Occasionally, however, the “irretrievable predator” who possesses no sense
of morality will issue such a threat, which the officer will (and must) take quite seriously.
This is a very disconcerting part of the job.
The importance of patrol officers providing backup to one another—especially during
the hours of darkness—cannot be overstated, as described by Anthony Bouza:
The sense of “us vs. them” that develops between cops and the outside world forges a bond
between cops whose strength is fabled. It is widened by the dependence cops have on each
other for safety and backup. The response to help is a cop’s life-line. An “assist police officer”
is every cop’s first priority. The ultimate betrayal is for one cop to fail to back up another.31
In this same vein, patrol officers quickly come to know on whom they can count when
everything “hits the fan”—which officers will race to assist another officer at a barroom
brawl, a felony in progress, and so on—and which will not.
H.R. 218
A relatively new legislative enactment, the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004
(H.R. 218), exempts qualified police officers from state laws prohibiting the carrying of con-
cealed weapons and allows retired officers having at least fifteen years of service to carry a
firearm.32 The purpose of the act, its supporter’s state, is to afford these retired officers
“protection of themselves, their families and our nation’s communities.” Retired officers
who carry weapons under this law do not possess any police powers or immunities in other
states, however, and are personally responsible for checking and understanding the laws of
any jurisdictions they visit while armed.33
▶ Officers on Display: Appearance, Uniforms, and Dress Codes
The police are paramilitary in nature; as such, in addition to being hierarchical in orga-
nization, with rank and chain of command (as discussed in Chapter 11), they are typi-
cally uniformed (unless assigned to undercover work). And, as two authors stated, “The
uniform stands out as one of the most important visual representations of the law
enforcement profession.”34
The history of the police uniform in America is an interesting one. As we discussed in
Chapter 1, modern police departments first emerged in England and the United States dur-
ing the mid-1800s. While British officers wore distinctive blue uniforms from the begin-
ning, uniforms were slower to catch on in the United States. As a matter of principle, many
Americans (including many police themselves) believed that uniforms were a symbol of
status and therefore incompatible with American democratic values such as equality and
fairness.35 Because many believed that an officer should not be viewed as different from
any other citizen, uniforms were generally resisted. As a result, in the early days of
American policing, officers simply wore a small badge on their outer clothing.
Of course, the advantages of uniforms (e.g., visibility to citizens in need, visual deterrent
to offenders) soon became apparent, and agencies began adopting uniforms for their officers.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 80
▼
Today, the numerous police agencies in the United States generally have considerable
flexibility in terms of the color and style of uniforms for their officers. While various
shades of blue remain the most popular, tones of gray, brown, green, and black are also
common. Agencies will also often have several types of uniforms that they alternate
depending on the situation. Officers may change their uniform for different occasions, sea-
sons, or assignments (patrol, training, tactical, mounted patrol, bicycle patrol, etc.). For
example, while the traditional dress uniform is commonly worn, some that are designed
for hard work—called utility uniforms—have heavier cloth and embroidered badges and
name tags (instead of pin-on) and have cargo pockets on the sides. Others, such as those
worn by officers on bike and beach patrol, might consist of shorts and polo shirt, with
stripped-down utility belt.
Uniform manufacturers work closely with police agencies to maximize uniform utility
and comfort. For example, one area where there has been considerable advancement in
recent years has been in the design of uniforms for female officers. Because women have
historically made up a small percentage of police, the tendency was to design uniforms
with only men in mind. Unfortunately, uniforms designed for the male body are generally
not a good fit for the female body. They can make a female officer appear unkempt and
disheveled, be uncomfortable, restrict proper range of motion, and be tactically impractical
(such as when waistbands designed for men place the duty belt above a woman’s natural
waistline).36 With more women entering policing, and with greater recognition of women
in the field, uniforms are now also designed with the female body in mind.
As indicated earlier, the uniform has become an important part of policing. From the
moment a neophyte officer puts on a uniform, his or her world changes; the officer is imme-
diately and uniquely set apart from society. For some, the uniform seems to be a target for
all kinds of verbal abuse and even fists or bullets; for others, it is a welcome symbol of legal
authority. In any case, the uniform and the overall appearance of police officers have sev-
eral psychological and legal aspects, as we will see in the following sections.
Legal Aspects
Succinctly put, police administrators have long been able to regulate the appearance of
their officers. In Kelley v. Johnson37 (1976), the U.S. Supreme Court held that police agen-
cies have a legitimate, “rational” interest in establishing such rules and regulations. There,
the Suffolk County (New York) Police Department’s hair-grooming standards applicable
to male members of the police force (governing the style and length of hair, sideburns, and
mustaches and prohibiting goatees) were attacked as violating officers’ First and Fourteenth
Amendments rights of expression and liberty. The Supreme Court upheld such regula-
tions, on the grounds they:
may be based on a desire to make police officers readily recognizable to the members of the
public, or a desire for the esprit de corps which such similarity is felt to inculcate within the
police force itself. Either one is a sufficiently rational justification for regulations.38
Therefore, police administrators can dictate how the uniform will be worn—as well as
other aspects of personal appearance (discussed later).
Psychological Aspects
Why do most agencies insist that patrol officers dress in uniforms? Certainly officers’ uni-
forms convey power and authority; in addition, the uniform elicits stereotypes about that
person’s status, attitudes, and motivations. The uniform identifies a person with powers to
arrest and use force and establishes order, as well as conformity within the ranks of those
who wear it by suppressing individuality.39
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 81
▼
Research has consistently supported suggestions about the police uniform’s power and
authority. In one study, individuals ranked twenty-five different occupational uniforms by
several categories of feelings. The test subjects consistently ranked the police uniform as
the one most likely to induce feelings of safety. Studies have also shown that people con-
sistently rate models as more competent, reliable, intelligent, and helpful when pictured in
a police uniform, rather than in casual clothes.40
Details about a police officer’s uniform, such as the style of hat or the tailoring, can
also influence the level of authority emanating from the officer. For example, studies show
that the traditional “bus driver” garrison cap and the “Smoky the Bear” campaign hat con-
veyed more authority than the baseball cap or no hat at all.41
An interesting experiment in deviation from the conventional police uniform occurred
in 1969, in the Menlo Park, California, Police Department (MPPD). Hoping to improve
police–community relations, the police discontinued their traditional navy blue,
paramilitary-style uniforms and adopted a uniform that consisted of a forest green blazer
worn over black slacks, a white shirt, and a black tie. Officers displayed their badges on the
blazer and concealed their weapons under the coat. Eventually, more than 400 other police
departments in the United States also experimented with a blazer-style uniform.42
The initial results were promising: After wearing the new uniforms for eighteen
months, MPPD officers displayed fewer authoritarian characteristics when compared to
officers in the surrounding jurisdictions. Also, after wearing the uniforms for about a year,
assaults on MPPD officers decreased by 30 percent and injuries to civilians by the police
dropped 50 percent (however, other variables were deemed to be responsible for
these decreases as well). The number of college-educated officers in the department
increased dramatically, and the agency abolished its traditional autocratic management
style during this same time period.43
After eight years of officers wearing blazers, however, the MPPD dropped the blazer
concept, determining that it did not command respect, and returned to a traditional,
paramilitary-style uniform. A final evaluation showed that, although assaults on officers
had dropped during the first eighteen months of the new uniform implementation, the
number of assaults steadily began to rise again until it doubled the amount of the year
before the uniform change occurred. During the initial four-year period after MPPD offi-
cers returned to a traditional uniform, the number of assaults on their officers dropped
steadily.44
Instituting (and Enforcing) a Dress Code
Many, if not most, police agencies have general orders or policies constituting a dress code—
how their officers will dress and their general appearance—so as to project a professional
image and have officers be properly groomed.45 Such dress codes might address such matters
as the length of hair, sideburns, beards, and goatees (whether or not they are permitted);
types of sunglasses to be worn (mirrored, for example, are often banned); and tattoos
(whether or not any body art is to be permitted for officers, and if they are to be covered
while on duty). The wearing of uniforms and displaying of tattoos, bodily hair, and beards
are only the tip of the iceberg, however. Regulations might also spell out, for example,
when officers are to begin wearing their summer and winter uniforms (specified dates nor-
mally occurring in spring and fall) and the proper components of each uniform (the list can
specify certain types of socks, shoes, turtleneck, patches and insignia, and prohibitions
against wearing items of clothing with an identifying logo—so the jurisdiction will not be
seen as endorsing a particular name brand).
Imposing the will of the police administration concerning officers’ appearance and attire
is not always as easy as it might appear, however; today officers show little reluctance to file
lawsuits if feeling that such codes violate their rights to freedom of expression:
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 82
▼
• A northeastern Pennsylvania man sued in late 2009, claiming his rights were violated when he was not hired with the state police because he would not have his arm tattoo
removed. The lawsuit sought to determine whether “the government can require you to
physically alter your body in exchange for employment,” and infringes on the appli-
cant’s “freedom of choice in personal matters.”46 (Later, a federal appeals court ruled
in favor of the state police, saying that the pre-existing tattoo policy did not violate any
constitutional rights.)
• The Houston City Council voted to spend up to $150,000 to hire outside lawyers to defend the city’s no-beard policy for police. Four black officers filed a federal civil
rights lawsuit against the city, claiming discrimination because shaving exacerbates a
skin condition that disproportionately affects black men; officers with beards are barred
from wearing the Houston Police Department uniform.47 In March 2010, a federal
appeals court upheld the city’s policy, saying it was not racially discriminatory.
• Des Moines, Iowa, police policy states that any tattoos, branding and intentional scar- ring on the face, head, neck, hands, and exposed arms and legs are prohibited.
Employees who already have tattoos are exempt. The police union says the policy is
unreasonable and has filed a grievance.48
• Other agencies have implemented or are considering policies that would require offi- cers to either not be tattooed, or to cover the tattoos completely when on duty.49
As mentioned, there are certainly several legal and psychological aspects of police
uniforms and dress codes. This is an area where the views of administrators toward offi-
cers’ uniforms and appearance may well inherently clash with the street officers’ view-
points, as the latter tries to be more “expressive” in an era when tattoos and facial hair are
more commonplace and less stigmatized.
▶ The Officer’s “Rolling Office”
A Sanctuary
The patrol vehicle is a place where officers on patrol spend a great deal of their time.
Although the patrol car is sometimes criticized for being a barrier between police and citi-
zens and thus a hindrance to police–community interactions, it can serve as a type of
sanctuary for officers. It contains the myriad vital tools for accomplishing their work and,
to a great extent, represents their authority.
The patrol vehicle is generally safe and comfortable, containing several essential
accoutrements (a radio, spotlight, and weapons such as a shotgun or rifle) that contribute to
the officer’s safety. It is a mobile haven, providing comfort from inclement climates as
well as against humans who would hurt the officer. The patrol car provides access to the
tools of defense and is a safe place to deposit combative prisoners for transport.
Vital tools can also be stored in or mounted on the vehicle, which serves as a virtual
office: the radio (for summoning assistance), warning lights and siren, defensive weapons
(e.g., a shotgun or other firearm as well as a TASER electronic control device [ECD],
baton, or other less lethal tool), possibly an onboard computer and video recorder, flares,
cameras, and other evidence-gathering equipment. In addition, on the graveyard shift, the
vehicle’s spotlight can be one of the officer’s greatest assets.
The police vehicle also is a rolling symbol of authority. For this reason, few people
enjoy seeing a police vehicle appear in their rearview mirror; for some, it is a prelude to
being issued a traffic citation or, worse, being taken to jail. Still, it can be stated that since
the first police car appeared, citizens have been fascinated with the speed and imposing
appearance of these vehicles.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 83
▼
In addition to the traditional beefed-up engines, heavy suspension, and upgraded elec-
trical systems, some patrol cars contain additional features that mean a lot to the officers on
patrol. For example, new models come with plates in the driver’s seatback to protect
against assault from the rear, cutouts in the driver’s seat for a holster, extra-long safety
belts, reinforced front steel beams and higher-rated tires for high-speed pursuits, a voice-
recognition system for accessing onboard computers, a camera mounted in the overhead
light bar with output to a laptop computer, an aircraft-style “blue box” accident data
recorder, and crush-resistant bumpers.50
Exhibit 3-2 ■ describes how the demise of the Ford Crown Victoria, which remained
largely unchanged since 1992, has ushered in a new generation of police vehicles—and
generated a high degree of competition for police-vehicle market dominance.
Patrolling on Two Wheels
The escalating costs of gasoline that began in mid-2008 caused police agencies to rethink
their vehicle patrol methods. Following are some of the changes that were put into effect as
gas prices escalated across the United States; many of these modifications will be continued
now and into the future, given the ongoing increases and unstable nature of U.S. fuel costs:
• Many officers lost the right to take their patrol cars home, or they were forced to pay for the privilege.
▲ Police work during hours of darkness requires extra
vigilance. (Courtesy mjay/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 84
▼
• Officers in some communities were told to turn off their ignition whenever they are stopped and idling for more than a minute.51
• Some departments switched to lower octane gasoline and installed GPS receivers in patrol cars to make dispatching more efficient.
• Some state troopers have begun sitting and monitoring traffic rather than cruising the high- ways, and they have increased their use of single-engine airplanes to look for speeders.52
Motorcycle traffic enforcement is increasingly used to assist in attempts to reduce the
incidences of aggressive driving, impaired driving, speeding, and red-light running. The
use of motorcycle patrol units dates to 1909, when mounted officers abandoned their horses
in lieu of transportation that could keep up with the rapidly evolving motor vehicle. These
specialized enforcement units are capable of diverse assignments and, due to their build,
can reach a crash scene more quickly than their four-wheeled counterparts. Motorcycle
patrol officers also assume a community-policing role because citizens typically tend to be
more comfortable approaching an officer on a motorcycle without the perceived barrier of
an enclosed vehicle. Motorcycle patrol officers are also called upon to conduct traffic
safety presentations to various civic groups and organizations and are frequently used for
dignitary escort and ceremonial duties.53
Bicycles as a means of patrol (as well as foot patrols) have declined somewhat in
recent years. A federal Bureau of Justice Statistics survey found that only 32 percent of
police agencies of all sizes used bicycles.54 There are distinct benefits to using bicycles on
patrol, however. Chris Menton determined the following:
• Bike patrols had more than double the number of contacts with people, per hour, as officers patrolling in cars.
exhibit 3-2
Many police officers spend more time sitting in their
patrol vehicles (or “squad car”) than sitting in their
home’s reclining chairs; therefore, the nature of the
vehicle in which they must patrol for long hours is a
topic of great interest to them. Certainly the demise of
the iconic Ford Crown Victoria in late 2011 caused many
officers such concern in terms of what their agencies
would purchase as replacements. Three top automakers
are vying to dominate the market for police vehicles, and
each has developed a new sedan to fill the gap.
Chevrolet created a 6.0L V8 Caprice Police Patrol
Vehicle (PPV); it is advertised as having seven cubic
feet more interior space than the other two competi-
tors, and has upgrades that include larger brakes, a
six-speed automatic transmission, and better stability
and weight distribution.
Dodge offers a Charger Pursuit with a 5.7L HEMI
V8 engine, and includes driver’s knee airbags, multi-
stage front air bags, side-curtain airbags, rain brakes,
traction control, stability control, and brake assist.
Ford has a new rear-wheel drive Police Inter-
ceptor with a 3.5L twin-turbo V6 engine and
side-curtain airbags, wide-opening rear door hinges,
reinforced subframe, bigger brakes, upgraded
suspension, a voice-activated communications sys-
tem, radar- powered cross-traffic sensors, and a blind-
spot alert system.
The Los Angeles Police Department opted for
Chevrolet’s PPV, each of which is to be outfitted with
two automatic license plate readers (that can scan eight
plates at once and is connected to a criminal database),
an infrared camera allowing officers to see minute
details such as offenders’ footprints in the dark, and a
GPS attached to a computer-aided dispatch system to
streamline calls of distress.
Source: Based on the Demise of the Crown Vic Vehicle, And
the Rise of a New Generation” from Saying Goodbye to The
Crown Victoria Police Car Sad for Some, Government
Technology. Published By Government Technology, © 2011.
THE DEMISE OF THE “CROWN VIC” VEHICLE, AND THE RISE OF A NEW GENERATION
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 85
▼
• Bicycle officers did essentially the same level of serious and nonserious work as motor patrols.
• Incidents of public drinking, urination, and drug use were more readily discovered and dealt with by bicycle officers (the issue of stealth is important here; there is often no
time for offenders to hide their drugs or open containers of alcohol).
• Bike officers have enhanced access, using alternative routes (including closed roads, sidewalks, alleyways, footpaths, and so on).55
Exhibit 3-3 ■ discusses a unique method and place of police “beat patrolling,” that is,
using a paddleboard in a heavily used lake.
Today hundreds of venues are also patrolling on their battery-powered Segways.
Launched in 2001, the battery-powered Segway is, of course, much cheaper to operate
than a patrol car, but it is also marketed as providing officers with more mobility than a
bicycle and the ability to negotiate large crowds quickly and easily. Models come
equipped with a siren, saddle bags to carry forms and other materials, and even an alarm
that allows officers to park the machine while tending to business without fear of it
being stolen.56
exhibit 3-3
Truckee, California, with a population of about
16,000, is located in the northeastern part of the state
on Interstate 80, close to Lake Tahoe and encompass-
ing Donner Lake, which has nearly 1,000 acres of sur-
face area. The Truckee Police Department recently
unveiled a new program, the Adventure Recreation
Community (ARC) team, which includes officers
patrolling Donner Lake by rotating between paddle-
boards, mountain bikes, and a boat. Stand-up paddle-
boarding is performed by four cross-trained officers
who are allowed to flex their schedules around com-
munity events. The sport has evolved in the area from
a time when only a few people paddle boarded and
few retail outlets sold the devices—many boarders
having to use old windsurfing boards as a substitute—
to the contemporary situation where numerous people
paddleboard, several businesses sell the boards, and
there are annual board races on the lake. The natural
beauty of the area brings many boarders to the lake,
and rather than focusing on increasing enforcement or
addressing crime-related issues, the ARC program
emphases include officers interacting with others on
boards, engaging the outdoor community in Truckee,
and emphasizing safety to people on the lake and
residing in the area. Officers are trained in rescuing
people who are involved in water emergencies, and
view their role as providing a consistent, community-
oriented philosophy.
Source: From “Patrolling on Paddleboards” by Jaclyn O’Malley
from Paddleboards Make Police Part of Truckee Area’s Active
Lifestyle. Copyright © 2012 by Reno Gazette-Journal. Used by
Permission of Reno Gazette-Journal.
PATROLLING ON PADDLEBOARDS
▲ Some communities with year-round outdoor
adventure and recreation opportunities even
have officers “patrolling” on paddleboards.
(Copyright © 2012 by Reno Gazette-Journal.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 86
▼
▶ Discretionary Use of Police Authority
Myth of Full Enforcement
The municipal police chief or county sheriff is asked during a civic club luncheon speech
which laws are and are not enforced by his or her agency. The official response will inevi-
tably be that all of the laws are enforced equally, all of the time. Yet the chief or sheriff
knows that full enforcement of the laws is a myth—that neither the resources nor the desire
to enforce them all is available, nor are all laws enforced impartially. It is neither prudent
nor politically wise to list the offenses for which the police treat some offenders more
harshly or more leniently or for which they look the other way (and nonenforcement of
laws is a form of discretion). There are legal concerns as well. For example, releasing
some offenders (e.g., to get information about other crimes or because of a good excuse)
cannot be the official policy of the agency; however, the chief or sheriff cannot broadcast
that fact to the public.
Indeed, it has been stated that the “single most astonishing fact of police behavior is the
extent to which police do not enforce the law when they have every legal right to do so.”57
As an example, police scholar George Kelling described a Newark, New Jersey, street cop
with whom he spent many hours walking a beat:
As he saw his job, he was to keep an eye on strangers, and make certain that the disrepu-
table regulars observed some informal but widely understood rules. Drunks and addicts
could sit on the stoops, but could not lie down. People could drink on side streets, but not
at the main intersection. Bottles had to be in paper bags. Talking to, bothering or begging
from people waiting at the bus stop was strictly forbidden. Persons who broke the infor-
mal rules, especially [the latter], were arrested for vagrancy. Noisy teenagers were told
to keep quiet.58
This quote points out the inextricable link between the patrol function and discretionary
use of police authority: We cannot have one without the other.
Attempts to Define Discretion
Scholarly knowledge about the way police make decisions is limited. What is known,
however, is that when police observe something of a suspicious or illegal nature, two
important decisions must be made: (1) whether to intervene in the situation and (2) how to
intervene. The kind, number, and possible combination of interventions are virtually limit-
less. What kinds of decisions are available for an officer who makes a routine traffic stop?
David Bayley and Egon Bittner observed long ago that officers have as many as 10 actions
from which to select at the initial stop (e.g., order the driver out of the car), 7 strategies
appropriate during the stop (e.g., a roadside sobriety test), and 11 exit strategies (e.g.,
releasing the driver with a warning), representing a total of 770 different combinations of
actions that might be taken!59
Criminal law has two sides: the formality and the reality. The formality is found in the
statute books and opinions of appellate courts; the reality is found in the practices of
enforcement officers. In some circumstances, the choice of action to be taken is relatively
easy, such as arresting a bank robbery suspect, but in other situations, such as quelling a
dispute between neighbors, the choice is more difficult. Drinking in the park is a crime
according to many local ordinances, but quietly drinking at a family picnic without dis-
turbing others is not a crime according to the reality of the law because officers uniformly
refuse to enforce the ordinance in such circumstances. When the formality and the reality
differ, the reality prevails.60
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 87
▼
These examples demonstrate why the use of discretion is one of the major challenges
facing U.S. police today. The system tends to treat people as individuals: One person who
commits a robbery is not the same as another person who commits a robbery because the
system takes into account why and how a person committed a crime (his or her intent, or
mens rea). With the U.S. judicial process, when one person shoots another, a variety of
possible outcomes can occur. The most important decisions take place on the streets, day
or night, generally without the opportunity for the officer to consult with others or to care-
fully consider all the facts.
Determinants of Officer Discretion
The U.S. government is supposed to be based on laws, not on people. That axiom is simply
a myth—at least in the manner in which the law is applied. Official discretion pervades all
levels and most agencies of government. The discretionary power of the police is awe-
some. Kenneth Culp Davis, an authority on police discretion, writes, “The police are
among the most important policy makers of our entire society. And they make far more
discretionary determinations in individual cases than does any other class of administra-
tors; I know of no close second.”61
What determines whether the officer will take a stern approach (enforcing the letter of
the law with an arrest) or will be lenient (issuing a verbal warning or some other outcome
short of arrest)? Several variables enter into the officer’s decision, including:
1. The law is indeed a factor in discretionary use of police authority. For example, many
state statutes and local ordinances now mandate that the police arrest for certain sus-
pected offenses, such as driving under the influence or committing domestic violence.
2. The seriousness of the offense is important in regards to the use of discretion. Officers
tend to exercise less discretion when serious crimes are involved. The seriousness
of a violent felony, for example, often dictates a formal enforcement response.
Police generally use much more discretion when minor offenses are involved, such
as drinking in public, minor traffic infractions, public urination, littering, and many
other disorderly activities.
3. The officer’s attitude can also be a factor. First, some officers are more willing to
empathize with offenders who feel they deserve a break than others. Also, as Carl
Klockars and Stephen Mastrofski observed, although violators frequently offer what
they feel are very good reasons for the officer to overlook their offense, “every police
officer knows that, if doing so will allow them to escape punishment, most people are
prepared to lie through their teeth.”62 What also makes situations awkward is that the
officer cannot comfortably acknowledge the real reasons for denying a citizen’s appeal
for discretion. Imagine a police officer saying to a traffic violator, “The city depends on
traffic fines for revenue,” “Sorry, I don’t like people like you,” “Sorry, I don’t think
your excuse is good enough,” or “Sorry, but I don’t believe you.”63 Furthermore, police
officers, being human, can bring to work either a happy or an unhappy disposition. If,
on the same day as reporting for duty, the officer received an IRS notice saying back
taxes were owed, had a nasty spat with a significant other, and was bitten while picking
up the family pet shortly before leaving for work, he or she might naturally be more
inclined to enforce the letter of the law rather than dispense leniency. Personal views
toward specific types of crimes also play a role; for example, perhaps the officer is fed
up with juvenile crimes that have been occurring of late and thus will not give any leni-
ency to youths he or she confronts who are involved in even minor crimes.
4. Another major consideration in the officer’s choice among various options is the
citizen’s attitude. If the offender is rude and condescending, denies having done any-
thing wrong, or uses some of the standard clichés that are almost guaranteed to
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 88
▼
rankle the officer—such as “You don’t know who I am” (someone who is obviously
very important in the community), “I’ll have your job,” “I know the chief of police,”
“I’m a taxpayer, and I pay your salary”—the probable outcome is obvious. On the
other hand, the person who is honest with the officer, avoids attempts at intimidation
and sarcasm, and does not try to “beat the rap” may fare better.
Studies have also explored many other factors that potentially influence discretion,
including the relationship between the victim and the suspect, the amount of evidence that
an offense has been committed, the opinion of the complainant, and the demographic char-
acteristics of both the officers and the suspects (such as social class, sex, age, and race).64
Pros, Cons, and Politics of Discretionary Authority
Several ironies are connected with the way in which the police apply discretion. First is the
inverse relationship between the officers’ rank and the amount of discretion that is avail-
able. In other words, as the rank of the officer increases, the amount of discretion that he or
she can employ normally decreases. The street officer makes discretionary decisions all the
time, including decisions about whether to arrest, search, seize property, and so forth. But
the chief of police, who does very little actual police work, may be very constrained by
department, union, affirmative action, or governing board guidelines and policies.
Furthermore, the chief of police knows that neither the resources nor the desire are readily
available to enforce all the laws that are broken.
In addition, the issue of police discretion is shrouded in controversy. Various argu-
ments are made both for and against discretion. Advantages include that it allows the offi-
cer to treat different situations in accordance with humanitarian and practical goals. For
example, an officer pulls over a speeding motorist, only to learn that the car is en route to
the hospital with a woman who is about to deliver a baby. While the agitated driver is
endangering everyone in the vehicle as well as other motorists on the roadway, discretion
allows the officer to be compassionate and empathetic, giving the car a safe escort to the
hospital rather than issuing a citation for speeding. In short, discretionary use of authority
allows the police to employ a philosophy of justice tempered with mercy.
Conversely, discretion can also carry the specter of impartiality—the ability of officers to
treat different people differently for committing essentially the same offense. Critics of dis-
cretion also argue that such wide latitude in decision making may serve as a breeding ground
for police corruption; for example, an officer may be offered a bribe to overlook an offense.
And as Lawrence Sherman observed, another problem is that the police do not know the
consequences of their discretionary decisions. He contrasted the police with artisans and
navigators who receive feedback on the effects of their decisions. The police, however, have
failed to create a feedback information system that tells them what happens after they leave a
call or even after they make an arrest. Thus police lack knowledge about the effects of their
discretionary actions on suspects, victims, witnesses, and potential criminals.65
Certain aspects of policing will never be completely free of discretion, however; to a large
extent, the work of a police officer is unsupervised and unsupervisable. As the police strive to
achieve professionalism, they will remember that discretion is a key element of a profession.
Police discretion is also part of the American political process.66 As Kenneth Culp
Davis observed, a major contributing factor to police discretion is that state legislative
commands are ambiguous. Legislatures speak with three voices: (1) they enact state stat-
utes that seemingly require full enforcement of the laws, (2) they provide only enough
resources for limited enforcement of them, and (3) they consent to such limited
enforcement.67 Some observers have even questioned the legality and morality of police
discretion.68 It might also be added that the statute books are often treated as society’s
“trash bins.” A particular behavior is viewed negatively, so a law is passed against it, and
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 89
▼
the police are stuck with the dilemma of having to enforce or ignore what may be an overly
broad or unpopular law.
Other aspects of politics are found in police discretion. For example, several state and
local governments restricted police use of deadly force long before the U.S. Supreme Court
did away with the common law “fleeing felon” doctrine in Tennessee v. Garner (1985).69
▶ A Related Function: Traffic
A major figure in policing in the mid-1900s, O. W. Wilson, reportedly said that “the police
traffic function overshadows every other function.” That may be an overstatement today,
but a strong link still exists between the patrol function and traffic control. Traffic stops
account for about half (52 percent) of the contact Americans have with the police.70
Therefore, the importance of a seemingly trivial traffic stop cannot be overstated because
the manner in which the officer conducts the stop may in large measure determine the citi-
zen’s view of the police for many years to come.
Note that in this section, our focus is on the police traffic function alone. In Chapter 8,
which deals generally with police accountability, we extend this discussion to include
accusations of racial bias that can flow from traffic stops that subsequently involve searches
of citizens.
Enforcement of Traffic Laws: Triumph and Trouble
The number of U.S. traffic deaths has declined over the past six decades (largely due to airbag
and safety belt use, better traffic enforcement and engineering, public education, and drunk
driver legislation); still, more than 32,000 motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians are killed each
year on U.S. roadways.71 That number is expected to increase, however, as the economy
improves (and people drive more) and distracted driving continues to be a problem.
Police endeavor to reduce traffic deaths and injuries through the enforcement of traffic
laws, and on its face, this is a noble undertaking. But this is a very delicate area of contact
between citizens and their police. Indeed, citizens may have their one and only contact
with a police officer because of some traffic-related matter; therefore, the extent to which
the officer displays a professional demeanor—and the attitude and demeanor projected by
the citizen—may well have long-term effects for both and carry long-term significance for
both community policing (which relies heavily on community teamwork) and public rela-
tions. More than a few bond issues to hire new officers, purchase new equipment, or build
a new station house have been defeated at the ballot box because of ill will created by the
police traffic function.
Levels of traffic enforcement differ, too. Some departments are relatively lenient, but
others have initiated ticket quotas, and some jurisdictions pressure their officers to have a
“ticket blizzard” to generate revenue. Aside from often being rankled by having to pay a
fine, many citizens also believe the police should be engaged in other “more important”
functions (“Why aren’t you out catching bank robbers?”). Therefore, traffic stops can be a
major source of friction between police officers and citizens, and strict traffic enforcement
policies can negatively impact police–community relations.72 Furthermore, because of
“extinction”—the process of people forgetting about the traffic citation they received and
the need to obey traffic laws—the long- and even short-term deterrent effects of handing
out traffic citations have been called into question.73
Despite citizen disgruntlement with traffic enforcement, traffic stops and citations gen-
erally remain an integral part of police work. Police administrators find such work to be
easily verifiable evidence that their officers are working.74 Traffic enforcement has even
gone high tech with the advent of the traffic camera, which has been nicknamed “the
photocop.” Traffic cameras, either mounted on a mobile tripod or permanently fixed on a
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 90
▼
pole, emit a narrow beam of radar that triggers a flash camera when the targeted vehicle
runs a red light or exceeds the speed limit by a certain amount, usually ten miles per hour.
Such cameras are controversial, however, and they are not popular with many motorists
who view them as a method for increasing revenue for a jurisdiction rather than as a
method for improving traffic safety.75
Police in Berkeley, California, have applied a new twist to the traffic function. Drivers
who are “caught” driving safely and courteously are stopped and issued coupons good for
movies or free nonalcoholic beverages at a local cafe. This Good Driver Recognition
Program, which began with officers’ donations, now receives city funding.76
Traffic Crash Investigation
Patrol officers have long been required to investigate traffic crashes. (Note: The long-used
term traffic accident is increasingly being replaced with traffic crash or collision because
accident implies that the crash was unintended, but with the increase in road rage incidents
and other uses of motor vehicles as weapons, collision can include both intended and unin-
tended crashes.) In this era of accountability and litigation, and due to the vast amount of
damage done to people and property each year as a result of traffic crashes, it is essential
that officers understand this process of investigation and cite the guilty party—not only
from a law enforcement standpoint but also in the event that the matter is taken to civil
court. Until officers receive formal training in this complex field, they are in a very precari-
ous position.
In addition to basic traffic crash investigation training normally provided at the police
academy, several agencies offer good in-service courses, and Northwestern University has
a renowned crash investigation program. The process of analyzing road and damage evi-
dence, estimating speeds, reconstructing what occurred and why, issuing citations properly,
drawing a diagram of the scene, and explaining what happened in court is too important to
be left to untrained officers. The public demands skilled crash investigations.
▲ Traffic crash investigation is a major part of the police role—and at times
can involve the need for rapid rescue operations. (Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff ’s
Office.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 91
▼
Pursuit of the “Phantom” Driver
One of the traffic-related areas in which the police enjoy wide public support is their efforts
to identify, apprehend, and convict the hit-and-run (or “phantom”) driver. No one thinks
highly of these drivers (who are often intoxicated) who collide with another vehicle or
person and leave the scene. This matter requires more of a criminal investigation than a
crash investigation for the police. In some states, the killing of a human being by someone
driving under the influence (DUI) is a felony. Physical evidence and witness statements
must be collected in the same fashion as in a conventional criminal investigation; paint
samples and automobile parts left at the scene are sent to crime laboratories for examina-
tion. The problem for the police is that unless the driver of the vehicle is identified—by
physical evidence, an eyewitness, or a confession—the case can be lost. If the phantom
vehicle is located, the owner can simply tell the police that his or her vehicle was stolen or
is on loan. Thus, the police often must resort to psychology to get a confession by convinc-
ing the suspect that incriminating evidence exists.
Chapter 14, dealing with police technology, contains information on the use of the
Global Positioning System (GPS) for investigating traffic accidents.
▶ The Patrol Lifeline: Dispatchers and Communications
One group of police employees—often civilians—that a majority of police officers would
no doubt say qualifies as their “unsung heroes” are police dispatchers, also called commu-
nications specialists. Neophyte police officers soon learn to highly value and rely on the
knowledge, insight, and assistance of their dispatchers; they know their lives and safety
may literally depend on the dispatcher’s ability to determine the type, seriousness, and
location of calls for service. In fact, their role is so critical that many agencies require their
dispatchers to have first worked as patrol officers for a substantial amount of time in order
to fully understand what the officers are facing and feeling while on patrol.
▲ Computer-aided dispatch (CAD) systems help dispatchers to provide vital information—and
be a “lifeline”—to officers responding to calls for service. (Courtesy Citrus Height Police Department.)
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 92
▼
Dispatchers generally work in a centralized communications center. When handling calls,
the information obtained is posted either electronically by computer or, with decreasing fre-
quency, by hand. The dispatcher then quickly decides the priority of the incident, the kind and
number of units needed, and the location of the closest and most suitable units available.
Dispatchers often are the first people the public contacts when emergency assistance is
required. If certified for emergency medical services, the dispatcher may also provide
medical instruction to those on the scene of the emergency and to citizens at home before
the emergency personnel arrive. Particularly where communications services are com-
bined or regional, a single dispatcher may also be responsible to take citizens’ calls for,
and to dispatch, fire fighters, ambulance personnel, sheriff’s deputies, other outlying police
department units, state troopers, and fish and game wardens.77
Summary This chapter has examined several issues related to the patrol function, which can be fairly
stated as being the essence of policing. It discussed the purposes and nature of patrol; the
influence of an officer’s shift and beat; some hazards involved with patrol duties; the discre-
tionary authority of patrol officers; the traffic function; the nature and purposes of various
patrol vehicles; the legal and psychological significance of the patrol uniform; and the vital
importance of the dispatch or communications function.
It was demonstrated that the patrol function is truly the backbone of policing, the pri-
mary means by which the police fulfill their mission. As noted, patrol officers do the work
of community policing and problem solving, and they are the eyes and ears of the police
organization. Patrol is the beginning point for all other specialized and administrative
assignments, where citizens go to lodge concerns and complaints and where the needs of
the community are met.
Because of the importance of patrol, researchers have tried to determine what works on
patrol, and research findings on the patrol function were also presented—clearly it concerns
more than just “driving around.” Perhaps, we have not yet reached the point of understand-
ing how to best deploy patrol officers to their maximum effect, but research is demonstrating
that some patrolling methods, which for decades were felt to be “tried and true,” are myths
and do not work. Ongoing research on the patrol function is needed. The fundamental—and
seemingly simple—police task of seeing and being seen is indeed complicated and chal-
lenging. Knowledge of patrol utilization and effectiveness becomes more crucial because
research has shown the crime-solving ability of detectives to be overrated. We have also
seen that the street cop performs a variety of duties while using wide discretion in deciding
how to handle problems. In essence, this chapter has attempted to put readers in the patrol
officer’s position by giving them a sense of what’s involved in that profession.
Key Terms
beat assignment
beat culture
deployment
discretionary use of police
authority
dispatcher
dress code
Kansas City Preventive Patrol
Experiment
Law Enforcement Officers Safety
Act of 2004 (H.R. 218)
occupational hazards
patrol function
patrol vehicle
shift assignment
suicide by cop
traffic control
uniform
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 93
▼
Review Questions
1. What are some of the major findings of studies of the
patrol function? (Include in your answer findings of
the Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment.)
2. How is the patrol function affected by the officer’s
shift assignment and the nature of the beat to which
he or she is assigned?
3. What are some of the occupational hazards that are
inherent in beat patrol, and what does research seem
to indicate should be done to prevent fatal ambushes?
4. What does H.R. 218 permit?
5. What are the legal and psychological aspects of police
officers’ uniforms and their general appearance, and
the nature and purpose of an agency dress code? What
types of lawsuits are officers filing in regard to dress
codes?
6. What is the “profile” of officers who are feloniously
killed, and what are some related lessons that should
be taught in police training and then applied by offi-
cers on the street?
7. What is meant by discretionary use of police author-
ity, and what are some of its advantages, disadvan-
tages, and factors that enter into the officer’s
decision-making process?
8. Why is the traffic function important in patrol work, and
how can it bring about bad citizen–police relations?
9. What purposes and benefits are provided by patrol
vehicles, and why are they so important in the safety
and functions of patrol officers?
10. How would you describe the relationship between
patrol officers and police dispatchers?
Learn by Doing
1. You are a patrol sergeant, lecturing to your agency’s
Citizens’ Police Academy about the patrol function.
Someone raises her hand and asks, “Sergeant, your
officers obviously can’t enforce all of the laws all of
the time. Which laws are always enforced, and which
ones are not? What factors determine how police dis-
cretion is used?” How do you respond (without say-
ing something like “We enforce all of the laws, all of
the time,” which of course would be untrue)? How
would you fully explain police discretion to the citi-
zens’ group?
2. Increasing incidents involving fatal ambushes of offi-
cers has obviously become a major concern, calling for
a reassessment of police training and procedural meth-
ods, especially involving drug cases. As a new lieuten-
ant in your training academy who has studied the
fatality data and reports, what new training and proce-
dural measures would you recommend to be adopted
to reduce or attempt to eliminate such fatal shootings?
3. As a police consultant, you are hired by a nearby
police agency to develop a new police uniform and
dress code for all sworn officers, paying attention to
legal and practical aspects. Develop a dress code as
well as a description of the new uniform (color,
accoutrements, etc.) that you would recommend, with
arguments in defense of both.
4. For a practical view of traffic problems and solutions,
go to www.popcenter.org/problems/street_racing
(Guide No. 26) and/or to www.popcenter.org/
problems/drunk_driving (Guide No. 28). These
guides are published by the federal Center for
Problem-Oriented Policing. Read and describe the
kinds of problems that are caused by illegal street rac-
ing and/or drunk driving. Consider the efforts
described in the guides that police are using to suc-
cessfully address these problems.
Notes
1. Quoted in Kevin Krajick, “Does Patrol Prevent
Crime?” Police Magazine 1 (September 1978): 4–16.
2. T. J. Baker, “Designing the Job to Motivate,” FBI
Law Enforcement Bulletin 45 (1976): 3–7.
3. Krajick, “Does Patrol Prevent Crime?” p. 10.
4. Ibid., pp. 11–13.
5. Robert C. Trojanowicz and Dennis W. Banas, Job
Satisfaction: A Comparison of Foot Patrol Versus
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 94
▼
Motor Patrol Officers (East Lansing: Michigan State
University, 1985).
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid., p. 235.
8. Jerome H. Skolnick and David H. Bayley, The New
Blue Line: Police Innovation in Six American Cities
(New York: Free Press, 1986), p. 4.
9. Quoted in John A. Webster, “Patrol Tasks,” in
Policing Society: An Occupational View, ed.
W. Clinton Terry III (New York: Wiley, 1985),
pp. 263–313.
10. W. Clinton Terry III, ed., Policing Society: An
Occupational View (New York: Wiley, 1985),
pp. 259–260.
11. U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of
Justice, Managing Calls to the Police with 911/311
Systems (February 2005), Calling 311: Guidelines
for Policymakers (February 2005), p. 4, https://www.
ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/206257.pdf.
12. NBC News New York, “Nearly 40 Percent of
City’s 911 Calls Accidental: Report,” http://www.
nbcnewyork.com/news/local/City-911-System-
Butt-Dial-Accidental-Calls-Report-150743725.
html.
13. See U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community
Oriented Policing Services, 311 for Non-Emergencies
(August 2006); also see U.S. Department of Justice,
National Institute of Justice, Managing Calls to the
Police with 911/311 Systems (February 2005), http://
www.cops.usdoj.gov/Publications/managing_
calls_911311.pdf.
14. Elizabeth Reuss-Ianni, Two Cultures of Policing:
Street Cops and Management Cops (New Brunswick,
NJ: Transaction Books, 1983).
15. SmartPlanet, “The 10 Most Dangerous Jobs in
America,” January 27, 2013, http://www.smart-
p l a n e t . c o m / b l o g / b u l l e t i n / t h e - 1 0 - m o s t -
dangerous-jobs-in-america/11396.
16. Kevin Johnson, “In light of police deaths, training
is scrutinized,” USA Today (January 11, 2012),
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/
s t o r y / 2 0 1 2 - 0 1 - 0 6 / p o l i c e - d e a t h s - t r a i n i n g -
raids/52488196/1; Kevin Johnson, More police
officers die in ambush attacks, USA Today
(December 22, 2011), http://usatoday30.usatoday.
com/news/nation/story/2011-12-21/police-officer-
ambush-deaths/52147034/1.
17. Charles E. Miller III, Henry F. Hanburger, Michael
Sumeracki, and Marcus Young, “The FBI’s National
Law Enforcement Safety Initiative,” FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin (January 2010), http://www.
fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/law-enforcement-
bulletin/january-2010/the-fbi2019s-national-
lawenforcement-safety-initiative.
18. Kevin Johnson, “FBI focuses firearms training on
close-quarters combat,” USA Today, January 7, 2013,
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2013/01/05/
fbi-firearms-training/1811053/.
19. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Law Enforcement
Officers Killed & Assaulted: Officers Accidentally
Killed,” Uniform Crime Reports, 2014. https://www.
f b i . g o v / a b o u t - u s / c j i s / u c r / l e o k a / 2 0 1 4 /
officers-accidentally-killed
20. Kevin Johnson, “Police union, chiefs call for manda-
tory armor, seat belts,” USA Today, November 20,
2014, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/
2014/11/20/mandatory-armor-seat-belts/19326349/
21. Giuseppe Macri, “Ford’s new police cruisers track
cops when they break traffic laws,” The Daily Caller,
November 5, 2014, http://dailycaller.com/2014/11/
05/fords-new-police-cruisers-track-cops-when-they-
break-traffic-laws/
22. Alyson Sheppard, “Police shoot cars with GPS tags
to reduce high-speed chases,” Popular Mechanics,
November 6, 2013, http://www.popularmechanics.
c o m / m i li t a r y / a 9 6 6 2 / p o li c e - s h o o t - c a r s - w i t h -
gps-tags-to-reduce-high-speed-chases-16127245/
23. Anthony J. Pinizzotto, Edward F. Davis, and Charles
E. Miller III, “Suicide by Cop Defining a Devastating
Dilemma,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 74(2)
(February 2005), www.fbi.gov/publications/leb/2005/
feb2005/feb2005.htm#page8.
24. H. Range Huston and Diedre Anglin, “Suicide by
Cop,” Annals of Emergency Medicine 32(6)
(December 1998): 665–669.
25. Adapted from Pinizzotto, Davis, and Miller, “Suicide
by Cop Defining a Devastating Dilemma.”
26. Skolnick and Bayley, The New Blue Line,
pp. 141–142.
27. John P. Crank, Understanding Police Culture
(Cincinnati, OH: Anderson, 1998), p. 83.
28. Ibid., p. 254.
29. Seth Stoughton, “Law enforcement’s ‘warrior’ prob-
lem,” Harvard Law Review, April 10, 2015, http://
harvardlawreview.org/2015/04/law-enforcements-
warrior-problem/
30. Quoted in Mark Baker, Cops: Their Lives in Their
Own Words (New York: Pocket Books, 1985), p. 298.
31. Bouza, The Police Mystique, p. 74.
32. See the full text of the law at www.sdsos.gov/
adminservices/adminpdfs/h218enr.pdf.
33. Jennifer Boyer, “Legislative Alert: President Bush
Signs Concealed Carry Legislation into Law,” The
Police Chief 71(9) (September 2004), http://www.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 95
▼
p o l i c e c h i e f m a g a z i n e . o r g / m a g a z i n e / i n d e x .
c f m ? f u s e a c t i o n = d i s p l a y _ a r c h & a r t i c l e _
id=383&issue_id=92004.
34. Paul N. Tinsley and Darryl Plecas, “Studying Public
Perceptions of Police Grooming Standards,” The
Police Chief, November 2003, policechiefmagazine.
org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&
article_id=152&issue_id=112003.
35. See Carl Klockars, The Idea of Police (Newbury
Park, CA: SAGE Publications, 1985), p. 51.
36. Ronnie Garrett, “Clothes that Make the Woman,”
Police: The Law Enforcement Magazine, October 11,
2012, http://www.policemag.com/channel/women-
in-law-enforcement/articles/2012/10/clothes-that-
make-the-woman.aspx
37. 425. U.S. 238 (1976).
38. Eugene R. K., Commissioner of the Suffolk County
Police Department, Petitioner, v. Edward JOHNSON,
etc.by The Supreme Court of the United States.
39. Richard R. Johnson, “The Psychological Influence
of the Police Uniform,” FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin, March 2001, pp. 27–32; Tinsley and Plecas,
“Studying Public Perceptions of Police Grooming
Standards,” p. 2.
40. Ibid., p. 29.
41. Ibid., p. 3.
42. Ibid., p. 2.
43. Ibid., p. 3.
44. Ibid., p. 3.
45. Adapted from the Minneapolis, Minnesota Police
Department Policy and Procedure Manual #3-100,
“Personal Appearance and Uniforms,” http://www.
m i n n e a p o l i s m n . g o v / p o l i c e / p o l i c y /
mpdpolicy_3-100_3-100.
46. “Tattooed State Police Job Applicant Sues Over
Policy,” http://dailyitem.com/0100_news/x46896383/
State-police-job-applicant-sues-over-tattoo-policy.
47. Carolyn Feibel, “Ban on Beards at HPD Could
Grow Costly,” Houston Chronicle, May 29, 2008,
www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/
5806843.html.
48. “Des Moines Police Ban New Tattoos,” http://www.
foxnews.com/story/0,2933,379203,00.html.
49. Park, “HPD Weighs Tattoo Cover-up,” p. 1.
50. Luke Dawson, “The Evolution of the Cop Car,” Gear
(n.d.), p. 72.
51. Ibid.
52. Shaila Dewan, “As Gas Prices Rise, Police Turn to Foot
Patrols,” The New York Times, July 20, 2008, http://
www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/us/20patrol.html.
53. U.S. Department of Transportation, National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, “Motorcycle
Traffic Enforcement,” www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/
injury/pedbimot/motorcycle/motorcycle_traffic03/
preface.htm#2.
54. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, “Local Police Departments, 2007,” p. 6,
http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/lpd07.pdf.
55. Chris Menton, “Bicycle Patrols: An Underutilized
Resource,” Policing: an International Journal of
Police Strategies & Management 31(1),2008: 98–103.
56. See Officer.com, “Vehicles and Equipment,” directory.
officer.com/list/Vehicles_Equipment.
57. Carl B. Klockars and Stephen D. Mastrofski, “Police
Discretion: The Case of Selective Enforcement,” in
Thinking About Police: Contemporary Readings,
2nd ed., eds. Carl B. Klockars and Stephen D.
Mastrofski (Boston: McGraw-Hill, 1991), p. 330.
58. James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling, “‘Broken
Windows’: The Police and Neighborhood Safety,”
Atlantic Monthly, March 1982, pp. 28–29.
59. David H. Bayley and Egon Bittner, “Learning the
Skills of Policing,” in Critical Issues in Policing:
Contemporary Readings, eds. Roger G. Dunham and
Geoffrey P. Alpert (Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland
Press, 1989), pp. 87–110.
60. Kenneth Culp Davis, Police Discretion (St. Paul,
MN: West, 1975), p. 73.
61. Kenneth Culp Davis, Discretionary Justice (Urbana:
University of Illinois Press, 1969), p. 222.
62. Klockars and Mastrofski, “Police Discretion,” p. 331.
63. Ibid.
64. See, for example, Donald Black, “The Social
Organization of Arrest,” Stanford Law Review, 23
(1971): 1087–1111.
65. Lawrence W. Sherman, “Experiments in Police
Discretion: Scientific Boon or Dangerous
Knowledge?” Law and Contemporary Problems 47
(1984): 61–82.
66. For a thorough discussion, see Gregory Howard
Williams, “The Politics of Police Discretion,” in
Discretion, Justice and Democracy: A Public Policy
Perspective, ed. Carl F. Pinkele and William C.
Louthau (Ames: Iowa State University Press, 1985),
pp. 19–30.
67. Davis, Police Discretion, p. 22.
68. See James F. Doyle, “Police Discretion, Legality, and
Morality,” in Police Ethics: Hard Choices in Law
Enforcement, ed. William C. Heffernan and Timothy
Stroup (New York: John Jay Press, 1985), pp. 47–68.
69. Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985).
70. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
Characteristics of Drivers Stopped by Police, 2002
(Washington, D.C.: Author, 2006), pp. 1–2, 5.
CHAPTER 3 On Patrol 96
▼
71. National Highway Traffic Safety Association,
“Fatality Analysis Reporting System Encyclopedia,”
http://www-fars.nhtsa.dot.gov/Main/index.aspx.
72. See, for example, Terry C. Cox and Mervin F. White,
“Traffic Citations and Student Attitudes Toward the
Police: An Examination of Selected Interaction
Dynamics,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 16(2) (fall 1988): 105–121.
73. Adam F. Carr, John F. Schnelle, and John F. Kirchner,
“Police Crackdowns and Slowdowns: A Naturalistic
Evaluation of Changes in Police Traffic Enforcement,”
Behavioral Assessment 2 (Spring 1980): 33–41; Tom
Robinson, “Extinction Rate Measurement of the
Mobile Radar Display Trailer” (unpublished manu-
script, Department of Political Science, University of
Nevada, Reno, 1993).
74. Richard J. Lundman, “Working Traffic Violations,”
in Policing Society: An Occupational View, ed.
W. Clinton Terry III (New York: Wiley), pp. 327–333.
75. Aamer Madhani, “Red-light cameras create red hot
furor in Chicago,” USA Today, April 5, 2015, http://
www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/04/05/red-
light-cameras-political-furor-chicago-ohio-f lorida/
70746154/
76. City of Berkeley City Council, “Agenda: June 27,
2 0 0 0 ,” w w w. c i . b e r k e l ey. c a . u s / c i t y c o u n c i l /
2000citycouncil/agenda/062700A.html.
77. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics, “Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispat-
chers,”http://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-
support/police-fire-and-ambulance-dispatchers.
htm.
97
▼
In Part 2, first we review, in Chapter 4, the contemporary rift that exists between the
nation’s police and the communities they are to serve and protect, with emphasis placed on
the community policing concept, how it functions, and how it promises to assist in bridging
this existing police—community chasm. Next, Chapter 5 focuses on criminal investigation,
including some discussion of how this field evolved, the roles of detectives, working
undercover, DNA and additional forms of analysis and technologies, uses of behavioral
science, and recent developments in the field. This part’s concluding chapter, Chapter 6,
examines selected personnel issues: stress, labor relations, higher education, and the
private police.
Part 2
Practices and Challenges
4 Community Policing: “Guardians,” or “Soldiers”?
5 Criminal Investigation: The Science of Sleuthing
6 Personnel Issues and Practices: Stress, Labor, Relations, Higher Education, and Private Police
98
▼
4 Community Policing “Guardians,” or “Soldiers”?
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ List reasons for the current strained relationship between the police and community in the United States and describe strategies for bridging the gap
❷ Explain the basic principles and techniques of community policing, including the SARA problem-solving process
❸ Describe approaches to crime prevention including the effects of environmental design and repeat victimization
❹ Expound on community policing and problem solving
❺ Explain the origin and applications of Smart Policing
(Courtesy of Peter Casolino/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 99
▼
Introduction
It is no secret that these are unusually difficult and challenging times for police–community relations and
trust. As the 2015 President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing put it, this is due to “recent events
that have exposed rifts in the relationships between local police and the communities they protect and
serve.”1 These “recent events” are in fact a number of highly publicized and controversial police shoot-
ings of unarmed suspects. The Task Force added that “Trust between law enforcement agencies and the
people they protect and serve is essential in a democracy. It is key to the stability of our communities,
the integrity of our criminal justice system, and the safe and effective delivery of policing services.”2
A member of the Task Force also posed the question
Why are we training police officers like soldiers? Although police officers wear uniforms and carry
weapons, the similarity ends there. The missions and rules of engagement are completely different.
The soldier’s mission is that of a warrior: to conquer. The police officer’s mission is that of a guardian:
to protect. Soldiers must follow orders. Police officers must make independent decisions. Soldiers
come into communities as an outside, occupying force. Guardians are members of the community,
protecting from within.3
This chapter discusses this contemporary status of police–community problems, with emphasis on com-
munity policing. As mentioned in Chapter 1, the contemporary community era of policing involves strat-
egies that are vastly different from the professional era’s emphasis on numbers of arrests, response times,
calls for service, and so on, so we look to see what must minimally be done to build trust and rapport.
The chapter begins by briefly reviewing the history of police–minority relations, and then considers
recent events involving police shootings of unarmed people—particularly minorities—that have
fomented hatred and violence in Ferguson, Missouri, and other venues. Included is a review of new
measures taken by police in reaction to foreign and domestic terroristic acts, active-shooter situations,
and assassinations of officers themselves. Then we examine what is meant by community policing, and
how it might serve to bridge the gulf between the police and citizens they serve. Following that is a look
at a related concept, problem-oriented policing; using its four-step problem solving process, it serves to
engage the community in addressing neighborhood crime and disorder.
Next, a relatively new management technique for bringing about successful problem-oriented
policing—CompStat (which is a management process that involves analysis of crime and disorder data,
strategic problem solving, and a clear accountability structure) is discussed, as well as two elements of
crime prevention: environmental design and repeat victimization. Next is an instructive case study of
problem-solving efforts by police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as concerned juvenile problems. Following is a
review of a new policing paradigm, Smart Policing, which emphasizes the use of data and analytics as
well as improved crime analysis, performance measurement, and evaluation research.
A summary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportunities
for you to “learn by doing” conclude the chapter.
Note also that two topics that are relatively new and closely related to CompStat and Smart Policing,
intelligence-led policing and predictive policing, are discussed in Chapter 12 as potential tools for
addressing the problem of terrorism.
▶ Lessons from History and Ferguson
A Brief Reflection
Much of the contemporary problems between the police and the public involve members of
minority groups. As British statesman Benjamin Disraeli said, “No man will treat with indif-
ference the principle of race. It is the key of history.” Certainly the riotous events that unfolded
in Ferguson, Missouri, in August 2014, following the shooting death of Michael Brown
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 100
▼
by a white police officer, as well as the in-custody death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore in
April 2015 (where six police officers were charged with murder and/or assault) and several
more controversial police killings in late-2015 and throughout 2016, would prove that
statement rings true today.4
Problems of poor police–minority relations are certainly not a recent phenomenon.
Indeed, in March 2015 thousands of people—including President Barack Obama—
commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of “Bloody Sunday” in Selma, Alabama—when
state troopers met Dr. Martin Luther King and 25,000 peaceful civil rights marchers at the
Edmund Pettus Bridge with batons and tear gas. This peaceful demonstration led to the
Voting Rights Act of 1965.5
Of course, not all such protests have been as peaceful: during the 1960s major race
riots occurred in Harlem, New York; Watts, California; Newark, New Jersey; and Detroit
(often fomented by such violent militant groups as the Black Panthers). There were
75 civil disorders involving African Americans and the police in 1967 alone, with at least
eighty-three people killed. A number of presidential commissions were created to study
riots, campus disorder, and minority relations in general. One such commission, the
National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (also known as the Kerner Commission)
stated in 1968 that “our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white—
separate and unequal.”6 Then, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, police–community rela-
tions appeared to worsen again, with major riots, looting, and burning in Miami, Florida;
Los Angeles; Atlanta; Las Vegas; Washington, D.C.; and St. Petersburg, Florida, as well
as in other cities. Race riots during the 1960s, such as the one in Watts, California, often
pitted police against protesting members of the community.
James Baldwin, the African-American sociologist, was moved to write in 1960 (about
Harlem) that:
None of the Police Commissioner’s men, even with the best will in the world, have any way
of understanding the lives led by the people they swagger about in twos and threes control-
ling. Their very presence is an insult, and it would be, even if they spent their entire day
feeding gumdrops to children.7
Then the new millennium arrived, and bias-based policing—also known as racial profil-
ing or “driving while black or brown” (DWBB)—became a hot-button issue. A 2007 study
released by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) found that while black, Hispanic,
and white drivers were equally likely to be pulled over by the police, black and Hispanic driv-
ers were much more likely to be searched and arrested, and police were much more likely to
threaten or use force against such drivers than against white drivers in any encounter.8
The widespread discontent following the April 2015 police shooting of unarmed African-
American Walter Scott in North Charleston, South Carolina (see Exhibit 4-1 ■), as well as
exhibit 4-1
In October 2015, the family of Walter Scott and the city of North Charleston, South
Carolina, reached a $6.5 million settlement in Scott’s fatal shooting death. Scott was
struck in the back by a bullet while running away from officer Michael Slager in April
2015. Slager reportedly pulled Scott over for a broken brake light; he was later charged
with murder in the case. A state circuit judge refused to release Slager on bail, saying
that doing so “would constitute an unreasonable danger to the community.” The settle-
ment represented the largest ever reached in this type case in South Carolina’s history.11
SETTLEMENT REACHED IN SHOOTING OF WALTER SCOTT
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 101
▼
the shooting of twelve-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland and the chokehold death of Eric
Garner in New York City, led to thousands of demonstrators marching and staging “die-ins”
near the White House and across the country (as well as federal lawsuits against the officers’
employing agencies)9; “Black lives matter” became their rallying cry. Other widely publi-
cized incidents would follow, such as the police shooting death of an unarmed teenager,
Tony Robinson, in the city of Madison, Wisconsin, in March 2015 and the shooting deaths of
Keith Scott in Charlotte, North Carolina and Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and other
African-American men in 2016.10
Looking back at where it all seems to have begun, the city of Ferguson raged for a week,
gas and rubber bullets were used, the National Guard was deployed, and a police officer was
shot (two officers were also shot during a protest in March 2014).12 Ultimately, five Ferguson
officials resigned (including the police chief, city manager, municipal judge, and two police
supervisors) and a U.S. Department of Justice issued a scathing report about the widespread
racially biased abuses by police, who routinely targeted African-Americans for arrests and
ticketing.13 Much controversy was also raised concerning the use of the state’s national guard
and military equipment and tactics in Ferguson and across the nation. They point to the mil-
lions of pieces of surplus military equipment that have been given to local police departments
across the country—including military-grade semi-automatic weapons, armored personnel
vehicles, tanks, helicopters, and airplanes. Of course, a competing viewpoint is that the pub-
lic wants police to utilize whatever tools and resources are required to keep them safe.
Police Responses to Violence: Modifications in Tactics, Training, and Equipment
Although national attention has focused on police shootings of citizens post-Ferguson, for
their part the police have taken notice of a number of foreign and domestic terroristic acts,
active shooter situations, and assassinations of police officers themselves and attempted—
through changes in tactics, training, and equipment—to reduce or eliminate such killings.
Following are some examples, as seen in Florida:
• After terrorists killed 130 people in Paris, France, in November 2015, Miami-Dade County police acquired 500 new protective vests and 500 high-powered assault rifles.
• When a shooter killed 49 people in an Orlando nightclub in June 2016, Miami Gardens, police supervisors were ordered to begin new training for active shooter situations.
• After an Army veteran ambushed and shot 12 Dallas police officers in July 2016, kill- ing five of them, Miami police were outfitted with 687 new steel-plated vests capable
of repelling rifle fire and ordered about 100 new semi-automatic rifles.14
Other consequences of the preceding violence have been: (1) patrol officers riding in
pairs. Boston, New York City, St. Louis, Philadelphia, Los Angeles County, and
Washington, D.C., among other sites, see doubling up in patrol cars as affording greater
safety and vigilance, and (2) beefing up security in and around police station houses,
including parking lots and ancillary buildings.15
▶ How to Achieve Harmony, Justice, and Policy?
What is the solution for such cities as those mentioned above—cities that are vastly
different in their demographics but quite similar in attitudes and emotions? If someone had
the complete answer to that question, he or she would probably become very wealthy very
quickly. However, although there are many underlying social problems in such
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 102
▼
communities that take many years if not decades to build to a boiling point, a priority is to
seriously examine their relationship with and understanding of their minority communi-
ties. Therefore, in a community such as Ferguson—where 67 percent of the population but
only 5 percent of police officers were African American—and in a nation where many
people see discrimination and prejudice when blacks are arrested at nearly three times the
rate of people of other races,16 a good starting point is to make every effort to recruit and
diversify the agency and thus provide a means for giving people a voice (in a related vein,
see Exhibit 4-2 ■). Today’s officers have daily contact with individuals from different cul-
tural backgrounds, socioeconomic classes, religions, sexual orientations, and physical and
mental abilities. As one witness told the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing
concerning youth in poor communities:
By the time you are 17, you have been stopped and frisked a dozen times. That does not
make that 17-year-old want to become a police officer. The challenge is to transform the
idea of policing in communities among young people into something they see as honorable.
They have to see people at local events, as the person who lives across the street, not some-
one who comes in and knows nothing about my community.17
Other reform ideas in the aftermath of Ferguson included that police stop blurring the lines
with the military and begin wearing body cameras (discussed briefly later and in Chapter 14),
and even that drugs be legalized (it is asserted that African Americans distrust the police
because so many young black men are sent to prison for nonviolent drug offenses).18 Also
recommended was that the U.S. Department of Justice investigates such shootings to determine
whether any civil rights violations occurred, implement training on racial profiling, and create
programs to address vestiges of segregation, dehumanization, and stereotyping in our society.19
Certainly one—perhaps very surprising—form of public policy that might also be
examined is the lack of requirements for police officers to possess a college degree. A
long line of research—including a 2015 study at Michigan State University—indicates
that college-educated officers are less likely to use force on citizens; and, as researcher
exhibit 4-2
In late 2015, after three shootings occurred in a single neighborhood in one month’s
time, Reno, Nevada, police officers and government leaders immediately undertook
outreach measures to address concerns of the affected area. Knocking on nearly
50 homeowners’ doors in a single day as part of a formal Neighborhood Contact Team
initiative (which is routinely activated when there is a major incident or a crime hot
spot), the team gave residents information about community resources that combat
poverty and crime, reassured residents that they can feel safe in their homes, and, as
one officer put it, helped to “humanize the badge.” Several officers high-fived chil-
dren, hugged residents, and handed out fliers and business cards, while informing
residents that they would be returning with food in the near future for needy families.
The residents were asked to offer any ideas about ways to combat crime and poverty
in the area, informed of an app that could be used for reporting crimes via a Secret
Witness program, and given referrals to agencies that would help with mental illness
and drug abuse problems. A survey instrument was also disseminated for police to
learn how they could better serve the area. One important need that was identified for
the area was having more activities for kids, and ways in which parents could become
more engaged in their children’s lives.22
VIOLENT CRIMES AND HOUSE VISITS IN RENO, NEVADA
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 103
▼
William Terrill stated, “If you use less force on individuals, your police department is
going to be viewed as more legitimate and trustworthy and you’re not going to have all
the protests we’re having across the country.”20
Also coming to light was the near total lack of national information concerning such
shootings. In the wake of the police shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson,
Missouri, measures were put in place to initiate a national database tracking such shootings
in the United States. A White House panel—chaired by former Philadelphia Police Chief
Charles Ramsey—was appointed to require states to report the deaths of all people in
police custody or during arrest to the federal government. The U.S. Senate passed the
Death in Custody Reporting Act in December 2014 mandating that all states do so, or risk
losing millions of dollars in federal grants.21
▶ Transparency and Trust Building: Opportunities and Challenges
A Change in Mindset
“You don’t have to look like the people you police, you just have to care.” Thus did Kansas
City, Missouri, police officer, Officer Octavio Villalobos issue a challenge to the police to
build trust between themselves and the community. Next we briefly discuss what the police
might do in order to accomplish that goal.
While today’s police officers and leaders did not create the contemporary problems of
race relations, it is nevertheless their responsibility to try to improve it. In fact, the need
for police executives to forge trusting relationships—and their ability to provide effective
and respectful policing in a multicultural society—is perhaps their most critical challenge.
They must also understand that the inability of police organizations to appropriately han-
dle police misconduct has a direct impact on the organizations’ integrity and
professionalism—which together are the cornerstones of community trust building.
Aristotle said that “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at
all.” His belief can also be said to speak to the challenge of educating the police on the
crucial topics of diversity, trust, and police professionalism. Police agencies must trans-
form themselves—and employ community policing—so as to ensure that community trust
and support will be such that their duties may be performed effectively. As a Denver,
Colorado, police executive put it, this transformation can only come about when there is a
change in mindset, and a good beginning point for that change is in diversity training, to:
• Focus on seeing all others as people with value and worth and deserving of uncondi- tional respect
• Contribute to personal development and self-mastery
• Expand the intellect while touching the hearts of officers—they must learn and “feel” in the educational experience
• Remember that adults learn best by doing and participating in an experience
• Provide tools and skills that can be practiced and applied to daily work
• Make educational sessions one part of a continuing process of learning that reinforces a philosophy ultimately leading to a culture shift.
More and more articles are being written about the need for police to embrace the
“guardian mindset,” mentioned earlier in the introduction, rather than seeing themselves as
soldiers. As a law professor and former police officer put it, “Officers . . . must realize that
the public—even a group of noncompliant teenagers—are not an enemy to be vanquished,
but civilians to be protected.”23
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 104
▼
Calls for Police Body Cameras
Another outgrowth of the rash of police shootings across the United States—often of
unarmed African-American males—is the emphasis on greater police transparency and
the cry for officers to wear body cameras. With cellphones recording what appear to be a
number of questionable if not criminal cases of police use of force—and what also
appears for many people to be misrepresentation or cover-up of facts by police in the
aftermath—many politicians and activists argue that all officers should be compelled to
do so. But having such a policy would raise at least two important questions: (1) when,
specifically, should the cameras be used; and (2) who should be allowed to view which
kinds of footage?
We will discuss body cameras in greater detail in Chapter 14, where we examine
police technologies.
▶ Basic Principles of Community Policing
A Redefined Role
The rapidly changing demographics of America, fueled by immigration, birth rates, and
mixed-race relationships, is occurring at a time when community policing is now well
entrenched as a philosophy that is predicated on a trusting relationship between police
and community. Because these essentially competing forces affect policing at a time when
policing’s responsibilities continue to increase in scope and complexity, there are compel-
ling reasons to understand, address, and take leadership on the challenge of race and
the police.
A fundamental and inherent aspect of community policing is that the public must be
engaged in the fight against crime and disorder. As we noted in Chapter 1, Robert Peel
emphasized in the 1820s in his principles of policing that the police and community should
work together.
In the early 1980s, the notion of community policing emerged as the dominant model
for thinking about policing. It was designed to reunite the police with the community. No
single program describes community policing. Community policing has been applied in
various forms by police agencies in the United States and abroad and differs according to
community needs, local politics, and available resources.
Community policing attempts to address crime control through a working partnership
with such institutions such as families, schools, and neighborhood and merchants’ associa-
tions in creating safer, more secure communities. This is a long-term process that involves
fundamental institutional change. This concept forces a cultural transformation of the
entire department, including a decentralized organizational structure and changes in
recruiting, training, awards systems, evaluations, and promotions; it seeks proactive and
creative resolution to the problems of crime and disorder.
The major points at which COP departs from traditional policing are shown in
Table 4-1 ■.
A Necessary Extension: Problem-Oriented Policing
Problem solving for the police is not new—officers have always tried to solve problems.
The difference is that officers in the past received little guidance, support, or technology
from police administrators for dealing with problems, so the routine application of
problem-solving techniques is new. It is premised on two facts: that problem solving can
be applied by officers throughout the agency as part of their daily work and that routine
problem-solving efforts can be effective in reducing or resolving problems.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 105
▼
TABlE 4-1 Traditional Versus Community Policing: Questions and Answers
Question Traditional Policing Community Policing
Who are the police? A government agency principally
responsible for law enforcement
The police are the public, and the public
are the police: The police officers are those
who are paid to give full-time attention to
the duties of every citizen
What is the relationship of the police force to
other public-service departments?
Priorities often in conflict One department among many responsible
for improving the quality of life
What is the role of the police? To focus on solving crimes To take a broader problem-solving approach
How is police efficiency measured? By detection and arrest rates By the absence of crime and disorder
What are the highest priorities? Crimes that are high value (e.g., bank
robberies) and those involving violence
Whatever problems disturb the community
most
What, specifically, do police deal with? Incidents Citizens’ problems and concerns
What determines the effectiveness of police? Response times Public cooperation
What view do police take of service calls? Deal with them only if there is no real
police work to do
View them as a vital function and a great
opportunity
What is police professionalism? Responding swiftly and effectively to
serious crime
Keeping close to the community
What kind of intelligence is most important? Crime intelligence (study of particular
crimes or series of crimes)
Criminal intelligence (information about the
activities of individuals or groups)
What is the essential nature of police
accountability?
Highly centralized; governed by rules,
regulations, and policy directives;
accountable to the law
Emphasis on local accountability to
community needs
What is the role of headquarters? To provide the necessary rules and policy
directives
To preach organizational values
What is the role of the press liaison
department?
To keep the “heat” off operational officers
so they can get on with the job
To coordinate an essential channel of
communication with the community
How do the police regard prosecutions? As an important goal As one tool among many
Source: Traditional Versus Community Policing: Questions and Answers, Malcolm K. Sparrow, “Implementing Community Policing,” (Washington, DC:
U.S. Government Printing Office), U.S. Department of Justice, 1988.
▲ Citizen input is crucial to the police for crime detection and prevention –
and for community surveys and employing the SARA problem solving model.
(Courtesy Halfpoint/Fotolia.)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 106
▼
Problem-oriented policing was grounded on different principles than community polic-
ing, but they are complementary. Problem-oriented policing is a strategy that puts com-
munity policing into practice because it advocates that police examine the underlying
causes of recurring incidents of crime and disorder; this strategy helps officers identify
problems, analyze them completely, develop response strategies, and assess the results. It
requires that officers take a more formalized, organized view of incidents and acquainting
themselves with some of the conditions and factors that cause them. (The expanded role of
police officers under problem-oriented policing is discussed later.) This four-step problem-
solving process is discussed next.
The Problem-Solving Process: SARA
Problem-oriented policing has at its nucleus a four-stage problem-solving process: scan-
ning, analysis, response, assessment (known as SARA). Next we briefly review each stage.
Scanning: Problem Identification
Scanning involves problem identification. Officers should first identify problems on their
beats and look for a pattern or persistent repeat incidents. A problem may be defined as a
group of two or more incidents that are similar in one or more respects, causing harm
and, therefore, being of concern to the police and the public. Incidents may be similar in
various ways:
• Behaviors. People’s behaviors are the most frequent indicator and include activities such as drug sales, robberies, thefts, and graffiti.
• locations. Problems may occur in area hot spots, such as in downtown areas, in hous- ing complexes plagued by burglaries, and in parks in which gangs commit crimes.
• People. Both repeat offenders and repeat victims account for a high proportion of crime.
• Time. Incidents may be similar in terms of the season, day of the week, or hour of the day; examples include rush hours, bar closing times, and tourist seasons.
• Events. Crimes may peak during events such as university spring break, rallies, and gatherings.
The primary purpose of scanning is to conduct a preliminary inquiry to determine
whether a problem really exists and whether further analysis is needed. Numerous
resources are available to the police to help them identify problems, including calls for
service (CFS) data, especially repeat calls from the same location or a series of similar
incidents. Other means include citizen complaints, census data, data from other govern-
ment agencies, newspaper and media coverage of community issues, officer observations,
and community surveys.
Analysis: Heart of Problem Solving
The second stage, analysis, is the heart of the SARA problem-solving process. Crime anal-
ysis has been defined as “a set of systematic, analytical processes providing timely and
pertinent information to assist operational and administrative personnel.” Effective tailor-
made responses to problems cannot be developed unless people know what is causing the
problem. Complete analysis includes identifying the seriousness of the problem, knowing
all the individuals or groups involved and affected, listing all the causes of the problem,
and assessing current responses and their effectiveness.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 107
▼
Over time, several methods have been developed for analyzing crime and disorder, to
include the problem-analysis triangle, mapping and offense reports, and CFS analysis.
Problem-Analysis Triangle The problem-analysis triangle helps officers to visualize the problem and understand the relationship between the three elements of the triangle
(see Figure 4-1 ■). Generally, three elements must be present before a crime or harmful
behavior—a problem—can occur: an offender (someone who is motivated to commit
harmful behavior), a victim (a desirable and vulnerable target), and a location (although
the victim and offender are not always in the same place at the same time; location
is discussed later). If these three elements show up over and over again in patterns of
recurring problems, removing one of these elements can stop the pattern and prevent
future harm.
Mapping and Offense Reports Computerized crime mapping (discussed in greater detail in Chapter 14) also assists with crime analysis. Mapping combines geographic
information from global positioning satellites with crime statistics gathered by the
department’s computer-aided dispatching (CAD) system and demographic data provided
by private companies or the U.S. Census Bureau.
Police offense reports can also be useful, analyzed for suspect characteristics, modi
operandi (MOs), victim characteristics, and many other factors. Computer software can
now assist with profiling beats and demographics, finding patterns of problems, helping
plan daily officer activities, balancing beat and officer workloads, and identifying current
levels of performance. Such software can scan through hundreds of millions of pieces of
data for patterns, trends, or clusters in beats and neighborhoods while ranking and
re-ranking problems.
CFS Analysis With the advent of CAD systems, a more reliable source of data on CFS has become available. CAD systems, containing information on all types of CFS, add to
information provided by offense reports, yielding a more extensive account of what the
public reports to the police. The data captured by CAD systems can be sorted to reveal
hot spots of crime and disturbances—specific locations from which an unusual number of
calls to the police are made.
Repeat alarm calls are another example of how CAD data can be used to support patrol
officer problem solving. In fact, when an experiment began in Baltimore County, Maryland,
some commanders preferred that officers start with alarm projects. Data documenting
repeat alarm calls by address were readily available, and commanders anticipated that
solving alarm problems would be relatively simple and would bring considerable benefits
compared to the investment of time.
The accompanying Career Profile describes the duties and training of a crime analyst
under community policing and problem solving.
FIguRE 4-1 Problem-Analysis Triangle U.S. Department of Justice.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 108
▼
Response: Formulation of Tailor-Made Strategies
After a problem has been clearly defined and analyzed, the officer confronts the ulti-
mate challenge in problem-oriented policing: the search for the most effective way of
dealing with it. The response may be quite simple (such as reprogramming a public
telephone at a convenience store where drug dealers conduct their “business” so that it
only makes outgoing calls) or quite involved (e.g., screening and evicting some tenants
from a housing complex; cleaning up a neighborhood that is overcome with graffiti,
debris, and junk cars; taking legal action to create a curfew; or condemning and razing
Career Profile Name: Lisa Reagan
Position: Crime Analyst
City, State: Portland, Maine
College attended: University of Southern Maine (Bachelors) and American Military University (Masters)
Majors: BA, Psychology; Master’s degree, Homeland Security (currently enrolled)
How long have you occupied this position/assignment?
I’ve worked as a crime analyst for 8 years.
How would you briefly describe this position/assignment
In the budget-cut, post 9/11 era, and community polic- ing and problem solving, you must be willing to wear many different hats in order to accomplish your job and any other tasks which may appear. For example, I have to be extremely flexible and frequently switch from a crime analyst to being an intelligence analyst. One min- ute I’m functioning as a crime analyst by doing a motor vehicle burglary analysis, preparing and reporting the weekly CompStat (computer statistics) report or Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) data. At any given time, I may have to shift tasks completely, from conducting intelli- gence analyses (such as assisting detectives’ investiga- tions by completing toll call analysis, cell phone tower analysis) to information gathering in support of tactical operations. I also assist universities, hospitals, the depart- ment’s community service and patrol divisions, as well as citizens, by preparing crime statistics. I also work col- laboratively with agencies (local, state, and federal) by gathering and sharing information as it pertains to their open investigations.
What attracted you to this position/assignment?
With the skills I learned in the military as an intelligence analyst, this was a natural progression.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position/assignment?
It can be difficult to operate as a civilian crime analyst because you’re not a sworn officer and thus don’t have
firsthand knowledge of the work in the field. Therefore, listening to what officers need, and building bridges between yourself and them to meet their needs, is a major challenge. Being a good listener and observer, however, and using your inductive reasoning skills and uppermost professionalism in general will assist you in building that bridge. In addition, always ensure your work and recommendations can be backed up with data; there isn’t any room for error, and so corroborating your findings will give you more credibility. Be steadfast with your work and others in the agency will eventually sup- port your analytical suggestions as well. Also, if you don’t know the answer (or question) concerning something, make sure you get clarification from a supervisor. You must also ensure that you’re not violating anyone’s rights under the Code of Federal Regulations—specifically, 28 CFR, Part 23, which covers agencies that receive, store, analyze, and exchange or disseminate data regarding criminal activities, and basically governs how criminal intelligence information is to be entered, reviewed, and purged where cases are no longer active (see: http:// www.it.ojp.gov/documents/28cfr_part_23.pdf).
How would you describe a typical day for one in this
position/assignment?
A typical day consists of reading a lot of e-mails, attending community and department meetings, issuing requests for information, and attending to projects with approach- ing deadlines. Therefore, you need to have good time management skills. Try to manage your workload based on which mission is most critical at the given point in time.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
If you’re interested in being an analyst, get as much training as possible in statistics, Microsoft Excel, and Access. Pay attention in classes when your professors dis- cuss Uniform Crime Reporting and the aforementioned 28 CFR, Part 23. Take advantage of training. Education is key, so stay in school for as long as you can. Also, try to either intern or volunteer at a police department so that you can be exposed to the law enforcement environ- ment and its own culture. Most importantly, do not break the law. You might have a Ph.D., but would still have a hard time gaining employment if you bought your underage friends alcohol. Polygraph examinations and extensive background checks for applicants for analyst and officers’ positions are a common practice.
(Courtesy Lisa Reagan)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 109
▼
a drug house). (A number of examples of responses are provided in the case study pre-
sented in Exhibit 4-4 as well as elsewhere in the chapter.) This stage of the SARA
process focuses on developing and implementing responses to the problem.
Assessment: Evaluation of Overall Effectiveness
In the assessment stage, officers evaluate the effectiveness of their responses. Measures
such as the following may be used: numbers of arrests; levels of reported crime; response
times; clearance rates; citizen complaints; and various workload indicators, such as CFS
and the number of field interviews conducted.
A Broader Role for the Street Officer
A major feature of problem-oriented policing lies with the view of the line officer, who
is given much more discretion and decision-making ability and is trusted with a much
broader array of responsibilities. Problem-oriented policing values “thinking” officers,
urging that they take the initiative in trying to deal more effectively with problems in
the areas they serve. This concept effectively uses the potential of college-educated
officers, “who have been smothered in the atmosphere of traditional policing.”24 Using
patrol officers in this manner allows the agency to provide sufficient challenge for
those who are better educated, and those who remain patrol officers throughout their
entire career.25
Under problem-oriented policing, officers continue to handle calls, but they also do
much more. They combine the information gathered in their responses to incidents with
information obtained from other sources to get a clearer picture of the problem. They then
address the underlying conditions. If they are successful in ameliorating these conditions,
fewer incidents may occur, and those that do occur may be less serious; the incidents may
even cease. At the very least, information about the problem can help police design more
effective ways of responding to each incident.26
CompStat: utilizing Information Technology to Manage Crime
A relatively new crime management tool used in the problem-solving process is known as
CompStat (for “comparative or computer statistics”), which is designed for the collection
and feedback of information on crime and related quality-of-life issues. This strategy is
said to have resulted in “revolutionizing law enforcement management and practice,”27
and some have called it “perhaps the single most important organizational/administrative
innovation in policing during the latter half of the 20th century.”28
Since the CompStat process was introduced by the New York City Police
Department in 1994, it has been widely adopted: a national survey found that 58 percent
of large agencies (those with hundred or more sworn officers) had either adopted or
were planning to implement a CompStat-like program.29 The key elements of CompStat
are as follows:
• Specific objectives
• Accurate and timely intelligence
• Effective tactics
• Rapid deployment of personnel and resources
• Relentless follow-up and assessment30
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 110
▼
CompStat pushes all precincts to generate weekly or monthly crime activity reports.
Crime data are readily available, offering up-to-date information that is then compared at
citywide, patrol, and precinct levels.
Under CompStat, police begin proactively thinking about ways to deal with crime in
terms of suppression, intervention, and prevention. Commanders must explain what tactics
they have employed to address crime patterns, what resources they have and need, and
with whom they have collaborated. Brainstorming problem-solving sessions ensue about
proactively responding to the crime problems, and suggestions for strategies are made at
subsequent meetings, with relentless follow-up by top brass to further ensure accountabil-
ity. Many scholars and practitioners believe that CompStat has played a prominent role in
the significant crime reductions seen across the nation.
A Career Profile describes the work of a patrol officer under the community policing
and problem-solving philosophy.
▶ Crime Prevention
An important corollary of community policing and problem-oriented policing is crime
prevention. It is far preferable and much less expensive to prevent a crime from occurring
in the first place, as opposed to trying to solve the offense and arrest, prosecute, and pos-
sibly incarcerate the offender. A focus on crime prevention shifts a police organization’s
purpose. Once the question becomes “How can we prevent the next crisis?” all kinds of
approaches become possible. At its heart, community policing and problem solving is
about preventing crime. Next we briefly discuss two important aspects of crime
prevention—crime prevention through environmental design and repeat victimization—
and briefly mention a drug-prevention program.
▲ At CompStat meetings, police officials discuss crime patterns in their assigned area(s) and
brainstorm about tactics and resources that might be used to address them. (Courtesy Washoe County
Sheriff ’s Office.)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 111
▼
Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design
Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) is defined as the “proper design
and effective use of the environment that can lead to a reduction in the fear and incidence
of crime, and an improvement in the quality of life.”31 At its core are three principles that
support problem-solving approaches to crime:
1. Natural access control. Employ elements such as doors, shrubs, fences, and gates to
deny access to a crime target and to create a perception among offenders that the
target presents risk.
2. Natural surveillance. Place windows, lighting, and landscaping properly to
increase the ability to observe intruders as well as regular users, allowing observ-
ers to challenge inappropriate behavior or to report it to the police or to the prop-
erty owner.
3. Territorial reinforcement. Use elements such as sidewalks, landscaping, and porches
to distinguish between public and private areas and to help users exhibit signs of
ownership that send hands-off messages to would-be offenders.32
Career Profile Name: Will Cameron
Position: Senior Patrol Officer, Community Action Policing Team (CAP Team)
City, State: Anchorage, Alaska
College Attended: University Of Wyoming
Major: BA—Criminal Justice
How long have you occupied
this position/assignment?
I’ve been with the Anchorage Police Department for 7.5 years, and assigned to the CAP Team for the last four years.
How would you briefly describe the position/
assignment?
My role as a CAP Team officer, first and foremost, is to uphold state and local laws, while also addressing what the general community needs and desires and working in conjunction with several community groups/coun- cils/individuals to solve long-term/short-term problems.
What attracted you to this position?
A strong desire to make my community a better place for me as well as my fellow neighbors. I felt that com- munity policing was the best means of getting involved with these issues and topics as well as getting to know local community leaders.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position?
An officer in a community policing unit needs to be will- ing to listen to concerns within the community—from
both individuals as well as community at-large. The officer needs to think creatively for solving different i ssues as well as seeing projects through to completion. Pro- ficient communication with community members and leaders is very important. The officer must also be able to use predictive policing as well as problem-oriented policing theories to solve crime and/or a problem before a major problem arises.
How would you describe a typical day for one in this
position?
It can include going from working in plainclothes in a project area to walking a beat in a high-crime area to attending a community council meeting and listening to the concerns of residents within our community. My unit also runs surveillance on problem areas/businesses via plainclothes details to determine a true problem exists in a given area, using the SARA (scanning, anal- ysis, response, and assessment) process. During this process, we attempt to brainstorm with members of the community for developing proper responses and solu- tions to the neighborhood problems.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
First and foremost, attain your university degree. Your degree will benefit you within the police recruitment pro- cess, as well in your future promotional opportunities. Hav- ing a degree also demonstrates that you have the ability begin and complete a problem-solving project. During your academic life, try to gain life experience through par- ticipating in research studies, internships, travel, and so on. Joining a reserve program or Explorer post can also add to your life experience. Do ride-alongs with your local police or sheriff’s department to better understand the job and the culture of the organization. Finally, during the appli- cation and testing process, be honest about everything.
(Courtesy Will Cameron)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 112
▼
Five types of information are needed for CPTED planning:
1. Crime-analysis information. Crime mapping, police crime data, incident reports, and
victim and offender statistics are all included.
2. Demographics. Statistics about residents, such as age, race, gender, income, and
income sources, are used.
3. Land use information. Zoning information (such as residential, commercial,
industrial, school, and park zones) and occupancy data for each zone are analyzed.
4. Observations. Information includes observations of parking procedures, maintenance,
and residents’ reactions to crime.
5. Resident information. Resident crime surveys and interviews with police and security
officers are assessed.
Exhibit 4-3 ■ provides several examples of CPTED in action.
Repeat Victimization
U.S. society—including the police—gives far greater attention to criminal offenders than
to crime victims. Just as at the zoo, where more spectators seem to gather around the lions
exhibit 4-3
Under the CPTED approach to problem solving, the
overarching question that is asked is this: “What is it
about this location that places people at risk or that
results in opportunities for crime?” In other words,
why here? As few examples will illustrate this point:
case #1: Custodial workers routinely find evidence
of smoking, drinking, and vandalism in a high
school lavatory.
Why here? The lavatory is in an isolated area of the
building, adjacent to a ticket booth and concession stand
which are active only during athletic events. The school’s
open lunch policy allows students to eat anywhere on
campus, while monitors are assigned only to the cafeteria.
cPteD response: A lock is installed on the lavatory
door, and it remains locked unless there is an athletic
event. The open lunch policy has been revised: students
are still allowed to leave the cafeteria but must eat in
designated areas, and a faculty member is charged with
patrolling these areas during lunch periods.
case #2: The back wall of a building in an office cen-
ter is repeatedly tagged with graffiti.
Why here? The area is out of the view of passers-by: a
rear corner location where two buildings come together at
the end of a poorly lit service lane. Visibility is further
reduced by hedges at the site’s perimeter. Businesses in
the office center are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the
week; however, the tagged building is next to a roller skat-
ing rink where activity peaks at night and on weekends.
cPteD response: Hedges are trimmed and wall-mounted
light fixtures installed along the service lane, with motion
detection lighting in the problem area. The skating rink
agrees to change to a “no readmission” policy to keep skat-
ers inside the building and away from the office property.
case #3: ATM patrons at a bank are being robbed
after dark.
Why here? The bank is situated along a commercial
strip in a neighborhood with vacant properties and
abandoned businesses. The ATM is in the front corner
of the bank building, and the drive-through teller win-
dows are at the side of the building, around the corner
from the ATM. Robbers hide in the darkened drive-
through teller area and attack unsuspecting ATM users
after they complete a transaction.
cPteD response: The bank installs a fence at the cor-
ner of the building, creating a barrier between the ATM
and the drive-through teller area.33
Source: From Using Crime Prevention Through Environmental
Design in Problem Solving.
CPTED AT WORK: SOME EXAMPLES
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 113
▼
and tigers than around wildebeests and antelope, more attention is focused on the predators
than on their prey. However, an evolving body of research suggests that police officers
would benefit from this developing body of knowledge, which can play a major role in
crime prevention and analysis.
The premise underlying repeat victimization is that if the police want to know where a
crime will occur next, they should look at where it happened last. Repeat victimization is
not new; police officers have always been aware that the same people and places are vic-
timized again and again. What is new, however, are attempts abroad to incorporate RV
knowledge into formal crime-prevention efforts.
One in three burglaries reported in the United States is a repeat burglary of a house-
hold. Furthermore, a 48 percent revictimization rate was found for sexual incidents (includ-
ing grabbing, touching, and assault), 43 percent for assaults and threats, and 23 percent for
vehicle vandalism.34 A study of white-collar crime indicated that the same people are vic-
tims of fraud and embezzlement time and time again and that banks that have been robbed
also have high rates of repeat victimization.35
Why would a burglar return to burgle the same household again? One could argue that,
for several reasons, it would be unwise for the burglar not to return: Temporary repairs to a
burgled home will make a subsequent burglary easier, the burglar is familiar with the phys-
ical layout and surroundings of the property, the burglar knows what items of value were
left behind at the prior burglary, and the burglar also knows that items that were taken at an
earlier burglary are likely to have been replaced through insurance policies.
Repeat victimization is arguably the best single predictor routinely available to the
police in the absence of specific intelligence information. A small number of victims
accounts for a disproportionate number of victimizations.36
▶ Community Policing and Problem Solving at Work
Following is an excellent case study of community policing and problem-solving efforts
using the SARA model in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Note that, instead of merely showing up at a
▲ Once disorder begins to descend on a location, crime soon follows – and the police will become
involved. (Courtesy 1000 Words/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 114
▼
crime scene, taking offense reports, and leaving the scene (as was typically the case during
the professional era of policing), the officers employed a variety of responses to combat the
crime and disorder. See Exhibit 4-4 ■.
exhibit 4-4
Scanning North Tulsa experienced consistently
higher crime rates than the rest of the city. Nearly
half of the violent crimes that were reported
occurred in this section of the city—a depressed
low-income area lacking adequate services. In an
attempt to determine the nature of the crime prob-
lem in North Tulsa, a special management team of
police officials decided to concentrate on five
public-housing complexes where high crime rates
and blatant street dealing existed.
Analysis Patrol officers discovered that 86 percent
of the occupants lived in households headed by
single females. Officers in the target area also
observed large groups of school-age youth in the
housing complexes selling drugs during school
hours. A comparison of the dropout and suspen-
sion rates in North Tulsa schools with those in
other areas of the city determined that a high
school in this sector, serving most of the high
school–age youth in the five complexes, had the
highest suspension (4.4 percent) and dropout
(10 percent) rates of any school in the city.
Furthermore, the sector had the highest number of
pregnant teenagers in the school system, while
few of the area’s juveniles had legitimate jobs;
many were attracted to drug dealing by the
easy money.
Two-officer foot teams were assigned to the
complexes on eight-hour tours. The teams estab-
lished a rapport with residents and assured them
that police were present to ensure their safety. Soon
officers verified juvenile involvement in drug traf-
ficking, so the goal was to provide programs to
deter youth from selling or using drugs.
Response Officers soon realized that the youth
needed programs that would improve their self-
esteem, teach them values, and impart decision-
making skills. Because 86 percent of the boys
came from homes without fathers, a Boy Scout
troop was initiated in the complex, to provide
positive role models for them. In addition, they
started a group that worked to raise money for
needy residents and police-sponsored youth
activities. Officers in another housing complex
organized a group called the Young Ladies
Awareness Group, which hosted guest speakers,
taught different job-related skills, instructed
young women in how to dress and comport
themselves for job interviews. The women were
also instructed in résumé writing, makeup, hair
care, and personal hygiene. An officer also
worked with a government program to provide
sessions on setting goals and building self-
esteem. Youths were assisted with applying for
birth certificates in driver’s education training.
Officers also emphasized the value of an educa-
tion and persuaded youth in their complex to
return to school.
Tulsa’s mayor and chief of police also met with
the youth, as did psychologists, teachers, ministers,
and celebrities. Guests tried to convey the value of
productive and drug-free lives, among other ethical
values. To combat dropout and suspension prob-
lems, a program called Adopt a School had police
officers patrol the schools during classes, not
to make arrests but rather to establish rapport with
the students.
Assessment The police noted a decline in street
sales of illegal drugs in the five target complexes.
Youth reacted positively to the officers’ efforts to
help them, and the programs seemed to deter
them from drug involvement. Foot patrol officers
met with the Task Force for Drug Free Public
Housing to inform the different city, county, and
statewide officials of the needs of youth in public
housing. Other social service agencies began
working with the police department, establishing
satellite offices on the north side of the city,
scheduling programs, and requesting police sup-
port in their efforts.
AMELIORATING JUVENILE PROBLEMS IN TULSA37
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 115
▼
▶ An Emerging Paradigm: Smart Policing
Smart Policing is another emerging paradigm in American policing. It emphasizes the use
of data and analytics as well as improved crime analysis, performance measurement, and
evaluation research. Next is a brief discussion of this strategy’s origin and its application
in ten selected cities.
Origins
Perhaps the most important element of SPI is the research partnership. Significantly, the
Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) emphasized police and criminal justice scholar
partnerships for these efforts, working together to test solutions that were informed by
crime science theories and assessed with sound evaluation methods. The need for a
focus on developing a stronger base of evidence in policing, and for more sophisticated
research designs in evaluations of police strategies, was reinforced early in the
development of SPI.
To illustrate problem-oriented policing and the SARA
process in action, it would be helpful for you to walk
through a case study and see how a problem might
be addressed.
For the following problem, after reading the facts and
scanning and analyzing it, consider how you might go
about responding to it.
In an eastern city of 35,000, there have been a
number of robberies of food delivery drivers, at a
rate of about one per month. Knowing their
drivers are very fearful and given their financial
losses, several food delivery businesses refuse
deliveries to the mostly low-income neighbor-
hood where many of the robberies are taking
place. As a result, many elderly residents of this
neighborhood are now complaining about the
lack of delivery service and petition the city to
reverse the policy.
During scanning, you might consider the following:
1. Who were the victims (age, race, gender) and their
employer? What was the nature of the attacks?
2. When, how, and where were the victims attacked?
Are weapons used by offenders?
3. Have any food delivery people been attacked more
than once? Are delivery people from certain restau-
rants being attacked more often than others?
4. Do they have any suggestions on ways to make their
job safer? Are they issued any security devices or
provided with safety training?
5. Are there any environmental patterns to the robberies
(lighting, shrubbery, isolated or blind areas)?
6. Do offenders place orders to lure delivery people to
them or randomly meet their victims?
7. How much money is taken during a typical incident?
Is anything else being stolen?
During analysis, assume that the following informa-
tion is uncovered:
• Large outdoor parties, mostly attended by youth in their late teens, are held each weekend night in sev-
eral common areas near residential units.
• The party areas are in the vicinity of the robberies. • Alcohol is served at the parties, and there are indica-
tions of underage drinking at the parties.
• A number of the robberies were committed by teen- agers who appeared to have been drinking, and several
drivers were passing a group of teenage partiers on
foot before they were robbed.
• In all of the robberies, between $40 and $60 was stolen.
Given this information, what kinds of tailored
responses might be developed? Possible responses are
provided in the endnotes.38
YOu be the PrObLem sOLver: the case
Of the Late-night DeLiverY rObberies
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 116
▼
How It Works: An Array of Strategies and Tactics
Since BJA made its first ten SPI awards to police agencies in 2009, to date, grants have been
awarded to thirty-three local law enforcement agencies conducting thirty-six SPI projects.
Because the initial SPI did not prescribe any particular policing model or approach,
but stressed the importance of in-depth problem analysis and definition to guide their
later efforts, an impressive array of strategies and tactics were developed and imple-
mented by the local SPI sites. For example, while some sites focused primarily on hot
spot and place-based policing strategies, others focused primarily on offender-based
approaches (e.g., focused deterrence through identification of prolific offenders and stra-
tegic application of suppression and social support strategies). Some first identified hot
spots and then pinpointed the prolific offenders within them. Some sites begin with a
distinct problem-oriented policing approach (e.g., application of the SARA [scanning,
analysis, response, assessment] problem-solving model), and others adopt a distinctly
community-oriented policing approach (e.g., strong emphasis on community and victim
engagement); again, some sites combine these two approaches. Several sites have imple-
mented initiatives with a strong predictive-analytic approach, others have incorporated
elements of intelligence-led policing or have implemented strategies to move their entire
agency toward an intelligence-led policing model, others have adopted technological
approaches to improving police operations (e.g., strategic use of surveillance cameras,
▲ Abandoned vehicles, debris, graffiti, and general neigh-
borhood disorder can engender residents’ fear and reduce
quality of life. Smart Policing projects attempt to address
neighborhood crime and disorder. (Courtesy Photographer’s
Choice RF/Getty Images.)
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 117
▼
enhanced crime analysis capabilities, enhancements to “real-time crime centers,” or
enhanced predictive analytic capabilities).
The research results from each of these initiatives describe significant crime decreases
in the targeted areas and, after accounting for crime levels in the control or comparison
areas, for the targeted offenses. In addition to the instrumental (crime reduction) impacts
noted earlier, several local SPI sites report positive organizational impacts as a result of
their endeavors. In some instances, Smart Policing concepts and materials have been
incorporated into police academy training and departmental (e.g., roll call) training. Other
sites have reported the incorporation of SPI in police officer performance assessment, and
the integration of SPI into CompStat meetings.
Findings thus far also suggest that: Smart Policing programs can significantly reduce
violent crime (Philadelphia); creative use of crime analytics and crime analysis resources,
coupled with targeted problem-solving approaches, can also reduce violent crime in his-
torically violent police districts (Los Angeles); problem-solving teams can prevent violence
in stubborn chronic hot spots (Boston); and reduce service calls and property crime at trou-
bled high-traffic convenience stores (Glendale, Arizona). Other SPI projects now underway
seek to examine patrol officer body-worn camera testing (Phoenix, Arizona), explore the
links between traffic violations/vehicle crashes and other criminal activity (Shawnee,
Kansas, and York, Maine) and video camera surveillance of high-density, order-mainte-
nance areas (Pullman, Washington), and test intelligence-led policing (Columbia, South
Carolina) and predictive policing (in Cambridge, Massachusetts and Indio, California).39
Although relatively new, progress against crime fighting under SPI is impressive.
Police operations are much better informed when research partners are used in new and
innovative ways, and officers engage in problem analysis, intelligence, and comprehensive
responses. SPI will help to inform other academics who are engaged in police research,
perhaps also changing the ways in which police research is carried out. Meanwhile, the
police can become much more knowledgeable about research methodologies, cause-and-
effect, and contribute significantly to future research projects that attempt to attack
neighborhood crime and disorder.40
Summary This chapter examined the basic principles and strategies of the current community
era—the era in which policing now resides. It examined community policing and prob-
lem solving, which is the best strategy for addressing neighborhood crime and disorder
now and in the future. Blending the two concepts of community policing and problem-
oriented policing results in a better, more comprehensive, and long-term approach to
providing quality police service, combining the emphasis on forming a police–
community partnership to fight crime with the use of the SARA problem-solving
process. It was shown that two very important components of this philosophy are the
expanded role of the street officer and the focus on crime analysis.
The associated strategy of crime prevention, including crime prevention through
environmental design (CPTED) and repeat victimization, is equally important. It is
clear that the field of crime prevention has “matured” from its earlier forms, originally
involving strategic placement of rocks by early cave dwellers and more recently hav-
ing to do primarily with target hardening one’s home with better locks. This chapter
has shown the various elements of CPTED and repeat victimization as well as the
results of research efforts concerning what good can occur when measures are taken to
prevent crimes.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 118
▼
Review Questions
1. What is the historical and current status of police–
community relations (particularly as concerns
minorities), and what are some underlying reasons
for that situation?
2. How would you define community policing, and what
are some of the major ways this concept differs from
traditional policing?
3. How would you describe problem-oriented policing,
and what are the four parts of the SARA problem-
solving process?
4. What is CompStat? How does it function, and why is
it now sweeping the nation’s police agencies as a
means toward crime suppression?
5. What is meant by crime prevention, and how does it
relate to community policing and problem solving?
6. What does the Tulsa case study demonstrate in terms
of how community policing and problem solving
functions and what this strategy accomplished with
that city’s juvenile problems?
7. What is Smart Policing? How did it originate, and
what has been learned from the test sites and where
has it been tested?
learn by Doing
1. Assume that for the past six months, a small neigh-
borhood market in the western part of the city has
generated dozens of calls for service about drug deal-
ing because of several drug dealers and users fre-
quenting the area. Part I (“Index”) crimes are
beginning to increase in the area as well. A nearby
drug house contributes heavily to the problem, and a
T-shaped alley behind the store provides easy ingress
and egress for buyers, both on foot and in vehicles.
The lighting is poor, and pay telephones in front of the
store are constantly in use by traffickers. You are
assigned to initiate a problem-oriented policing strat-
egy at this location that will bring long-term results.
What kinds of information would you collect about
the area and the drug problem? What kinds of
responses might be considered? What types of assess-
ment would you perform?
2. Using media reports or local crime data (oftentimes
available from your local police agency Web site),
identify a particularly crime-ridden neighborhood,
beat, or area of your jurisdiction. Then, using tech-
niques described in this chapter, including the
problem-analysis triangle and SARA, explain what
your approach would be to bringing a sense of
order to that area through the use of a problem-
solving exercise.
3. Your chief executive has assigned you, as head of the
agency’s research, planning, and analysis unit, the
task of developing a comprehensive report containing
recommendations for establishing a CompStat pro-
gram. Explain what your report would contain.
4. Develop a one-hour course on the fundamentals of
“Crime Prevention” for your area police academy (to
include CPTED and repeat victimization).
Key Terms
community policing
CompStat
crime prevention through
environmental design (CPTED)
police–community relations
problem-analysis triangle
problem-oriented policing
racial profiling (DWBB)
repeat victimization
SARA (for scanning, analysis,
response, assessment)
Smart Policing
The overarching theme is that the police realize that they alone cannot prevent or address crime and disorder, and
that a partnership with the community is essential if the physical and social problems that plague communities are to
be reduced or eliminated.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 119
▼
Notes
1. President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing,
2015, Interim Report of the President’s Task Force
on 21st Century Policing, Office of Community Ori-
ented Policing Services, March 4, 2015, p. 1, http://
www.cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/taskforce/Interim_TF_
Report.pdf.
2. Ibid.
3. Ibid., p. 10.
4. Michael Pearson, Steve Almasy and Ben Brumfield,
“Freddie Gray Death Ruled Homicide; Officers
Charged,” CNN, May 1, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/
2015/05/01/us/freddie-gray-baltimore-death/.
5. See Rick Harmon, “Timeline: The Selma-to-Mont-
gomery Marches,” USA Today, March 6, 2015, http://
www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/03/05/
black-history-bloody-sunday-timeline/24463923/.
6. National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders,
Report Summary, http://www.eisenhowerfoundation.
org/docs/kerner.pdf.
7. James Baldwin, Nobody Knows My Name: More
Notes of a Native Son (New York, Dial Press, 1962),
p. 98.
8. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Pro-
grams, “Police Stop White, Black, and Hispanic
Drivers at Similar Rates According to Department of
Justice Report,” www.ojp.usdoj.gov/newsroom/
pressreleases/2007/BJS07020.htm.
9. CBS News, “Families of Michael Brown, Eric
Garner, Tamir Rice to March to Capitol,” December
13, 2014, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/families-
of-michael-brown-eric-garner-tamir-rice-to-march-
to-capitol/.
10. Catherine Shoichet and Jethro Mullen, “Prosecutor:
No charges for officer in Tony Robinson case,” CNN,
May 12, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/12/us/
tony-robinson-madison-killing-investigation/.
11. Greg Botelho and Sonia Moghe, “North Charleston
reaches $6.5 million settlement with family of Walter
Scott,” CNN, October 9, 2015, http://www.cnn.
com/2015/10/08/us/walter-scott-north-charleston-
settlement/index.html.
12. Alan ScherZagier, “Uneasy Calm in Ferguson After
Shooting of Police Officers,” Associated Press,
March 13, 2015, http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/
us/calm-prevails-in-ferguson-after-shooting-of-
police-officers/ar-AA9G992.
13. See, for example, Tierney Sneed, “Ferguson Report
Prompts Resignations, Court Takeover,” U.S. News,
March 11, 2015, http://www.usnews.com/news/
articles/2015/03/11/doj-ferguson-report-prompts-
resignations-court-takeover.
14. Charles Rabin, “Cop Killings, Mass Shootings Lead to
More Weapons, New Tactics for Cops,” Miami Herald,
July 18, 2016, http://www.miamiherald.com/news/
local/crime/article89892982.html#storylink=cpy.
15. Tom Jackman and Peter Hermann, “Police Nation-
wide Order Officers to Ride in Pairs After Dallas
Police Ambush,” The Washington Post, July 8, 2016,
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-
safety/dc-police-boost-patrols-after-snipers-in-dal-
las-kill-five-officers-wound-others/2016/07/08/959
5063a-4508-11e6-88d0-6adee48be8bc_story.html.
16. Brad Heath, “Racial Gap in U.S. Arrest Rates: ‘Stag-
gering Disparity’,” USA Today, November 19, 2014,
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/
11/18/ferguson-black-arrest-rates/19043207/.
17. President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing,
published by U.S. Department of Justice, 2015.
18. “The Lessons of Ferguson,” The Economist, August 23,
2014, http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/
21613261-there-no-excuse-rioting-smarter-policing-
would-make-it-less-likely-lessons.
19. The Leadership Conference, Lessons from Ferguson,
Missouri—The Need for Sensible Law Enforcement
Reform (n.d.), http://www.civilrights.org/publications/
reports/civil-rights-act-report-december-2014/
lessons-from-ferguson.html.
20. Quoted in “Do Cops Need College?” Michigan State
University Today, February 15, 2015, http://msutoday.
msu.edu/news/2015/do-cops-need-college/.
21. Kevin Johnson, “Panel to Consider Tracking of Civil-
ians Killed by Police,” USA Today, December 12,
2014, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/
2014/12/11/tracking-cop-deaths/20104193/.
22. Adapted from Jenny Kane, “Shootings Prompt
Friendly House Visits from Police,” Reno Gazette
Journal, January 1, 2016, pp. 1A, 6A.
23. Seth Stoughton, quoted in Tim Suttle, “Wise Words
from an Ex-Cop: The Police Guardian v. The Police
Warrior,” Paperback Theology, June 9, 2015, http://
w w w. p a t h e o s . c o m / b l o g s / p a p e r b a c k t h e o l o g y /
2015/06/wise-words-from-an-ex-cop-the-police-
guardian-v-the-police-warrior.html; see also Val Van
Brocklin, “Warriors vs. Guardians: A seismic shift in
policing or just semantics?” PoliceOne, July 1, 2015,
http://www.policeone.com/leadership/articles/
8633970-Warriors-vs-Guardians-A-seismic-shift-in-
policing-or-just-semantics/.
CHAPTER 4 Community Policing 120
▼
24. Herman Goldstein, “Toward Community-Oriented
Policing,” Crime and Delinquency 33 (1987): 6–30.
25. Ibid., p. 21.
26. Ibid.
27. Daniel DeLorenzi, Jon M. Shane, and Karen L.
Amendola, “The CompStat Process: Managing Per-
formance on the Pathway to Leadership,” The Police
Chief 73 (September 2006), http://www.policechief-
magazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=
display&article_id=998&issue_id=92006.
28. Ibid.
29. Ibid.
30. Heath B. Grant and Karen J. Terry, Law Enforcement
in the 21st Century (Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2005),
pp. 329–330.
31. C. R. Jeffrey, Crime Prevention Through Environ-
mental Design (Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1971),
p. 117.
32. National Crime Prevention Council, Designing Safer
Communities: A Crime Prevention Through Environ-
mental Design Handbook (Washington, D.C.:
Author, 1997), pp. 7–8.
33. Adapted from Diane Zahm, Using Crime Prevention
Through Environmental Design in Problem Solving
(Washington, D.C.: Center for Problem Oriented
Policing, 2007), pp. 1–3.
34. G. Farrell and W. Sousa, “Repeat Victimization in the
United States and Ten Other Industrialized Countries,”
paper presented at the National Conference on Pre-
venting Crime, Washington, D.C., October 13, 1997.
35. Ibid.
36. G. Farrell, “Preventing Repeat Victimization,” in Build-
ing a Safer Society, eds. M. Tonry and D. P. Farrington
(Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1995),
pp. 469–534.
37. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assis-
tance, Problem-Oriented Drug Enforcement: A
Community-Based Approach for Effective Policing
(Washington, D.C.: Police Executive Research
Forum, October 1993), pp. 27–28.
38. This scenario is adapted from Problem-Solving Tips:
A Guide to Reducing Crime and Disorder Through
Problem-Solving Partnerships, 2nd ed. (Washington,
D.C.: Office of Community Oriented Policing
Services, July 2011). At minimum, consider the fol-
lowing responses: the two most victimized stores
might be asked to stop delivery at midnight and
require customers to pick up their take-out between
midnight and 2 a.m.; the stores could ask customers
what bill denomination will be used to pay for the
food, so that delivery people could carry the mini-
mum amount of change required (exact change
would be requested, but not required); the stores
being robbed most often could agree to use an
enhanced Caller ID system to cross-check names
with telephone numbers and ensure that the custom-
er’s name matches the number, name, and address of
the caller displayed; the stores might refuse to deliver
an order if it means walking by a large crowd that is
loitering in the area. A common response might be to
increase patrol car or foot patrols in the problem area
on weekend nights between the hours of 10 p.m. and
2 a.m. However, this response would be relatively
costly to the police department. Another ordinary
response would be to increase lighting in the prob-
lem area; however, unless the robberies have
occurred in areas that are dimly lit, this strategy
probably would have little effect on the fast food rob-
bery problem.
39. Information concerning the origins and initial grant
funded test sites for SPI was obtained from the fol-
lowing sources: James R. Coldren Jr., Alissa Huntoon,
and Michael Medaris, “Introducing Smart Policing:
Foundations, Principles, and Practice,” Police Quar-
terly 16(3) (September 2014): 275–286; and Nola M.
Joyce, Charles H. Ramsey, and James K. Stewart,
“Commentary on Smart Policing,” Police Quarterly
16(3) (September 2014): 358–368. This special issue
of Police Quarterly contains a number of other, site-
specific articles that discuss SPI.
40. For another successful Smart Policing initiatives, see
U. S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assis-
tance, Los Angeles, California Smart Policing Initia-
tive Reducing Gun-Related Violence through
Operation LASER, October 2012, p. 2, http://
www.smartpolicinginitiative.com/sites/all/files/
spotlights/LA%20Site%20Spotlight%20FINAL%
202012.pdf.
121
▼
5 Criminal Investigation The Science of Sleuthing
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Distinguish between the fields of forensic science and criminalistics, and explain what types of information physical evidence can provide
❷ Explain the development of criminalistics including the contributions of prominent individuals to the field
❸ Describe the contributions of forensic science to the criminal justice system during investigations, arrests, and case preparation
❹ Describe the roles of detectives, undercover officers, medical examiners, and coroners and potential challenges associated with the roles
(Courtesy Mike Ledray/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 122
▼
❺ Explain the uses and legal/policy issues surrounding polygraphs, DNA analysis, criminal profiling, and psycholinguistics
❻ Discuss developing areas in forensic science and investigation
❼ Analyze the “CSI” effect
❽ Summarize the importance of informants, interviews, and interrogations in the investigative process
Introduction
The challenges involved with investigating crimes may well be characterized by a quote from Ludwig
Wittgenstein: “How hard I find it to see what is right in front of my eyes!” Investigating crimes has
indeed become a complicated art as well as a science, as will be seen in this chapter.
The art of sleuthing has long fascinated the American public. People appear to be completely enthralled
with anything involving forensics and criminal psychoses (e.g., CSI, Dexter, Criminal Minds), as well as
the exploits of detectives as they pursue serial killers (e.g., Silence of the Lambs, Seven). Nor is this pub-
lic interest in sleuthing a recent phenomenon: For decades, Americans have feasted on the exploits of
dozens of fictional masterminds and detectives in books and movies, such as Arthur Conan Doyle’s
Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, and Clint Eastwood’s Detective
“Dirty Harry” Callahan, to name a few.
In reality, investigative work is largely misunderstood, often boring, and overrated; it results in arrests only a
fraction of the time; and it relies strongly on the assistance of witnesses and even some luck. Nonetheless,
the related fields of forensic science and criminalistics are the most rapidly developing areas of policing—and
probably in all of criminal justice. This is an exciting time to be in the investigative or forensic disciplines.
This chapter begins by defining forensic science and criminalistics and by looking at their origins; including
a brief discussion of crime scenes. Then we review the evolution of criminal investigation, emphasizing the
identification of people and firearms. Next we analyze the application of forensic science within the larger
context of the criminal justice system, followed by a review of the qualities that detectives and undercover offi-
cers should have, and the role of the medical examiner. We then briefly touch on the use of polygraph testing.
Next, we cover the status of DNA analysis. Here we consider some new policy and legal developments—
(i.e., whether DNA testing should be employed for property crimes as well as for convicted offenders);
also in this section, we consider a new testing approach of “familial DNA.” We then look at the contribu-
tions to investigations made by criminal profiling and psycholinguistics, and examine several developing
areas in the field: using social networking sites, the handling of cold cases, and the use of dogs in crimi-
nal investigations. Finally, we consider whether or not the ubiquitous use of DNA and other forensic tools
in television and movie portrayals, has created an unrealistic expectation of such evidence in the eyes of
the jury—the so-called “CSI Effect”. After a discussion of three investigative techniques—(1) use of infor-
mants, (2) interviewing, and (3) interrogating—the chapter concludes with a summary, key terms, review
questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportunities for you to learn by doing.
▶ Scope of Forensic Science and Criminalistics
Definitions of Terms
The terms forensic science and criminalistics are often used interchangeably. Forensic sci-
ence is the broader term, and is that part of science used to answer legal questions. It is the
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 123
▼
Career Profile Name: Renee Romero
Position: Director, Washoe County Sheriff’s Office-Forensic Science Division (FSD)
City, State: Reno, NV
College attended: Michigan State University (MSU) and University of Nevada, Reno
Academic Major: Bachelor degree-MSU-chemistry and
forensic science; Master’s degree-UNR-cell and molecular biology
How long have you occupied this position/assignment?
I have been at the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Foren- sic Science Division for 23 years. I started as a student intern in 1988, then moved on to become a criminalist, supervising criminalist, and I have been the director of the division for the past 5 years.
How would you briefly describe this
position/assignment?
As director of the FSD, I manage people, budgets, and human resources issues much like a director of any organization. I also constantly work to meet or exceed international forensic accreditation requirements. A criminalist (forensic scientist) is responsible for perform- ing casework in a specific forensic discipline such as DNA, toxicology, firearms, breath alcohol, or controlled substances. Upon completion of casework, a report is issued to a law enforcement agency. The criminalist may then be called upon to testify about their findings during a legal proceeding.
What attracted you to this post/assignment?
I was initially attracted to forensic science at Michigan State University while I was working on a chemistry degree. While at MSU, I completed the forensic sci- ence program. At that time, there weren’t any TV shows
such as CSI. There was an older TV show, Quincy, that portrayed a medical examiner but forensics was not nearly as popular or glamorized as it is today. I liked science, and forensics science appeared to me to be a very meaningful way to apply science to criminal investigations.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position/assignment?
Attention to detail is probably the biggest quality a forensic scientist can have. An aptitude for science, organizational skills, and public speaking abilities are necessary as well. One needs to be able to communi- cate forensic results effectively to a jury.
How would you describe a typical day for someone in
this position/assignment?
A forensic scientist’s typical day can range from per- forming laboratory examinations, interpreting data, performing quality assurance or validations, or testifying in court. As a Director, a typical day involves reviewing forensic case reports, emphasizing quality assurance expectations, and meeting with various groups to fur- ther the overall forensic science division goals.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
If you are interested in criminalistics, obtain a minimum of a Bachelor’s degree in a scientific discipline. If you are interested in DNA you should obtain a Master’s degree.CSI TV shows are pretty far from reality. Talk to someone who works in the field, to find out if this is something you are really interested in. The job of a crime scene investigator is very different from a crimi- nalist. On TV they are one and the same. A crime scene investigator lives a life of being on call at all hours of the day and night to go out to scenes in a variety of conditions. A criminalist spends their days in a labo- ratory environment. Neither one of them interviews suspects or victims; that is the job of a law enforce- ment detective or investigator. Be prepared to work on emotionally charged casework with an unbiased approach.
(Courtesy Romero, Renee.)
examination, evaluation, and explanation of physical evidence in law. Forensic science
encompasses pathology, toxicology, physical anthropology, odontology (the study of tooth
anatomy and development and diseases of the teeth and related structures), psychiatry,
questioned documents, ballistics, tool work comparison, and serology (the study of reac-
tions and properties of serums), in addition to other fields.1 Criminalistics is one branch of
forensic science; it deals with the study of physical evidence related to crime. From such a
study, a crime may be reconstructed.
Criminalistics is interdisciplinary, drawing on mathematics, physics, chemistry,
biology, anthropology, and many other scientific fields.2 The Career Profile on this page
describes the work and preparation for one who works in a forensic laboratory.
Basically, the analysis of physical evidence is concerned with identifying traces of
evidence, reconstructing criminal acts, and establishing a common origin of samples
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 124
▼
of evidence. Peter DeForest and colleagues described the types of information that physi-
cal evidence can provide3:
• Information on the corpus delicti (body of the crime). Physical evidence, such as tool marks, a broken door or window, a ransacked home, missing valuables in a burglary, a victim’s
blood, a weapon, or clothing torn in an assault, shows that a crime was committed.
• Information on the modus operandi (method of operation). Physical evidence points to the means used by the criminal to gain entry, the tools used in the crime, the types of
items taken, and other signs, such as urine left at the scene, an accelerant used at an
arson scene, and the way crimes are committed. Many well-known criminals have left
their “calling card” at their crimes, in terms of what they did to their victims, or the
physical condition of the crime scene.
• Linking of a suspect with a victim. One of the most important linkages, particularly with vio- lent crimes, is the connection to the suspect. This can include hair, blood, clothing fibers,
and cosmetics that may be transferred from the victim to the perpetrator. Items found in a
suspect’s possession, such as bullets or a bloody knife, can also be linked to a victim.
• Linking of a person to a crime scene. Also a common and significant type of linkage, this includes fingerprints, glove prints, blood, semen, hairs, fibers, soil, bullets,
cartridge cases, tool marks, footprints or shoe prints, tire tracks, and objects that
belonged to the criminal. Stolen property is the most obvious example.
• Disproving or supporting of a witness’s testimony. Evidence can indicate whether or not a person’s version of events is true. An example is a driver whose car matches the
description of a hit-and-run vehicle. If blood is found on the underside of the car and
the driver claims that he hit a dog, tests on the blood can determine whether the blood
is from an animal or a human.
• Identification of a suspect. One of the best forms of evidence for identifying a suspect is fingerprints, which prove “individualization.” Without a doubt, that person was at the
crime scene.
A Word About Crime Scenes
On the subject of the crime scene, we will not go into detail concerning the roles of patrol
officers, crime-scene technicians, and investigators; however, it should be emphasized that the
protection of the crime scene and all evidence contained therein, is of the utmost importance
for these personnel, if the scene is to be properly preserved and evidence properly collected
(Continued)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 125
▼
and analyzed. It is critical that at the moment they arrive, responding personnel are trained to
(1) describe vehicles (make, model, color, condition, license plate number) and individuals
(height, weight, race, age, clothing, sex, distinguishing features), including their direction of
travel from first observation; (2) assess the scene for officer safety (downed power lines,
animals, biohazards, chemicals, weapons); (3) watch for violent persons and attend to any
emergency medical needs; and (4) prevent any unauthorized persons from entering the scene.
A very good resource for crime-scene investigation, published by the National Institute of
Justice, is titled Crime Scene Investigation: A Reference for Law Enforcement Training.4
▶ Origins of Criminalistics
The study of criminalistics began in Europe. The first major book describing the application
of scientific disciplines to criminal investigations was written in 1893 by Hans Gross, a
public prosecutor and later a judge from Graz, Austria.5 Translated into English in 1906,
the book remains a highly respected work in the field. In this section two prominent aspects
of criminalistics: personal identification and firearms analysis, are covered, followed by a
discussion of individual contributions, investigative techniques, and state and federal
developments in the field.
Personal Identification: Anthropometry and Dactylography
Anthropometry Historically, two major systems for personal identification of criminals have been used: anthropometry and dactylography. Dactylography, better known as finger-
print identification, is widely used throughout the world today.
Anthropometry, a system that did not survive long, was developed in 1882 by Alphonse
Bertillon (1853–1914). The Bertillon system, the first attempt at criminal identification that
was thought to be reliable and accurate, was based on the theory that human beings differ
from each other in the exact measurements of their bodies and that the sum of these mea-
surements yields a characteristic formula for each individual.6
Bertillon performed menial tasks in 1879 for the Paris Police Department, filing cards
that described criminals so vaguely as to have little meaning—“stature: average . . . face:
ordinary.”7 He began comparing photographs of criminals and taking measurements of
▲ Technology is rapidly advancing in forensic laboratories. Shown here are lab technicians performing analyses with:
(1) blood; (2) ballistics, (3) drugs; and (4) fingerprints. (Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff’s Office.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 126
▼
those who had been arrested, and eventually concluded that if eleven physical measure-
ments of a person were taken, the chances of finding another person with the same eleven
measurements were 4,191,304 to 1.8 Bertillon’s report of his findings to his superiors was
treated as a “joke,” however9; but in 1883 his “joke” was given worldwide attention when
it was implemented on an experimental basis and Bertillon correctly made his first crimi-
nal identification.10
Around the start of the twentieth century, many countries abandoned anthropometry,
or the Bertillon system, adopting the simpler and more reliable system of fingerprint
identification.11 Still, Bertillon’s pioneering work in personal identification has earned him
a place in history, and today he is considered the “father of criminal investigation.”12
The major breakthrough for fingerprints was made by Edward Henry (1850–1931),
who developed a fingerprint-classification system in 1897 that was adopted throughout
British India. In 1901, Henry published his Classification and Use of Finger Prints and
was appointed assistant police commissioner of London, rising to the post of commis-
sioner two years later.13
▲ A police officer taking Bertillon measurements. (Courtesy
Science Source.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 127
▼
The Jones Case. In 1904, Detective Sergeant Joseph Faurot of New York City was sent
to England to study fingerprints. Upon his return to New York, Faurot was told by his
superiors to forget such scientific nonsense, and he was transferred to a walking beat. In
1906, Faurot arrested a man who was creeping out of a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria
Hotel; the man claimed to be a respected citizen named James Jones, but Faurot sent the
man’s fingerprints to Scotland Yard and learned that “James Jones” was actually Daniel
Nolan, who had twelve prior convictions for hotel thefts. Nolan confessed to several
thefts in the Waldorf-Astoria and was sent to prison for seven years. Publicity surround-
ing this case greatly advanced the credibility of fingerprinting in America.14
The West Case. An even more important incident that furthered the use of fingerprints in
America occurred in 1903 when Will West arrived at the federal penitentiary in
Leavenworth, Kansas. While West was being processed into the institution, a staff mem-
ber said that a photograph was already on file for him, along with Bertillon measure-
ments. West denied ever having been in Leavenworth. A comparison of fingerprints
showed that despite nearly identical physical appearance and Bertillon measurements, the
identification card on file belonged to a William West who had been in Leavenworth since
1901. The incident served to establish the superiority of fingerprints over anthropometry
as a system of personal identification.
▲ The “West Brothers” case: Two men having close physical resemblance, nearly identical
measurements, and the same name (William West) at the same penitentiary caused much con-
fusion about their true identities. The case showed the fallacies of the Bertillon system and the
superior nature of fingerprints as a means of identification. (Courtesy Federal Bureau of Investigations.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 128
▼
Locard’s Exchange Principle
Due in large part to Bertillon’s influence, Dr. Edmond Locard developed, in 1910, what is
today widely regarded as the cornerstone of the forensic sciences: Locard’s exchange prin-
ciple (also known as Locard’s Theory). This principle or theory asserts that when any
person comes into contact with an object or other person, a cross-transfer of evidence—in
the form of fingerprints, hairs, fibers, and all manner of residue or other materials—will
occur.15 An example is when a victim is strangled to death (by an assailant who is not
wearing gloves), the suspect may well have the victim’s skin cells under his nails, the vic-
tims hair on his clothing, and other such residual material on his person.
For these reasons, it is obviously of the utmost importance that the crime scene be pro-
tected against contamination in order that any such trace evidence may be properly col-
lected and preserved.
Firearms Identification
Firearms are involved in nearly 500,000 fatal and nonfatal violent crimes per year in this
country; of those incidents, about 11,000 result in murder, while about 52,000 result in
nonfatal shooting.16 The frequency of shootings in this country has obviously made fire-
arms identification very important.
Chicago witnessed the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in 1929. A special grand jury
inquiring into the matter noted that there were no facilities for analyzing the numerous bul-
lets and cartridge cases that had been strewn about. As a result, several influential jury
members raised funds to establish a permanent crime laboratory. Colonel Calvin Goddard
(1858–1946) was appointed director of the lab and was the person most responsible for
raising the status of firearms identification to a science, and for perfecting the bullet com-
parison microscope.17
Firearms identification goes beyond comparing a bullet found in the victim and a test
bullet fired from the defendant’s weapon. It also includes identifying types of ammunition,
designing firearms, restoring obliterated serial numbers on weapons, and estimating the
distance between a gun’s muzzle and a victim when the weapon was fired.18
Contributions of August Vollmer and Others
The contributions of August Vollmer (discussed in Chapter 1) to the development of crim-
inalistics and investigative techniques should not be overlooked. In 1907, as police chief of
Berkeley, California, he enlisted the services of a University of California chemistry pro-
fessor named Loeb to identify a suspected poison during a murder investigation. Vollmer
instituted a formal training program to ensure that his officers properly collected and pre-
served criminal evidence. He also called on scientists on campus on several other occa-
sions, and his support helped John Larson produce the first workable polygraph in 1921.
Vollmer also established the first full forensic laboratory in 1923, in Los Angeles. The
concept soon spread to other cities, including Sacramento (a state laboratory), San
Francisco, and San Diego. Because Vollmer’s subsequent efforts to establish a relationship
between his police department and the university led other scientists to get involved in
forensic science, eventually courses in forensics were offered as part of the biochemistry
curriculum at the University of California at Berkeley,19 with many graduates of that pro-
gram becoming criminalists.
Other early major contributors included Albert Osborn, who in 1910 wrote Questioned
Documents, a definitive work; Edmond Locard, who maintained a central interest in locat-
ing microscopic evidence; and Leone Lattes, who in 1915 developed a blood-typing proce-
dure from dried blood, a key event in serology.20
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 129
▼
The forerunner of what was to become the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI; dis-
cussed in Chapter 10) was created in 1908. In 1924, J. Edgar Hoover assumed leadership
of the Bureau of Investigation; eleven years later, Congress enacted legislation giving the
FBI its present designation. Under Hoover, who understood the importance and uses of
information, records, and publicity, the FBI became known for investigative efficiency. In
1932, the FBI established a crime laboratory and made its services free—they remain free
of charge today to state and local police. In 1935, it opened its National Academy, provid-
ing training courses for state and local police as well as federal officers. And in 1967, the
National Crime Information Center (NCIC) was made operational by the FBI, providing
data on wanted persons and stolen property in all fifty states. These developments gave the
FBI considerable influence over policing in America; Hoover and the FBI vastly improved
policing practices in the United States, keeping crime statistics and assisting
investigations.21
▶ Forensic Science and the Criminal Justice System
Investigative Stages and Activities
The police (more specifically, investigators and criminalists) operate on the age-old theory
that there is no such thing as a perfect crime: Criminals either leave a bit of themselves
(such as a hair or clothing fiber) at the crime scene or take a piece of the crime scene away
with them. Thus, it is the job of the police and the crime lab to unify their efforts and to find
that incriminating piece of evidence, which they can use in conjunction with other pieces
of evidence to determine “whodunit” and to bring the guilty party to justice.
In the apprehension process, when a crime is reported or discovered, police officers respond,
conduct a search for the offender (it may be a “hot” crime-scene search where the offender is
likely present, a “warm” search in the general vicinity, or a “cold” investigative search), and
check out suspects. If the search is successful, evidence for charging the suspect is assembled,
and the suspect is apprehended.22 Cases not solved in the initial phase of the apprehension pro-
cess are assigned either to an investigative specialist or, in smaller police agencies, to an expe-
rienced uniformed officer who functions as a part-time investigator. According to Paul Weston
and Kenneth Wells, what follows are the basic investigative stages23:
Preliminary Investigation. The work of the preliminary investigation is crucial, involv-
ing the first police officer at the scene. Duties to be completed include establishing
whether a crime has been committed; securing from any witnesses a description of the
perpetrator and his or her vehicle; locating and interviewing the victim and all witnesses;
protecting the crime scene (and searching for and collecting all items of possible physical
evidence); determining how the crime was committed and what the resulting injuries
were, as well as the nature of property taken; recording in field notes and sketches all data
about the crime; and arranging for photographs of the crime scene.
Continuing Investigation. The next stage, which begins when preliminary work is done,
includes conducting follow-up interviews; developing a theory of the crime; analyzing the
significance of information and evidence; continuing the search for witnesses; beginning
to contact crime lab technicians and assessing their analyses of the evidence; conducting
surveillances, interrogations, and polygraph tests, as appropriate; and preparing the case
for the prosecutor.
Reconstruction of the Crime. The investigator seeks a rational theory of the crime.
Most often, inductive reasoning is used: The collected information and evidence are care-
fully analyzed to develop a theory. Often, a rational theory of a crime is developed with
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 130
▼
some assistance from the careless criminal. Verbrecherpech, or “criminal’s bad luck,” is
an unconscious act of self-betrayal. One of the major traits of criminals is vanity; their
belief in their own cleverness, not chance, is the key factor in their leaving a vital clue.
Investigators look for mistakes.
Focus of the Investigation. When the last stage is reached, all investigative efforts
are directed toward proving that one suspect (perhaps with accomplices) is guilty of
the crime. This decision is based on the investigator’s analysis of the connections between
the crime, the investigation, and the habits and attitudes of the suspect.
Arrest and Case Preparation
A lawful arrest brings the investigation into even greater focus and provides the police
with several investigative opportunities. The person arrested can be searched and booked
at the police station, and fingerprints can be taken for positive identification and possible
future use. Evidence may be found at these stages. The prisoner may wish to talk to the
police. Here, the officer must obviously know and understand the laws of arrest and search
and seizure as well as the laws of evidence (especially the “chain of custody”). Any evi-
dence found during the arrest must be collected, marked, transported, and preserved as
carefully as that found at a crime scene.
“Case preparation is organization.”24 For an investigation to succeed at trial, all reports,
documents, and exhibits must be arrayed in an orderly manner. This package must then be
forwarded to the prosecutor. At this point, the investigator never injects personal opinions
or conclusions into the case. The identification of the accused leads to an array of wit-
nesses and physical evidence. The corpus delicti of the crime has been established, and the
combination of “what happened” and “who did it” has occurred, at least in the mind of the
investigator. The investigator must also prepare for the almost inevitable negative evi-
dence that must be countered at trial, where the accused may contend that he or she did
not commit the crime. (He or she may try to attack the investigative work, use an alibi, or
get the evidence suppressed.) The defendant may offer an affirmative defense, admitting
that he or she committed the acts charged but claiming that he or she was coerced, acted in
self-defense, was legally insane, and so forth. Or the defendant may attack the corpus
delicti, contending that no crime was committed or that there was no intent present.25
In the prosecutor’s office, the case is reviewed, assigned for further investigation, and
(if warranted) prepared for trial. Conferences with the investigator and witnesses are usu-
ally held. The prosecutor may waive prosecution if the case appears to be too weak to
result in a conviction; if the accused will inform on other (usually more serious) offenders;
if a plea bargain is more attractive than a trial; or if there are mitigating circumstances in
the case (such as emotional disturbance).
An investigation is successful when the crime being investigated is solved and the case
closed. Often a case is considered cleared even if no arrest has been made, as when
the offender dies, the case is found to be a murder–suicide, the victim refuses to cooperate
with the police or prosecutor, or the offender has left the jurisdiction and the cost of extra-
dition is not justified.26
▶ Detectives: Qualities, Myths, and Attributes
The detective function is now well established within the police community. A survey by
the RAND Corporation revealed that every city with a population of more than 250,000,
along with 90 percent of the smaller cities, has officers specifically assigned to
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 131
▼
investigative duties.27 Although there are some limited exceptions, it should be noted that
in most police agencies, individuals must spend at least several years working in patrol
assignments before requesting and testing for a detective position.
Several myths surround police detectives, who are often portrayed in movies as rug-
ged, confident (sometimes overbearing), independent, streetwise individualists who bask
in glory, take huge risks, and are rewarded with big arrests. Detective work carries a strong
appeal for many patrol officers, young and veteran alike. In reality, detective work is sel-
dom glamorous or exciting. Investigators, like their bureaucratic cousins, often wade in
paperwork and spend many hours on the telephone. Furthermore, studies have not been
kind to detectives, showing that their vaunted productivity is overrated. Not all cases have
a good or even a 50–50 chance of being cleared by an arrest. Indeed, in a study of over 150
large police departments, a RAND research team learned that only about 20 percent of
their crimes could have been solved by detective work.28 Another study, involving the
Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department, found that fewer than 50 percent of all reported
crimes received more than a minimal half hour’s investigation by detectives. In many of
these cases, detectives merely reported the facts discovered by the patrol officers during
the preliminary investigations.29
▲ Homicide investigation is the most important and chal-
lenging work performed by detectives. (Courtesy Photo by Shelly
Katz/Getty Images.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 132
▼
Yet the importance and role of detectives should not be understated. Detectives know
that a criminal is more than a criminal. As Weston and Wells said:
John, Jane and Richard are not just burglar, prostitute and killer. John is a hostile burglar
and is willing to enter premises that might be occupied. Jane is a prostitute who wants a
little more than pay for services rendered and is suspected of working with a robbery gang
and enticing her customers to secluded areas. Richard is an accidental, a person who, in a fit
of rage, killed the girl who rejected him.30
To be successful, the investigator must possess four personal attributes to enhance the
detection of crime: an unusual capability for observation and recall; an extensive knowl-
edge of the law, rules of evidence, scientific aids, and laboratory services; a powerful
imagination; and a working knowledge of social psychology.31 Successful detectives (and
even patrol officers) also appear to empathize with the suspect; if a detective can appear to
understand why a criminal did what he or she did (“You robbed that store because your
kids were hungry, right?”), a rapport is often established that results in the suspect’s telling
the officer his or her life history—including how and why he or she committed the crime in
question. Perhaps first and foremost, however, detectives need logical skills, the ability to
exercise deductive reasoning, to assist in their investigative work. (An interesting example
of the logical skills needed for police work was provided by Al Seedman, former chief of
detectives for the New York Police Department, in Chapter 2.)
▶ Officers Who “Disappear”: Working Undercover
Undercover work is a highly sought after and valued type of investigative police work.
Undercover work can be defined as the assignment of police officers to investigative roles
in which they adopt fictitious civilian identities for a sustained period of time in order to
uncover criminal activities that are not usually reported to police.32 Some undercover
assignments can be relatively short-term, such as sting operations where officers pose as
customers to buy drugs from street dealers or services from prostitutes. Other assignments
can be for sustained periods of time lasting weeks, months, or even years.
Undercover police operations have increased greatly since the 1970s, owing largely to
expanded drug investigations. The selection process typically is intense and very com-
petitive. Since only a few officers are actually selected for undercover assignments, these
officers enjoy a professional mystique, in large measure because of wide discretionary
and procedural latitude in their roles, minimal departmental supervision, ability to exer-
cise greater personal initiative, and higher degree of professional autonomy than regular
patrol officers.33
Problems with the Role
The conditions of undercover work, however, may lessen officer accountability and lower
adherence to procedural due process and confidence in the rule of law.34 One of the most
important requirements is the ability to cultivate informants for information on illegal
activities and for contacts with active criminals. Deals and bargains must be struck and
honored. Therefore, close association with criminals—both the informants and the tar-
geted offenders—heightens the challenges of the undercover role considerably. Undercover
officers must often sustain a deceptive front over extended periods, thereby facing increased
risk of stress-induced illness, physical harm, and corruption. One study determined that the
greater the number of undercover assignments undertaken, the more drug, alcohol, and
disciplinary problems federal officers had during their careers.35
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 133
▼
Undercover agents can experience profound changes in their value systems, often
resulting in an overidentification with criminals and a questioning of certain criminal stat-
utes they are sworn to enforce.36 These isolated assignments may also involve a separation
of self, disrupting or interfering with officers’ family relationships and activities and per-
haps even leading to a loss of identity and the adoption of a criminal persona as they dis-
tance themselves from a conventional lifestyle.37 Author Gary Marx cites one instance: A
good example of this is the case of a Northern California police officer who participated in
a “deep cover” operation for eighteen months, riding with the Hell’s Angels. He was
responsible for a very large number of arrests, including previously almost untouchable
higher-level drug dealers. But this was at the cost of heavy drug use, alcoholism, brawling,
the break-up of his family, an inability to fit back into routine police work, resignation
from the force, several bank robberies, and a prison term.38
Return to Patrol Duties
Ending an undercover assignment, and then returning to patrol duty, is an awkward experi-
ence for the many officers who have difficulty adjusting to the everyday routine of traditional
police work. These officers may suffer from emotional problems such as anxiety, loneliness,
and suspiciousness, and they may experience marital problems. Officers will quickly have
less autonomy and diminished initiative in job performance; they are no longer working in a
tight-knit unit with expanded freedom and control and no longer feel as though they are
behind enemy lines in the battle against crime, where their work experiences are intense and
inherently dangerous. The return to routine patrol may be analogous to coming down from
an emotional high, and officers in this position may feel depressed and lethargic.39
▶ Contributions of Medical Examiners and Coroners
“Hic locus est ubi mors gaudet succurrere vitae.” This Latin phrase—popular in forensic
pathology—means “This is the place where death rejoices to help those who live.” Indeed,
this is the motto seen at the website of the National Association of Medical Examiners.
Death investigations in every jurisdiction are conducted by either a medical examiner, or a
coroner. An important distinction between the two offices typically concerns their training.
Medical examiners are usually physicians or pathologists who are appointed for unspecified
terms; they may serve a county, a group of counties, or a state. Coroners, conversely, are
usually lay individuals who are elected to serve a fixed term of office in their county;
depending on the laws of the jurisdiction, the coroner may or may not be trained in the
medical sciences. Obviously, in the absence of medical expertise, a nonphysician coroner
might have difficulty in examining and determining causes of death. However, coroners are
often authorized to employ physicians, pathologists, or forensic pathologists to perform
autopsies. Ten states use coroners as their only official death investigation professional.40
The individual performing the medical examination will gather the past medical his-
tory of the deceased and then perform an autopsy—examining the body externally and
internally and taking biopsies of tissues for microscopic examination for disease. Various
laboratory tests may also be undertaken, including x-rays, cultures of body fluids, and tests
of organs for evidence of infection.
Next, all such information is correlated and conclusions may be drawn as to the cause
and manner of death. A report is then prepared summarizing these findings. Finally, the
forensic pathologist may later be subpoenaed to testify in court concerning those findings
and conclusions; their official reports may also be given to other parties or agencies that
have a legitimate interest in the cause and manner of death.41
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 134
▼
▶ Uses of the Polygraph
Discussed in Chapter 2 in terms of its use in police recruiting and hiring, the polygraph
has also been used by the police in the investigation of serious crimes since at least the
early 1900s.
With a downturn in police budgets and related resources, leading to increased investi-
gative caseloads, use of the polygraph for identifying the guilty has become highly desir-
able in order to make more efficient use of the investigator’s time.
The diagnostic function of the polygraph seeks to determine truth or deception,
and thus requires an examiner with considerable training and education as well as the
use of carefully constructed questioning techniques. The psychophysiology of the
polygraph instrument lies with its ability to record physical changes related to
the autonomic nervous system. These are involuntary reactions, controlled by various
centers in the brain, and are related to the emotion of fear (i.e., of being caught in a lie)
and conflict between what one knows to be the truth vis-à-vis his physical and verbal
attempt to convey the opposite.42 Corrugated rubber tubes (or electronic sensors)
placed over the examinee’s chest and abdominal area will record respiratory activity.
Two small metal plates or disposable adhesive electrodes, attached to the fingers, will
record sweat gland activity, and a blood pressure cuff or similar device will record
cardiovascular activity.43
The investigator should first provide the polygraph examiner with pertinent case facts
to address the issue that the investigator wishes resolved. Other related matters may also
need to be addressed: does the subject first need to be read his Miranda rights? Who will be
given the examination results, and be allowed to observe the examination (e.g., legal coun-
sel)? Is the subject a juvenile (if so, someone will likely need to accompany him and sign
the necessary release forms)? Is the examination to be videotaped?44
At some point prior to the actual examination, the examiner will conduct a pre-test
interview with the subject, to discuss the test questions and familiarize the examinee with
the testing procedure and gain an understanding of the subject’s knowledge of related
case facts and circumstances. The examiner will also attempt to assess whether the sub-
ject is in the necessary mental, physical, and emotional state for polygraph testing at that
particular point in time.45 Doing so will assist in avoiding two types of errors during the
examination: false positive (a truthful examinee is reported as being deceptive) and false
negative (a deceptive examinee is reported as truthful). The commonly held belief that
polygraph examination results are not admitted into evidence in court is untrue. Some
courts admit polygraph evidence even over the objection of counsel; in other jurisdic-
tions, polygraph results are admitted by stipulation. At the federal level, no single stan-
dard governs admissibility. It is also common for prosecutors to use polygraph results to
decide which charges to file, if any, and defense attorneys rely on polygraph testing to
plan their defense and to negotiate pleas. Some judges also use polygraph results in sen-
tencing decisions.46
▶ DNA Analysis
Discovery and Types of Analyses
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is, in essence, a molecule containing the instructions that
organisms need to develop, live, and reproduce—instructions that are found inside every
cell, and are the same for each cell of an individual’s body, including skin, organs, and all
body fluids (Figure 5-1 ■).47 Developed in England in 1984 by Alec Jeffreys,48 we know
that portions of the DNA structure are as unique to each individual as fingerprints and that
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 135
▼
inside each of the sixty trillion cells in the human body are strands of genetic material—
chromosomes. Arranged along the chromosomes, like beads on a thread, are nearly a hun-
dred thousand genes, which are the fundamental units of heredity; they instruct the body
cells to make proteins that determine everything from hair color to susceptibility to dis-
eases, and they pass genetic instructions from one generation to the next.49 DNA profiling,
also called genetic fingerprinting or DNA typing, has shown much promise in helping
investigators to solve crimes and to ensure that those guilty of crimes are convicted in
court by the examination of DNA samples from body fluid, hair, and bones to determine
whether they came from a particular subject. For example, semen on a rape victim’s jeans
can be positively or negatively compared with a suspect’s semen. DNA is thus powerful
evidence (as demonstrated in the famous case of the Boston Strangler discussed in
Exhibit 5-1 ■).
The FBI’s DNA Analysis Unit and many other forensic laboratories in the United
States examine items of evidence from a wide variety of alleged crimes including
FIGURE 5-1 What Is DNA? FBI, Laboratory Division, The Federal Bureau of Investigation.
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 136
▼
exhibit 5-1
A Serial Killer in Boston
A serial murderer was loose in the city of Boston and its
suburbs during the early 1960s. He was responsible for
a total of 13 victims between June 1962 and January
1964—all women ranging in age from nineteen to
eighty-five.50 All of the victims were found alone, many
were strangled with articles of their own clothing (often
nylon stockings), and many had been sexually assaulted.
Because there was little evidence of breaking and enter-
ing, detectives reasoned that the killer charmed his way
into his victims’ homes. The press referred to the killer
as “The Mad Strangler of Boston”51 or “The Phantom
Strangler.”52 Much of eastern Massachusetts was on
alert, but detectives had few solid leads—and some
investigators even questioned whether it was the work
of more than one person.
In 1964, Albert DeSalvo—a Massachusetts man
with a long history of breaking and entering—was
arrested on unrelated charges of sexual assault. He was
eventually sentenced to life in prison after being linked
to numerous other sexual assaults throughout New
England. While in custody for those offenses, DeSalvo
confessed to the Boston Strangler murders. DeSalvo
never went to trial for the murders, however, and he
was killed several years later by a fellow inmate while
serving his sentence for sexual assault.
Despite his confession, uncertainty lingered in
terms of whether DeSalvo was actually the Boston
Strangler. Doubts were raised because of inconsisten-
cies with his statements, psychiatric examinations sug-
gesting that he was not being truthful, and the lack of
physical evidence connecting him to the crime scenes.
Furthermore, he was not considered a suspect prior to
the confession, and although he did know details about
the crimes, many of those details could have been
obtained from the extensive press coverage about the
murders. Some speculated that he might have falsely
confessed for the notoriety and attention of being the
Boston Strangler. Others argued that the confession
might have been part of a legal strategy by his attorney,
F. Lee Bailey, to establish an insanity defense for
DeSalvo’s acts of sexual assault.53
The identity of the Boston Strangler remained
unknown for 50 years, while the murders inspired
books, movies, and numerous documentaries.
A Breakthrough in the Case
The Boston Police Department recently revisited the
Strangler murders as a cold case.54 Employing a mod-
ern DNA test that identifies patterns in male DNA
strands, scientists were able to match DNA provided
from Albert DeSalvo’s nephew to seminal fluid that
was collected at the scene of the Strangler’s last vic-
tim. However, the test was unable to identify a spe-
cific individual, only determining that the killer was a
male in DeSalvo’s lineage. This gave investigators
enough evidence, however, to exhume DeSalvo’s
body for a more thorough examination. After doing
so, it was determined that DNA from DeSalvo’s teeth
and bones were a match to the seminal fluid gathered
at the scene of the murder.55 In 2013, 49 years after
the discovery of the final victim, the evidence was
conclusive—Albert DeSalvo was indeed the Boston
Strangler.56
COLD CASE MYSTERY SOLVED: THE BOSTON STRANGLER
counterterrorism and intelligence gathering efforts, threatening letters (e.g., anthrax
threat letters), violent crimes such as homicides and sexual assaults, bank robberies,
extortion and organized crime cases, and many other violations. The DNA analysis
method currently used by the FBI Laboratory is termed the “polymerase chain
reaction-based short tandem repeat” typing technique. This (PCR–STR) technique
allows for the analysis of extremely small body fluid stains, as well as the analysis of
samples with no visible staining (e.g., envelopes in an extortion case or a ski mask
from a bank robbery). The results of the DNA analyses on evidentiary items are then
compared to the results obtained from known blood or saliva samples submitted from
the victims and/or suspects potentially involved in the alleged incident.57 Also used is
mitochondrial DNA—a tiny ring-shaped molecule that is much smaller than the more
familiar nuclear DNA—that can be extracted from hair, bones, and teeth when little
else remains of a body.58
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 137
▼
CODIS
The FBI initiated the National DNA Index System in 1998—along with the Combined
DNA Index System (CODIS) software to manage the program; since that time it has become
the world’s largest repository of known offender DNA records. Each year, CODIS aids
federal, state, and local agencies in more than 25,000 criminal investigations. CODIS con-
tains DNA profiles obtained from subjects convicted of homicide, sexual assault, and other
serious felonies. Investigators are able to search and compare evidence from their indi-
vidual cases against the system’s extensive national file of DNA genetic markers. CODIS
also provides software and support services to state and local laboratories for establishing
their databases of convicted offenders, unsolved crime scenes, and missing persons.
Therefore, forensic laboratories can exchange and compare DNA profiles electronically
and link serial violent crimes, especially sexual assaults, and identify suspects by matching
DNA from crime scenes to convicted offenders.59
DNA Policy Nightmare: Solving Property Crimes
A recent study compared burglary investigations in which traditional police practices
were used to collect and analyze DNA in the usual manner, as well as through “touch”
DNA. The latter process has been available for several years and is so named because
DNA profiles can be obtained from such nontraditional sources of evidence as com-
puter cords, jewelry boxes, and door handles. The study revealed that when DNA was
analyzed60
• more than twice as many suspects were identified,
• twice as many suspects were arrested,
• more than twice as many cases were accepted for prosecution, and
• suspects were five times as likely to be identified through DNA evidence as through fingerprints.61
The question as to whether DNA should be applied to property crimes should be a
no-brainer—right? Unfortunately, the answer is not an emphatic yes, and the whole matter
has the potential to turn the criminal justice system on its head.
▲ Chemists work with DNA samples. (Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff ’s Office.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 138
▼
First, consider that in a given year nearly 2 million burglaries are reported to the
police62 and that only about one in eight of them will be solved. Lurking in this question of
using DNA in property offenses, are some huge policy decisions, such as:
• How will U.S. crime laboratories process the increase in evidence? And how many new labs would need to be built to accommodate the log of new cases?
• Are we willing to hire more prosecutors and public defenders to handle an increased volume of cases?
• How can we ensure that using DNA to solve burglaries will not pull investigative resources away from other criminal investigations, such as sex crimes, robbery, and
domestic violence?
• Even if the preceding issues were addressed, do we need to revisit sentencing guidelines—or are we going to pay the cost to build many more prisons and jails that
would be needed to handle these newly arrested property offenders?63
Perhaps the major policy implication surrounding this matter would be how to reduce
the current backlog of evidence that needs to be analyzed in U.S. crime labs. Would
Americans be willing to have a large measure of cases outsourced to for-profit DNA
labs?64 Such questions would need to first be answered in determining whether or not to
extend the reach of DNA testing. The truth is, DNA works, but it costs a lot of money.65
Postconviction DNA Tests: The Supreme Court Speaks
A major issue involving DNA has concerned postconviction testing. Because the speed and
accuracy of testing have improved and because there are stories of convicted people who
were exonerated because of DNA tests, many inmates want to be tested if there is any evi-
dence from which DNA can be extracted. They have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
In June 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court addressed the question of whether or not con-
victs enjoyed a constitutional right to such testing in hopes of proving their innocence; in a
5–4 decision, the Court said such persons had no such right. (The plaintiff in this case,
William Osborne, was an Alaska citizen who had been convicted of a brutal attack on a
prostitute sixteen years ago.66) The decision, however, was seen as having limited impact
because the federal government and forty-seven states already had laws allowing convicts
some access to genetic evidence.
A Wider Net: New Law Expands DNA Gathering
In early 2007, the U.S. Department of Justice finalized guidelines for allowing the collec-
tion of DNA from most people arrested or detained by federal authorities, a vast expansion
that will include hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants each year. The new forensic
DNA sampling was authorized by Congress in the January 2006 renewal of the Violence
Against Women Act, and it permits DNA collection from anyone under arrest by federal
authorities and from illegal immigrants detained by federal agents.
Familial DNA
Police agencies now have another way to solve cases: searching DNA databases to match
crime-scene evidence with the DNA of a suspect’s family members. This technique involves
using what is termed “familial DNA,” and is successful for identifying a lead to a suspect of
a crime if a parent, a child, or a sibling of the suspect has previously provided a DNA sam-
ple. So-called familial DNA searches involve investigators looking for close-but-not-exact
matches between DNA evidence collected at crime scenes and the state’s data bank of DNA
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 139
▼
collected from convicted felons. Although some states allow familial DNA searches only
for violent crimes, the apparent success of familial DNA testing in some high-profile cases
(such as the 2010 arrest in Los Angeles of Lonnie Franklin Jr., for ten counts of murder)
may encourage other states to adopt it. Meanwhile, some civil-liberties groups and legal
scholars have concerns about privacy and ethical issues.67
▶ Criminal Profiling and Psycholinguistics
The criminal profiling of serial killers has probably captured the public’s fancy more than
any other investigative technique used by the police. The success of profiling depends on
the profiler’s ability to draw on investigative experience, training in forensic and behav-
ioral science, and empirically developed information about the characteristics of known
offenders. It is more art than science. The focus of the analysis is the behavior of the per-
petrator while at the crime scene.68
There are various types of investigative profiles. Drug-courier profiles have been devel-
oped from collections of observable characteristics that experienced investigators believe
indicate a person who is carrying drugs. Other types of profiles include loss-control special-
ists’ profiles of shoplifters as well as threat assessments, such as the Secret Service’s pro-
files of potential presidential assassins. Criminal profiling of violent offenders, however, is
the area for which the most descriptive information has been collected and analyzed and the
most extensive training programs have been developed.69 Unfortunately, most people asso-
ciate criminal profiling with the psychic profiler on television’s The Profiler or with Agent
Starling in the film The Silence of the Lambs—both of which are inaccurate portrayals.70
Profiling is not a new discovery; indeed, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s fictional character
Sherlock Holmes often engaged in profiling. For example, in “A Study in Scarlet,” pub-
lished in 1887, Holmes congratulated himself on the accuracy of his psychological profile:
“It is seldom that any man, unless he is very full-blooded, breaks out in this way through
emotion, so I hazarded the opinion that the criminal was probably a robust and ruddy-faced
man. Events proved that I had judged correctly.”71 Profiling was used by a psychiatrist to
study Adolph Hitler during World War II, and to predict how he might react to defeat.72
Psychological profiling, while not an exact science, is obviously of assistance to inves-
tigators; however, it does not replace sound investigative procedures. Profiling works in
harmony with the search for physical evidence. Victims play an important role in the
development of a profile, as they can provide the investigator with the offender’s exact
conversation. Other items needed for a complete profile include photographs of the crime
scene and any victims, autopsy information, and complete reports of the incident, includ-
ing the weapon used. From this body of information, the profiler looks for motive.73
Serial murderers—killers who are driven by a compulsion to murder again and again—
are also profiled. Many psychologists believe that serial murderers fulfill violent sexual
fantasies they have had since childhood. They satisfy their sexual needs by thinking about
their killings, but when the satisfaction wears off they kill again. Most serial murderers, the
FBI has learned, are solitary males; an alarming number are doctors, dentists, or other
health-care professionals. Almost one-third of them are ex-convicts and former mental
patients. Many, like Kenneth Bianchi, the Los Angeles Hillside strangler, are attracted to
policing. (Bianchi, who was working as a security guard when he was finally caught in
Washington State, often wore a police uniform during his crimes.) Serial killers seem nor-
mal, and they principally attack lone women, children, older people, homeless people,
hitchhikers, and prostitutes.74
Another psychology-related investigative tool is psycholinguistics, which provides an
understanding of those who use criminal coercion and strategies for dealing with threats.
The 1932 kidnapping case of Charles Lindbergh’s infant son (perpetrated by a
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 140
▼
German-born illegal alien, whose notes revealed his background and ethnicity) marked the
beginning of this investigative method. Concentrating on evidence obtained from a mes-
sage, spoken or written, the psycholinguistic technique microscopically analyzes the
threats or messages for clues to the origins, background, and psychology of the maker.
Every sentence, syllable, phrase, word, and comma is computer scanned. A “threat dic-
tionary” containing more than 350 categories and 15 million words is consulted; these
“signature” words and phrases are then used to identify possible suspects.75
Clearly, profiling can be useful in criminal inquiries in several ways: focusing the inves-
tigation on more likely types of offenders, suggesting proactive strategies, suggesting trial
strategies, and preventing violent crimes. The FBI has trained dozens of state and local
investigators in the profiling process. The program required twelve months of intensive
training and hands-on profiling experience and consisted of an academic phase and an
application phase.76
▶ Developing Areas in Forensic Science and Investigation
Technological opportunities—as well as new scientific and investigative problems—are
rapidly developing for federal, state, and local police practitioners. In this section, we dis-
cuss several of them.
Using Social Networking Sites
Add to the use of wiretaps, undercover operations, cooperative witnesses, and other types
of evidence in the investigator’s toolbox, the use of Facebook (whose membership reached
1 billion in late 2012 and approaches 2 billion today),77 YouTube, Twitter, and other popu-
lar social networking sites that can assist police in their investigations. Indeed, police and
prosecutors now obtain search warrants to scour such sites for postings, videos, contact
information, photos, private messages, and proof of criminal conspiracies. Defendants are
even known to update their social networking sites (to include descriptions of their
offenses, their aliases, and “friends”) while in jail using contraband cellphones.78
A 2015 survey conducted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police found
that 96 percent of police agencies in the United States are using digital tools to fight
crime.79 Investigators are also using social networking sites to research suspects, solicit
crime tips, and collect evidence. Citizens are more willing to share information online, and
even criminals—such as one gang member in New York—are showing photos, illegal
drugs, gang signs, and sinister threats on their web posts. Collaborating with the University
of Cincinnati’s Institute of Crime Science, police there dismantled a local street gang, and
arrested seventy-one people using social media to identify key members and create data-
bases of information from social networks, existing police records and phone records.80
One controversial aspect of police using such information involves their going under-
cover online by creating fake profiles to “friend” suspects. Facebook, for example, not
only does not condone such practices, but doing so also violates its terms of service, even
for the police. However, obtaining evidence in this manner still holds up in court—it is
widely known that the police pose as young girls to nab people for soliciting a minor for
sexual activities, or act as potential drug buyers for enticing traffickers. Furthermore, most
social networking sites require a subpoena or a warrant for turning over members’ profile
information and correspondence; in one Minnesota case where a man used a fake Facebook
page to talk to underage girls, detectives used a search warrant to obtain the man’s profile
and Facebook turned over more than two years of data (which included more than 800 chat
conversations, primarily with girls under 18); the defendant’s Facebook profile was used
as evidence in court, and he was sentenced to twelve years in prison.81
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 141
▼
No Stone Unturned: Cold Cases
Many jurisdictions plagued by a significant number of unsolved murders, or cold cases,
have created a cold case squad. These squads can be especially useful in locating and
working with past and potential witnesses and in reviewing physical evidence to identify
suspects.
The most important component of cold case squads is personnel—the squads must
have the right mix of investigative and supervisory talent. Squads may also use, as needed,
the services of federal law enforcement agencies, medical or coroners’ offices, retired per-
sonnel, criminalists or other specialists, or college or student interns. Cold cases selected
for investigation are usually at least a year old and cannot be addressed by the original
investigative personnel because of workload, time constraints, or the lack of viable leads.
Cases are prioritized on the basis of the likelihood of an eventual solution. The highest-
priority cases are those in which there is an identified homicide victim, suspects were
previously named or identified through forensic methods, an arrest warrant was previously
issued, significant physical evidence can be reprocessed, newly documented leads have
arisen, and critical witnesses are available and willing to cooperate.82
The Cold Case Investigative Research Institute (CCIRI) is a nationwide network of
forensic professionals and volunteers based in Atlanta, Georgia. At CCIRI, students from
colleges and universities around the country are able to work with experts in criminal jus-
tice, forensics, and the legal fields on unsolved murders, kidnappings, and other cases.
Among other investigations, CCIRI has been involved in the investigation of the killing of
rapper Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas in 1996. 83
Use of “Nonhuman Detectives”: Dogs
Dogs (and, more particularly, their noses) have proven very useful for public safety agen-
cies; they are used to detect bombs, search for drugs, and find survivors and human remains
in the aftermath of natural disasters (in fact, thirty-two dog teams were used in New York
and New Jersey to search for survivors following Hurricane Sandy in late 2012).84
Police dogs thus play an increasingly vital role in investigative work in addition to
their historical use for tracking and catching criminals and controlling crowds. The most
popular breed for police work is the German shepherd. Chosen for its intelligence and
highly developed senses, this breed tends to be more instinctively suspicious of strangers
▲ Police dogs occupy vital roles in investigative work, being
used to find drugs, explosives, and human remains. (Courtesy
© B Christopher/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 142
▼
than other breeds. However, Springer Spaniels, Labrador retrievers, and bloodhounds are
often used for police work as well because of their natural tracking abilities. Even beagles
have been recruited into police service. A member of the hound family, a beagle’s keen
sense of smell makes it ideal for detecting explosives, drugs, and other contraband in
places such as airports where the dog’s appearance and demeanor are less intimidating
to passengers.85
As the threat of terrorism has increased, these specialist police dogs have become even
more important to the police. Just as police work is increasing its use of new technology,
so is the training that police dogs receive. Police dogs are now being trained to work with
cameras attached to their heads, enabling them to enter dangerous places and send pictures
back to officers.86
▶ Is There a “CSI Effect”?
Television programs focusing on criminal investigations and forensic techniques may be
creating unrealistic courtroom expectations among jurors that cannot be achieved in real life.
This phenomenon has been labeled the “CSI effect.” Some court officers believe this “effect”
is truly present: prosecutors indicate that jurors want to see all evidence subjected to substan-
tial forensic examination, whether warranted in a specific case or not, while some defense
attorneys believe that jurors deem all scientific evidence to be flawless and thus establishing
guilt. The voir dire jury selection process may also be altered to ensure that those jurors who
are unduly influenced by shows like CSI are screened from jury service. Such modifications
to the usual process could result in longer trials and increased use of expert witnesses to aid
the jury in understanding the presence or absence of physical evidence.87
A survey of Kentucky circuit court judges found that the impact has been strong—but
not in areas where one might expect. First, three-fourths of the judges indicated that jurors
have come to expect more forensic evidence; furthermore, 82 percent of the judges
believed that “shows like CSI have distorted the public’s perception of time needed to
obtain forensic results.” In that same connection, a slight majority (53.4 percent) believed
that the popularity of shows like CSI has made it harder to convict defendants. The
responding judges also perceived that these television programs create unrealistic repre-
sentations concerning the state of the forensic art in their jurisdiction, as well as the speed
of forensic testing.88
It may be that the “CSI effect” is, in reality, more of a nuisance for those who engage
in the administration of justice, rather than a substantial factor in criminal justice process-
ing. Or it may be that the “CSI effect” is substantial in only certain types of cases involving
certain issues.89
▶ Investigative Tools: Informants, Interviews, and Interrogations
No discussion of police involvement in criminal investigations would be complete without
consideration of police using informants as well as conducting interviews and
interrogations—all of which occupy a central role in this arena. Next, we briefly discuss
these three investigative tools.
Use of Confidential Informants
Sometimes common citizens act as informants, contacting the police in order to report
suspicious or criminal activity, such as when seeing people coming and going at all hours
of the day and night, and in high volume at a home in their neighborhood. In such cases, if
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 143
▼
the person contacting the police provides his or her name, then greater weight is normally
given to his or her credibility than if the caller prefers to remain anonymous.
The more controversial use of informants, however, is where the person providing
information is a criminal himself. The police must often rely heavily on such persons in
order to obtain information about crimes, arrest offenders, and obtain probable cause for
arrest and search warrants. Prosecutors also must become involved with such persons
when, as part of the plea negotiation process, pressure is applied on such informants—
particularly in drug cases—to give up information about other criminals in exchange for
dropped charges or shorter sentences.
Such informants are rarely upstanding citizens who possess an altruistic desire to assist
police and benefit society. Rather, in exchange for providing information, they expect some
benefits from the state in return, which can include monetary payments, immunity from
prosecution, sentence reductions, dropped charges, and even the freedom to continue crimi-
nal activity. This situation becomes problematic when such informants engage in outright
lying, exaggeration, and contribute significantly to wrongful convictions—all of which has
historically contributed to suspicions toward, and challenges of, confidential informants.90
Thus, it is key that police agencies properly manage their confidential informants,
through: (1) having policies and procedures and training in techniques for working with
informants; (2) maintaining an informant file system that not only maintains personal,
descriptive, and criminal information about informants but also clearly establishes infor-
mants’ credibility and reliability; and (3) requiring that supervisory approval be obtained
before confidential informants are used in an investigation. Investigators must receive
supervisory approval from the appropriate authority. Furthermore, informants must not
entice persons to commit an offense he or she would otherwise not have committed—
which is entrapment. Informants who do so can cause defense attorneys to argue that the
police and informants’ actions were outrageous or shocking to fundamental fairness.
Therefore, informants’ activities must be documented thoroughly enough to show that
their actions did not lead to entrapment.91
On the other side of the coin, informants’ identities must be protected so as to protect
them and to maintain the service they provide. If they are not protected, their lives may be
put in jeopardy.
Conducting Interviews and Interrogations
There are countless books, articles, and manuals that attempt to describe complicated, cog-
nitive techniques for conducting interviews and interrogations. Most law enforcement per-
sonnel, however, learn such techniques through attendance at advanced training sessions
and via practical experience. Here, as with the use of informants mentioned earlier, we will
only look at some of the basic techniques involved. It should also be mentioned that not
only do detectives conduct interviews and interrogations, patrol officers do so as well.
It is first important to define and distinguish between interviews and interrogations.
Interviewing someone is to merely question him or her in order to obtain superficial infor-
mation; for example, a field interview by a patrol officer would include obtaining one’s
name, address, place of employment, and so on. These questions might be said to be
“inquisitory,” and because the questions do not focus on or involve a specific criminal-
related event, the person has no reason to withhold information, and will normally be
cooperative. Interrogations, however, are more purposeful, focusing on a crime and thus
involving the formal questioning of a suspect in order to obtain incriminating information
and/or a confession. As such, persons being interrogated may well be reluctant, uncoop-
erative, and even hostile toward such questioning.
At the beginning, interrogators are advised to remember certain “articles of faith” in
this regard: take your time; keep a written record of information that is gleaned;
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 144
▼
avoid yes/no questions; and, as mentioned earlier, allow the suspect a “way out” or to save
face. The interrogation should begin by asking several nondistressing questions. Then,
with that baseline of behavior, it now becomes very important to begin observing any
changes in the suspect’s behavior and any visual cues: nonverbal communication often due
to stress. Specifically, the experienced interrogator will pick up on such cues as lack of eye
contact, foot or finger tapping, short breaths, tightly clenched or wringing hands, clearing
of the throat, and fidgeting in the chair. Such cues can also convey that the interviewee is
being defensive or withdrawn. Other axioms among interrogators are that “Liars deny in
detail, truthful people deny categorically,” and that “Liars give rambling and indirect
answers—truthful people answer directly.”92
Again, this is a very simplistic description, and any serious—and successful—attempt
at interrogating suspects must typically involve considerable training and experience.
Summary This chapter has presented the evolution of criminal investigation, including definitions of
key terms, identification of people and firearms, ways investigators work within the larger
context of the criminal justice system, qualities needed by detectives, undercover police
work, polygraph testing, DNA analysis, profiling, using social networking sites, and dogs,
investigating cold cases, and whether or not there is a “CSI Effect.”
The evolution of forensic evidence, criminalistics, and criminal investigation is the
product of a successful symbiosis of science and policing. This chapter has shown the truly
interdisciplinary nature of police work; we discussed not only the influence of the so-called
hard sciences—computer science, chemistry, biology, and physics—but also the assistance
of psychology.
Forensic science is arguably the most rapidly progressing area of criminal justice, and
there is little doubt that the future holds even greater advances in this realm. This disci-
pline has traveled a great distance, especially in laboratory processes, in DNA analysis
and application, and in ever-expanding uses of the computer. The potential of the com-
puter to assist in solving crimes is limited only by our funds and imagination. Thus polic-
ing should continue indefinitely to reap the benefits of applying scientific aids to criminal
justice matters.
Certainly this area of policing carries with it a high degree of fascination and mystique
for the public, and rightfully so. Although policing certainly has its limitations, such as
paperwork, boredom, failures, and other liabilities, there is nothing quite like using “gee
whiz” investigative tools and techniques (see Chapter 14) to catch bad guys—at least in the
public’s mind.
Key Terms
anthropometry
Bertillon system
cold cases
Combined DNA Index Systems
(CODIS)
corpus delicti
crime scene
criminalistics
criminal profiling
dactylography
detective
forensic science
interrogation
interviewing
investigative stages
Locard’s exchange principle
medical examiner
modus operandi
polygraph examiner
postconviction testing
psycholinguistics
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 145
▼
Review Questions
1. How would you differentiate the terms forensic sci-
ence and criminalistics?
2. What are the origins of criminalistics, and what are the
differences between anthropometry and dactylography?
3. What types of information can physical evidence
provide?
4. What contributions did Bertillon, Vollmer, and Locard
make to the development of criminal investigation
techniques?
5. What qualities do detectives and undercover officers
need and use?
6. What contributions do medical examiners provide to
criminal investigators?
7. What are the basic functions of the polygraph, and
what is its legal status in the courts?
8. In lay terms, how does DNA analysis operate?
9. What policy implications are involved with the use of
DNA analysis for investigation of property offenses?
10. What was the purpose of the U.S. Supreme Court
rule concerning the right of prison inmates to receive
a DNA analysis?
11. What is familial DNA, and how does it function?
12. What contributions have behavioral science and
dogs made to criminal investigation?
13. What contributions are social networking sites mak-
ing to criminal investigation?
14. What is the purpose of a cold case squad, and how
does it operate?
15. Is there a “CSI effect” in criminal investigation?
Provide reasons in support of, and opposition to this
question.
16. What are the concerns and controversies involving
the use of confidential informants?
17. How do interviewing and interrogating differ, and
what techniques are used with the latter?
Learn by Doing
1. Unequivocally, the best means of learning about inves-
tigative techniques and forensic methods/equipment is
to tour a modern forensics laboratory. A related aspect
of investigation that should not be overlooked is that
agency’s means of safeguarding the chain of evidence
and its storage prior to and following trial. If, for secu-
rity or other reasons, you are unable to personally (or
as a class) tour a forensic laboratory, then attempt to
interview one or more detectives who work with
crimes against persons and/or property concerning
their methods, training and education; primary obsta-
cles in successfully bringing a case to trial; greatest
challenges in their work; methods employed in
interviewing suspects; constitutional and other legal
aspects of their role; recent changes in the investiga-
tive field; and so on.
2. To fully understand what kinds of investigative efforts
are being made by police to address real-world prob-
lems, go to www.popcenter.org/Problems/?action=
alpha&type=pdf#webguides. There you will find a
selection of individual problem-solving guides—now
more than fifty in number—published by the federal
Center for Problem-Oriented Policing. Select two
guides and describe what they say police are using to
succeed in their investigative and problem-solving
efforts.
Notes
1. Marc H. Caplan and Joe Holt Anderson, Forensics:
When Science Bears Witness (Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1984), p. 2.
2. Charles R. Swanson, Neil C. Chamelin, Leonard
Territo, and Robert W. Taylor, Criminal Investigation,
9th ed. (Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill, 2006), p. 10.
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 146
▼
3. Peter R. DeForest, R. E. Gaensslen, and Henry C. Lee,
Forensic Science: An Introduction to Criminalistics
(New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983), p. 29.
4. U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of
Justice, Crime Scene Investigation: A Reference for
Law Enforcement Training (Washington, D.C.:
Author, 2004).
5. Richard Saferstein, Criminalistics: An Introduction
to Forensic Science, 9th ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2007), p. 8.
6. Jurgen Thorwald, Crime and Science (New York:
Harcourt, Brace and World, 1967), p. 4.
7. Jurgen Thorwald, The Century of the Detective
(New York: Harcourt, Brace and World, 1965), p. 7.
8. Ibid., pp. 9–10.
9. Ibid., p. 12.
10. Swanson et al., Criminal Investigation, p. 12.
11. Ibid., pp. 12–13.
12. Ibid., p. 12.
13. Thorwald, The Century of the Detective, p. 18.
14. Thorwald, The Marks of Cain (London: Thames &
Hudson, 1965), pp. 78–79.
15. W. Jerry Chisum and Brent E. Turvey, “Evidence
Dynamics: Locard’s Exchange Principle & Crime
Reconstruction,” Journal of Behavioral Profiling
2(1) (2000): 3.
16. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
Firearm Violence, 1993–2011 (May 2013), pp. 2, 11,
http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/fv9311.pdf.
17. Swanson et al., Criminal Investigation, p. 17.
18. Saferstein, Criminalistics, pp. 460–461.
19. DeForest et al., Forensic Science, pp. 13–14.
20. Ibid., p. 19.
21. Swanson et al., Criminal Investigation, pp. 8–9.
22. President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and
the Administration of Justice, Task Force Report:
Science and Technology (Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1967), pp. 7–18.
23. Paul B. Weston and Kenneth M. Wells, Criminal
Investigation: Basic Perspectives, 4th ed. (Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986), pp. 5–10.
24. Ibid., p. 207.
25. Ibid., pp. 207–209.
26. Ibid., p. 214.
27. Peter W. Greenwood and Joan Petersilia, The Criminal
Investigation Process, vol. 1, Summary and Policy
Implications (Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 1975). The
entire report is found in Peter W. Greenwood, Jan M.
Chaiken, and Joan Petersilia, The Criminal Investigation
Process (Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath, 1977).
28. Ibid.
29. Ibid., p. 19.
30. Weston and Wells, Criminal Investigation, p. 5.
31. DeForest et al., Forensic Science, p. 11.
32. Mark R. Pogrebin and Eric D. Poole, “Vice Isn’t
Nice: A Look at the Effects of Working Undercover,”
Journal of Criminal Justice 21 (1993): 383–394.
33. Ibid., pp. 383–384.
34. Peter K. Manning, The Narc’s Game: Organizational
and Informational Limits on Drug Enforcement
(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1980).
35. M. Girodo, “Drug Corruption in Undercover
Agents: Measuring the Risk,” Behavioral Sciences
and the Law 3 (1991): 299–308; also see David L.
Carter, “An Overview of Drug-Related Conduct of
Police Officers: Drug Abuse and Narcotics
Corruption,” in Drugs, Crime, and the Criminal
Justice System, ed. Ralph Weisheit (Cincinnati, OH:
Anderson, 1990).
36. Federal Bureau of Investigation, The Special Agent
in Undercover Investigations (Washington, D.C.:
Author, 1978).
37. A. L. Strauss, “Turning Points in Identity,” in Social
Interaction, eds. C. Clark and H. Robboy (New York:
St. Martin’s, 1988).
38. Gary T. Marx, “Who Really Gets Stung? Some
Issues Raised by the New Police Undercover Work,”
in Moral Issues in Police Work, eds. F. Ellison and
M. Feldberg (Totowa, NJ: Bowman and Allanheld,
1988), pp. 99–128.
39. G. Farkas, “Stress in Undercover Policing,” in
Psychological Services for Law Enforcement, eds.
J. T. Reese and H. A. Goldstein (Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1986).
40. New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator,
“What is a Coroner?” http://omi.unm.edu/about/faq/
coroner.html.
41. Ibid., “What is a forensic pathologist?” http://omi.
unm.edu/about/faq/forensic-pathologist.html.
42. Dan Sosnowski, “Investigator’s Use of the
Polygraph,” http://www.patc.com/weeklyarticles/
print/polygraph-investigation.pdf.
43. American Polygraph Association, “Frequently Asked
Questions,” http://www.polygraph.org/index.
php?option=com_content&view=article&id=68:
polygraph-frequently-asked-questions&catid=
20:site-content&Itemid=168.
44. Sosnowski, “Investigator’s Use of the Polygraph.”
45. Ibid.
46. Frank Horvath, “Polygraph,” in The Encyclopedia of
Police Science, 2nd ed., ed. William G. Bailey
(New York: Garland, 1995), p. 642.
47. Livescience, “DNA Definition, Structure, & Discovery,”
http://www.livescience.com/37247-dna.html.
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 147
▼
48. Lemelson-MIT, “Sir Alec John Jeffreys—Genetic
Fingerprinting,” http://lemelson.mit.edu/resources/
sir-alec-john-jeffreys.
49. Saferstein, Criminalistics, pp. 382–383.
50. Jack Thomas, “Victims of the Boston Strangler,” Boston
Globe, June 13, 2002, https://www.bostonglobe.com/
m e t r o / 2 0 1 3 / 0 7 / 1 1 / v i c t i m s - b o s t o n - s t r a n g l e r /
CwbsZlSNcfwmhSetpqNlhL/story.html.
51. Erle Stanley Gardner, “The Mad Strangler of
Boston,” The Atlantic, May 1964.
52. Time Magazine, “Crime: The Phantom Strangler,”
March 22, 1963. http://content.time.com/time/
magazine/article/0,9171,896645,00.html
53. The Guardian, “He’s not the Boston Strangler. He
didn’t kill my aunt,” September 21, 2000. http://www.
theguardian.com/g2/story/0,3604,371006,00.html
54. Philip Bulman, “Solving Cold Cases with DNA: The
Boston Strangler Case,” NIJ Journal 273 (2014):
48–51. http://www.nij.gov/journals/273/Pages/
boston-strangler.aspx.
55. Ibid.
56. For further information concerning this and other
such cases, see Eric W. Hickey, Serial Murderers and
their Victims, 5th ed. (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth,
Cengage Learning, 2010).
57. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “DNA Casework
Unit,” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/lab/biometric-
analysis/dna-casework-unit-dcu-1.
58. Ibid.
59. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Combined DNA
Index System,” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/lab/
biometric-analysis/codis.
60. U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of
Justice, DNA Solves Property Crimes (But Are We
Ready for That?) (Washington, D.C.: Author,
October 2008), p. 2.
61. Ibid., p. 3.
62. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Crime in the United
States, 2014: Burglary,” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/
cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2014/crime-in-the-u.s.-2014/
offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/burglary.
63. U.S. Department of Justice, DNA Solves Property
Crimes, p. 10.
64. Ibid., p. 3.
65. Ibid., p. 10.
66. Adam Liptak, “Justices Reject Inmate Right to DNA
Tests,” New York Times, June 18, 2009,www.nytimes.
com/2009/06/19/us/19scotus.html.
67. Matthew Cella, “Familial DNA gives investigators
another tool,” The Washington Times, March 21, 2011,
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/
mar/21/familial-dna-gives-investigators-another-tool/.
68. Patrick E. Cook and Dayle L. Hinman, “Criminal
Profiling: Science and Art,” Journal of Contemporary
Criminal Justice 15 (August 1999): 230.
69. Ibid., p. 232.
70. Steven A. Egger, “Psychological Profiling,” Journal of
Contemporary Criminal Justice 15 (August 1999): 243.
71. A. C. Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, published by
Penguin, © 2005.
72. Walter C. Langer, The Mind of Adolph Hitler
(New York: World, 1978).
73. Swanson et al., Criminal Investigation, 4th ed.,
pp. 601–602.
74. Brad Darrach and Joel Norris, “An American
Tragedy,” Life, August 1984, p. 58.
75. Swanson et al., Criminal Investigation, pp. 606–607.
76. Cook and Hinman, “Criminal Profiling,” p. 234.
77. Aaron Smith, Laurie Segall, and Stacy Cowley
“Facebook Reaches One Billion Users,” CNNMoney,
October 4, 2012, http://money.cnn.com/2012/10/04/
technology/facebook-billion-users/index.html.
78. Jim McElhatton, “Feds Use Facebook to Collect
Crime Evidence,” http://www.washingtontimes.com/
n e w s / 2 0 1 1 / a p r / 2 7 / f e d s - u s e - f a c e b o o k - t o -
collect-crime-evidence/?page=all.
79. International Association of Chiefs of Police, IACP
Center for Social Media, “2015 Survey Results,”
h t t p : / / w w w. i a c p s o c i a l m e d i a . o rg / R e s o u r c e s /
Publications/2014SurveyResults.aspx.
80. Heather Kelly, “Police embrace social media as
crime-fighting tool,” CNN Tech, August 30, 2012,
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/30/tech/social-media/
fighting-crime-social-media/index.html.
81. Ibid.
82. Ryan Turner and Rachel Kosa, Cold Case Squads:
Leaving No Stone Unturned (Washington, DC: U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance,
July 2003), pp. 2–4.
83. Cold Case Investigative Research Institute,
“Welcome to the Cold Case Investigative Research
Institute,” http://www.coldcasecrimes.org/index.
html. Also note that the Henry C. Lee Institute of
Forensic Science has a “Cold Case Center;” see
http://www.henryleeinstitute.com/?page_id=415.
84. Adam Liptak, “Drug-Sniffing Dogs Have Their Day
in Court as Justices Hear 2 Arguments,” New York
Times, October 31, 2012,http://www.nytimes.
c o m / 2 0 1 2 / 1 1 / 0 1 / u s / j u s t i c e s - h e a r- a rg u m e n t s -
involving- drug-sniffing-dogs.html.
85. Tom Geoghegan, “The Unlikely Enemy of the
Terrorist,” BBC News Magazine, July 13, 2005,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/
4676233.stm.
CHAPTER 5 Criminal Investigation 148
▼
86. BBC News, “Dog Cameras to Combat Gun Crime,”
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/
4497212.stm.
87. Thomas Hughes and Megan Magers, “The Perceived
Impact of Crime Scene Investigation Shows on the
Administration of Justice,” Journal of Criminal
Justice and Popular Culture 14(3) (2007): 262,
h t t p : / / w w w. a l b a n y. e d u / s c j / j c j p c / v o l 1 4 i s 3 /
HughesMagers.pdf.
88. Ibid., p. 265.
89. Ibid., p. 271.
90. Alexandra Natapoff, “Snitching and Use of Criminal
Informants,” Oxford Bibliographies, http://www.
o x f o r d b i b l i o g r a p h i e s . c o m / v i e w / d o c u m e n t /
obo-9780195396607/obo-9780195396607-0044.xml.
91. Brian Lieberman, “Ethical Issues in the Use of
Confidential Informants for Narcotic Operations,”
The Police Chief, June 2007, http://www.policechief-
magazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=
display_arch&article_id=1210&issue_id=62007.
92. See, for example, Clayton Browne, “Police Interview
Techniques,” Chron (2013), http://work.chron.com/
police-interview-techniques-11580.html; Ronald
P. Fisher and R. Edward Geiselman “The Cognitive
Interview Method of Conducting Police Interviews:
Eliciting Extensive Information and Promoting
Therapeutic Jurisprudence,” International Journal of
Law and Psychiatry 23(5) (November–December
2010): 321–328, http://www.sciencedirect.com/
science/article/pii/S0160252710000762; Steve
Finney, “Interview & Interrogation,” the University of
Texas at Dallas (n.d.), http://www.learningace.com/
doc/2638370/4822684bc121a8f797316ce9c5fe573a/
interview-interrogation.
149
▼
6 Personnel Issues and Practices Stress, Labor Relations, Higher Education, and Private Police
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Describe the causes and effects of stress in policing and strategies for managing and reducing stress
❷ Explain labor relations issues for police officers including the rights of officers and the concepts of unionization and collective bargaining
❸ Analyze the arguments for and against minimum postsecondary educational requirements for police officers
(Courtesy Copyright © Spencer Grant/PhotoEdit.)
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 150
▼
❹ Describe the evolution of private policing
❺ Explain the challenges posed by Millennials entering the workforce
Introduction
This chapter addresses a number of important policing matters that could have been included in previ-
ous chapters. But because of their common nature—all represent a substantial degree of change, con-
troversy, and/or influence within society and the operations of their agencies—they are consolidated
and set apart here for discussion.
First we examine police stress, which can certainly be debilitating to those who are engaged in police
service as well as their peers, supervisors, and the public; included in this discussion are its myriad
causes and physical and emotional effects. Next we look at the broad area of labor relations, which
includes police officers’ rights, unionization, and collective bargaining. This is a significant yet often
overlooked aspect of policing across the nation, particularly in the East and the West, and it warrants a
substantial amount of attention for all who are in, or might enter, policing.
Then we consider the topic of higher education for police, which has been a topic of debate for nearly a
century. Finally, we examine the extent and nature of private police/security forces, and attempts to
improve such organizations and to align them more closely with public police organizations. A sum-
mary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportunities for
you to learn by doing conclude the chapter.
▶ The Silent Epidemic: Stress
We would prefer to ignore one side of policing—the stress that is induced by the job—and
its supervision and management. Indeed, Sir W. S. Gilbert observed that “When constabu-
lary duty’s to be done, the policeman’s lot is not a happy one.”1 Furthermore, William A.
Westley observed that “The policeman’s world is spawned of degradation, corruption and
insecurity. He walks alone, a pedestrian in Hell.”2
Many people with whom the police interact are heavily armed and arrogant. The job of
policing has never been easy, but the danger, frustration, and family disruption of the past
have been made worse by the drug war and violent criminals who have more contempt for
the police than ever before. Furthermore, as will be seen later in this chapter, compounding
this situation is that the officer’s own organizational policies and practices often generate
more stress than the streets.
Nature and Types of Stress
The police work environment itself can and does have adverse effects on police officers. It
creates stress, which may be defined as a force that is external in nature that causes both
physical and emotional strain upon the body. The late Hans Selye, who is known as “the
father of stress research,” defined stress as a nonspecific response of a body to demands
placed on it. Succinctly, stressors are situations or occurrences outside of ourselves that we
allow to turn inward and cause problems.3
Stress can be positive or negative. Positive stress is referred to as eustress, while
negative stress is called distress. When people think about stress, they usually focus on
negative stress and negative situations; however, positive events in our lives can create
stress. For example, an officer’s promotion to sergeant is a positive experience, but at the
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 151
▼
same time it creates stress. The officer has to react and adjust to the new position. The pro-
motion, although positive for the officer’s career, is somewhat psychologically disruptive.
Traumatic stress is the result of an extremely stressful event, such as a line-of-duty
shooting or a hostage situation. This stress is immediate and has a significant and profound
impact on the officer. Chronic stress, on the other hand, generally represents the accumula-
tion of the effects of numerous stressful events over time. Each can adversely affect a
police officer and result in physical, emotional, and psychological problems. Traumatic
stress may subside over time, but chronic stress for many police officers is ever present. If
an officer cannot cope with a traumatic stressful event or manage the long-term effects of
chronic stress, he or she may suffer from its consequences.
No human being can exist in a continuous state of stress. The body strives to maintain its
normal state, homeostasis, and to adapt to the alarm, but it can actually develop disease in
the process. Thus, it is extremely important for police agencies to recognize stress and its
impact on officers and their productivity.
Sources of Stress
Stress can come from a number of directions, so police officers can experience job stress as
the result of a wide range of problems and situations. The four general categories of
▲ Police work presents a variety of stressors, including
felony car stops and responding to critical incidents.
(Courtesy ID1974/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 152
▼
stress are: (1) organizational and administrative practices, (2) the criminal justice system,
(3) the public, and (4) stress intrinsic to police work itself.
Organizational and Administrative Practices A primary source of stress is the police organization itself. Police departments typically are bureaucratic and authoritarian
in nature, and this type of organization creates stress for individual officers in at least two
ways. First, police departments follow strict rules and regulations that are dictated by top
management. Line officers and first-line supervisors seldom have direct input into their
formulation, resulting in officers feeling powerless and alienated about the decisions that
directly affect their jobs. Second, these rules dictate how officers specifically perform
many of their duties and responsibilities. They are created to provide officers with
guidance and direction. Police officers, however, sometimes view them as mechanisms
used by management to restrict their freedom and discretion or to punish them. Officers
also view rules as protection for the department when officers make incorrect decisions or
errors. In these instances, departments sometimes use rules to avoid liability when officers’
actions are challenged in civil actions.
Problems are also faced by female police officers (see Chapter 4). Because policing has
traditionally been a male-dominated occupation, in many agencies female officers do not
have the same standing as their male counterparts. The primary sources of stress for female
officers are sexual harassment and treatment different from that which males receive in the
workplace. Some women officers have reported that they were given different assignments,
were the object of jokes (often concerning sexual orientation), were propositioned by male
officers, and were generally victimized by gender stereotyping in the department.4
The Criminal Justice System Each component of the criminal justice system affects the other components. For example, judges have openly displayed hostile attitudes
toward the police, or prosecutors have not displayed proper respect to officers, arbitrarily
dismissing cases, having them appear in court during regularly scheduled days off, and
advocating rulings restricting police procedures.5 Another example occurs when parole
officers and probation officers do an inadequate job of supervising parolees, which results
in their being involved in an inordinate amount of crime. The courts have the most direct
impact on police officers and probably are the greatest source of stress from the criminal
justice system.
The Public When police officers perform community services, they also become involved in conflicts or negative situations. They arrest citizens, write tickets, and give citizens orders
when intervening in domestic violence or disorder situations. Often, to resolve problems,
they make half of the participants happy, but the other half are unhappy. The problem is
that police officers develop unrealistic or inaccurate ideas about citizens as a result of their
negative encounters. Officers must keep their relationship with citizens in proper perspective.
This is achieved by open, straightforward discussions of public attitudes and encounters with
citizens. It also means that managers must emphasize the importance of good police–public
relations and of the majority of citizens supporting and respecting the police.
Stressors Intrinsic to Police Work Police work is fraught with situations that pose physical danger to officers. Domestic violence, felonies in progress, and fight calls often
require officers to physically confront suspects. It would seem that police work itself,
since it includes dealing with dangerous police activities and dangerous people, would be
the most stressful part of police work. Certainly traumatic incidents can require long-term
follow-up support for law enforcement personnel.
Another major job-related stressor involves undercover work (discussed in Chapter 4).
The glamorous depiction of undercover officers in books, movies, and other media does
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 153
▼
not adequately portray the stress that is caused by the overall nature of the work—the iso-
lation, danger, relationships with suspects, loss of personal identity, protracted periods of
removal from family and friends, and fear of discovery.6
Effects of Stress
It has been estimated that 15 percent of a department’s officers will be in a burnout phase
at any time. These officers account for 70 to 80 percent of all the complaints against their
department, including physical abuse, verbal abuse, and misuse of firearms. If officers do
not relieve the pressure, they eventually may suffer heart attacks, nervous breakdowns,
back problems, headaches, psychosomatic illnesses, and alcoholism. They may also
manifest excessive weight gain or loss; combativeness or irritability; excessive perspira-
tion; excessive use of sick leave; excessive use of alcohol, tobacco, or drugs; marital or
family disorders; inability to complete an assignment; loss of interest in work, hobbies,
and people in general; more than the usual number of “accidents,” including vehicular and
other types; and shooting incidents.8 An extreme reaction to stress is suicide. Police are at
a higher risk for committing suicide because of their access to firearms, continuous expo-
sure to human misery, shift work, social strain, marital difficulties, physical illness, and
alcohol addiction.
It is imperative that officers learn to manage their stress before it causes deep physical
and/or emotional harm. One means is to view the mind as a “mental bucket” and strive to
keep it full through hobbies or activities that provide relaxation. Exercise, proper nutrition,
and positive lifestyle choices (such as not smoking and moderation with alcohol) are also
essential for good health.
Employee Assistance Programs
To help officers deal with stress and its effects, a comprehensive wellness program is
needed that should involve five elements: (1) physical fitness, (2) stress management, (3)
psychological and mental health, (4) nutrition and dietary-related behaviors, and
exhibit 6-1
An often overlooked aspect of police work—and one
that certainly can be stressful for officers—is the task of
delivering tragic news to citizens concerning the death
of a loved one or other catastrophic information.
Sometimes this topic is addressed in academy training,
sometimes it is not; but in either case, it is a task for
which one is never fully prepared, and the manner in
which this task is handled may make a major difference
in how soon the recipient(s) of the news begins to
recover from their loss. A case in point is the state
trooper in Florida who told the parents of a girl who had
been involved in a head-on auto accident that she had
been taken to a trauma unit of a hospital. Later, as the
parents were on their way to the hospital, the trooper
called to ask the parents where they were; they told him,
and he stated “I thought I told you [she] didn’t make it.”
There are obviously right and wrong methods for
making such notifications. First, the officer should con-
firm the identity of the person who is deceased as well as
the identity of the person to receive the notification, and
their address. Certainly, the officer must be sympathetic
and compassionate, and deliver the message in person.
Preferably, the officer will be accompanied by someone,
such as a police chaplain or a friend or relative of the
recipient(s); this person can remain there after the officer
leaves and until other relatives or friends arrive. The offi-
cer should also be prepared for different reactions on the
part of the recipient(s); not everyone responds in the same
manner, and may even faint or become hostile.7
Source: Larry Copeland, “Police Trained in Delivering Tragic News,”
USA Today, October 26, 2011, http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/
nation/story/2011-10-25/death-notification-mourning/50913338/1.
DELIVERING DEATH MESSAGES AND TRAGIC NEWS
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 154
▼
(5) alcohol/chemical dependency. Police agencies need a comprehensive wellness pro-
gram to assist officers in coping with stress, but if that fails or is absent, an employee assis-
tance program (EAP) should be available to help officers to cope with alcohol and substance
abuse, psychological problems such as depression, or family management problems.
Excessive drinking and alcoholism remain a problem in policing. When officers’ drink-
ing becomes excessive, other officers and frequently supervisors and the department cover
up for them. In the end, however, covering up drinking problems postpones officers’ seek-
ing or being required to obtain assistance. Drug abuse can also be present among officers,
although it is not known if it is a significant problem. What is known, however, is that drug
testing reduces the incidence of drug usage among police officers. If officers know they are
going to be tested, they are less likely to use drugs. A number of departments require offi-
cers in selected assignments such as narcotics or special response teams to submit to drug
testing, and some departments require testing of officers being transferred to such units.
If an officer is found to be using illegal drugs, what should be done with the employee?
A number of arguments can be made for immediate termination. First, the police officer
has committed a crime. Second, the officer has associated with known criminals when
obtaining the illegal drugs. And third, the officer’s drug use poses a liability problem for
the police department. Immediate termination is counter to a humane view of police per-
sonnel administration, however. It should be realized that job stress may be the primary
contributing factor to the drug usage. Furthermore, the department has a significant invest-
ment in each of its officers, and a termination decision should not be taken lightly; problem
officers can be salvaged and returned to work. Thus, termination, although an acceptable
choice for officers with chronic drug problems, may not be the best solution for officers
who had not previously caused the department any problems or had not otherwise been in
trouble. Factors considered in making this decision include the severity of the offense (type
and amount of drug used and whether or not the officer went beyond mere usage), prior
drug and disciplinary problems, and the probability of the officer being rehabilitated.
▶ Labor Relations: Officers’ Rights, Unionization, and Collective Bargaining
A long line of court cases has established that public employees have a property interest in
their employment. The U.S. Supreme Court has provided some general guidance on how
the question of a constitutionally protected property interest is to be resolved:
To have a property interest in a benefit, a person . . . must have a legitimate claim of entitle-
ment to it. It is a purpose of the ancient institution of property to protect those claims upon
which people rely in their daily lives, reliance that must not be arbitrarily undermined
[emphasis added].9
Labor relations—a broad term that includes officers’ employment rights and the related
concepts of unionization and collective bargaining—has become an important issue in
policing. This section explores these topics.
Police Officers’ Rights Chapter 8 will examine several restrictions that are placed on the rights of police officers (such as place of residence, religious practices, freedom of
speech, and search and seizure). Given those numerous restrictions, in this section, we
look at some measures the police have taken to maintain their rights on the job to the
extent possible.
In the 1980s and 1990s, police officers began to insist on greater procedural safe-
guards to protect themselves against what they perceived as arbitrary infringements on
their rights. These demands have been reflected in a statute enacted in many states,
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 155
▼
generally known as the Peace Officer Bill of Rights. This legislation confers on police
employees a property interest in their position and mandates due process rights for peace
officers who are the subject of internal investigations that could lead to disciplinary action.
The legislation identifies the type of information that must be provided to the accused
officer, the officer’s responsibility to cooperate during the investigation, the officer’s rights
to representation during the process, and the rules and procedures concerning the collec-
tion of certain types of evidence. Following are some provisions of the Peace Officer Bill
of Rights:
• Written notice. The department must provide the officer with written notice of the nature of the investigation, a summary of the alleged misconduct, and the name of the inves-
tigating officer.
• Right to representation. Although not a universal right, many, if not most, states allow the officer to have an attorney or a representative of his or her choosing present during
any phase of questioning or any hearing.
• Polygraph examination. The officer may refuse to take a polygraph examination unless the complainant submits to an examination and is determined to be telling the truth.
In this case, the officer may be ordered to take a polygraph examination or may be
subject to disciplinary action.
Officers expect to be treated fairly, honestly, and respectfully during the course of an
internal investigation. In turn, the public expects that the agency will develop sound disci-
plinary policies and will conduct thorough inquiries into allegations of misconduct. It is
imperative that supervisors be thoroughly familiar with statutes, contract provisions, and
existing rules between employer and employee to ensure that procedural due process
requirements are met, particularly in disciplinary cases in which an employee’s property
interest is affected.
Police officers today are also more likely to file a grievance when they believe that
their rights have been violated. Grievances may cover a broad range of issues, including
salaries, overtime, leaves, hours of work, allowances, retirement, opportunities for
advancement, performance evaluations, workplace conditions, tenure, disciplinary actions,
supervisory methods, and administrative practices. The preferred method for settling an
officer’s grievance is through informal discussion during which the employee explains his
or her grievance to the immediate supervisor, and most complaints can be handled this
way. Complaints that cannot be dealt with informally are usually handled through a more
formal grievance process, which may involve several different levels of action.
Unionization The first campaign to organize the police started shortly after World War I when the American Federation of Labor (AFL) reversed a long-standing policy and issued
charters to police unions in Boston, Washington, D.C., and about thirty other cities.10
The unions’ success was short-lived, however. The Boston police commissioner refused
to recognize the union, forbade officers to join it, and filed charges against several union
officials. Shortly thereafter, on September 9, 1919, the Boston police initiated a famous
strike of three days’ duration, causing major riots and a furor against the police all across
the nation; nine rioters were killed, and twenty-three were seriously injured. During the
strike, Massachusetts Governor Calvin Coolidge uttered his now-famous statement:
“There is no right to strike against the public safety by anybody, anywhere, anytime.” Then
in the early 1950s, many benevolent and fraternal organizations of police were formed in
cities such as Chicago, New York, and Washington, D.C.; others were fraternal orders of
police (FOPs). Soon a new group of highly vocal rank-and-file association leaders came
into power, supporting higher salaries and pensions, free legal aid, low-cost insurance, and
other benefits.11 Since the 1970s, the unionization of the police has continued to flourish.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 156
▼
Today the majority of U.S. police officers belong to some form of association12; indeed,
there are numerous unions and associations that are willing to represent, and do represent
police employees at several levels (i.e., nonsupervisory, supervisory, and management).
The Fraternal Order of Police claims to hold the largest membership of sworn police
officers in the world, with 330,000 members in more than 2,200 lodges.13
Collective Bargaining In this section, different models, negotiations, and impasses associated with collective bargaining (the process of negotiations between employer and
employees) are covered.
Three Models. Each state is free to decide which public-sector employees (if any) will
have collective-bargaining rights and under what terms, so there is considerable variety in
collective-bargaining arrangements across the United States. Three basic models are used
in the states: (1) binding arbitration, (2) meet and confer, and (3) bargaining not required.14
Under the binding-arbitration model, public employees are given the right to bargain with
their employers. If the bargaining reaches an impasse, the matter is submitted to a neutral arbiter,
who decides what the terms and conditions of the new collective-bargaining agreement will be.15
Only a few states use the meet-and-confer model, which grants very few rights to pub-
lic employees. As with the binding-arbitration model, police employees in meet-and-
confer states have the right to organize and to select their own bargaining representatives.16
However, when an impasse is reached, employees are at a distinct disadvantage: Their
only legal choices are to accept the employer’s best offer, try to influence the offer through
political tactics (such as appeals for public support), or take some permissible job action.17
The states that follow the bargaining-not-required model have statutes that either do
not require or do not allow collective bargaining by public employees.18 In the majority of
these states, laws permitting public employees to engage in collective bargaining have not
been passed.
Negotiations. Figure 6-1 ■ depicts a typical configuration of the union and management
bargaining teams. Positions shown in dashed boxes typically serve in a support role and
FIGURE 6-1 Union and Management Collective Bargaining Teams Kenneth J. Peak, Policing America 8th Ed., © 2018. Pearson Education,
Inc., New York, NY.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 157
▼
may or may not actually partake in the bargaining. The management’s labor relations
manager (lead negotiator) is often an attorney assigned to the human resources department
who reports to the city manager or assistant city manager and represents the city in griev-
ances and arbitration matters. The union’s chief negotiator will normally not be a member
of the bargaining unit; rather, he or she will be a specialist brought in to represent the
union’s position and to provide greater experience, expertise, objectivity, and autonomy.
The union’s chief negotiator may be accompanied by individuals who have conducted sur-
veys on wages and benefits, trends in the consumer price index, and so on.19
Management’s chief negotiator may be the director of labor relations or the human
resources director for the unit of government involved or a professional labor relations
specialist. The agency’s chief executive should not appear at the table personally—it is
extremely delicate for the chief to represent management one day and then return to work
among the employees the next day. Management is represented by a key member of the
command staff who has the executive’s confidence.
Impasses. The purpose of bargaining is to produce a bilateral written agreement to
which both parties will bind themselves during the lifetime of the agreement. Even parties
bargaining in good faith may not be able to resolve their differences by themselves, and
an impasse may result. In such cases, a neutral third party may be appointed to facilitate,
suggest, or compel an agreement. Three major forms of impasse resolution are mediation,
fact-finding, and arbitration:
1. Mediation. Mediation occurs when a third party, called the mediator, comes in to help
the adversaries with the negotiations.20 This person may be a professional mediator
or someone in whom both parties have confidence. In most states, mediation may be
requested by either labor or management. The mediator’s task is to build agreement
about the issues involved by reopening communication between the two sides. The
mediator has no way to compel an agreement, so an advantage of the process is that
it preserves the nature of collective bargaining by maintaining the decision-making
power in the hands of the parties involved.21
2. Fact-finding. Fact-finding primarily involves the interpretation of facts and the deter-
mination of what weight to attach to them. Appointed in the same way as mediators,
fact-finders also do not have a way to impose a settlement of the dispute. Fact-finders
may sit alone or as part of a panel, which normally consists of three people. The fact-
finding hearing is quasi-judicial, although less strict rules of evidence are applied.
Both labor and management may be represented by legal counsel, and verbatim
transcripts are commonly made. In most cases, the fact-finder’s recommendations
are made public at some point.22
3. Arbitration. Arbitration parallels fact-finding but differs in that the “end product of
arbitration is a final and binding decision that sets the terms of the settlement and
with which the parties are legally required to comply.”23 Arbitration may be compul-
sory or voluntary: It is compulsory when mandated by state law, and binding on the
parties even if one of them is unwilling to comply; it is voluntary when the parties of
their own volition decide to use the procedure. Even when entered into voluntarily,
arbitration is binding on the parties who have agreed to it.
Grievances. The establishment of a working agreement between labor and management
does not mean that the possibility for conflict no longer exists; the day-to-day administration
of the agreement may also be the basis for strife. Questions can arise about the interpretation
and application of the document and its various clauses. Grievances—complaints or expres-
sions of dissatisfaction by an employee concerning some aspect of employment—may arise.
The grievance procedure is a formal process that involves the seeking of redress of the
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 158
▼
complaints through progressively higher channels within the organization. The sequence of
the grievance process will be spelled out in the collective-bargaining agreement and will
typically include the following steps: The employee presents the grievance to his or her
immediate supervisor; if the employee does not receive satisfaction, a written grievance is
presented to the division commander, then to the chief executive officer, then to the city or
county manager, and finally to an arbiter, who is selected according to the rules of the
American Arbitration Association.24
The burden of proof is on the grieving party except in disciplinary cases, in which it is
always on the employer. The parties may be represented by counsel at the hearing, and the
format will include opening statements by each side, examination and cross-examination
of any witnesses, and closing arguments in the reverse order in which opening arguments
were made.25
Job Actions. A job action is an activity in which employees engage to express their dis-
satisfaction with a particular person, event, or condition or to attempt to inf luence the
outcome of some matter pending before decision makers.26 There are four types of job
actions: vote of confidence, work slowdown, work speedup, and work stoppage.
1. Vote of confidence. The vote of confidence is used sparingly. A vote of no confidence
signals employees’ collective displeasure with the chief administrator of the agency.
Although such votes have no legal standing, they may have high impact due to the
resulting publicity.
2. Work slowdown. In work slowdowns, employees continue to work, but they do so at a
leisurely pace, causing productivity to fall. As productivity declines, revenues decline
(through fewer citations being issued), and the public may pressure government offi-
cials to bring about normal operations (e.g., to slow down speeders in school zones,
and so forth).27
3. Work speedup. A work speedup involves accelerated activity in the level of services.
For example, a police department may conduct a “ticket blizzard” to pressure public
officials into granting pay increases, to make more concessions at the bargaining
table, or to abandon some policy change that affects their working conditions. In any
case, the idea is to raise public ire by the police doing their jobs—with too much
gusto, and with an impact on wallets and purses.
4. Work stoppage. Work stoppages constitute the most severe job action. The ultimate
work stoppage is the strike, or the withholding of all employee services. This tactic
is most often used by labor to force management back to the bargaining table when
negotiations have reached an impasse. However, criminal justice employee strikes
are now rare. Briefer work stoppages, which do not involve all employees and are
known in policing as “blue flu,” last only a few days.
Fair Labor Standards Act. An area of policing that is at the heart of management–labor
relations is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). For some police administrators, the FLSA
is, as one observer termed it, the criminal justice administrator’s “worst nightmare come
true.”28 On the other hand, it has been said that the FLSA is one of the most important
labor laws ever passed, and forever changed American policing: it meant that police offi-
cers could no longer be required to work more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week
without compensation, nor did local police unions and associations have to argue at the
collective bargaining table for their members to be paid overtime.29 The act provides min-
imum pay and overtime provisions covering both public- and private-sector employees
and contains special provisions for firefighters and police officers. The FLSA was first
enacted in 1938 to protect the rights and working conditions of employees in the private
sector; in 1985, however, the U.S. Supreme Court brought state and local governmental
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 159
▼
employees under its coverage as well (in Garcia v. San Antonio Transit Authority).30
Police operations, which take place 24 hours a day, seven days a week, often require
overtime and participation in off-duty activities such as court appearances and training
sessions. The FLSA provides that an employer must generally pay employees time and a
half for all hours worked over 40 per week; overtime must also be paid to personnel for
all work in excess of 43 hours in a seven-day cycle or 171 hours in a twenty-eight-day
period. Public-safety employees may accrue a maximum of 480 hours of “comp” (com-
pensation) time, which, if not utilized as leave, must be paid off upon separation from
employment at each employee’s final rate of pay or at the average pay over the last three
years, whichever is greater.31 Furthermore, employers usually cannot require employees
to take comp time in lieu of cash. Today, an officer who works the night shift must receive
pay for attending training or testifying in court during the day. Furthermore, officers who
are ordered to remain at home in anticipation of emergency actions must be compensated.
Notably, however, FLSA’s overtime provisions do not apply to those who are employed in
a bona fide executive, administrative, or professional capacity. In criminal justice, the act
has generally been held to apply to detectives and sergeants but not to those of the rank of
lieutenant and above.
▶ The Continuing Discussion: Higher Education
Lagging Behind
That policing lags well behind our society-at-large in terms of its emphasis on educational
attainment is evident: the percentage of Americans who have completed a bachelor’s or
higher degree now stands at 34 percent; the percentage who hold a master’s or higher
▲ Whether or not police officers should be compelled to possess college degrees is a source of
enduring controversy. (Courtesy aastock/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 160
▼
degree is 8 percent.32 Conversely, although the actual percentage of local (county and
municipal) police officers holding at least a bachelor’s degree is unknown, a 2015 publica-
tion of the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that 84 percent of departments only require a
high school diploma, 15 percent have some type of college requirement, and 23 percent of
officers were employed by a department that required new entry-level officers to have a
two-year degree.33
Certainly, the shift to community policing and problem-solving era of policing (dis-
cussed in Chapters 1 and 4) would seem to make the case that postsecondary education is
more critical than ever before. The problem analysis and skills needed to develop tailor-
made responses to neighborhood crime and disorder appears to practically cry out for post-
secondary preparation. In a similar way, the threat of terrorism—and the relatively recent
inception of such concepts as intelligence-led policing, predictive policing, fusion centers,
and so on—would seem to make college preparation the degree of necessity. Nonetheless,
for nearly a century, there has been a debate over whether or not a college education is
beneficial for police officers.34
An Enduring Controversy
The aforementioned small percentage of agencies requiring a college degree is certainly
surprising in light of the reports of numerous studies, courts, and national commissions
(some of which are discussed later) that have concluded that higher education is essential
for police officers. As will be seen, this remains one of policing’s most enduring and con-
troversial issues.
Efforts to involve college-educated personnel in police work were first made by August
Vollmer (discussed in Chapter 1) in 1917 when he recruited University of California stu-
dents as part-time police officers in Berkeley.35 However, few departments elsewhere in
the country took any immediate steps to follow Vollmer’s example. Rank-and-file officers
strongly resisted the concept of college-level studies for police, and officers with a college
education remained very much an exception; they were often referred to disparagingly as
“college cops.”36
However, the movement toward higher education for police continued to spread: By
1975, there were 729 community college and 376 four-year applicable programs.37 The
Law Enforcement Education Program (LEEP) provided tuition assistance for in-service
police officers and preservice students. In 1973, 95,000 college and university students
were receiving LEEP assistance—unquestionably the “glory days” of higher education in
criminal justice.38 Many patrol officers who otherwise could not have afforded it received
quality higher education.
Rationales For and Against Higher Education for Police
The issue of higher education for police officers has been addressed by a number of notable
entities, going back more than forty years. First, the President’s Commission on Law
Enforcement and the Administration of Justice made this statement in 1967:
It is nonsense to state or assume that the enforcement of law is so simple that it can be done
by those unencumbered by the study of liberal arts. Officers of any department should cer-
tainly be conversant with the structure of government, [and] be well grounded in sociology,
criminology, and human relations in order to understand the ramifications of the problems
which confront them daily.39
In 1973, the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals,
concurring that college-educated officers were needed, recommended that all police
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 161
▼
officers have a four-year college education by 1982,40 a goal that obviously went unmet.
Nevertheless, from 1967 to 1986, every national commission that studied crime, violence,
and policing in America came to the conclusion that a college education could help the
police do their jobs better.41 Advocates of higher education for the police maintain that it
will improve the quality of policing by making officers more tolerant of people who are
different from themselves; in this view, college-educated officers are more professional,
communicate better with citizens, are better decision makers, and have better written and
verbal skills than less educated officers.
A ringing endorsement for higher education for the police also came in 1985 when a
lawsuit challenged the Dallas, Texas, Police Department’s requirement that all applicants
for police officer positions possess 45 credit hours and at least a C average at an accredited
college or university. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and eventually the U.S. Supreme
Court, upheld the educational requirement. The circuit court said:
Even a rookie police officer must have the ability to handle tough situations. A significant
part of a police officer’s function involves his ability to function effectively as a crisis inter-
venor, in family fights, teenage rumbles, bar brawls, street corner altercations, racial distur-
bances, riots and similar situations. Few professionals are so peculiarly charged with
individual responsibilities as police officers. Mistakes of judgment could cause irreparable
harm to citizens or even to the community. The educational requirement bears a manifest
relationship to the position of police officer. We conclude that the district court’s findings . . .
are not erroneous.42
Abundant empirical evidence also indicates that college-educated police officers are
better officers. Compared to less educated officers, research indicates they have signifi-
cantly fewer citizen complaints43; have better peer relationships44; are likelier to take a
leadership role in the organization45; tend to be more flexible46; are less dogmatic and less
authoritarian47; take fewer leave days, receive fewer injuries, have less injury time, have
lower rates of absenteeism, use fewer sick days, and are involved in fewer traffic
accidents48; and have a more desirable system of personal values.49 Furthermore, college
graduates are significantly less likely to violate their department’s internal regulations
regarding insubordination, negligent use of a firearm, and absenteeism than officers who
lack a college degree.50
A major argument by police administrators against requiring a college degree for
entry-level officers is that the recruitment of minorities will greatly suffer, which is
particularly problematic at a time when agencies seek to diversify their ranks. However,
a number of jurisdictions argue just as strongly that this is not a problem and offer evi-
dence (albeit anecdotal) that the reverse is actually true and that maintaining the col-
lege requirement has a number of benefits51: Some studies, however, have identified
some negative effects of higher education. Critics believe that educated officers are
more likely to become frustrated with their work and that their limited opportunities
for advancement will cause them to leave the force early. Furthermore, they argue that
police tasks that require mostly common sense or street sense are not performed better
by officers with higher education.52 These studies found that it had no positive effect on
officers’ public-service orientation (those with a degree displayed less orientation
toward public service than those without a degree)53 and that college-educated officers
attach less value to obedience to supervisors than do officers without a college
education.54
Given the previously mentioned benefits and today’s challenges to policing, how-
ever, and if the field is to ever truly achieve the level of a true profession, it remains a
paradox to many that higher educational standards have not yet been established for
police officers.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 162
▼
▶ On Guard: The Private Police
Nature and Types
Much has certainly changed in society and the private security industry since 1851, when
Allan Pinkerton initiated the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, specializing in railroad
security. Pinkerton established the first private security contract operation in the United
States. His motto was “We Never Sleep,” and his logo, an open eye, was probably the
genesis of the term private eye.
Today, according to loss-prevention expert Saul Astor, “We are a nation of thieves”55—
and, it might be added, a nation that needs to be protected against would-be terrorists, rap-
ists, robbers, and other dangerous people. According to the Federal Bureau of Justice
Statistics, there are about 5.4 million violent-crime victimizations and 15.3 million
property crime victimizations each year in this nation.56 As a result, and especially since
9/11, this nation has become highly security minded concerning its computers, lotteries,
celebrities, college campuses, casinos, nuclear plants, airports, shopping centers, mass
transit systems, hospitals, and railroads. Such businesses, industries, and institutions have
recognized the need to conscientiously protect their assets against threats of crime and
other disasters—as well as the limited capabilities of the nation’s full-time sworn officers
and agents to protect them—and have increasingly turned to the “other police”—those of
the private sector—for protection.
According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, today more than one million pri-
vate security officers provide such services in investigations, hospitals, schools, travel
▲ William A. Pinkerton, principal of the western branch
of Pinkerton’s National Detective Agency. (Courtesy
International Association of Chiefs of Police.)
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 163
▼
accommodation, and government buildings; their average hourly wage is about $13.50
per hour. Perhaps not surprisingly, the states with the highest concentration of such work-
ers are those which are tourist-based: Hawaii, Nevada, and New York.57 They are basi-
cally of two types: in-house security services, which are directly hired and controlled by
the company or organization, are called proprietary services; conversely, contract services
are those outside firms or individuals hired by the individual or company to provide secu-
rity services for a fee. The most common security services provided include contract
guards, alarm services, private investigators, locksmith services, armored-car services,
and security consultants.
Although some of the duties of the security officer are similar to those of the public
police officer, their overall powers are entirely different. First, because security officers are
not police officers, court decisions have stated that the security officer is not bound by the
Miranda decision concerning suspects’ rights. Furthermore, security officers generally
possess only the same authority to affect an arrest as does the common citizen (the exact
extent of citizen’s arrest power varies, however, depending on the type of crime, the juris-
diction, and the status of the citizen). In most states, warrantless arrests by private citizens
are allowed when a felony has been committed and reasonable grounds exist for believing
that the person arrested committed it. Most states also allow citizen’s arrests for misde-
meanors committed in the arrester’s presence.
The tasks of the private police are very similar to those of their public counterparts:
protecting executives and employees, tracking and forecasting security threats, monitoring
alarms, preventing and detecting fraud, conducting investigations, providing crisis man-
agement and prevention, and responding to substance abuse.58
Still, there are concerns about the field: as one author noted, “Of those individuals
involved in private security, some are uniformed, some are not; some carry guns, some are
unarmed; some guard nuclear energy installations, some guard golf courses; some are
trained, some are not; some have college degrees, some are virtually uneducated.”59
Studies have shown that security officer recruits often have minimal education and train-
ing; because the pay is usually quite low, the jobs often attract only those people who
cannot find other jobs or seek temporary work. Thus, much of the work is done by the
▲ Today more than one million private security officers provide work at
retail businesses and in hospitals, schools, tourist destinations, and
government buildings. (Courtesy Boris Yaro/Los Angeles Times/Getty Images.)
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 164
▼
young and the retired, and the recruitment and training of lower-level private security per-
sonnel can present a real concern.60 Clearly, today’s security officer needs to be highly
trained and competent.
Another long-standing issue that concerns private police is whether or not they
should be armed. In the past, much has been made about security officers who have
received little or no prior training or have undergone no checks on their criminal history
records but are carrying a weapon. Twenty-three hours of firearms instruction is recom-
mended for all security personnel, as well as another 24 hours on general matters and
proper legal training.61
Attempts to Legislate Regulation
The U.S. Congress has indicated a willingness to help move private security services in the
right direction. In December 2004, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act
of 2004 (Public Law 108–458) was enacted. Section 6402 of that legislation, known as the
Private Security Officer Employment Authorization Act of 2004, authorizes a fingerprint-
based criminal history check of state and national criminal history records to screen pro-
spective and current private security officers.62
More recently, the 113th Congress (2013–2014) saw the introduction of a Senate bill
(S. 2647), the “Security Officer Screening Improvement Act of 2014,” which would go
exhibit 6-2
In Virginia, private citizens can gain unique police
powers using a little-known provision of state law
allowing them to petition the courts for the authority
to carry a gun, display a badge and make arrests.
Known as “special conservators of the peace”—or
SCOPs—their number has doubled there over the
past decade to roughly 750. This concept actually
predates modern policing, with origins in English
common law; the first Virginia statute enacted in
1860 allowed proprietors of “watering places” to pro-
tect their establishments.
This increase in the number of SCOPS has raised
concerns in Virginia and elsewhere, however, because
these armed officers often receive only a small fraction
of the training and oversight of their municipal coun-
terparts. Some SCOPS have even been arrested for
overstepping their authority.
Regarding duties and income, most SCOPs patrol
corporate campuses, work for neighborhood associations
or perform code enforcement for counties or cities, while
some independently contract their services to apartment
and housing communities. They also deal with loitering,
traffic infractions, noise complaints, minor drug offenses
and nuisances that can impact quality of life.
SCOPs may refer to themselves as “police” in
Virginia, and some even wear flak jackets with “Police”
emblazoned across the front. Indeed, many of them
function similarly to any police department, using a
dispatch number that residents can call along with fli-
ers for suspects and notices about recent incidents;
they also provide reports about crime to homeowners
associations.
In Virginia, no government office regulates the
SCOPs or addresses complaints against them, although
a court can revoke their commissions. Nor does the
state track the number of arrests they make or citations
they issue. Legislative attempts are in progress to
improve their oversight and increase their training.
Many would like to see 130 hours as the required train-
ing (currently it is 40 hours). Meanwhile, in nearby
District of Columbia, “special police” only receive
40 hours of training, while Maryland and other states
leave the amount of mandatory training to the discre-
tion of employers’ systems.
Source: Based on Is Stop and Frisk Worth It?” Atlantic Monthly.
Published by Washington Post © 2015.
UNIQUE STATUTORY POWERS OF SOME PRIVATE POLICE
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 165
▼
beyond fingerprint checks and inform persons wishing to employ private security officers
about how to request and complete state and national background checks. This bill was
referred to Senate Judiciary Committee in June 2014 and no further action has been taken.63
An Organization at the Forefront
The private security industry has been advanced significantly by a national, nonprofit orga-
nization that has existed for more than a half-century to “increase the effectiveness and
productivity of security professionals.”64 Founded in 1955 as the American Society for
Industrial Security, in 2002 its official name was changed to ASIS International. The
organization develops educational programs and materials that address broad security
interests, conducts annual seminars, provides members with a full range of programs and
services, and publishes a trade magazine, Security Management.65
Perhaps as beneficial is that ASIS International publishes and espouses a number of
standards and guidelines for the field, such as recommended minimum selection and train-
ing qualifications for personnel (e.g., the Private Security Officer Selection and Training
Guideline)66 as well as a related code of conduct.67
▶ A Sidebar Note: Arrival of the Millennials
Although it does not rank along with the other four topics as warranting considerable dis-
cussion in this chapter, a looming personnel issue should be mentioned at least in passing:
the coming of the Millennial (Generation Y) of workers in the policing field.
Between now and the late 2020s, 10,000 baby boomers a day will reach retirement
age.68 As this baby boom generation begins to retire, police departments will experience a
changing workforce as well, with the rise of the Millennials or Generation Y, born roughly
between 1982 and 2000 and the largest generation since the baby boom. In fact, Millennials,
with a population of 83.1 million, now outnumber baby boomers at 75.4 million; in 2015
they also surpassed Generation X (those born between 1965 and 1979), to become the
nation’s largest workforce. According to the Pew Research Center, more than one in three
American workers is a Millennial. This new workforce will present several new
challenges.69
These new hires are technically savvy, enthusiastic, and service-oriented, and also tend
to carry high expectations. As a whole, they may be more eager for quick advancement
and higher starting salaries. In addition, while police officers have traditionally stayed in
the same career field and even agency for their entire careers, workers in general are now
more likely to switch jobs and employers after just a few years.
How can police agencies hire and retain Millennials? Obviously, they cannot compete
with the private sector, where one study found the following perks had recently been given
to Millennials by employers as rewards for their efforts70:
• A $25,000 guided trip to Mt. Everest base camp
• World Series tickets
• Trapeze lessons
• Kayaking trips
• Stand-up comedy lessons
• Chanel shopping spree with a personal stylist (value: $5,000)
• Aerobatic flight in an air races plane
A number of suggestions have been offered for recruiting and retaining the Millennials.
First is the importance of offering them opportunities for specialization and training.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 166
▼
In addition, agencies may need to rethink annual performance evaluations, moving to more
individual, informal, and frequent feedback from supervisors.
Regarding retention of Millennials, a compressed work week and job sharing to allow
for more flexibility for officers with young families is recommended. Some agencies are
experimenting with a sabbatical program, allowing employees to leave the department to
try a new job or career with the option to return.71
Summary This chapter has examined several contemporary trends and issues in policing. Despite its
180-year-plus history and many advances, policing still has many issues that have not
been resolved.
This chapter first addressed police officer stress, where it was demonstrated that
police agencies must recognize and address the needs of their human resources just as
they plan for the purchase of capital equipment or for operations. Too often, police depart-
ments neglect or take their personnel for granted. People are a department’s most impor-
tant asset.
Certainly the section on labor relations and collective bargaining would be com-
pletely foreign to the major figures (Peel, Vollmer, Parker, and so on) who were instru-
mental in the development of American policing (discussed in Chapter 1). It was shown
that the balance of power is certainly different today, as compared with the earlier unilat-
eral, serve-at-the-pleasure-of-the-boss era, when officers had little protection against the
whims of their leadership or complaints by the public; furthermore, their employment
and ability to negotiate for better working conditions and benefits have greatly increased
over time.
Higher education also remains a questionable element of policing for many people—
notwithstanding that several major national commissions and court decisions, as well as
other entities and police executives, have been advocating this requirement for nearly
three decades. The major argument against having a college education requirement—
that it greatly diminishes the minority hiring pool—was also brought into question
in this chapter.
It is evident that the private security services are becoming a much more vital segment
of public safety in the United States; it can only be for the better that formal efforts by
legislatures and related national organizations continue to strive to improve the industry
and reduce or eliminate some of its long-term issues and challenges.
Finally, it is clear that (as was shown in a sidebar section of this chapter) that the
Millennial generation—with its numbers, high-tech capabilities, and high expectations—
are going to be far different in nature than police employees of the past. Police administra-
tors should already be paving the way for their entry into the field.
Key Terms
collective bargaining
contract services
employee assistance program
(EAP)
Fair Labor Standards Act
(FLSA)
grievance
higher education
homeostasis
impasse
job action
labor relations
Millennials
Peace Officer Bill of
Rights
private police
proprietary services
stress
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 167
▼
Review Questions
1. How would you define stress, and what are the four
general areas of police work that contribute to stress?
2. How may police personnel attempt to manage their
stress levels?
3. What are the functions of an employee assistance
program?
4. What employment rights do today’s police officers
possess, and what are some of the common provisions
of the Peace Officer Bill of Rights?
5. What are the major reasons for the development and
expansion of police unions, and what is their impact
today?
6. What are the three models of collective bargaining,
and what happens under each model when there is an
impasse?
7. What are the four kinds of job actions?
8. How would you describe the Fair Labor Standards
Act and the way it operates in policing?
9. Why is the possession of higher education by police
officers controversial, and what are some rationales
given for and against officers having such
education?
10. How did private policing evolve, how does it differ
from public policing, and what are some issues and
concerns it presents to the public?
11. What challenges do Millennials pose for the police
workforce of the future?
Learn by Doing
1. Unquestionably, the best way for you to determine
the kinds of stressors that exist in policing is to inter-
view a municipal police officer or county deputy
sheriff. Encourage your interviewee to identify the
degrees of stress that are caused by the stressors
described in this chapter; the stressors caused by per-
sonnel; the issues that originate both inside and out-
side the organization; which type of calls for service
create the most stress; and how he or she attempts to
cope with stress.
2. Your criminal justice professor assigns a project in
class wherein you are to debate the pros and cons of
police officers and higher education—specifically,
whether or not they should be required to possess a
four-year or graduate degree. Taking either a pro or
con side, develop your debating points.
3. Recently, there has been a movement in your tourism
based community to examine the field of private
policing. Today, while you are guest lecturing before
a local civic group’s luncheon, a member of the audi-
ence asks you to describe the kinds of duties, rights,
and training that should exist under the law for the
private police. Also of interest to the audience is the
interface between the public and private police—
advantages and disadvantages of one as compared
with the other. With what specifics do you respond?
Notes
1. W. S. Gilbert, The Policeman’s Lot (from The Pirates of
Penzance), published by John Wiley & Sons © 1994.
2. William A. Westley, Violence and the Police
(Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 1970), p. 3.
3. Hans Selye, Stress Without Distress (Philadelphia,
PA: Lippincott, 1981).
4. Merry Morash and Robin Haarr, “Gender,
Workplace Problems, and Stress in Policing” (Paper
presented at the annual meeting of the Academy of
Criminal Justice Sciences, Nashville, TN, March
12, 1991).
5. L. Brooks and N. Piquero, “Police Stress: Does
Department Size Matter?” Policing: An International
Journal of Police Strategies and Management 21(1)
(1998): 600–617.
6. S. R. Band and D. C. Sheehan, “Managing
Undercover Stress: The Supervisor’s Role,” FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin (February 1999): 1–6.
7. Adapted from Larry Copeland, “Police Trained in
Delivering Tragic News,” USA Today, October 26, 2011,
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/
2011-10-25/death-notification-mourning/50913338/1.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 168
▼
8. G. L. Fishkin, Police Burnout: Signs, Symptoms and
Solutions (Gardena, CA: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1988).
9. Board of Regents v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564 (1972), p. 578.
10. W. Clinton Terry III, Policing Society: An
Occupational View (New York: Wiley, 1985), p. 168.
11. Ibid., pp. 170–171.
12. Samuel Walker, The Police in America: An Introduction,
3rd ed. (Boston: McGraw-Hill, 1999), p. 368.
13. Fraternal Order of Police, “About the Fraternal Order
of Police,” https://www.fop.net/CmsPage.aspx?id=223.
14. Will Aitchison, The Rights of Police Officers, 3rd ed.
(Portland, OR: Labor Relations Information System,
1996), p. 7.
15. Ibid.
16. Ibid.
17. Ibid., p. 8.
18. Ibid., p. 9.
19. Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and Robert W.
Taylor, Police Administration: Structures, Processes,
and Behavior, 6th ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2005), p. 517.
20. Arnold Zack, Understanding Fact-Finding and
Arbitration in the Public Sector (Washington, U.S.
Government Printing Office, 1974), p. 1.
21. Thomas P. Gilroy and Anthony V. Sinicropi, “Impasse
Resolution in Public Employment,” Industrial and
Labor Relations Review 25 (July 1971): 499.
22. Robert G. Howlett, “Fact Finding: Its Values and
Limitations—Comment,” in Arbitration and the
Expanded Role of Neutrals (Proceedings of the
Twenty-Third Annual Meeting of the National
Academy of Arbitrators) (Washington, D.C.: Bureau
of National Affairs, 1970), p. 156.
23. Zack, Understanding Fact-Finding and Arbitration
in the Public Sector, p. 1.
24. Charles W. Maddox, Collective Bargaining in Law
Enforcement (Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas,
1975), p. 54.
25. Swanson et al., Police Administration, p. 530.
26. Ibid., p. 423.
27. Ibid.
28. L. Lund, “The ‘Ten Commandments’ of Risk
Management for Jail Administrators,” Detention
Reporter 4 (June 1991): 4.
29. International Union of Police Associations, “I.U.P.A.
History Timeline,” http://www.iupa.org/index.
php?option=com_content&view=article&id=112&
Itemid=164.
30. Garcia v. San Antonio Transit Authority, 469 U.S.
528 (1985).
31. Swanson et al., Police Administration, p. 392.
32. National Center for Educational Statistics, “Fast
Facts: Educational Attainment,” https://nces.ed.gov/
fastfacts/display.asp?id=27.
33. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Local Police Departments, 2013: Personnel,
Policies, and Practices (Washington, D.C.: Author,
May 2015), p. 6.
34. Roy Roberg and Scott Bonn, “Higher Education and
Policing: Where Are We Now?” Policing 27(4)
(2004), http://0-search.proquest.com.innopac.
library.unr.edu/docview/211270803/13A1CFE821B
41F9D7D2/4?accountid=452.
35. Albert Deutsch, The Trouble with Cops (New York:
Crown, 1955), p. 122.
36. Herman Goldstein, Policing a Free Society
(Cambridge, MA: Ballinger, 1977), pp. 283–284.
37. Deutsch, The Trouble with Cops, p. 213; Law
Enforcement and Criminal Justice Education:
Directory, 1975–76 (Gaithersburg, MD: International
Association of Chiefs of Police, 1975), p. 3.
38. Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, Fifth
Annual Report, Fiscal Year 1973 (Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1973), p. 119.
39. President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and
the Administration of Justice, The Police (Task Force
Report) (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing
Office, 1973), p. 155.
40. National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice
Standards and Goals, Police (Washington, D.C.:
Government Printing Office, 1973), p. 369.
41. Gerald W. Lynch, “Why Officers Need a College
Education,” Higher Education and National Affairs
(September 20, 1986): 11.
42. Davis v. City of Dallas, 777 F.2d 205 (5th Cir. 1985).
43. Victor E. Kappeler, Allen D. Sapp, and David L.
Carter, “Police Officer Higher Education, Citizen
Complaints and Departmental Rule Violations,”
American Journal of Police 11 (1992): 37–54. Also
see Mayo, “College Education and Policing,” The
Police Chief 73 (8) (August 2006), http://www.
policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?
fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=955&issue_
id=82006.
44. Charles L. Weirman, “Variances of Ability
Measurement Scores Obtained by College and Non-
College Educated Troopers,” Police Chief 45 (August
1978): 34–36.
45. Ibid.
46. Robert Trojanowicz and T. Nicholson, “A Comparison
of Behavioral Styles of College Graduate Police
Officers Versus Non-College Going Police Officers,”
Police Chief 43 (August 1976): 56–59.
CHAPTER 6 Personnel Issues and Practices 169
▼
47. A. F. Dalley, “University and Non-University Graduated
Policemen: A Study of Police Attitudes,” Journal of
Police Science and Administration 3 (1975): 458–468.
48. Wayne F. Cascio, “Formal Education and Police
Officer Performance,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 5 (1977): 89–96; Bernard Cohen and
Jan M. Chaiken, Police Background Characteristics
and Performance (New York: RAND, 1972); B. E.
Sanderson, “Police Officers: The Relationship of
College Education to Job Performance,” Police Chief
(August 1977): 62–63.
49. James W. Sterling, “The College Level Entry
Requirement: A Real or Imagined Cure-All?” Police
Chief 41 (April 1974): 28–31.
50. Gerald W. Lynch, “Cops and College,” America,
April 4, 1987, pp. 274–275.
51. Mayo, “College Education and Policing.”
52. Robert E. Worden, “A Badge and a Baccalaureate:
Policies, Hypotheses, and Further Evidence,” Justice
Quarterly 7 (September 1990): 565–592.
53. Jon Miller and Lincoln Fry, “Reexamining
Assumptions About Education and Professionalism
in Law Enforcement,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 4 (1976): 187–198.
54. John K. Hudzik, “College Education for Police:
Problems in Measuring Component and Extraneous
Variables,” Journal of Criminal Justice 6 (1978): 69–81.
55. Saul D. Astor, “A Nation of Thieves,” Security World
15 (September 1978).
56. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Criminal Victimization,
2014 (August 2015), p. 1, http://www.bjs.gov/content/
pub/pdf/cv14.pdf.
57. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational
Employment Statistics, May 2014, http://www.bls.
gov/oes/current/oes339032.htm#nat.
58. Ibid., p. 238.
59. Policing in the Casino Gaming Environment:
Methods, Risks, and Challenges, Federal Bureau Of
Investigation.
60. George F. Cole and Christopher E. Smith, The
American System of Criminal Justice, 11th ed.
(Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2007), p. 253.
61. National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice
Standards and Goals, Private Security (Washington,
D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1976), p. 99.
62. Federal Register, “Implementation of the Private
Security Officer Employment Authorization Act of
2004,” https://www.federalregister.gov/regulations/
1 1 1 0 - A A 2 3 / i m p l e m e n t a t i o n - o f - t h e - p r iva t e -
securityofficer-employment-authorization-act-
of-2004.
63. See Congress.gov, https://www.congress.gov/
bill/113th-congress/senate-bill/2647.
64. ASIS International, “About ASIS,” https://www.
asisonline.org/About-ASIS/Pages/default.aspx.
65. Ibid., https://www.asisonline.org/.
66. Ibid., http://www.abdi-secure-ecommerce.com/
ASIS/ps-1128-37-2001.aspx.
67. ASIS Management System for Quality of Private
Security Company Operations—Requirements with
Guidance, https://www.asisonline.org/Standards-
Guidelines/Standards/published/Pages/Management-
System-for-Quality-of-Private-Security-Company-
Operations---Requirements-with-Guidance.aspx?car
t=cdb89cb6beee405e996b65f23d62aac5.
68. Pew Research Center, “Baby Boomers Retire,”
December 29, 2010, http://www.pewresearch.org/
daily-number/baby-boomers-retire/.
69. Nancy Trejos, “Millennials help drive change in the
hotel-stay experience,” USA Today, November 23,
2015, http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/
hotels/2015/11/23/hotels-marriot-target-millennials-
over-baby-boomers/76093970/.
70. Marco Della Cava, “For Millennials, Gift Cards are a
Snooze,” USA Today, October 18, 2015, http://usatoday.
newspaperdirect.com/epaper/viewer.aspx.
71. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,
“Today’s Officer, Tomorrow’s Chief: Police
Recruitment and the Millennial Generation,”
Community Policing Dispatch, December 2008,
http://cops.usdoj.gov/html/dispatch/December_
2008/police_recruitment.htm.
This page intentionally left blank
171
▼
The three chapters composing Part 3 together examine several means by which police
authority is constrained. More specifically, Chapter 7 looks at the rule of law: court deci-
sions and constitutional enactments that direct and constrain police actions; the focus here
is on the Bill of Rights in the Constitution, particularly the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth
Amendments. Chapter 8 considers police accountability from several perspectives, includ-
ing the issue of police ethics, use of force, corruption, and discipline. Potential civil liabil-
ity of the police is then examined in Chapter 9, which includes various areas in which
officers may be liable, and the means by which citizens may seek legal redress when they
believe their civil rights have been violated.
Part 3
Adhering to Law, Ethical Principles, and Public Expectations
7 Rule of Law: Expounding the Constitution
8 Accountability: Use of Force, Ethics, Corruption, and Discipline
9 Civil Liability: Failing the Public Trust
172
▼
7 Rule of Law Expounding the Constitution
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain what is meant by the rule of law
❷ Detail the protections afforded citizens by the Fourth Amendment relevant to probable cause, the exclusionary rule, and arrest
❸ Detail the protections afforded citizens by the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable searches and seizures
“. . .but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
—Patrick Henry, 1775
“We must never forget that it is a constitution we are expounding.”
—John Marshall, in McCulloch v. Maryland, 1819
(Courtesy katjen/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 173
▼
❹ Detail the protections afforded citizens by the Fourth Amendment pertaining to electronic surveillance and lineups
❺ Detail the protections afforded citizens by the Fifth Amendment with regard to confessions, interrogations, and entrapment
❻ Detail the protections afforded citizens by the Sixth Amendment relating to right to counsel and interrogation
❼ Explain the rights possessed by juvenile offenders and contrast them to the rights of adult offenders
Introduction
The Bill of Rights—the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution—was passed largely to protect all
citizens from excessive governmental power. The police are expected to control crime within the frame-
work of these rights; they must conduct themselves in a manner that conforms to the rule of law as set
forth in the U.S. Constitution, state constitutions, statutes passed by state legislatures, and the prece-
dent of prior interpretations by the courts.
What is meant by the rule of law? This commonly used phrase was comprehensively defined in 1885
by Albert Venn Dicey in his now-classic Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution.1 Dicey
identified three principles that together establish the rule of law:
1. Absolute supremacy or predominance of regular law as opposed to the influence of arbitrary
power
2. Equality before the law or the equal subjection of all classes to the ordinary law of the land
administered by the ordinary courts
3. Law of the U.S. Constitution as a consequence of the rights of individuals as defined and
enforced by the courts
In other words, under the rule of law of the United States, the means are more important than the ends.
A nation’s democratic form of government would be of little value if the police could arrest, search, and
seize its citizens and their property at will.
This chapter examines three constitutional amendments that regulate the police and prevent abuses of
power: the Fourth Amendment (probable cause, exclusionary rule, arrest, search and seizure, electronic
surveillance, and lineups), the Fifth Amendment (confessions, interrogation, and entrapment), and the
Sixth Amendment (right to counsel and interrogation). To avoid overwhelming the reader with case
titles, only better-known court cases—such as Miranda v. Arizona—are included in the body of the
chapter; others are cited in the Notes section. Also discussed is a related yet in some ways very differ-
ent area of law and procedure: the law pertaining to juvenile offenders. Finally, an exhibit (one of four
exhibits in the chapter) includes a review of the new (and highly controversial) “stand your ground” law
that has been enacted in several states. A summary, review questions, and several scenarios and activi-
ties that provide opportunities to learn by doing conclude the chapter.
It is also important to remember that our nation’s laws are dynamic—that is, like our society in
general, they are constantly changing. Laws are enacted by courts and legislatures as well as by acts
of Congress and treaties and are found in the U.S. and state constitutions and statutes, administrative
laws (i.e., those laws involving the powers and duties of government agencies), and city and county
ordinances; therefore, the laws are constantly in flux as new ones are created and old ones are
repealed or overturned. Therefore, aspiring police officers, students of criminal justice, and of course
judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys must keep abreast of changes in the laws. Although many
police agencies will have the benefit of a legal advisor assigned by their city or county attorney’s
office to render legal advice for persons working in the field, most agencies probably do not have that
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 174
▼
▲ State statutes, municipal and county ordinances, and court decisions are constantly in flux, so
the police must remain cognizant and abreast of changes that occur. (Courtesy Andrey Burmakin/Shutterstock.)
luxury and thus must make an extra effort to read and understand new court decisions and other
enactments. Publications such as the following will help one to keep abreast of such changes: the FBI
Law Enforcement Bulletin, The Police Chief magazine, the Criminal Law Reporter, U.S. Law Week,
and the Supreme Court Bulletin.
▶ Fourth Amendment
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, papers, and effects, against unreason-
able searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon
probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to
be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
—Fourth Amendment, U.S. Constitution.
The Fourth Amendment is intended to limit overzealous behavior by the police. Its
primary protection is the requirement that a neutral detached magistrate, rather than a
police officer, issue warrants for arrest and search and seizure. Crime, though a major con-
cern to society, is balanced by the concern that officers might thrust themselves unneces-
sarily into our homes. The Fourth Amendment requires that the necessity for a person’s
right of privacy to yield to society’s right to search is best decided by a neutral judicial
officer, not by an agent of the police.2
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 175
▼
Probable Cause
The standard for a legal arrest is probable cause. This important concept is elusive at best;
it is often quite difficult for professors to explain and even more difficult for students to
understand. One way to define probable cause is to say that for an officer to make an
arrest, he or she must have more than a mere hunch yet less than actual knowledge that the
arrestee committed the crime. One of the authors often used the following example from
his own experience to better explain the concept:
At midnight, a fifty-five-year-old woman, having spent several hours at a city bar, wished to
leave the bar and go to a nightclub in a rural part of the county. A man offered her a ride, but
rather than driving directly to the nightclub, he drove to a remote place and parked the car.
There he raped the woman and forced her to orally sodomize him. She fought him and later
told the police she thought she had broken the temples (side pieces) of his black glasses. After
the act, he drove her back to town; when she got out of the car, she saw the license plate num-
ber and thought that the hood of the car was colored red. Her account of the crime and her
physical description of the rapist immediately prompted a photograph lineup; a known rape/
sodomy suspect’s picture was shown to her, along with photos of several other men with a
similar description. She tentatively identified the suspect in the mug shot but could not be
certain; the suspect’s mug shot had been taken several years earlier.
With this preliminary information, police officers hurried to the suspect’s home to question
him. They did not have a warrant. Upon entering the suspect’s driveway, the officers observed
a beige car––with a red hood. Probable cause was beginning to build. Next the officers noted
that the vehicle’s license plate number matched the one given by the victim; probable cause
was now growing by leaps and bounds. Then the suspect exited the house and walked toward
his car; the officers observed that the frame of his eyeglasses was black but that the temples
were gold, indicating that the black temples had probably been broken and replaced by spare
gold temples. The officers now had, by any standard, adequate probable cause to lead a
“ reasonable and prudent” person to believe that this suspect was the culprit; the failure to
arrest him would have been a gross miscarriage of justice. The suspect was thus arrested and
placed in an actual lineup, where the victim identified him. This was one of those rare cases
where the evidence was so compelling that the defendant pleaded guilty at his initial appear-
ance and threw himself on the judge’s mercy.
Of course, the facts of each case and the probable cause present are different; the court
will examine the type and amount of probable cause that the officer had at the time of the
arrest. It is important to note that a police officer cannot add to the probable cause used to
make the arrest after effecting the arrest; the court will determine whether there existed
sufficient probable cause to arrest the individual based on the officer’s knowledge of the
facts at the time of the arrest.
The Supreme Court has upheld convictions when probable cause was provided by a
reliable informant,3 when it came in an anonymous letter,4 and when a suspect fit a Drug
Enforcement Administration profile of a drug courier.5 The Court has also held that police
officers who “reasonably but mistakenly conclude that probable cause is present” are
granted qualified immunity from civil action (discussed in Chapter 9).6
Exclusionary Rule
The Fourth Amendment recognizes the right to privacy, but its application raises some
perplexing questions. First of all, not all searches are prohibited—only those that are
unreasonable. Another issue has to do with how to handle evidence that is illegally
obtained. Should murderers be released, Justice Benjamin Cardozo asked, simply because
“the constable blundered”?7 The Fourth Amendment says nothing about how it is to be
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 176
▼
enforced-a problem that has stirred a good amount of debate for a number of years. Most
of this debate has focused on the wisdom of, and the constitutional necessity for, the
so-called exclusionary rule, which requires that all evidence obtained in violation of the
Fourth Amendment be excluded from government’s use in a criminal trial.
The 1961 Supreme Court decision in Mapp v. Ohio8 helped to explain the admissibility
of illegally seized evidence in the state courts (see Court Closeup: Mapp v. Ohio). But the
Court’s decision in Mapp did not end the controversy surrounding the exclusionary rule:
Opponents of the rule are left with the suspicion that the rule is invoked only by s omeone—
usually a guilty person—who does not want evidence of his or her crimes to be used at
trial; furthermore, they believe that the suspect’s behavior has been much more reprehen-
sible than that of the police.9
The Supreme Court has objected to police behavior when it “shocks the conscience,”
excluding evidence, for example, that was obtained by forcible extraction (by stomach
pump) from a man who had swallowed two morphine capsules in the police’s presence.10
Modifications of the Exclusionary Rule Three major decisions during the 1983–1984 term of the Supreme Court served to modify the exclusionary rule. Then Associate
Justice William Rehnquist (appointed Chief Justice in 1986) established a “public safety
exception” to the doctrine. In that case, the defendant was charged with criminal
In May 1957, three Cleveland police officers went to the
home of Dolree Mapp to follow up on an informant’s tip
that a suspect in a recent bombing was hiding there. They
also had information that a large amount of materials for
operating a numbers game would be found. Upon arrival
at the house, officers knocked on the door and demanded
entrance, but Mapp, after telephoning her lawyer, refused
them entry without a search warrant.
Three hours later, the officers again attempted to enter
Mapp’s home, and again she refused them entry. They
then forcibly entered the home. Mapp confronted the offi-
cers, demanding to see a search warrant; an officer waved
a piece of paper at her, which she grabbed and placed in
her bosom. The officers struggled with Mapp to retrieve
the piece of paper, at which time Mapp’s attorney arrived
at the scene. The attorney was not allowed to enter the
house or to see his client. Mapp was forcibly taken
upstairs to her bedroom, where her belongings were
searched. One officer found a brown paper bag containing
books that he deemed to be obscene.
Mapp was charged with possession of obscene, lewd,
or lascivious materials. At the trial, the prosecution
attempted to prove that the materials belonged to Mapp;
the defense contended that the books were the property of
a former boarder who had left his belongings behind. The
jury convicted Mapp, and she was sentenced to an indefi-
nite term in prison.
In May 1959, Mapp appealed to the Ohio Supreme
Court, claiming that the obscene materials were not in
her possession and that the evidence was seized ille-
gally. The court disagreed, ruling the evidence admis-
sible. In June 1961, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned
the conviction, holding that the Fourth Amendment’s
prohibition against unreasonable search and seizure
had been violated:
[Because] the right to be secure against rude
invasions of privacy by state officers is . . .
constitutional in origin, we can no longer
permit that right to remain an empty promise.
We can no longer permit it to be revocable at the
whim of any police officer who, in the name of
law enforcement itself, chooses to suspend its
enjoyment.
Court Closeup Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 177
▼
possession of a firearm after a rape victim described him to the police. The officers located
him in a supermarket, and upon questioning him about the weapon’s whereabouts (without
giving him the Miranda warning), they found it located behind some cartons. Rehnquist
said that the case presented a situation in which concern for public safety outweighed a
literal adherence to the rules. The police were justified in questioning the defendant on the
grounds of “immediate necessity.”11
Another 1984 decision announced the “inevitability of discovery exception.” A ten-
year-old girl was murdered and her body hidden. While transporting the suspect,
detectives— who had promised the suspect’s attorney that they would not question him
while in transit—appealed to his sensitivities by saying it would be proper to find the body
so that the girl’s parents could give her a Christian burial. (This became known as the
“Christian Burial Speech.”) The suspect, Robert Williams, directed them to the body
while, at the same time, a large search party was two-and-one-half miles away, combing
both sides of the highway. Williams was tried and convicted of murder. In 1977, the
Supreme Court overturned the conviction, ruling that the detectives had violated the defen-
dant’s rights by inducing him to incriminate himself without the presence of counsel
(although it was noted that, even though his statements could not be admitted at a second
trial, evidence of the body’s location and condition might be admissible as the body would
have been discovered even if the incriminating statements had not been elicited from
respondent). Using this “inevitability of discovery” rationale at a second trial, evidence
concerning the body’s location and condition was admitted, and Williams was again con-
victed of first-degree murder; in 1984 the Supreme Court upheld his conviction.12
Also in 1984, the Court ruled that evidence can be used even if obtained under a search
warrant that is later found to be invalid. The Court held that evidence obtained by police
officers acting in good faith on a reasonable reliance on a search warrant issued by a neu-
tral magistrate could be used at trial even if the warrant was later found to be lacking in
probable cause. This decision prompted a strong dissenting opinion by three justices,
including William Brennan Jr., who said, “It now appears that the Court’s victory over the
Fourth Amendment is complete.”13
Another ruling favorable to the police was handed down in 1988. Federal agents,
observing suspicious behavior in and around a warehouse, illegally entered the build-
ing (with force and without a warrant) and observed marijuana in plain view. They left
and obtained a search warrant for the building; then they returned and arrested the
defendant for conspiracy to deliver illegal drugs. The Court allowed the evidence to
be admitted at trial, saying that it ought not to have been excluded simply because
of unrelated illegal conduct by the police. If probable cause could be established
apart from their illegal activity, the Court said, evidence obtained from the search
should be admitted.14
In summary, since the Warren Court expanded the rights of criminal defendants in the
1960s, a surge of cases to the Supreme Court has raised further questions concerning the
exclusionary rule. Many observers expected the Court to overturn Mapp, yet the Court has
not done so, apparently believing that without Mapp the flagrant abuses that occurred
before this case was tried could resurface.
Arrests
A restriction on the right of the police to arrest is the hallmark of a free society. A basic
condition of freedom is that one cannot be legally seized in an arbitrary and capricious
manner at the discretion or whim of any government official. It is customary to refer to the
writ of habeas corpus—the “Great Writ”—as the primary guarantee of personal freedom
in a democracy. Habeas corpus is defined simply as a writ requiring an incarcerated person
to be brought before a judge for an investigation of the restraint of that person’s liberty. It
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 178
▼
should be noted that habeas corpus is the means of remedying wrongful arrest or other
detention that has already occurred and that may have been illegal. The constitutional or
statutory provisions for making an arrest are of crucial importance because they prevent
police action that could be very harmful to the individual.15
Arrests with a Warrant It is always best for a police officer to effect an arrest with a warrant. In fact, in 1980, the Supreme Court required police officers to obtain warrants
when making felony arrests, should there be time to do so—that is, when there are no
exigent circumstances.16 To obtain an arrest warrant, the officer or a citizen swears in
an affidavit (as an “affiant”) that he or she possesses certain knowledge that a particular
person has committed an offense. For example, a private citizen tells police or the district
attorney that he or she attended a party at a residence where drugs or stolen articles
were present, or (as is often the case) a detective gathers physical evidence or interviews
witnesses or victims and determines that probable cause exists to believe that a particular
person committed a specific crime. In any case, a neutral magistrate, if he or she agrees
that probable cause exists, will issue the arrest warrant. Officers will execute the warrant,
taking the suspect into custody to answer the charges.
Warrantless Arrests An arrest without a warrant requires exigent circumstances and that the officer possess probable cause (as explained previously in the sodomy case).
▲ Officers have a responsibility to testify in court. (Courtesy
PNC/Getty images.)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 179
▼
Street officers rarely have the time or opportunity to effect an arrest with a warrant
in hand. Although the following real-life case involves a search preceding an arrest, it
will make the point. One afternoon a police officer was sent to the residence of several
college students. They reported that four men left their party and that soon afterward
another guest discovered that a stereo had been taken from a car parked in the yard. A
description of the men and their vehicle was given to the officer, who soon observed a
vehicle and four men matching the description. The men were stopped in their vehicle,
and the officer called for backup.
The law does not require that the officer ask the subjects to stay put while he speeds off
to the courthouse to attempt to secure a search warrant. The doctrine of probable cause
allows the officer to search the vehicle and arrest the occupants if stolen or contraband
items are found (as in this case, where the stolen stereo was found under the driver’s seat).
Police officers encounter these kinds of situations thousands of times each day. Such
searches and arrests without benefit of a warrant are legally permissible, provided the offi-
cer had probable cause (which can later be explained to a judge) for his or her actions.
Court Cases In 1979, the Supreme Court rendered two decisions relating to arrests. Police, the Court said, must have probable cause to take a person into custody and to the
police station for interrogation.17 Police may not randomly stop a single vehicle to check
the driver’s license and registration; there must be probable cause for stopping the driver.18
However, in 1990 the Court ruled that the stopping of all vehicles passing through sobriety
checkpoints—a form of seizure—did not violate the Constitution, although singling out
individual vehicles for random stops without probable cause is not authorized.19
▲ Police officers must frequently engage in arrests, searches, and seizures. (Courtesy Enigma/
Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 180
▼
Several days later, it ruled that police were not required to give drunk-driving suspects a
Miranda warning and could videotape their responses.20
In related decisions in the 2003–2004 term, the Supreme Court held that police may
arrest everyone in a vehicle in which drugs are found. A Baltimore officer, stopping a
speeding car and finding cocaine in an armrest in the backseat, was told by the driver and
the two passengers that none of them owned the contraband; he arrested all three. Chief
Justice Rehnquist wrote that in a small space like a car, officers can reasonably infer “a
common enterprise” among a driver and passengers and would have probable cause to
suspect that the drugs might belong to any or all of them.21 A few months later, the Court
ruled that police may set up roadblocks to collect information from motorists about crime.
Short stops, “a very few minutes at most,” are not too intrusive considering the value in
crime solving; police may also hand out fliers or ask drivers to volunteer information, the
Court noted.22
Finally, since 1975 police practice has been to ensure that a person arrested without a
warrant receives a “prompt” initial appearance for a probable cause determination to see if
the police were justified in arresting and holding the detainee. In its 1990–1991 term, the
Supreme Court said that “prompt” does not mean “immediate” and that within forty-eight
hours is generally soon enough.23
Searches and Seizures
Because of the serious nature of police invasion of private property, the Supreme Court has
had to examine several issues, particularly as they relate to searches of suspects’ homes. In
late 2003, the Court clarified how long police must wait before breaking into a home to
serve a warrant, ruling unanimously that it was constitutional for police to wait fifteen to
twenty seconds before knocking down the door of a drug suspect because to wait any lon-
ger would give the suspect time to flush evidence down the toilet. (The justices refused,
however, to state exactly how long is reasonable in serving warrants.)24 However, in 1995,
the Court affirmed without decision an opinion of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court that the
police violated the Fourth Amendment when they broke down the door of a residence only
one or two seconds after they knocked, announced their presence, and said that they had a
warrant. There were no exigent circumstances present.25 Furthermore, in Wilson v.
Arkansas (1995),26 the Court found a search invalid when police in Arkansas, armed with
a search warrant after receiving an informant’s tip that drugs were being sold at the defen-
dant’s home, identified themselves as they entered the residence, where they subsequently
found drugs and paraphernalia.
Figure 7-1 ■ shows the pertinent parts of a search and seizure warrant form for
persons or property that is used by the U.S. District Courts, for execution by agents of
the federal government.
Another decision relating to the area of police conduct at a private home during a search
was rendered in March 2005. Following a drive-by shooting, police in Simi Valley,
California, were searching a suspected gang member’s house for evidence of a crime—
weapons, ammunition, and gang paraphernalia, in the present case—rather than for
contraband. Because of the high-risk nature of the case, a special weapons team entered the
home, handcuffed the four occupants, and so detained them in a garage for two to three
hours. The plaintiff alleged a violation of her Fourth Amendment rights. Supreme Court
disagreed, finding that her detention was permissible, nor did the Court see a distinction
between detention for a search for criminal evidence and detention for a search for contraband,
because her detention was based on the existence of a warrant for a residence; furthermore,
her being handcuffed was reasonable because of the officers’ continuing safety interests.27
Furthermore, the Court upheld a search (with a warrant) of a third party’s property when
police had probable cause to believe it contained fruits or instrumentalities of a crime (e.g., a
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 181
▼
AO 93 (Rev. 12/09) Search and Seizure Warrant
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT for the
__________ District of __________
In the Matter of the Search of )
)
)
)
)
)
(Briefly describe the property to be searched
or identify the person by name and address) Case No.
SEARCH AND SEIZURE WARRANT
To: Any authorized law enforcement officer
An application by a federal law enforcement officer or an attorney for the government requests the search
fo tcirtsiDeht ni detacol ytreporp ro nosrep gniwollof eht fo
(identify the person or describe the property to be searched and give its location):
The person or property to be searched, described above, is believed to conceal (identify the person or describe the
property to be seized):
I find that the affidavit(s), or any recorded testimony, establish probable cause to search and seize the person or
property.
YOU ARE COMMANDED to execute this warrant on or before (not to exceed 14 days)
in the daytime 6:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. at any time in the day or night as I find reasonable cause has been
established.
Unless delayed notice is authorized below, you must give a copy of the warrant and a receipt for the property
taken to the person from whom, or from whose premises, the property was taken, or leave the copy and receipt at the
place where the property was taken.
The officer executing this warrant, or an officer present during the execution of the warrant, must prepare an
inventory as required by law and promptly return this warrant and inventory to United States Magistrate Judge
. (name)
I find that immediate notification may have an adverse result listed in 18 U.S.C. § 2705 (except for delay
of trial), and authorize the officer executing this warrant to delay notice to the person who, or whose property, will be
searched or seized (check the appropriate box) for days (not to exceed 30).
until, the facts justifying, the later specific date of .
Date and time issued: Judge’s signature
City and state: Printed name and title
FiguRE 7-1 The Form used by u.S. District Courts for Searches and Seizures of Persons and Property Office of the United States Courts.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 182
▼
newspaper office containing photographs of a disturbance),28 a search of a wrong apartment
conducted with a warrant but with a mistaken belief that the address was correct,29 and a
warrantless search and seizure of garbage in bags outside the defendant’s home.30
The Court has also attempted to define when a person is considered “seized”—an
important issue because seizure involves Fourth Amendment protections. Is a person
“seized” while police are pursuing him or her? Basically, there is no rule that determines
the point of seizure in all situations—the standard is whether a suspect believes his or her
liberty is restrained. This is ultimately a question for a judge or jury to decide.32 In a recent
roadblock case, the Court did provide some guidance, however. Where a police roadblock
resulted in the death of a speeder, the Court said roadblocks involve a “governmental ter-
mination of freedom of movement,” that the victim was therefore seized under the Fourth
Amendment, and that the police were liable for damages.33
Two decisions in the 1990–1991 Supreme Court term expanded police practices. The
Court looked at a police drug-fighting technique known as “working the buses.” Police
board a bus at a regular stopping place, approach seated passengers, and ask permission to
search their luggage for drugs. Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, writing for the majority, said
that such a situation should be evaluated in terms of whether a person in the passenger’s
position would have felt free to decline the officer’s request or to otherwise terminate the
encounter; it was held that such police conduct does not constitute a search.34 In a compan-
ion decision in 2002, the justices held that the police—focusing on possible terrorists as
well as drug couriers—may question passengers on buses and trains and may search for
evidence without informing passengers that they can refuse. Police in Florida were on a
Greyhound bus, asking questions of each passenger, when two men wearing heavy cloth-
ing on a warm day consented to a search of their luggage and bodies; police found bricks
of cocaine strapped to their legs. The Court said the men were not coerced into consenting
and that nothing about the fact that they were seated on a bus forced them to give their
consent (searches with consent are discussed more fully later).35
The Court also decided that no “seizure” occurs when a police officer seeks to appre-
hend a person through a show of authority but applies no physical force (such as in a foot
pursuit). In this case, a juvenile being chased by an officer threw down an object, later
determined to be crack cocaine. The Supreme Court found no seizure or actual restraint in
exhibit 7-1
In a December 2014 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court
sided with the police in a case arising from an officer’s
“mistake of law.” At issue was a traffic stop in North
Carolina occasioned by the vehicle’s having a single
busted brake light; while issuing the driver a warning
ticket for the broken brake light, the officer became suspi-
cious of the actions of the two occupants and their answers
to his questions. Heien, the car’s owner, gave the officer
consent to search the vehicle, which led to a finding of
illegal drugs inside the vehicle.
According to state law at the time, motor vehicles
were only required to have “a stop lamp,” meaning that
the vehicle (having a single, functioning brake light)
was being operated legally and the officer did not have
a valid, lawful reason for the initial traffic stop. The
issue before the Court was whether or not that stop
violated the Fourth Amendment’s guarantee against
unreasonable search and seizure.
In an 8–1 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts held
that it did not. “Because the officer’s mistake about the
brake-light law was reasonable,” Roberts declared, “the
stop in this case was lawful under the Fourth
Amendment.” What this means is that a police officer’s
reasonable mistake of law may constitute the justifica-
tion needed for suspicion to conduct a traffic stop under
the Fourth Amendment. Police are required to “act
reasonably, but not perfectly,” and gives them “fair
leeway for enforcing the law.”31
THE SUPREME COURT ALLOWS ROOM FOR OFFICERS’ “MISTAKE OF LAW”
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 183
▼
this situation.36 Also, it should be noted that the Court held that no individualized suspi-
cion of misconduct was required in either of these cases.
Supreme Court decisions have authorized a warrantless seizure of blood from a defen-
dant to obtain evidence. (This was a case of driving under the influence, the drawing of
blood was done by medical personnel in a hospital, and there were exigent circumstances—
the evidence would have been lost by dissipation in the body.)37 However, when police
compelled a robbery suspect to submit to surgery to remove a bullet, the Court held that
such an intrusion to seize evidence was unreasonable; this case said there are limits to what
police can do to solve a crime.38
Searches and Seizures with and without a Warrant As is the case with making an arrest, the best means by which the police can search a person or premises is with a search
warrant issued by a neutral magistrate. Such a magistrate has determined, after receiving
information from a sworn affiant, that probable cause exists to believe that a person
possesses the fruits or instrumentalities of a crime or that they are present at a particular
location. Again, as with arrest, the “luxury” of searching and seizing with a warrant is
usually confined to investigative personnel, who can interview victims and witnesses and
gather other available evidence and then request the warrant. Street officers rarely have the
opportunity to perform such a search, as the flow of events normally requires quick action
to prevent escape and to prevent evidence from being destroyed or hidden.
Court Cases The U.S. Supreme Court recently rendered three important decisions that involved—and clarified—warrantless searches of homes by police under exigent
circumstances to render emergency aid. A brief overview of the facts is provided for each
case, to assist in understanding why the Court arrived at the three decisions.
First, in Brigham City v. Stuart,39 the Court considered whether police may enter a
home without a warrant if they reasonably believe that an occupant is or is about to be seri-
ously injured. At about 3:00 a.m., four officers were dispatched to a loud house party
where they observed two juveniles consuming alcohol; officers then entered the backyard
and witnessed an altercation occurring inside the house involving four adults and a juve-
nile. Because of the chaos inside, two of the officers opened the screen door, identified
themselves, entered the home, and placed the adults under arrest for contributing to the
delinquency of a minor, disorderly conduct, and intoxication. At trial, the defendants
claimed that the officers’ warrantless entry into the home violated the Fourth Amendment;
the trial court agreed to suppress, as did both the state court of appeals and the Utah
Supreme Court. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed the state courts, holding that the offi-
cers’ warrantless entry into the home was justified under the emergency aid exception
because their entry “was plainly reasonable under the circumstances.”
In Michigan v. Fisher,40 police officers responding to a disturbance call were directed
to a residence where a man was said to be “going crazy.” Upon arrival the officers observed
drops of blood in the area and the defendant inside the home, yelling and throwing objects.
Fisher refused to answer the door and ignored officers’ questions concerning his medical
condition. One officer saw Fisher pointing a gun in his direction; eventually, Fisher was
subdued and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon and possessing a weapon dur-
ing the commission of a felony. The lower courts suppressed the gun as evidence, stating
it was seized in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights, that the situation did not rise to
the level of an emergency and thus did not justify the warrantless entry into Fisher’s home;
nor did they believe the drops of blood indicated a serious, life-threatening injury. The
U.S. Supreme Court reversed in view of its long line of cases involving exigent circum-
stances, particularly Brigham City v. Stuart. Here, in Fisher, the Supreme Court said the
relevant consideration is whether the officer has an “objectively reasonable basis for
believing that a person is in need of aid.” Using that standard, the Court found ample
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 184
▼
support for application of the emergency aid exception, stating, “Officers do not need iron-
clad proof of a likely serious, life-threatening injury to invoke the emergency aid excep-
tion,” and should not be required to “walk away from a situation like the one they
encountered here. The role of a peace officer includes preventing violence and restoring
order, not simply rendering aid to casualties.”
Finally, in mid-2011 the U.S. Supreme Court again made it easier for police to enter a
home without a warrant. In Kentucky v. King,41 the Court upheld the warrantless search of an
apartment after police smelled marijuana and feared that persons inside were destroying evi-
dence. Police in Lexington, Kentucky, were pursuing a drug suspect and banged on the door
of an apartment where they thought they smelled marijuana. After identifying themselves,
the officers heard movement inside the apartment and, suspecting that evidence was being
destroyed, kicked in the door and found King smoking marijuana (he also possessed cocaine).
King was convicted of multiple drug crimes and sentenced to 11 years in prison. Kentucky’s
highest court ruled that the drugs found in the apartment were inadmissible as evidence, not
finding any “emergency circumstances” present, and that instead police should have sought
a search warrant. The U.S. Supreme Court disagreed, saying that the police acted reasonably:
when police knock on a door and there is no response, and then hear movement inside that
suggests evidence is being destroyed, they are justified in breaking in.
Other Types of Warrantless Searches Five types of searches may be conducted without a warrant: (1) searches incidental to lawful arrest, (2) searches during field
interrogation (stop-and-frisk searches), (3) searches of automobiles that are carried out
under special conditions, (4) seizures of evidence in “plain view,” and (5) searches when
consent is given.
Searches Incidental to Lawful Arrest. In United States v. Robinson (1973), the defen-
dant was arrested and taken to the police station for driving without a permit—an offense
for which a full-scale arrest could be made. Robinson was taken to jail and searched, and
heroin was found. He tried to suppress the evidence on the grounds that the full-scale
arrest and custodial search were unreasonable for a driver’s license infraction. The
Supreme Court disagreed, saying that the arrest was legal and that when police assumed
custody of Robinson, they needed total control and therefore could perform a detailed
inventory of his possessions: “It is the fact of the lawful arrest that establishes the author-
ity to search and we hold that in the case of lawful custodial arrest a full search of the per-
son is not only an exception to the warrant requirement of the Fourth Amendment, but is
also a ‘reasonable’ search under that Amendment.”42
The rationale for this decision was in part the possibility that the suspect might destroy
evidence unless swift action was taken. But in Chimel v. California (1969), when officers with-
out a warrant arrested an individual in one room of his house and then proceeded to search the
entire three-bedroom house, including the garage, attic, and workshop, the Supreme Court said
that searches incidental to lawful arrest are limited to the area within the arrestee’s immediate
control or that area from which he or she might obtain a weapon. Thus if the police are holding
a person in one room of the house, they are not authorized to search and seize property in
another part of the house, away from the arrestee’s immediate physical presence.43
The Court approved the warrantless seizure of a lawfully arrested suspect’s clothes even
after a substantial time period had elapsed between the arrest and the search.44 Another advan-
tage given the police was the Court’s allowing a warrantless in-home “protective sweep” of
the area in which a suspect is arrested to reveal the presence of anyone else who might pose a
danger. Such a search, if justified by the circumstances, is not a full search of the premises and
may only include a cursory inspection of those spaces where a person could be hiding.45
A major Supreme Court decision was also rendered in 2014 concerning the contents of
cell phones (see Exhibit 7-2 ■).
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 185
▼
Searches During Field Interrogation (Stop-and-Frisk Searches). In 1968, the U.S.
Supreme Court heard a case challenging the constitutionality of on-the-spot searches
and questioning by the police. The case, Terry v. Ohio, involved a suspect who was
stopped and searched while apparently “casing” a store for robbery (see the Court
Closeup: Terry v. Ohio).
The Court’s dilemma in this case was whether to rule that in some circumstances, the
police do not need probable cause to stop and search people, and thus appear to invalidate
Mapp v. Ohio, or to insist on such a high standard for action by the police that they could
not function on the streets.47 The Court held that a brief on-the-spot stop for questioning,
accompanied by a superficial search (a pat-down search) of external clothing for weapons,
was something less than a full-scale search and therefore could be performed with less
than the traditional amount of probable cause. This case instantly became—and remains—
a major tool for the police.
While Terry said the stop and frisk is legal under the Fourth Amendment in cases
involving direct police observation, other cases have said that such a stop is legal when
based on information provided by an informant48 and when an individual is the subject
of a “wanted” flier from another jurisdiction.49 In summary, police officers are justified,
both to provide for their own safety and to detect past or future crimes, in stopping and
questioning people. A person may be frisked for a weapon if an officer fears for his or
her life, and the officer may go through the individual’s clothing if the frisk indicates
the presence of a weapon. Regardless of the rationale for the stop and frisk, there will
exhibit 7-2
In 2009, David Riley was stopped in San Diego for
traffic violations. The officer then found that Riley’s
driver’s license was suspended and, following depart-
ment policy, he searched the car, finding two illegal
handguns, for which Riley was arrested. Incidental to
lawful arrest, the officer then searched Riley and found
his cell phone in a pocket. The phone contained
evidence— pictures, cell phone contacts, texts mes-
sages, and video clips—indicating Riley’s membership
in a local gang, as well as a picture of his vehicle that
was involved in a gang shooting a few days earlier.
Later, ballistics tests revealed that the handguns were
also linked to the earlier shooting. Based in part on the
evidence recovered from Riley’s cell phone, Riley was
charged in connection with the gang shooting; he was
convicted and appealed.
In June 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously
held that, generally, police must obtain a search war-
rant prior to searching the contents of a cellphone, even
if incidental to lawful arrest. In its ruling, the Court
cast aside arguments that officer safety and even
national security should allow for such searches. Chief
Justice John Roberts wrote:
Digital data stored on a cell phone cannot itself be
used as a weapon to harm an arresting officer or
to effectuate the arrestee’s escape. Law enforce-
ment officers remain free to examine the physical
aspects of a phone to ensure that it will not be
used as a weapon—say, to determine whether
there is a razor blade hidden between the phone
and its case. Once an officer has secured a phone
and eliminated any potential physical threats,
however, data on the phone can endanger no one.
In sum, the Fourth Amendment applies to digital
papers and effects, and “[p]rivacy comes at a cost” to
the ability of law enforcement to combat crime.
However, the Court, in a nod to officer safety, contin-
ued allowing officers to examine the physical aspects
of a phone to ensure that it cannot be used as a weapon.
However, absent exigent circumstances, officers must
secure a warrant to search its contents.46
ARE YOUR CELLPHONE’S CONTENTS PROTECTED AND PRIVATE UNDER LAW?
The Case of David L. Riley
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 186
▼
always be some argument about whether this type of search is being used frivolously or
to harass individuals. However, in balancing the public’s need for safety against indi-
vidual rights, the Court was willing to tip the scales in favor of community protection,
especially where the safety of the officer was concerned.50 Now that you have a basic
understanding of Terry’s provision for patdown frisks, consider the facts set forth in
Exhibit 7-3 ■, and consider whether or not the police acted properly or violated indi-
viduals’ constitutional rights.
An important expansion of the Terry doctrine was handed down in 1993 in Minnesota
v. Dickerson,52 in which a police officer observed a man leave a notorious crack house and
then try to evade the officer. The man was eventually stopped and patted down, during
which time the officer felt a small lump in the man’s front pocket that was suspected to be
drugs. After manipulating and squeezing the lump, the officer removed it from the man’s
pocket; the object was crack cocaine wrapped in a cellophane container. Although the
defendant’s arrest and conviction were later thrown out (the Supreme Court reasoned that
the search was illegal because it went beyond the limited frisk for weapons, as permitted
by Terry), the Court also allowed such seizures in the future when officers’ probable cause
is established by the sense of touch.
Another case extending Terry, Illinois v. Wardlow,53 was decided in January 2000.
The Court held that a citizen’s running away from the police—under certain conditions—
supports reasonable suspicion to justify a search. Two Illinois police officers investigating
drug transactions in an area of heavy drug activity observed Wardlow holding a bag.
Upon seeing the two officers, Wardlow fled, but he was soon stopped. The officers
conducted a protective pat down and then squeezed the bag; they felt a gun and arrested
Wardlow. The Court reasoned that, taken together, several factors (the stop occurred in
a high-crime area; the suspect acted in a nervous, evasive manner; and the suspect
engaged in unprovoked flight upon noticing the police)54 were sufficient to establish
reasonable suspicion.
Cleveland Detective McFadden, a veteran of nineteen
years of police service, first noticed Terry and another
man at about 2:30 p.m. on the afternoon of the arrest in
October 1963. McFadden testified that it appeared the
men were “casing” a retail store. He observed the sus-
pects making several trips down the street, stopping at a
store window, walking about a half block, turning
around, walking back, and pausing to look inside the
same store window. At one point, they were joined by a
third party, who spoke with them and then moved on.
McFadden claimed that he followed them because he
believed it was his duty as a police officer to investigate
the matter further.
Soon the two rejoined the third man; at that point
McFadden decided the situation demanded direct action.
The officer approached the subjects, identified himself,
and then requested that the men identify themselves.
When Terry said something inaudible, McFadden “spun
him around so that they were facing the other two, with
Terry between McFadden and the others, and patted
down the outside of his clothing.” In a breast pocket of
Terry’s overcoat, the officer felt a pistol. McFadden
found another pistol on one of the other men. The two
men were arrested and ultimately convicted of conceal-
ing deadly weapons. Terry appealed on the ground that
the search was illegal and that the evidence should have
been suppressed at trial.
The U.S. Supreme Court disagreed with Terry, hold-
ing that the police have the authority to detain a person
briefly for questioning even without probable cause if
they believe that the person has committed a crime or is
about to commit a crime. Such detention does not consti-
tute an arrest. If the officer reasonably suspects that he or
she is in danger, the officer may also frisk a person.
Court Closeup Terry v. Ohio, 319 U.S. 1 (1968)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 187
▼
Another important Supreme Court decision in February 1997 took officer safety into
account. In Maryland v. Wilson,55 the Court held that police may order passengers out of
vehicles they stop, regardless of any suspicion of wrongdoing or threat to the officers’
safety. Chief Justice Rehnquist cited statistics showing officer assaults and murders dur-
ing traffic stops and noted that the “weighty interest” in officer safety is present whether a
vehicle occupant is a driver or a passenger. (Here, a Maryland state trooper initiated a
traffic stop and ordered an apparently nervous passenger, Wilson, to exit the vehicle.
While doing so, Wilson dropped a quantity of crack cocaine, for which he was arrested
and convicted.)
Searches of Automobiles Carried Out Under Special Conditions. The third general cir-
cumstance allowing a warrantless search is when an officer has probable cause to believe that
an automobile contains criminal evidence. The Supreme Court has traditionally distinguished
searches of automobiles from searches of homes on the grounds that a car involved in a crime
can be rapidly moved and its evidence irretrievably lost. The Court first established this
exhibit 7-3
For over a decade, the New York Police Department
(NYPD), like many large agencies, opted to take a
more proactive approach to fighting crime. This
approach involved an aggressive stop-and-frisk policy
where officers targeted high-crime areas, often times
developing suspicion from the mere fact that a person
was in such an area. Officers also focused on persons
who, for example, made “furtive movements” (such as
a hand reaching for something in a waistband, or
appeared nervous) or those who were entering or
exiting certain buildings that had been
associated with illegal activity.
The result of this crime fighting policy
was an unprecedented number of stops—
175,000 during a 15-month period. But the
demographic breakdown of those persons
stopped was troubling to many: African
Americans (26 percent of the city’s
population) accounted for 51 percent of the
total; Hispanics (24 percent of the
population) accounted for 33 percent; and
whites (43 percent of the population)
accounted for only 13 percent. Civil
libertarians claimed the NYPD was engaged
in illegal racial profiling. The NYPD
responded with a showing of much lower
rates for index crimes during the stop-and-
frisk era.
In a controversial decision, in August
of 2013, a New York federal district court
held that NYPD’s stop and frisk practices
were unconstitutional, violating the civil rights of
racial minorities. The law enforcement community,
while believing that the decision would likely increase
crime rates, issued new stop-and-frisk guidelines in
March of 2015 that required officers to be able to artic-
ulate facts as to why as stop was justified. In sum, offi-
cers can no longer stop and frisk someone simply
because he or she is making furtive movements in a
high-crime area or because they fit a generalized
description of a suspect.51
NYPD—STOP AND FRISK OR RACIAL PROFILING?
▲ See also “The Hunted and The Hated” on NYPD’s stop and frisk practices at https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=7rWtDMPaRD8. (Courtesy Ryan McGinnis/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 188
▼
doctrine in Carroll v. United States (1925). In this case, officers searched the vehicle of a
known bootlegger without a warrant but with probable cause, finding sixty-eight bottles of
illegal booze. On appeal, the Court ruled that the seizure was justified. However, Carroll
established two rules: First, to invoke the Carroll doctrine, the police must have enough prob-
able cause that if there had been enough time, a search warrant would have been issued; sec-
ond, urgent circumstances must exist that require immediate action.56
Extending the creation of the Carroll doctrine, however, two new questions confronted
the justices: whether impounded vehicles were subject to warrantless search and whether
searches could be made of vehicles stopped in routine traffic inspections. In Preston v.
United States (1964), the Court ruled that once the police had made a lawful arrest and
then towed the suspect’s car to a different location, they could not conduct an incidental
search of the vehicle. The Court reasoned that because such a search was remote in time
and place from the point of arrest, it was not incidental and therefore was unreasonable.57
Harris v. United States (1968) upheld the right of police to enter an impounded vehicle fol-
lowing a lawful arrest in order to inventory its contents.58 Building on this decision, the Court
later upheld a warrantless search of a vehicle in custody, saying that because the police had
probable cause to believe it contained evidence of a crime and could be easily moved, it
made little difference whether a warrant was sought or an immediate search conducted.59
In 1974, the expectation of citizens to privacy in their vehicles was further diminished
when the Court said an automobile has “little capacity for escaping public scrutiny [as] it trav-
els public thoroughfares where both its occupants and its contents are in plain view.”60 This
position was reinforced in 1976 when the Court said that a validly impounded car may be
searched without probable cause or warrant as it is reasonable for an inventory of its contents
to be made as a protection against theft or charges of theft while the car is in police custody.61
An automobile may be searched following the lawful search of its driver or another occu-
pant. Following the rationale of Chimel, the Court ruled that the entire interior of the car,
including containers, may be examined even if the items are not within the driver’s reach.62
The Court went on to say that a warrantless search of an automobile incidental to a lawful
arrest, including its trunk and any packages or luggage, is permissible if there is probable
cause to believe that it contains evidence of a crime.63 The Court also authorized a protective
pat down of vehicle passenger compartments for weapons (similar to that of persons in Terry
v. Ohio) after a valid stop and when officers have a reasonable belief that they may be in
danger.64 Finally, it was decided in 1987 that evidence seized by opening a closed container
during a warrantless inventory search of a vehicle incidental to lawful arrest is admissible.65
During its 1990–1991 term, the Supreme Court extended the long arm of the law with
respect to automobiles. In a May 1991 decision, the Court declared that a person’s general
consent to a search of the interior of an automobile justifies a search of any closed con-
tainer found inside the car that might reasonably hold the object of the search; thus, an
officer, after obtaining a general consent, does not need to ask permission to look inside
each closed container.66 One week later, the Court ruled that probable cause to believe that
a container within a car holds contraband or evidence allows a warrantless search of that
item under the automobile exception, even in the absence of probable cause extending to
the entire vehicle.67 This decision clarified the Carroll doctrine.
During its 1998–1999 term, the Court held that when an officer has probable cause to
search a vehicle, the officer may search objects belonging to a passenger in the vehicle, pro-
vided the item the officer is looking for could reasonably be in the passenger’s belongings.68
(Here the officer was searching an automobile for contraband, searched a passenger’s
purse, and found drug paraphernalia inside.)
In early 2013, the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of police using trained
drug-sniffing dogs outside of a home to determine the presence of drugs within. The Court
held,69 5–4, that such use of dogs constitutes a “search” under the Fourth Amendment, and
thus required a warrant. Here, officers from the Miami-Dade Police Department approached
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 189
▼
Jardines’ home with a drug dog after receiving a tip that marijuana was being grown in the
house. The Labrador retriever alerted officers to the presence of marijuana in the house, and
the officers obtained a search warrant and discovered the plants. Justice Antonin Scalia’s opin-
ion stated that: “To find a visitor knocking on the door is routine (even if sometimes unwel-
come); to spot that same visitor exploring the front path with a metal detector, or marching his
bloodhound into the garden before saying hello and asking permission, would inspire most of
us to—well, call the police.” Scalia said using the dog was no different from using thermal
imaging technology from afar to peer inside homes without a warrant. However, just one
month earlier the Court unanimously held that an alert by a trained police dog during a traffic
stop gave officers probable cause to further search a vehicle.70
More recently regarding vehicle searches, in April 2009 the Supreme Court overturned
nearly three decades of a particular police practice by holding that, where an individual has
been arrested and is in police custody away from his or her vehicle, unable to access the
vehicle, officers may not then search the vehicle without a warrant. Here, the officers did so,
and discovered a handgun and a plastic bag of cocaine; the Court said it is a violation of the
Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.71 In essence,
the Court is saying that police may search the passenger compartment of a vehicle incident to
a recent occupant’s arrest only if it is reasonable to believe that the arrestee might access the
vehicle at the time of the search or that the vehicle contains evidence of the offense of arrest.
Finally, in 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled72 that police violated the Constitution
when they attached a Global Positioning System (GPS) device to a suspect’s vehicle
without a search warrant. Police had followed a drug trafficking suspect for a month and
eventually found nearly 100 kilograms of cocaine and $1 million in cash when raiding the
suspect’s home in Maryland. Justice Scalia noted that the Fourth Amendment’s protection
of “persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures”
extends to automobiles as well, and that even a small trespass, if committed in “an attempt
to find something or to obtain information,” constituted a “search” under the Fourth
Amendment. This decision is anticipated to primarily affect major narcotics investigations.
Seizures of Evidence in “Plain View.” The police do not have to search for items that are in
plain view. If such items are believed to be fruits or instrumentalities of a crime and the
police are lawfully on the premises, they may seize them. For example, if an officer has
been admitted into a home with an arrest or search warrant and sees drugs and parapherna-
lia on a living room table, he or she may arrest the occupants on drug charges as well as the
other charges. If an officer performs a traffic stop for an offense and observes drugs in the
backseat of the car, he may arrest for that as well. Provided that the officer was lawfully in a
particular place and that the plain-view discovery was inadvertent, the law does not require
the officer to ignore contraband or other evidence of a crime that is in plain view.
The Supreme Court has said that officers are not required to immediately recognize
an object in plain view as contraband before it may be seized. (For instance, an officer
may see a balloon in a glove box with a white powdery substance on its tip and later
determine the powder to be heroin.)73 Furthermore, fences and the posting of “No
Trespassing” signs afford no expectation of privacy and do not prevent officers from
viewing open fields without a search warrant,74 nor are police prevented from making
a naked-eye aerial observation of a suspect’s backyard or other curtilage (the grounds
around a house or building).75
Two decisions in the late 1980s have further defined the plain-view doctrine. In one
case, an officer found a gun under a car seat while looking for the vehicle identification
number; the Court upheld the search and the resulting arrest as being a plain-view
discovery.76 However, in another similar situation, the Court disallowed an arrest when an
officer, during a legal search for weapons, moved a stereo system to locate its serial
number, saying that this constituted an unreasonable search and seizure.77
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 190
▼
Searches When Consent Is Given. Another permissible warrantless search involves cit-
izens waiving their Fourth Amendment rights and consenting to a search of their persons
or effects. It must be established at trial, however, that a defendant’s consent was given
voluntarily. In some circumstances, as with metal detectors at airports, an agent’s right to
search is implied.
In the leading case on consent searches, Schneckloth v. Bustamonte (1973), a police
officer stopped a car for a burned-out headlight. Two other backup officers joined him.
When asked if his car could be searched, the driver consented. The officers found several
stolen checks in the trunk. The driver and passenger were arrested and convicted. On
appeal, the defendants argued that the evidence should have been suppressed, as they did
not know they had the right to refuse the officers’ request to search the car. The Supreme
Court upheld their convictions, reasoning that the individuals, although poor, uneducated,
and alone with three officers, could reasonably be considered capable of knowing and
exercising their right to deny officers permission to search their car.78
However, police cannot deceive people into believing they have a search warrant when
they in fact do not. For example, the police, looking for a rape suspect, announced falsely to
the suspect’s grandmother that they had a search warrant for her home; the evidence they
found was ruled to be inadmissible.79 A hotel clerk cannot give a valid consent to a warrant-
less search of the room of one of the occupants; hotel guests have a reasonable expectation
of privacy, and that right cannot be waived by hotel management.80
Finally, the right of police to search a home when one occupant consents and the other
objects was the subject of a Supreme Court decision in March 2006. There, police responded
to the home of a Georgia couple following a domestic disturbance. The wife told the officers
that her husband was a drug user and had drugs in their home. An officer asked the husband
for permission to search the residence and was denied. The wife granted consent, however,
and led the officers to a bedroom where cocaine was kept. The defendant-husband appealed
on the grounds that the drugs were the product of an unlawful search, and the Supreme Court
agreed on the grounds that the Fourth Amendment should not ignore the privacy rights of an
individual who is present and asserting his rights.81 Note, however, that an occupant may still
give police permission to search when the other resident is absent or does not protest.
▲ The U.S. Supreme Court, Washington, D.C. (Courtesy The Supreme Court Historical
Society)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 191
▼
Electronic Surveillance
It was the original view of the Supreme Court, in Olmstead v. United States (1928) that wire-
taps were not searches and seizures and did not violate the Fourth Amendment; this represented
the old rule on wiretaps.82 However, that decision was overruled in 1967 in Katz v. United
States, which held that any form of electronic surveillance, including wiretapping, is a search
and violates a reasonable expectation of privacy.83 The case involved a public telephone booth,
deemed by the Court to be a constitutionally protected area where the user has a reasonable
expectation of privacy. This decision expressed the view that the Constitution protects people,
not places. Thus the Court has required that warrants for electronic surveillance be based on
probable cause, describe the conversations to be overheard, be for a limited period of time,
name subjects to be overheard, and be terminated when the desired information is obtained.84
However, the Supreme Court has held that while electronic eavesdropping (i.e., an
informant wearing a “bug,” or hidden microphone) did not violate the Fourth Amendment
(a person assumes the risk that whatever he or she says may be transmitted to the police),85
the warrantless monitoring of an electronic beeper in a private residence violated the sus-
pect’s right to privacy. A federal drug agent had placed a beeper inside a can of ether,
which was being used to extract cocaine from clothing imported into the United States, and
had monitored its movements.86
Lineups
A police lineup, as well as other face-to-face confrontations after the accused has been
arrested, is considered a critical stage of criminal proceedings; therefore, the accused has a
right to have an attorney present. If counsel is not present, the evidence obtained is
inadmissible.87 However, the suspect is not entitled to the presence and advice of a lawyer
before being formally charged.88
Lineups that are so suggestive as to make the result inevitable violate the suspect’s right to
due process. (In one case, the suspect was much taller than the other two people in the lineup,
and he was the only person wearing a leather jacket similar to that worn by the robber. In a
second lineup, the suspect was the only person who had participated in the first lineup.89 In
short, lineups must be fair to suspects; a fair lineup guarantees no bias against the suspect.
The Supreme Court has held that a suspect may be compelled to appear before a grand
jury and give voice exemplars for comparison with an actual voice recording. Appearance
before a grand jury is not a search, and the giving of a voice sample is not a seizure that is
protected by the Fourth Amendment.90
▶ Fifth Amendment
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a
presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval
forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall
any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor
shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of
life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for
public use, without just compensation.
—Fifth Amendment, U.S. Constitution, U.S. Department of Justice.
A major tool used in religious persecutions in England during the sixteenth century was
the oath. Ministers were called before the Court of Star Chamber (which, during much of the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, enforced unpopular political policies and meted out
severe punishments, including whipping, branding, and mutilation, without a jury trial) and
questioned about their beliefs. Being men of God, they were compelled to tell the truth and
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 192
▼
admitted to their nonconformist views; for this, they were often severely punished or even
executed.91 In the 1630s, the Star Chamber and similar bodies of cruelty were disbanded
by Parliament. People had become repulsed by compulsory self-incrimination; the privi-
lege against self-incrimination was recognized in all courts when claimed by defendants or
witnesses. Today, the Fifth Amendment applies not only to criminal defendants but also to
any witness testifying in a civil or criminal case and anyone testifying before an adminis-
trative body, a grand jury, or a congressional committee. However, the privilege does not
extend to blood samples, handwriting exemplars, and other such items that are not consid-
ered to be testimony.92
The right against self-incrimination is one of the most significant provisions in the Bill of
Rights. Basically it states that no criminal defendant shall be compelled to take the witness
stand and give evidence against himself or herself. No one can be compelled to answer any
question if his or her answer can later be used to implicate or convict him or her. Some people
view the defendant’s “taking the Fifth” as an indication of guilt; others view this as a basic right
in a democracy, wherein a defendant does not have to contribute to his or her own conviction.
In either case, the impact of this amendment is felt daily by the criminal justice system.
Decisions Supporting Miranda : Confessions
Traditionally, the U.S. Supreme Court has excluded physically coerced confessions on the
grounds that such confessions might very well be untrustworthy or unreliable in view of
the duress surrounding them. As the quality of police work has improved, police use of
physical means to obtain confessions has diminished. Some cases that have come before
the Supreme Court involved psychological rather than physical pressure on the defendant
to confess. One such case involved an accused who was questioned for eight hours by six
police officers in relays and was told falsely that the job and welfare of a friend who was a
rookie cop depended on his confession. He was also refused contact with his lawyer. The
Court reversed his conviction, not so much on the grounds that the confession was unreli-
able but on the grounds that it was obtained unfairly.93
In the 1960s, the Supreme Court ruled in Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)94 (discussed later)
and in Miranda v. Arizona (1966)95 (see Court Closeup: Miranda v. Arizona) that confes-
sions made by suspects who have not been notified of their constitutional rights cannot be
admitted into evidence. In these cases, the Court emphasized the importance of a defen-
dant having the “guiding hand of counsel” present during the interrogation process.
Once a suspect has been placed under arrest, the Miranda warning must be given before
interrogation for any offense, be it a felony or a misdemeanor. An exception is the brief
routine traffic stop; however, a custodial interrogation of a suspect for driving under the
influence (DUI) requires the Miranda warning.96 Moreover, after an accused has invoked the
right to counsel, the police may not interrogate the same suspect about a different crime.97
Once a “Mirandized” suspect invokes his or her right to silence, interrogation must cease. The
police may not readminister Miranda and interrogate the suspect later unless the suspect’s
attorney is present. If, however, the suspect initiates further conversation, any confession he or
she provides is admissible.98 (This decision involved a suspect who was arrested on a state
criminal charge and invoked his right to have counsel present at questioning; then, one day
later, the police returned, re-Mirandized him, and during this period of questioning he said that
he was willing to talk; he then confessed to child molestation.)
However, in a significant decision in February 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court modified
this ruling in Maryland v. Shatzer.99 There, a detective attempted to question a prison inmate
concerning allegations of sexually abusing his son; Shatzer invoked his Miranda right to have
counsel present during interrogation, so the questioning ceased, Shatzer was released back
into the general prison population, and the investigation was closed. Three years later, Shatzer
had been released from prison, rearrested, and returned to prison; the earlier investigation was
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 193
▼
reopened and another detective sought to question Shatzer in prison. This time Shatzer waived
his Miranda rights and confessed. On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court held that, because
Shatzer had experienced a break in Miranda custody of more than two weeks between the first
and second attempts at interrogation, his confession did not have to be suppressed. Justice
Antonin Scalia wrote, “The Court concludes that the appropriate period is 14 days, which
provides ample time for the suspect to get reacclimated to his normal life, consult with friends
and counsel, and shake off any residual coercive effects of prior custody.100
Decisions Modifying Miranda : interrogations
Miranda, Escobedo, and Mapp combined to represent the centerpiece of the “due process
revolution” of the Court of Chief Justice Earl Warren in the 1960s. However, several deci-
sions, including many by the Court of Chief Justice Warren Burger, have dealt severe
blows to Miranda.
It has been held that a second interrogation session held after the suspect had initially
refused to make a statement did not violate Miranda.101 If a suspect waives his or her
Miranda rights and makes voluntary statements while irrational (allegedly “following the
advice of God”), those statements too are admissible.102 The Court also decided that when
a suspect waived his or her Miranda rights, believing the interrogation would focus on
minor crimes, but the police shifted their questioning to a more serious crime, the confes-
sion was valid—there was no police deception or misrepresentation.103 When a suspect
invoked his or her right to assistance of counsel and refused to make written statements but
then voluntarily gave oral statements to police, the statements were admissible (defendants
have “the right to choose between speech and silence”).104 Finally, a suspect need not be
given the Miranda warning in the exact form that it was outlined in Miranda v. Arizona.
While walking to a Phoenix, Arizona, bus stop on the
night of March 2, 1963, eighteen-year-old Barbara Ann
Johnson was accosted by a man who shoved her into his
car, tied her hands and ankles, and drove her to the edge
of the city, where he raped her. He then drove Johnson to
a street near her home, letting her out of the car and ask-
ing that she pray for him.
The Phoenix police subsequently picked up Ernesto
Miranda for investigation of Johnson’s rape and included
him in a lineup at the police station. Miranda was identi-
fied by several women; one identified him as the man who
had robbed her at knifepoint a few months earlier, and
Johnson thought he was the rapist.
Miranda was a twenty-three-year-old eighth-grade
dropout with a police record dating back to age fourteen,
and he had also served time in prison for driving a stolen
car across a state line. During questioning, the police told
Miranda that he had been identified by the women;
Miranda then made a statement in writing that described
the rape incident. He also noted that he was making the
confession voluntarily and with full knowledge of his
legal rights. He was soon charged with rape, kidnapping,
and robbery.
At trial, Miranda’s court-appointed attorney got the
officers to admit that during the interrogation, the defen-
dant was not informed of his right to have counsel present
and that no counsel was present. Nonetheless, Miranda’s
confession was admitted into evidence. He was convicted
and sentenced to serve twenty to thirty years for kidnap-
ping and rape.
On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled:
[T]he current practice of incommunicado
interrogation is at odds with one of our Nation’s
most cherished principles—that the individual
may not be compelled to incriminate himself.
Unless adequate protective devices are employed
to dispel the compulsion inherent in custodial
surroundings, no statement obtained from the
defendant can truly be the product of free choice.
Court Closeup Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966)
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 194
▼
In one case, the waiver form said the suspect would have an attorney appointed “if and
when you go to court.” The Court held that as long as the warnings on the form reasonably
convey the suspect’s rights, they need not be given verbatim.105
In 1994, the Supreme Court ruled that after police officers obtain a valid Miranda waiver
from a suspect, they may continue questioning him or her when he or she makes an ambigu-
ous or equivocal request for counsel during questioning. In this case,106 the defendant stated
during an interview and after waiving his rights, “Maybe I should talk to a lawyer.” The
officers inquired about this statement, determined that he did not want a lawyer, and contin-
ued their questioning. When a suspect unequivocally requests counsel, all questioning must
cease. However, here the Court held that when the suspect mentions an attorney, the officers
need not interrupt the flow of the questioning to clarify the reference but may continue ques-
tioning until there is a clear assertion of the right to counsel, such as “I want a lawyer.”
Finally, in June 2010, the Supreme Court held (5–4) that suspects’ mere silence—
when they do not expressly waive their Miranda rights and speak only after remaining
silent through a period of interrogation—does not mean they intend to invoke Miranda.
There, a Michigan murder suspect remained silent during almost three hours of interroga-
tion and finally answered yes to the following question: “Do you pray to God to forgive
you for shooting that boy down?” This affirmative response was later used against him at
trial, and he was convicted of first-degree murder. The majority held that earlier decisions
concerning Miranda have put a greater burden on suspects to invoke their rights, while
the dissenting opinion argued that the decision created a kind of paradox: “A suspect who
wishes to guard his right to remain silent must, counterintuitively, speak.” The Criminal
Justice Legal Foundation, explaining the decision, stated, “The Supreme Court recog-
nized the practical realities that the police face in dealing with suspects. They don’t
always answer the waiver question clearly. When they do not, Miranda should not apply,
and the statement should be admissible as long as it is not compelled.”107
Entrapment
The due process clause of the Fifth Amendment requires “fundamental fairness”—
government agents may not act in a way that is “shocking to the universal sense of justice.”
Thus, the police may not induce or encourage a person to commit a crime that he or she
would otherwise not have attempted, because that is, entrapment.108 This is the current test
used by many courts to evaluate police behavior. Some states take a broader view than oth-
ers as to what constitutes entrapment. For example, a police department in a western state
had police officers impersonate homeless people. The decoys pretended to be asleep or
passed out from intoxication on a public bench, and paper money visibly protruded from
their pockets. Several passersby helped themselves to the money and were arrested on the
spot. On appeal, the prosecution argued that a thief is a thief, the people had the intent to
commit theft, and the decoy operation simply provided an opportunity for dishonest peo-
ple to get caught. The state’s Supreme Court disagreed, calling the operation entrapment,
adding that the situation could cause even honest people to be overcome by temptation.
However, the U.S. Supreme Court approved an undercover drug agent’s provision of
an essential chemical for the manufacture of illegal drugs. (The defendant, the majority
said, was an “unwary criminal” who was already “predisposed” to commit the offense.)109
Nor is it entrapment when a drug agent sells drugs to a suspect, who then sells it to govern-
ment agents. Government conduct in this case is shocking to civil libertarians, but the
focus here is the conduct of the defendant, not the government. As long as government’s
conduct is not outrageous and the defendant was predisposed to crime, the arrest is valid.110
The Supreme Court has held that police officers “may not originate a criminal design,
implant in an innocent person’s mind the disposition to commit a criminal act, and then
induce commission of the crime.”111
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 195
▼
▶ Sixth Amendment
In all criminal prosecutions the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by
an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed,
which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the
nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have
compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have the assistance of coun-
sel for his defense.
—Sixth Amendment, U.S. Constitution, U.S. Department of Justice.
Right to Counsel
Many people believe that the Sixth Amendment right of the accused to have the assistance of
counsel before and at trial is the greatest right we enjoy in a democracy. Indeed, a close
reading of the cases mentioned here would reveal the negative outcomes that are possible
when a person—rich or poor, illiterate or educated—has no legal representation.
Over seventy years ago, in Powell v. Alabama (1932), it was established that in a capi-
tal case, when the accused is poor and illiterate, he or she enjoys the right to assistance of
counsel for his or her defense and due process.112 In Gideon v. Wainwright (1963), the
Supreme Court mandated that all indigent people charged with felonies in state courts be
provided counsel.113
Note that Gideon applied only to felony defendants. In 1973, Argersinger v. Hamlin
extended the right to counsel to indigent people charged with misdemeanor crimes if they
face the possibility of incarceration (however short the incarceration may be).114
Another landmark decision concerning the right to counsel is Escobedo v. Illinois
(1964).115 Danny Escobedo’s brother-in-law was fatally shot in 1960; Escobedo was arrested
without a warrant and questioned, but he made no statement to the police. He was released
after fourteen hours of interrogation. Following police questioning of another suspect,
Escobedo was again arrested and questioned at police headquarters. Escobedo’s request to
confer with his lawyer was denied, even after the lawyer arrived and asked to see his client.
The questioning of Escobedo lasted several hours, during which time he was handcuffed and
forced to remain standing. Eventually, he admitted being an accomplice to murder. Under
Illinois law, an accomplice was as guilty as the person firing the fatal bullet. At no point was
Escobedo advised of his rights to remain silent or to confer with his attorney.
Escobedo’s conviction was ultimately reversed by the Supreme Court, based on a
violation of Escobedo’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel. However, the real thrust of the
decision was his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself; when a defendant is
scared, flustered, ignorant, alone, and bewildered, he or she is often unable to effectively
make use of protections granted under the Fifth Amendment without the advice of an
attorney.116 The Miranda decision set down two years later simply established the
guidelines for the police to inform suspects of all of these rights.
What Constitutes an interrogation?
The Supreme Court has stated that an interrogation takes place not only when police offi-
cers ask direct questions of a defendant but also when the police make remarks designed to
appeal to a defendant’s sympathy, religious interest, and so forth. This has been deemed
soliciting information through trickery and deceit. The “Christian Burial Speech” case
(discussed previously) and Escobedo demonstrated that even before (and certainly after) a
suspect has been formally charged, a suspect in police custody should not be interrogated
without an attorney present unless he or she has waived the right to counsel.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 196
▼
However, the Supreme Court upheld a conviction when two police officers, in a
suspect’s presence, discussed the possible whereabouts of the shotgun used in a robbery
and expressed concern that nearby schoolchildren might be endangered by it. Hearing this
conversation, the suspect led officers to the shotgun, thereby implicating himself. On
appeal, the Court said that interrogation includes words and actions intended to elicit an
incriminating response from the defendant and that no such interrogation occurred here;
this was a mere conversation between officers, and the evidence was admissible.117
In another case, the Court ruled that if the police were present at and recorded a conversa-
tion between a husband and wife (this tape was later used against the husband at trial, where
he claimed insanity in the killing of his son), an interrogation did not occur. The Court
believed that the police merely arranged a situation in which it was likely the suspect would
make incriminating statements, so anything recorded could be used against him in court.118
Two cases on police interrogations were heard during the 1990–1991 Supreme Court
term. First, the Court held that a defendant who is in custody and has been given the Miranda
warning may be questioned later on a separate as-yet-uncharged offense. In this case, the
defendant appeared with an attorney at a bail hearing on robbery charges. Later, while he
was still in custody, the police, after reading him his rights, questioned him about a murder;
the defendant agreed to discuss the murder without counsel and made incriminating state-
ments that were used to convict him.119 In the second case, representing a victory for the
defense, the Court held that once a criminal suspect has asked for and consults with a lawyer,
interrogators may not later question him without his lawyer being present.120
Two recent decisions have expanded defendants’ rights under the Sixth Amendment.
First, in mid-2009 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that criminal defendants have a constitu-
tional right to cross-examine forensic analysts who prepare laboratory reports on illegal
drugs and other evidence used at trial. The defendant—convicted for distributing and traf-
ficking cocaine—challenged on appeal the lab analysis that confirmed cocaine was in plastic
bags found in the vehicle in which he was riding. He argued, successfully, that the Sixth
Amendment allowed him to confront witnesses against him and that he should have been
allowed to question the lab analyst about testing methods and how the evidence was
preserved.121 Then, in early 2010, the Supreme Court held that the Sixth Amendment requires
that immigrants have a right to be told by their lawyers whether pleading guilty to a crime
could lead to their deportation; Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the majority that “Our
long-standing Sixth Amendment precedents, the seriousness of deportation, and the con-
comitant impact of deportation on families living lawfully in this country demand no less.”122
▶ Juvenile Rights
The criminal justice system’s philosophy toward juveniles is very different from its phi-
losophy toward adults. Consequently, police officers, who are constantly dealing with
juvenile offenders, must know and apply a different standard of treatment in these situa-
tions. The approach is generally that society, through poor parenting, poverty, and so forth,
is primarily responsible for the criminal behavior of juvenile offenders.
The prevailing doctrine that guides our treatment of juveniles is parens patriae,
meaning that “the state is the ultimate parent” of the child. In effect, as long as we
adequately care for and provide at least the basic amenities for our children as
required under the law, they are ours to keep, but when children are physically or
emotionally neglected or abused by their parents or guardians, the juvenile court and
police may intervene and remove the children from that environment. Then the doc-
trine of in loco parentis takes hold, meaning that the state will act in place of the par-
ent. One of the authors can state from experience that there is probably no more
overwhelming or awe-inspiring duty for a police officer than having to testify in juvenile
court that a woman is an unfit mother and that parental ties should be legally severed.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 197
▼
However, when a person chooses to be a negligent or abusive parent, it is clearly in every-
one’s best interest for the state to assume care and custody of the child.
The juvenile justice system, working through and with the police, seeks to protect the
child. It seeks to rehabilitate, not punish; its procedure is generally amiable, not adversarial.
That is why the term in re, meaning “concerning” or “in the matter of,” is commonly used in
many juvenile case titles—for example, a case would be called In Re Smith rather than the
adversarial and more formal State v. Smith. Juvenile court proceedings are generally shrouded
in privacy—that is, heard before a judge only. However, when a juvenile commits an act that
is so heinous that the protective and helpful juvenile court philosophy will not work, the
child may be remanded to the custody of the adult court to be tried as an adult.
Juvenile delinquency (an ambiguous term that has no widespread agreed-on meaning but
has a multitude of definitions under state statutes)123 became recognized as a national problem
in the 1950s. As a result, several important decisions by the Supreme Court between 1960 and
1970 addressed the rights of juveniles. Kent v. United States (1966)124 involved a sixteen- year-
old male who was arrested in the District of Columbia for robbery, rape, and burglary. The
juvenile court, without holding a formal hearing, waived the matter to a criminal court, and
Kent was tried and convicted as an adult. Kent appealed, arguing that the waiver without a
hearing violated his right to due process. The Supreme Court agreed.
Another landmark case extending due process to juveniles was In Re Gault (1967).125
Gerald Gault was a fifteen-year-old who resided in Arizona and allegedly made obscene
telephone calls. When a neighbor complained to police, Gault was arrested and eventually
sent to a youth home (a previous crime, stealing a wallet, was also taken into account), to
remain there until he either turned twenty-one or was paroled. Before his hearing, Gault did
not receive a timely notice of charges. At his hearing, Gault had no attorney present, nor
was his accuser present; no transcript was made of the proceedings, and Gault was not read
his rights or told he could remain silent. Gault appealed on the grounds that all of these due
process rights should have been provided. The Supreme Court reversed his conviction,
declaring that these Fourteenth Amendment protections applied to juveniles as well as
adults. This case remains the most significant juvenile rights decision ever rendered.
In 1970, the Supreme Court decided In Re Winship, which involved a twelve-year-old boy
convicted in New York of larceny.126 At trial, the court relied on the “preponderance of the
evidence” standard of proof against him rather than the more demanding “beyond a reasonable
doubt” standard used in adult courts. At that time, juvenile courts could apply any of three stan-
dards of proof (the third was “clear and convincing evidence”). The Court reversed Winship’s
conviction on the grounds that the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard had not been used.
Other precedent-setting juvenile cases followed. In McKeiver v. Pennsylvania (1971),
the Supreme Court said juveniles do not have an absolute right to trial by jury; whether or
not a juvenile receives a trial by jury is left to the discretion of state and local authorities.127
In Breed v. Jones (1975), the Court concluded that the Fifth Amendment protected juve-
niles from double jeopardy, or being tried twice for the same offense.128 (Breed had been
tried both in California Juvenile Court and later in Superior Court—the state’s trial courts,
which exist in each of the state’s 58 counties—for the same offenses.)
In March 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Roper v. Simmons, ruled that the Eighth
and Fourteenth Amendments forbid the execution of offenders who were under the age of
eighteen when their crimes were committed.129
Finally, in May 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Eighth Amendment’s ban
on cruel and unusual punishment prohibits juveniles who commit crimes not involving
murder from serving life without parole (LWOP) sentences. The justices stated that the sen-
tences at issue had been “rejected the world over” and that only the United States and per-
haps Israel had imposed the punishment even for homicides committed for juveniles.130
An area of law that recently garnered nationwide attention (and involved the shooting
of a juvenile) is the “stand your ground” law, which is discussed in Exhibit 7-4 ■.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 198
▼
exhibit 7-4
Although not specifically a federal court decision that
constrains police behavior like others discussed in this
chapter, the killing in Florida of Trayvon Martin by
George Zimmerman in February 2012 caused a major
controversy that, by its nature, implicates the entire
criminal justice system and binds the police and prose-
cutors under a controversial “rule of law” in particular.
The law essentially expands the common law “cas-
tle doctrine” which provided that if a stranger entered
one’s home without permission, the home owner could
use deadly force to protect himself. “Stand your
ground” became law in Florida in 2005; since then, at
least 22 states have enacted a similar expansion of the
castle doctrine (note, however, that at least 18 other
states have enacted “duty to retreat” laws, which basi-
cally say one cannot resort to deadly force in self-
defense as long as he or she can safely avoid the risk of
harm or death (by running away, for example).131
Essentially, “stand your ground” says that the old com-
mon law should extend not only to the outside of one’s
home but to any other place where he or she has a right
to be; under the law, when killers state they acted in
self-defense, they cannot be convicted of murder unless
it can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt (the high-
est legal standard) that the dead person did not attack
the killer. The law, enacted in the aftermath of Florida’s
Hurricane Ivan after which there occurred a lot of loot-
ing of homes and businesses, was intended to give citi-
zens a presumption of innocence when defending
themselves. It also does not give police the right to hold
someone if they have evidence that the shooter was
attacked “in a place he had a right to be.” Prosecutors
largely despise the law because of the aforementioned
burden of proof, while defense attorneys have found it
to be a means of arguing for all manner of people who
can now claim that they had a right to meet force with
force. One irony now under Florida’s “stand your
ground” law: while pointing a gun at someone can earn
them three years in prison, pointing a gun and shooting
at that same person may well allow them to go free.132
Zimmerman was found not guilty of either second-
degree murder or manslaughter, by a jury of six women,
in July 2013; the judge instructed the jury to acquit if it
found “he had no duty to retreat and had the right to
stand his ground and meet force with force, including
deadly force, if he reasonably believed it was neces-
sary.”133 Legal experts do not believe such laws will be
repealed in the aftermath of the verdict—which prompted
many protests across the nation. In fact, to the contrary,
many state legislatures are conservative towards crime
and lean heavily in favor of gun owners’ rights.
An example of such a law may be found in the
Kansas Statute Annotated, which states that “A person
who is not engaged in an unlawful activity and who is
attacked in a place where such person has a right to be
has no duty to retreat and has the right to stand such
person’s ground and use any force which such person
would be justified in using . . .”134
Source: From The Law Heard Round the World by John Arnold,
Published by Time, What You May Not Know About the Zimmerman
Verdict: The Evolution of a Jury Instruction, by Alafair Burke,
Published by The Huffington Post, Kansas Statutes Annotated.
THE SHOOTING OF TRAYVON MARTIN: “STAND YOUR GROUND” LAWS
Summary U.S. society places great importance on individual freedom, and the power of govern-
ment has traditionally been feared; therefore, the U.S. Constitution, courts, and legisla-
tures have seen fit to rein in the power of government agents through what is commonly
referred to as the rule of law. This necessary aspect associated with having police in
a democracy carries with it a responsibility for police practitioners to understand the
law and—more importantly perhaps—to keep abreast of the legal changes society is
constantly undergoing.
The law is dynamic—that is, it is constantly changed by the Supreme Court and other
federal courts and by state courts and legislatures. It is imperative that police agencies have
a formal mechanism for imparting these legal changes to their officers.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 199
▼
The number of successful criminal and civil lawsuits against police officers today dem-
onstrates that the police have not always done their homework and simply do not apply the
law in the manner in which the federal courts intended. Officers must understand and
enforce the law properly. In this grave business of adult cops and robbers, the means are in
many respects more important than the ends. The courts and the criminal justice system
should expect and allow nothing less.
Key Terms
affidavit
consent
entrapment
exclusionary rule
exigent circumstances
Fifth Amendment
Fourth Amendment
in loco parentis
interrogation
juvenile rights
life without parole
lineup
parens patriae
probable cause
rule of law
search and seizure
Sixth Amendment
“stand your ground” laws
Review Questions
1. What is meant by the rule of law?
2. What protections are afforded citizens by the Fourth,
Fifth, and Sixth Amendments?
3. What is an example of probable cause?
4. From both the police and community perspectives,
what are the ramifications of having and not having
the exclusionary rule?
5. How would you distinguish between arrests and
searches and seizures with and without a warrant,
and which form is best? Provide examples of each.
6. Explain when and under what circumstances the
police may enter a home without a warrant under
exigent circumstances to render emergency aid.
7. In what significant ways has the original Miranda
decision been modified, and what is its long-term out-
look, given the shifting composition of judges on the
Supreme Court?
8. What major legal rights exist for juveniles, and what
are the major differences in philosophy and treatment
between juvenile and adult offenders?
Learn by Doing
1. Your criminal justice professor has assigned a class
project wherein class members are to determine
which amendment to the Bill of Rights—the Fourth,
Fifth, or Sixth—contains the most important rights
that are protected by citizens under a democracy. You
are to analyze these three amendments and present
your findings as to which one is the most important.
2. You are assigned the task of debating which period
was the most important—the so-called “due process
revolution” of the Warren Court (particularly during
the 1960s, when the U.S. Supreme Court granted
many rights to the accused through such decisions as
Gideon, Miranda, Escobedo, and so forth), or the
more conservative era that followed under the
Rehnquist Court, during which time many of the
Warren Court decisions were eroded and more rights
were given to the police. Choose a side, and make
your defenses.
3. From the time of his confirmation in 1969, Chief
Justice Warren Burger viewed the exclusionary rule
as an unnecessary and unreasonable intrusion on law
enforcement. Prepare a pro/con paper that examines
why there should and should not be an exclusionary
rule as a part of our system of justice.
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 200
▼
Notes
1. Albert Venn Dicey, Introduction to the Study of the
Law of the Constitution, 10th ed. (London:
Macmillan, 1959), p. 187.
2. David W. Neubauer and Henry F. Fradella,
America’s Courts and the Criminal Justice System,
10th ed. (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2011),
pp. 294–300.
3. Draper v. U.S., 358 U.S. 307 (1959).
4. Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213 (1983).
5. U.S. v. Sokolow, 109 S.Ct. 1581 (1989).
6. Hunter v. Bryant, 112 S.Ct. 534 (1991).
7. People v. Defore, 242 N.Y. 214, 150 N.E. 585 (1926).
8. Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961).
9. John Kaplan, Jerome H. Skolnick, and Malcolm
M. Feeley, Criminal Justice: Introductory Cases
and Materials, 5th ed. (Westbury, NY: Foundation
Press, 1991), pp. 258–259, 269.
10. Rochin v. California, 342 U.S. 165 (1952).
11. In New York v. Quarles, 467 U.S. 649 (1984).
12. Nix v. Williams, 52 LW 4732 (1984). This case
began as Brewer v. Williams, 430 U.S. 387 (1977).
13. U.S. v. Leon, 82 L.Ed.2d 677 (1984).
14. Murray v. U.S., 487 U.S. 533 (1988).
15. Alexander B. Smith and Harriet Pollack, Criminal
Justice: An Overview (New York: Holt, Rinehart
and Winston, 1980), pp. 154–155.
16. Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573 (1980).
17. Dunaway v. New York, 442 U.S. 200 (1979).
18. Delaware v. Prouse, 440 U.S. 648 (1979).
19. Michigan Department of State Police v. Sitz, 110
S.Ct. 2481, 110 L.Ed.2d 412 (1990).
20. Pennsylvania v. Muniz, 110 S.Ct. 2638, 110 L.Ed.2d
528 (1990).
21. Maryland v. Pringle, 124 S.Ct. 795 (2004).
22. Illinois v. Lidster, 124 S.Ct. 885 (2004).
23. Riverside County, Calif. v. McLaughlin, 59 LW
4413 (May 13, 1991).
24. U.S. v. Banks, 124 S.Ct. 521 (2003).
25. Pennsylvania v. Bull, 63 LW 3695 (1995).
26. Wilson v. Arkansas, 115 S.Ct. 1914 (1995).
27. Muehler v. Mena, 125 S.Ct. 1465 (2005).
28. Zurcher v. Stanford Daily, 436 U.S. 547 (1978).
29. Maryland v. Garrison, 480 U.S. 79 (1987).
30. California v. Greenwood, 486 U.S. 35 (1988).
31. Heien v. North Carolina, 574 U.S. ___ (2014),
32. Rolando v. Del Carmen and Jeffrey T. Walker, Briefs
of One Hundred Leading Cases in Law Enforce-
ment (Cincinnati, OH: Anderson, 1991), p. 49.
33. Brower v. County of Inyo, 109 U.S. 1378 (1989).
34. Florida v. Bostick, 59 LW 4708 (June 20, 1991).
35. U.S. v. Drayton, 536 U.S. 194, 231 F.3d 787 (2002).
36. California v. Hodari D., 59 LW 4335 (April 23,
1991).
37. Schmerber v. California, 384 U.S. 757 (1966).
38. Winston v. Lee, 470 U.S. 753 (1985).
39. Brigham City v. Stuart, 547 U.S. 398 (2006).
40. Michigan v. Fisher, 130 S. Ct. 546 (2009).
41. Kentucky v. King, 563 U.S. (2011).
42. U.S. v. Robinson, 414 U.S. 218 (1973).
43. Chimel v. California, 395 U.S. 752 (1969).
44. U.S. v. Edwards, 415 U.S. 800 (1974).
45. Maryland v. Buie, 58 LW 4281 (1990).
46. Riley v. California, 573 U.S. _____ (2014) (No.
13–132).
47. Smith and Pollack, Criminal Justice, p. 161.
48. Adams v. Williams, 407 U.S. 143 (1972).
49. U.S. v. Hensley, 469 U.S. 221 (1985).
50. Smith and Pollack, Criminal Justice, p. 162.
51. Based on Private police carry guns and make
arrests, and their ranks are swelling. Published by
The Atlantic Monthly Group © 2014.
52. Minnesota v. Dickerson, 113 S.Ct. 2130 (1993).
53. Illinois v. Wardlow, 120 S.Ct. 673 (2000).
54. Ibid., at 673.
55. Maryland v. Wilson, 117 S.Ct. 882 (1997).
56. Carroll v. United States, 267 U.S. 132 (1925).
57. Preston v. United States, 376 U.S. 364 (1964).
58. Harris v. United States, 390 U.S. 234 (1968).
59. Chambers v. Maroney, 399 U.S. 42 (1970).
60. Cardwell v. Lewis, 417 U.S. 583 (1974).
61. South Dakota v. Opperman, 428 U.S. 364 (1976).
62. New York v. Belton, 453 U.S. 454 (1981).
63. U.S. v. Ross, 456 U.S. 798 (1982).
64. Michigan v. Long, 463 U.S. 1032 (1983).
65. Colorado v. Bertine, 479 U.S. 367 (1987).
66. Florida v. Jimeno, 59 LW 4471 (May 23, 1991).
67. California v. Acevedo, 59 LW 4559 (May 30, 1991).
68. Wyoming v. Houghton, 119 S.Ct. 1297 (1999).
69. Florida v. Jardines, No. 11-564 (2013); also see
Matthew DeLuca, “Supreme Court limits drug-
sniffing dog use,” NBCNews.com, http://usnews.
nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/26/17473347-
supreme-court-limits-drug-sniffing-dog-use?lite.
70. Florida v. Harris, No. 11-817 (2013).
71. Arizona v. Gant, 07-542 (2009).
72. U.S. v. Jones, 565 US ___, 132 S.Ct. 945 (2012).
CHAPTER 7 Rule of Law 201
▼
73. Texas v. Brown, 460 U.S. 730 (1983).
74. Oliver v. U.S., 466 U.S. 170 (1984).
75. California v. Ciraolo, 476 U.S. 207 (1986).
76. New York v. Class, 54 LW 4178 (1986).
77. Arizona v. Hicks, 55 LW 4258 (1987).
78. Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 412 U.S. 218 (1973).
79. Bumper v. North Carolina, 391 U.S. 543 (1968).
80. Stoner v. California, 376 U.S. 483 (1964).
81. Georgia v. Randolph, 126 S.Ct. 1515 (2006).
82. Olmstead v. U.S., 277 U.S. 438 (1928).
83. Katz v. U.S., 389 U.S. 347 (1967).
84. Berger v. New York, 388 U.S. 41 (1967).
85. Lee v. U.S., 343 U.S. 747 (1952).
86. U.S. v. Karo, 468 U.S. 705 (1984).
87. U.S. v. Wade, 388 U.S. 218 (1967).
88. Kirby v. Illinois, 406 U.S. 682 (1972).
89. Foster v. California, 394 U.S. 440 (1969).
90. U.S. v. Dionisio, 410 U.S. 1 (1973).
91. Kaplan, Skolnick, and Feeley, Criminal Justice,
pp. 219–20.
92. Ibid., pp. 220–21.
93. Spano v. New York, 360 U.S. 315 (1959).
94. Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964).
95. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966).
96. Berkemer v. McCarty, 468 U.S. 420 (1984).
97. Arizona v. Roberson, 486 U.S. 675 (1988).
98. Edwards v. Arizona, 451 U.S. 477 (1981).
99. Maryland v. Shatzer, No. 08-680 (February 24, 2010).
100. Ibid., at p. 13.
101. Michigan v. Mosley, 423 U.S. 93 (1975).
102. Colorado v. Connelly, 479 U.S. 157 (1986).
103. Colorado v. Spring, 479 U.S. 564 (1987).
104. Connecticut v. Barrett, 479 U.S. 523 (1987).
105. Duckworth v. Eagan, 109 S.Ct. 2875 (1989).
106. Davis v. U.S., 114 S.Ct. 2350 (1994).
107. Berghuis v. Thompkins, No 08-1470 (June 2010);
also see Adam Liptak, “Mere Silence sn’t Invoke
Miranda, Justices Say,” New York Times, http://
www.nytimes.com/2010/06/02/us/02scotus.html.
108. Sherman v. U.S., 356 U.S. 369 (1958).
109. U.S. v. Russell, 411 U.S. 423 (1973).
110. Hampton v. U.S., 425 U.S. 484 (1976).
111. Jacobson v. United States, 503 U.S. 540, 548
(1992)., U.S. Department of Justice.
112. Powell v. Alabama, 287 U.S. 45 (1932).
113. Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963).
114. Argersinger v. Hamlin, 407 U.S. 25 (1973).
115. Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478 (1964).
116. Smith and Pollack, Criminal Justice, p. 177.
117. Rhode Island v. Innis, 446 U.S. 291 (1980).
118. Arizona v. Mauro, 481 U.S. 520 (1987).
119. McNeil v. Wisconsin, 59 LW 4636 (June 13, 1991).
120. Minnick v. Mississippi, 59 LW 4037 (1990).
121. Melendez-Diaz v. Mass., No. 07-591 (June 2009).
122. Padilla v. Kentucky (No. 08-651), 253 S. W. 3d 482
(March 2010).
123. Arnold Binder, Gilbert Geis, and Dickson Bruce,
Juvenile Delinquency: Historical, Cultural, Legal
Perspectives (New York: Macmillan, 1988),
pp. 6–9.
124. Kent v. U.S., 383 U.S. 541 (1966).
125. In Re Gault, 387 U.S. 9 (1967).
126. In Re Winship, 397 U.S. 358 (1970).
127. McKeiver v. Pennsylvania, 403 U.S. 528 (1971).
128. Breed v. Jones, 421 U.S. 519 (1975).
129. Roper v. Simmons, 543 U.S. 551 (2005).
130. Graham v. Florida, 560 U. S. 48 (2010).
131. “States that Have Stand Your Ground Laws,” FindLaw,
http://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal-law-basics/
states-that-have-stand-your-ground-laws.html.
132. John Arnold, “The Law Heard Round the World,”
Time April 9, 2012, http://www.time.com/time/
magazine/article/0,9171,2110471,00.html; also see
“Trayvon Martin Case (George Zimmerman),” The
New York Times July 19, 2012, http://topics.
nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/m/
trayvon_martin/index.html; Curt Anderson, “Despite
outcry, stand-your-ground law repeals unlikely,” The
Associated Press, http://www.nwherald.com/
2013/07/21/despite-outcry-stand-your-ground-law-
repeals-unlikely/ah8umeb/.
133. Alafair Burke, “What You May Not Know About
the Zimmerman Verdict: The Evolution of a Jury
Instruction,” The Huffington Post, July 15, 2013,
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/alafair-burke/
g e o r g e - z i m m e r m a n - j u r y - i n s t r u c t i o n s _ b _
3596685.html.
134. Kansas Statutes Annotated, at KSA 21-5230.
8 Accountability Use of Force, Ethics, Corruption, and Discipline
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Discuss police use of force and how police can build trust between themselves and the community
❷ Describe the national debate concerning police shootings in the United States and attempts to reduce their occurrence
❸ Explain what is meant by police ethics and discuss ethical dilemmas, problems, and the issue of police corruption
(Courtesy Africa Studio/Shutterstock.)
202
▼
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 203
▼
❹ Detail the limitations placed on officers’ rights and behaviors
❺ Describe the general process used by agencies to deal with citizen complaints and police discipline
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? [“Who will guard the guardians themselves?”]
—The Sixteen Satires by Juvenal
Introduction
Accountability on the part of the police is paramount. Since mid-2014, when a police officer shot and killed
Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri—in addition to nearly one thousand other fatal police shootings that
occurred during 2015 followed by more than 700 in 2016—the accountability and methods of the police
have been seriously called into question and subjected to a national debate on a scale probably never seen
before. Therefore, to many readers, this chapter may represent the heart, if not the centerpiece, of this book.
A part of police accountability is that they unceasingly act ethically and with flawless character, be
agreeable to receiving and addressing citizen complaints, and employ disciplinary measures when
appropriate. “Character,” it might be said, “is who we are when no one is watching.” Unfortunately,
character cannot be trained at the police academy nor given to someone in a pill or intravenously.
Character and ethical conduct for police officers, then, means they would never betray their oath of
office, their public trust, or their badge. Without these attributes, nothing else matters.
▲ The police have long been criticized and subject to citizens’ angst,
as shown in this 1874 caricature of police as pigs. (Courtesy The Granger
Collection.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 204
▼
First we review the need for greater constitutionality and legitimacy for police in the current climate.
Next we consider the issue of police use of force, to include its general purpose and legal restrictions;
use-of-force continuums, police brutality, and vehicle pursuits. Following that is an examination of what
is currently the subject of much of America’s angst toward the police: deadly shootings. Included here
are discussions of the extent and nature of such killings, the need for a national database of such
deaths, and an early warning system to identify problem officers.
Next is a review of the subject of police ethics—its definitions, types, and problems. We then consider
police corruption: types and causes, problems posed by the police code of silence, and some means of
investigating and dealing with it. Then we consider several areas in which the federal courts have
placed limitations on behaviors of the police by virtue of their unique role (e.g., speech, search and sei-
zure, self-incrimination, freedom of religion, sexual misconduct) and then we turn to the very important
matter of so-called Brady material—the ramifications of an officer’s lying in a report, and its effects on
one’s career. Following that is a brief discussion of some issues posed by the widespread use (including
by police officers) of social networking sites. After an examination of disciplinary policies and practices,
including handling citizens’ complaints and doling out sanctions, the chapter concludes with a review
of the pros and cons of civilian review boards. A summary, key terms, review questions, and several sce-
narios and activities that provide opportunities to learn by doing conclude the chapter.
▶ First Things First: The Constitution as “Boss” and Police Legitimacy
“You don’t have to look like the people you police, you just have to care.” Thus, did
Kansas City, Missouri, police officer, Officer Octavio “Chato” Villalobos challenge his
colleagues to build trust between themselves and the community. Next we discuss what
the police might do in order to accomplish that goal.1
As noted in Chapter 4, the 2014 events in Ferguson, Missouri, sparked a wave of pro-
tests across the country. Then, however, subsequent uses of police force in other cities kept
policing practices at the forefront of the national consciousness. These protests centered on
the experiences of minority communities and questions of disparate treatment, particularly
with respect to the use of deadly force.
Police chief executives are now becoming more heavily involved in constitutional
policing, to be used as a cornerstone of their community policing efforts. This means their
policies and practices are intended to protect citizens’ rights and provide equal protection
under the law; then, as New Haven (Connecticut) Police Chief Dean Esserman put it, “The
Constitution is our boss. We are not warriors, we are guardians. The [police] oath is to the
Constitution.”2 Police agencies cannot be accountable to the citizens if those persons do
not trust the police or do not believe that the police see their mission as protecting civil
rights as well as public safety.
A related concept is that of police legitimacy: the extent to which the community
believes that police actions are appropriate, proper, and justified. If the police have a high
level of perceived legitimacy in a community, members of the community tend to be more
willing to view them as accountable and co-operate with them. Legitimacy is reflected in
several ways. First, people want to have an opportunity to explain their situation or tell
their side of the story to a police officer. Second, people want the police authorities to be
neutral—make decisions based on consistently applied legal principles and the facts of an
incident, not an officer’s personal opinions and biases. Third, people want to be treated
with dignity and respect, and to believe that their police are benevolent, caring, and sin-
cerely trying to do what is best for the people with whom they are dealing.3
Even long-established police crime-reduction strategies can erode constitutional polic-
ing and legitimacy. Taking as an example, the focusing of resources on crime “hot spots”
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 205
▼
(discussed in Chapter 4). These concentrations of crime often are found in poor neighbor-
hoods and areas with significant minority populations, and when agencies engage in what
some refer to as “zero tolerance” crime-fighting tactics they need to consider how that
feels for community members.4
Chief Cathy Lanier of the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia
provides an example of how police operations can alienate community members in high-
crime neighborhoods:
We’d send all of these cops down to high-crime areas during the afternoon after roll call.
The first officer would lock up a guy who runs a stop sign and whose permits were expired
by 30 days. Then another officer would see a fifty-five-year-old woman on her front porch
with a beer in her hand step off of her porch to talk to a neighbor. He’d lock her up for
drinking in public.5
Later, Chief Lanier explained, the officers were back at the station processing these
low-level arrestees, and “guess what happens in the neighborhood where they just were:
car-jackings, home invasions, armed robberies.” Chief Lanier believes police must remem-
ber that hot-spot neighborhoods are not only home to the most crime but also to the most
victims and witnesses. Therefore, police must be responsive to the concerns that residents
express, whether they are about serious crimes in their neighborhood or less serious
“quality-of-life” issues, such as abandoned cars.6
▶ Police Use of Force, Generally
Legitimate Purposes
American society recognizes three legitimate and responsive forms of force: the right of
self-defense, including the valid taking of another person’s life to protect oneself from
harm; the power to control those for whom one is responsible (such as a prisoner or a
patient in a mental hospital); and the relatively unrestricted authority of police to use force
▲ The police are encouraged to practice what is termed constitutional policing,
with their policies and practices used to protect citizens’ rights and provide
equal protection under the law. (Courtesy larry1235/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 206
▼
as required. Police work is dangerous—a routine arrest may result in a violent confrontation,
sometimes triggered by drugs, alcohol, or mental illness. To cope, police officers are given
the unique right to use force, even deadly force, against others. There are, of course,
limitations on when an officer may exercise deadly force (they will be discussed later in
this chapter).
Egon Bittner defined police use of force as the “distribution of non-negotiably coercive
remedies.”7 He asserted that the duty of police intervention in matters of societal disorder
“means above all making use of the authority to overpower resistance. This feature of
police work is uppermost in the minds of people who solicit police aid. Every conceivable
police intervention projects the message that force may . . . have to be used to achieve a
desired objective.”8 The exercise of force by police can take several forms, ranging from a
simple verbal command to the use of lethal force. These forms of force are discussed next
as continuums.
Legal Restrictions
When the colonists came to this country from England, they brought with them a principle
of common law that authorized the use of deadly force to apprehend any and all fleeing
felony suspects. As American laws and society evolved, however, it became possible for
police to use deadly force against people who were at great distances from them, including
people suspected of nonviolent property crimes. The justification and necessity for the
fleeing-felon rule came into question. Then the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1985 decision in
Tennessee v. Garner greatly curtailed the use of deadly force. The Court held that the use of
deadly force to prevent the escape of all felony suspects was constitutionally unreasonable.
It is not better, the Court reasoned, that all felony suspects die than that they escape. Where
the suspect poses no immediate threat to the officer or to others, the harm resulting from
failing to apprehend him or her does not justify the use of deadly force to do so. (The mis-
use of firearms will be discussed later in this chapter.)
Which Type and How Much? Use-of-Force Continuums
Use-of-force continuums have been evolving for over three decades and have been
explained and depicted in very simple (e.g., as a staircase, wheel, or ladder) to more
elaborate illustrations. A basic-force continuum (and one that existed for a long while)
is to guide officers in how to move up the “ladder” or “staircase” and employ increas-
ing levels or types of force as an aggressor becomes more physical or violent; it typi-
cally contained the following five escalating steps: officer presence/verbal direction,
touch control, empty-hand tactics and chemical agents, hand-held impact weapons, and
lethal force.9
Today, however, more and more police executives and force experts believe this
simplistic, sequential depiction of the force continuum is ill-suited for today’s police
and that police use of force cannot always be employed in such a sequential, stair-step
fashion. Even with policies and procedures accompanying such a continuum, confusion
remained among many officers: “Where am I now on the ladder?” or “Is it now time to
climb up to the next rung of the ladder?” Such a simple continuum also fails to properly
represent the dynamic encounter between the officer and a resistant suspect and to take
into account the wide array of tools that are available to today’s officers. How can a
department dictate definitively with a continuum in what situations, say, a baton
or pepper spray, and electronic control device, or other less-lethal weapons should
be used?
As a result of this confusion, many agencies now have policies requiring their officers
to be “objectively reasonable” in their use of force; in essence, “objectively reasonable”
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 207
▼
means that in determining the necessity for force and the appropriate level of force, officers
should evaluate each situation in light of the known circumstances; such an assessment
includes the seriousness of the crime, the level of threat or resistance presented by the sub-
ject, and the danger to the community.
A new approach to determining proper use of force has recently been developed by
two special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and attempts to “more
accurately reflect the intent of the law and the changing expectations of society” and pro-
vide officers with “simple, clear, unambiguous, and consistent guidelines in the use of
force.”10 Known as the dynamic resistance response model (DRRM), this approach com-
bines a use of force continuum with an application of four broad categories of suspects.
Dynamic indicates that the model is fluid, and resistance demonstrates that the suspect
controls the interaction. In this view, a major failing of past continuums has been that the
emphasis is on the officer and the amount of force used. DRRM instead emphasizes that
the suspect’s level of resistance determines the officer’s response. The model also delin-
eates suspects into one of four categories (see Figure 8-1 ■).
As shown in Figure 8-1, if a passively resistant suspect fails to follow commands and
perhaps attempts to move away from the officer or escape, appropriate responses include
using a firm grip, control holds, and pressure points to gain compliance. On the other hand,
an aggressively resistant suspect—one who is taking offensive action by attempting to
push, throw, strike, tackle, or physically harm the officer—would call for such responses
as the use of personal weapons (hands, fists, feet), batons, pepper spray, and a stun gun.
Finally, because a deadly resistant suspect can seriously injure or kill the officer or another
person, the officer is justified in using force, including deadly force, as is objectively rea-
sonable to overcome the offender.
In the DRRM, a suspect’s lack of resistance (compliance) is in the center of the trian-
gle, which is emphasized as the goal of every encounter. If a suspect’s resistance level
places him or her on one of the three corners of the triangle, the officer’s response is
intended to move the suspect’s behavior to the center of the triangle and compliance. The
sole purpose of the application of force is to gain compliance.
▲ The police are allowed to use force—up to and including lethal force—as long
as it is utilized judiciously, lawfully, and objectively. (Courtesy epa european pressphoto
agency b.v./Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 208
▼
Another “Lesson Learned”: Responding to Mass Demonstrations
The rage and violence involved in several of the 2014–2016 riots and protests in many cities
also changed how many police agencies react to such matters; as Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Police Chief Cameron McLay stated, “How you approach a crowd of demonstrators will
determine what you will get back from the crowd.”11 As part of the application of constitu-
tional policing and in consideration of police legitimacy, a “soft” approach is now recom-
mended in dealing with demonstrations, beginning with police communicating with protest
leaders before and during the event to deter any violence by agitators and ensure that protests
can be conducted peacefully. In sum, police responses are to be measured and proportional
to what is happening during a demonstration. As Boston Police Commissioner William
Evans said, “If we go looking for a fight with demonstrators, that’s what we’ll get.”12
Also under recent consideration is the “optics” of a police response. This means police
should avoid bringing heavy equipment to the scene of a demonstration or wearing protec-
tive riot gear if there is no indication that a demonstration will be violent. Also, police have
learned through trial and error that interacting with people—such as asking them kindly to
move along if necessary—is much more effective.13
The Nashville Police Department emphasized the “we’re not looking for a fight”
approach when engaging protesters during a protest following Ferguson when demonstra-
tors marched for a couple of miles to police headquarters. Police met them not with numer-
ous officers in riot gear, but with three officers and coolers full of ice water. On another
occasion, when there were protests following the grand jury decision in Ferguson, it was
cold outside, so police met them with hot chocolate and coffee.14
NO RESISTANCE (COMPLIANCE)
Verbal Commands Mere Presence
Stun Gun OC/Baton
Personal Weapons
Firearms All Tools
Firm Grip Control Holds
Pressure Points
AGGRESSIVE RESISTANCE
PASSIVE
RESISTANCE
DYNAMIC
RESISTANCE
FigURe 8-1 Dynamic Resistance Response Model FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, September 2007, Federal Bureau of Investigation.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 209
▼
Police Brutality
Many people contend that there are actually three means by which the police can be brutal.
There is the literal sense of the term, which involves the physical abuse of others. There is
▲ Although the term police brutality can mean different things to different people, the most
common agreed upon definition is the literal physical abuse of others. Here are two scenes from
the Walker Report of the 1968 Chicago Democratic National Convention. (Courtesy National Commission
on the Causes and Prevention of Violence.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 210
▼
the verbal abuse of citizens, exemplified by slurs or epithets. And, for many who feel
downtrodden, the police symbolize brutality because the officers represent the
Establishment’s law, which serves to keep minority groups in their place. It is perhaps the
last form of police brutality that is of greatest concern for anyone who is interested in
improving community relations. Because it is a philosophy or frame of mind, it is probably
the most difficult to overcome.
Citizens’ use of the term police brutality encompasses a wide range of practices, from pro-
fane and abusive language to actual physical force or violence. Some would claim that there is
little (if any) police brutality in today’s enlightened police agencies. Others acknowledge that
police brutality exists today but add that “brutality is the prerogative of the police state. To
tolerate any of it is to differ from the police state only in degree”15 (emphasis in original).
While no one can deny that some police officers use brutal practices, it is impossible
to know with any degree of accuracy how often and to what extent these incidents occur.
They are low-visibility acts, and many victims decline to report them. Although it is
widely believed that brutality is a racial matter primarily involving white police and black
victims, Albert Reiss found that lower-class white men were as likely to be brutalized by
the police as lower-class black men. What is most disturbing is that 37 percent of the
instances of excessive force occurred in settings controlled by the police—station houses
and patrol cars. In half the situations, a police officer did not participate but did not
restrain his or her colleague, indicating that the informal police culture did not disapprove
of the behavior.
Vehicle Pursuits
In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a major decision concerning the proper amount
of force the police may use during high-speed vehicle pursuits (which are also discussed
in Chapter 9, concerning their related civil liability). The fundamental question was
whether or not the serious danger created by the fleeing motorist justifies the use of
deadly force to eliminate the threat. In other words, was the level of force used propor-
tionate to the threat of reckless and dangerous driving? The incident involved Harris, a
nineteen-year-old Georgia youth, driving at speeds up to ninety miles per hour and cover-
ing nine miles in six minutes, with a deputy sheriff in pursuit; the chase ended in a violent
crash that left Harris a quadriplegic. His lawyers argued that the Fourth Amendment pro-
tects against the use of excessive force, such as high-speed drivers having their cars
rammed by police (by intentionally stopping a fleeing vehicle in such a manner, a “sei-
zure” occurs for Fourth Amendment purposes). Conversely, the deputy’s lawyers argued
that such drivers pose an escalating danger to the public and must be stopped to defuse
the danger (the deputy’s supervisor had authorized the use of the precision immobiliza-
tion technique, or PIT, where the officer uses his patrol vehicle to cause the speeder’s to
spin out; PIT was not used in the Harris chase, however). The Court’s 8–1 opinion,
authored by Justice Antonin Scalia, stated, “A police officer’s attempt to terminate a dan-
gerous high-speed car chase that threatens the lives of innocent bystanders does not vio-
late the Fourth Amendment, even when it places the fleeing motorist at risk of serious
injury or death.”16
▶ Police Shootings: Conundrum and Controversy
As indicated in Chapter 4 and elsewhere in the discussions concerning deaths by police in
Ferguson, Missouri, and other U.S. cities, nothing can inflame a community and raise ten-
sions like police shootings. Certainly the police, for their part, can employ a use-of-force
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 211
▼
continuum as described earlier and engage in a variety of “shoot/don’t shoot” training ses-
sions to better understand when to unholster and use their firearms. However, on the pub-
lic’s side, these highly publicized police shootings represent much broader issues of
accountability, prejudicial behavior against minority group members, a serious lack of
shooting data, and declining police–community relations in general.
America’s Angst
By the end of 2015, the number of people killed by law enforcement in the United States
had nearly reached 1,000 after officers in Oakland, California, shot dead a man who
allegedly pointed a replica gun at them; the media would inform Americans that African-
Americans were more than twice as likely to be unarmed as white Americans when
killed by police.17
Certainly many of those shootings would be difficult to argue were unlawful or unjusti-
fied, as in the case of a seventy-seven-year-old man in a high-rise apartment in Birmingham,
Alabama, who police shot when he answered his door with a gun. But then there are cases
such as the seventeen-year-old girl gunned down by police while joyriding in a stolen car
in Denver.18
These incidents that also involve minority group members will often heighten the ten-
sion and lead to charges of racism against the entire police agency. One Washington Post
columnist offered that “it is the police culture, more than race, that is at the crux of the
problem . . . a mentality of brutality.”19 Such kinds of police uses of force even caused one
organization, Human Rights Watch, to state the following in a report titled Shielded from
Justice: Police Brutality and Accountability in the United States:
Police abuse remains one of the most serious and divisive human rights violations in the
United States. The excessive use of force by police officers, including unjustified shootings,
severe beatings, fatal chokings, and rough treatment, persists because overwhelming barri-
ers to accountability make it possible for officers who commit human rights violations to
escape due punishment and often to repeat their offenses.20
Human Rights Watch also noted in the report that officers who repeatedly commit
human rights violations tend to be a small minority but that “they are protected, routinely,
by the silence of their fellow officers and by flawed systems of reporting, oversight, and
accountability; by the scarcity of meaningful information about trends in abuse; data lack-
ing regarding the police departments’ response to those incidents; and their plans or actions
to prevent brutality.”21
Wanted: A National Database
As indicated in Chapter 4, no one knows the actual number of such deaths or exactly how
many of them were deemed unjustified. The FBI and the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the
statistical arm of the Justice Department, both collect data on the number of people killed
by the police and other law enforcement agencies, but no one is required to submit this
information, and many police departments choose not to.22
Moreover, federal data do not distinguish between justified and unjustified homicides,
in which the victim was not a threat. The FBI says it tracks “justifiable homicides” and
then defines these as “the killing of a felon by a law enforcement officer in the line
of duty.” In some cases, however, such killings have been ruled unjustified. The FBI
data also do not provide details on where or under what circumstances deadly force
was used.23
In the wake of the police shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri,
measures were put in place to initiate a national database tracking such shootings in the
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 212
▼
United States. The Death in Custody Reporting Act mandates that all states do so, or risk
losing millions of dollars in federal grants.24
Posting information about Police Shootings
Some police agencies now demonstrate complete openness regarding officer-involved
shootings. An example is provided in Exhibit 8-1 ■ and shows facts and outcomes of
such a shooting as provided by the Dallas, Texas, Police Department’s website.
The early intervention System: identifying Problem employees
An early intervention System (eiS) is a computer database police management tool designed
to identify officers whose behavior is problematic, as indicated by pre-selected perfor-
mance indicator fields determined by the agency. The focus is on helping employees by
providing intervention in a voluntary and nondisciplinary format. The program is “early”
in the sense that an agency acts on the basis of performance indicators that suggest an
officer may be having problems on the job but do not necessarily warrant formal disciplin-
ary action as the initial organizational response. The identification, coupled with a menu
of remedial actions, increases agency accountability and offers employees a better oppor-
tunity to succeed in their organizations. Evaluations enable supervisors to meet with an
employee, discuss his or her performance, and formally record strengths, weaknesses, and
expectations. Evaluations also provide supervisors with an opportunity to coach, mentor,
and praise desired behavior and to notify employees when unacceptable behavior has
been reported.
Most EIS use computer systems or databases to track employee records and are housed
as a separate entity from the disciplinary system, usually within Internal Affairs units. The
EIS records are intended to track employee behaviors and interventions by supervisors,
should that become necessary. As data-driven mechanisms of accountability, these
programs rely on a broad array of performance indicators, including use-of-force inci-
dents, citizen complaints, department and community commendations and awards, court
appearances, and arrest reports. Supervisors must be adequately prepared to review the
data and, as with traditional performance evaluations, conduct appropriate interventions
exhibit 8-1
On Monday, December 9, 2013, at approximately
3:11 P.M., plain clothes deployment officers were
conducting surveillance on a vehicle at 9524 Military
Parkway that had been taken in a robbery offense.
The vehicle became occupied by two individuals and
a felony traffic stop supported by uniformed officers
in marked vehicles was attempted outside the apart-
ment complex. The vehicle did not stop and turned
back into the complex. The driver fled on foot and
the passenger remained in the vehicle. One officer
approached the vehicle, pulled her weapon and fired
one time at the B/M/19 suspect striking him. The
suspect was injured and transported to Baylor
Hospital.
The suspect was unarmed. The officer was termi-
nated for violation of departmental policy and later
indicted by a Dallas County Grand Jury for Aggravated
Assault. No officer was injured.
One officer fired 1 round. Involved Officer: W/F 12
years, 3 months service.
DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT’S POSTINGS OF INFORMATION CONCERNING
OFFICER–INVOLVED SHOOTINGS 25
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 213
▼
and follow-up with the employee.26 Through an EIS, many behavior problems could be
reduced significantly, resulting in a decrease in the caseload of the Internal Affairs unit.
A good example of an EIS is one that is being closely watched in the San Diego,
California, Police Department (SDPD), which chose to implement what it termed the Early
Identification and Intervention System (EIIS); see Exhibit 8-2 ■. Furthermore, another
means of providing police oversight and accountability (but one not generally adminis-
tered by police) is the civilian review board, which is discussed later in this chapter.
Another outgrowth of the Ferguson, Missouri, and other police shootings across the
nation is the public outcry for officers to employ body-worn cameras (BWC), which is
discussed extensively in Chapter 14.
▶ Police Ethics
In a broad sense, for the police, being ethical should include holding themselves and oth-
ers accountable for their actions. Accountability, like character and ethics, is also a sig-
nificant watchword for today’s police, and certainly all citizens expect their public
servants to be accountable. What does accountability mean for the police? Beyond the
obvious, such as having character and ethics and being good stewards of the public’s
trust, the term can also include the following: Police officers will treat all persons with
dignity and respect and in a lawful manner; they will not use more force than necessary;
they will not demonstrate bias for or against any particular group of persons; they will
exhibit 8-2
The San Diego Police Department had no dearth of
high-profile criminal conduct by a few of its police offi-
cers, including sexual assaults of women by on-duty
officers (one officer was charged with 21 felony charges
related to the sexual assault and victimization of eight
women while he was on duty over a four-year period).
In sum, 10 SDPD officers were investigated for crimi-
nal misconduct on charges including rape, domestic
violence, driving under the influence, and sexual bat-
tery in early 2011. In 2014, an officer pled guilty to two
counts of felony false imprisonment and three counts of
misdemeanor sexual battery involving four victims. In
response, the chief sought outside assistance to review
the SDPD’s systems for detecting and preventing mis-
conduct, evaluate how the department had handled the
misconduct cases, and recommend reform measures.27
San Diego’s EIIS is a computer database that is
designed to automatically collect data daily in several
key areas—citizen complaints, police equipment acci-
dents, use of force incidents, officer-involved shootings,
internal affairs investigations, shooting range results,
and discretionary arrests (of persons who are mentally ill
or under the influence of drugs or alcohol). Also watched
closely by EIIS is each officer’s exposure to high-risk
incidents (homicides, shootings, child deaths, traffic
fatalities, sexual assaults); some officers are simply
exposed to a greater-than-average number of calls for
service that involve pain, fear for their safety, and trag-
edy. Officers who may be hurting but afraid to admit it
may be identified by EIIS and given help as needed.
A major feature of the program lies in its ability to
identify potentially problematic behaviors early, so
that a manager can initiate a private, nondisciplinary,
coaching conversation and, if necessary, make refer-
rals to nearly 60 available groups or agencies. Results
thus far indicate that only a small number of officers
(4–5 percent) appear in EIIS with indicators that would
suggest the command staff must take action. Of those
employees, the goal is to provide resources to them
before they harm their careers, their community, the
department or even themselves.28
Source: From Critical Response Technical Assessment Review:
Police Accountability— Findings and National Implications of an
Assessment, Published by San Diego Police Department, A Way to
Identify and Help Troubled Cops by Carolyn Kendrick and Steve
Albrecht, Published by San Diego Police Department.
INVESTIGATING AND INTERVENING: SAN DIEGO’S EIIS
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 214
▼
make every effort to ensure that all officers are well trained to meet the highest standards
of professionalism; and they will maintain adequate policies, procedures, rules, regula-
tions, general orders, and so forth for ensuring the public’s trust, which includes proce-
dures for investigating alleged incidents of bias and unprofessional behavior. Consider
the following scenario.
A Scenario
Assume that the police have strong suspicions that Jones is a serial rapist, but they have not
secured enough probable cause to obtain a search warrant for Jones’s car and home, where
evidence might be found. Officer Brown feels frustrated and, early one morning, uses a
razor blade to remove the current registration decal from the license plate on Jones’s car.
The next day he stops Jones for operating his vehicle with an expired registration; he
impounds and inventories the vehicle and finds evidence of several sexual assaults, which
ultimately leads to Jones’s conviction on ten counts of forcible rape and possession of
burglary tools and stolen property. Brown receives accolades for the apprehension. Was
Officer Brown’s removal of the registration decal legal? Should Brown’s actions, even if
improper or illegal, be condoned for “serving the greater public good”? Did Brown use the
law properly?
This hypothetical sequence of events and the accompanying questions should be kept
in mind as we consider the definitions and problems of police ethics.
Definitions and Types of Problems
Proper ethical behavior has always been the cornerstone of policing (based on the Law
Enforcement Code of Ethics, discussed in Exhibit 8-3 ■) and is what the public expects
of its public servants. Ethics usually involves standards of moral conduct and what we
call “conscience”—the ability to recognize right from wrong and to act in ways that are
good and proper; it concerns choices of good and bad actions as well as moral duties and
obligations.
There are both absolute and relative ethics. Absolute ethics is a concept wherein an
issue only has two sides: Something is either good or bad, black or white. The original
interest in police ethics focused on such unethical behaviors as bribery, extortion, exces-
sive force, and perjury. Few communities can tolerate the absolute unethical behavior of
rogue officers; for instance, anyone would have a hard time trying to rationally defend a
police officer’s stealing.
Relative ethics, as demonstrated in the preceding scenario, can be much more compli-
cated and can have varying shades of gray. The problem here is this: What is considered
ethical behavior by one person may be deemed highly unethical by someone else. Not all
police ethical issues are clear-cut. For example, communities seem willing at times to tol-
erate extralegal behavior by the police if there is a greater public good, especially in deal-
ing with such problems as gangs and the homeless, or with offenders like the serial rapist
in our scenario.
A community’s acceptance of relative ethics may send the wrong message: that there
are few boundaries placed on police behaviors and that, at times, “anything goes” in the
fight against crime. Giving false testimony to ensure that a public menace is “put away” or
using illegal wiretapping to get evidence from an organized crime figure’s telephone con-
versations might sometimes be viewed as “necessary” and “justified,” though illegal. This
viewpoint—the principle of double effect—holds that if one commits an act to achieve a
good end, even though an inevitable but intended effect is negative, then the act might
be justified. Other related catchwords for this phenomenon are noble cause corruption and
the “Dirty Harry problem”29 (The latter is based on the 1971 Warner Brothers film of the
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 215
▼
exhibit 8-3
The Law Enforcement Code of Ethics (LECE) was
first adopted by the International Association of Chiefs
of Police in 1957 and has been revised several times
since then. It is a powerful proclamation, and tens of
thousands of police officers across the United States
have sworn to uphold this code upon graduating their
academies. Unfortunately, however, the LECE is also
quite lengthy, covering rather broadly the following
topics as they relate to police officers: primary respon-
sibilities, performance of one’s duties, discretion, use
of force, confidentiality, integrity, cooperation with
other officers and agencies, personal/professional capa-
bilities, and private life.
Recently, the IACP adopted a separate, shorter
code that would be mutually supportive of the LECE—
but also easier for officers to remember and call to
mind when they come face-to-face with an ethical
dilemma. It is the Law Enforcement Oath of Honor,
and the IACP is hoping this oath will be implemented
in all police agencies and by all individual officers. It
may be used at swearing-in ceremonies, graduation
ceremonies, promotion ceremonies, beginnings of
training sessions, police meetings and conferences, and
so forth.
The Law Enforcement Oath of Honor is as follows:
On my honor,
I will never betray my badge,
my integrity, my character,
or the public trust.
I will always have
the courage to hold myself
and others accountable for our actions.
I will always uphold the constitution,
my community and the agency I serve.
[The Law Enforcement Oath of Honor is also flex-
ible, and can be adjusted as appropriate for nations,
countries, or governments by inserting the appropriate
terms.]
Source: “Law Enforcement Oath of Honor” from “What is the Law
Enforcement Oath of Honor?” International Association of Chiefs
of Police, Copyright © 2013 by International Association of Chiefs
of Police. Used by permission of International Association of
Chiefs of Police.
LAW ENFORCEMENT CODE OF ETHICS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT OATH OF HONOR
same title in which Detective Harry Callahan [Clint Eastwood] uses extralegal methods to
accomplish legitimate police goals. For example, Callahan tortures a vicious kidnapper
until he learns where he has hidden the victim. Such treatment might be condoned by many
people because the heinous treatment of the offender is viewed as less shocking than what
the offender did to his victim.)
The discussion of noble cause corruption and double effect is closely entwined with
Herbert Packer’s two classic models of law enforcement: crime control and due process.30
Briefly stated, the crime-control model holds that repression of criminal conduct is the
most important function of the police; police efficiency, with an emphasis on speed and
finality, is a top priority. The due process model, conversely, argues that the protection of
the process of law is more important than any end result of conviction. Here, there is a
belief that the coercive power of the state (including all the tools and resources at the dis-
posal of the police and prosecutors) is sometimes subject to abuse and must be guarded
against by due process.
Noble cause corruption stems from a crime-control orientation, in that the end (crime
control) justifies the means, even if the means are otherwise unethical or illegal. Therefore,
in this view, police officers may feel compelled to lie under oath, use physical coercion
during an interrogation, ignore exculpatory evidence, overlook criminal acts of an infor-
mant, plan or manufacture evidence, and so on.31
The accompanying Career Profile provides some insight from one who has worked in
an internal affairs unit—and therefore dealt with citizens’ complaints and investigated offi-
cers’ actions that were called into question.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 216
▼
Career Profile Name: Dan Olivas
Position: Lieutenant, Profes-
sional Standards & Internal
Affairs
City, State: Madison, Wisconsin
College attended: Luther
College, Decorah, IA
Academic Major: B.A. Music
How long have you occupied this position/assignment?
Two years
How would you briefly describe this position/
assignment?
This position involves managing and oversight of inter-
nal investigations for the Department. The position also
involves active investigative work on more serious cases.
What attracted you to this position/assignment?
Personnel investigations are quite different from crimi-
nal investigations and involve employment law. The
work is always interesting, and quite important. How a
department responds to citizen complaints and mis-
conduct is integral to the community perception of the
agency and the level of trust the community has with
the department.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position/assignment?
It is absolutely critical that the person working in this
position display honesty, integrity, and fairness. Organiza-
tion and investigative competence are also important.
How would you describe a typical day for one in this
position/assignment?
A typical day involves accepting citizen complaints,
reviewing dispositions, active investigative work, and
meeting with Command Staff. I also regularly update
the Chief of Police on investigations.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
This profession is constantly changing and evolving—
you are at the beginning of a lifelong learning process.
It is important to educate yourself in current research,
trends, technologies, and best practices throughout
your career, regardless of rank or assignment. Some-
thing that will never change, however, is the need for
professionals with the highest levels of honesty and
integrity in this field. The responsibilities that come with
this career are significant, and the communities we
serve, fellow professionals, and the agencies we work
for place a great deal of trust in each of us. Live your life
with integrity.
(Courtesy Dan Olivas,
Lieutenant, City of Madison
Police Department.)
▶ Police Corruption
History: A Long-Standing “Plague”
“For as long as there have been police, there has been police corruption,” observed
Lawrence Sherman concerning the oldest and most persistent problem in American polic-
ing.32 To make the point, corruption has long plagued the NYPD, as determined by the
Knapp Commission, which investigated police corruption there in the early 1970s.33
Knapp’s 1973 report stated that there are two primary types of corrupt police officers: the
“meat-eaters” and the “grass-eaters.” Meat-eaters, who probably constitute a small per-
centage of police officers, spend a good deal of their working hours aggressively seeking
out situations that they can exploit for financial gain, including gambling, narcotics, and
other lucrative enterprises. No change in attitude is likely to affect meat-eaters; their
income is so large that the only way to deal with them is to get them off the force and pros-
ecute them. Grass-eaters constitute the overwhelming majority of those officers who accept
payoffs; they are not aggressive but will accept gratuities from contractors, tow-truck oper-
ators, gamblers, and the like.
The Knapp Commission also identified several factors that influence how much graft
police officers receive, the most important of these being the character of the individual
officer. The branch of the department and the type of assignment also affect opportunities
for corruption. Typically, plainclothes officers have more varied opportunities than uni-
formed patrol officers, and uniformed officers located in beats with, say, several vice dens
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 217
▼
will have more opportunities for payoffs. Another factor is rank: the amount of the payoff
received generally ascends proportionally with rank.
Police corruption can be defined broadly, from major forms of police wrongdoing to
the pettiest forms of improper behavior. Another definition is “the misuse of authority by a
police officer in a manner designed to produce personal gain for the officer or for others.”34
Police corruption is not limited to monetary gain, however. Gains may be made through
the acceptance of services received, status, influence, prestige, or future support for the
officer or someone else.35
Events like those described in Los Angeles in Chapter 9, concerning the Rampart
Division, and other cities have focused attention on the broader issue of rogue cops in police
departments across the country, especially in minority neighborhoods.36 The brazenness
and viciousness of today’s corrupt police officers trouble even their staunchest defenders.
Types and Causes
Several factors contribute to police corruption, among them the rapid hiring of personnel,
civil service, and union protections that make it difficult to fire officers,37 and temptations
from money and sex.
Two theories—the “rotten apple” theory and the “environmental” theory—have been
suggested to explain police corruption. The rotten apple theory holds that corruption is the
result of having a few bad apples in the barrel that probably had character defects prior to
employment. The environmental theory suggests that corruption is more the result of a
widespread politically corrupt environment; politically corrupt cities create an environ-
ment in which police misconduct flourishes.38
Police corruption takes two basic forms: external and internal. External corruption
includes those activities (such as gratuities and payoffs) that occur from and through police
contacts with the public. Internal corruption involves the relationships among police offi-
cers within the workings of the police department; this includes payments to join the police
force, to get better shifts or assignments, to receive promotions, and the like.39
Ellwyn Stoddard, who coined the term blue-coat crime, described several different
forms of deviant practices among both police and citizens. In the following list, those com-
ing first would probably elicit the least fear of prosecution, and those at the end would
probably invoke major legal ramifications40:
• Mooching. Receiving free coffee, meals, liquor, groceries, laundry services, and so forth.
• Chiseling. Demanding free admission to entertainment or price discounts on goods and services.
• Favoritism. Using license tabs, window stickers, or courtesy cards to gain immunity from traffic arrest.
• Prejudice. Behaving less than impartially toward minority group members or others who are less likely to have influence in city hall.
• Bribery. Receiving payments of cash or gifts for past or future assistance in avoiding prosecution, including political payoffs for favoritism in promotions. Police officers
who accept payoffs or protection money are said to be “on the pad.”
• Shakedown. Stealing expensive items for personal use and attributing the loss to crimi- nal activity when investigating a burglary or unlocked door.
• Perjury. Following the “code” that demands that officers lie to provide an alibi for fel- low officers apprehended in unlawful activity.
• Premeditated theft. Being involved in planned burglaries that involve the use of tools or keys to gain entry; also any prearranged act of unlawful acquisition of property that
cannot be explained as a spur-of-the-moment theft.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 218
▼
The most common and extensive form of what many people perceive as corrupt behav-
ior involves officers’ receipt of small gratuities or tips. Officers may regard discounts and
free services as relatively unimportant, while the payment of cash—bribery—is a very
different matter.41 Former New York City Police Commissioner Patrick V. Murphy was
one of those who “drew the short line,” telling his officers that “except for your paycheck,
there is no such thing as a clean buck.”42 Such police officials would argue that even the
smallest gratuities can create an expectation of some patronage or favor in return. Retail
establishments do not offer gratuities to other persons in professional positions (doctors,
lawyers, and educators) for performing their duties, and the argument can certainly be
made that the police should be similarly viewed and treated. All police officers should be
given formal written guidelines on the departmental policy on soliciting and accepting
gifts and gratuities. This apprises officers of the administration’s view of such behavior
and assists the chief executive in maintaining integrity and disciplining wayward officers.
Figure 8-2 ■ is an example of a good policy concerning gratuities.
Code of Silence
Patrick v. Murphy wrote “the most difficult element to overcome in the fight against cor-
ruption in the department was the code of silence.”43 This keeping quiet in the face of
misconduct by other officers has been well documented. Evidence of the fraternal bond
that exists in policing was first reported by William Westley as early as 1970, when more
than 75 percent of the officers surveyed said that they would not report another officer for
taking money from a prisoner, nor would they testify against an officer accused by a pris-
oner.44 (In a related vein, see Exhibit 8-2.)
To borrow an example from Chapter 2, assume Officer Jack Smith witnessed an officer
putting expensive ink pens in his pocket while securing an unlocked office supply store on
the graveyard shift. If reported, the misconduct will ruin the officer, but if not reported, the
behavior could eventually cause enormous harm. To outsiders, this is not a dilemma at all;
the only proper path is for Smith to report the misconduct. To philosophers, the doctrines of
utilitarianism (the ethic of good consequences) and deontology (the ethic of rights and
duties) require that Officer Smith work to eliminate corruption. But the outsiders and the
philosophers are not members of the close fraternity of police, nor do they have to depend
on other officers for their own safety.
There are several arguments for and against Officer Smith’s informing on his partner.
Reasons for informing include the fact that the harm caused by a scandal would be outweighed
by the public’s knowledge that the police department is free of corruption; also, individual
1. Without the express permission of the Sheriff, members shall not solicit or accept any gift, gratuity, loan, present, or fee where there is any direct or indirect connection between this solicitation or acceptance of such gift and their employment by this office.
2. Members shall not accept, either directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, loan, fee, or thing of value, the acceptance of which might tend to improperly influence their actions, or that of any other member, in any matter of police business, or which might tend to cast an adverse reflection on the Sheriff’s Office.
3. Any unauthorized gift, gratuity, loan, fee, reward, or other thing falling into any of these categories coming into the possession of any member shall be forwarded to the member’s commander, together with a written report explaining the circumstances connected therewith. The commander will decide the disposition of the gift.
FigURe 8-2 A Sample gratuity Policy Kenneth Peak.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 219
▼
episodes of corruption would be brought to a halt. The officer, moreover, has a sworn duty to
uphold the law. Any employee has a right to be allowed to do his or her duty, including blow-
ing the whistle on employers or colleagues. Reasons against Officer Smith’s informing include
the fact that a skilled police officer is a valuable asset whose social value far outweighs the
damage done by moderate corruption. Also, discretion and secrecy are obligations assumed
by joining and remaining within the police fraternity; dissenters should resign rather than
inform. Furthermore, it would be unjust to inflict punishment of dismissal and disgrace on an
otherwise decent officer.45
How does one reconcile these two varying points of view? Probably, the first thing to
do is to realize that each view is morally defensible. A person who is in charge of investi-
gating police corruption would no doubt be warmer toward the punitive view, while at the
other extreme would be the person who would overlook such behaviors at all times. The
ideal position might be in the middle—to maintain a commitment to professionalism and
ethics without overreacting (e.g., without insisting that officers report on their fellows
every time they see someone napping or conducting personal business while on duty).
The good news is that a recent survey by the National Institute of Justice found that
about 83 percent of all officers in the United States do not accept the code of silence as an
essential part of the mutual trust necessary to good policing.46
investigation and Prosecution
Federal powers and jurisdiction for investigating and prosecuting police corruption were
significantly expanded through the Hobbs Act in 1970.47 Two important elements of this
federal statute that allow the investigation of police corruption are extortion and com-
merce. Whenever a police officer solicits a payoff from a legitimate business owner to
overlook law violations (e.g., a tavern owner who was selling alcohol to minors), extortion
(involving fear) occurs, and that extortion affects legitimate commerce. The Hobbs Act
may be employed by the prosecutor when these two elements are present. The meaning of
extortion has been expanded so that it now covers most payoff arrangements that involve
public officials.48 The only areas of police corruption that may be beyond the reach of the
Hobbs Act are internal corruption and the acceptance of isolated gratuities.
The federal perjury statute (18 U.S.C. 1621) and the federal false sworn declaration
statute (18 U.S.C. 1623), both enacted in 1970, have also become powerful weapons for
prosecutors in investigating public corruption. Both statutes deal with false testimony
under oath, and in an investigation of corruption they are pertinent at the grand jury stage.49
▶ Limitations on Officers’ Constitutional Rights
Police officers are generally afforded the same rights, privileges, and immunities outlined
in the U.S. Constitution for all citizens. However, by virtue of their position, they may be
compelled to give up certain rights in connection with an investigation of on-duty misbe-
havior or illegal acts. These rights are the basis for legislation such as the Peace Officers’
Bill of Rights (discussed at length in Chapter 6), labor agreements, and civil service and
departmental rules and regulations that guide an agency’s disciplinary process.
Following is a brief overview of some areas in which the federal courts have placed
limitations on officers’ constitutional rights and have held sworn officers more accountable by
virtue of the higher standard required by their occupation.
Free Speech Although the right of freedom of speech is one of the most fundamental and cherished of all American rights, the Supreme Court has indicated that “the State has
interests as an employer in regulating the speech of its employees that differ significantly
from those it possesses in connection with regulation of the speech of the citizenry in
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 220
▼
general.”50 Thus the state may impose restrictions on its police employees that it would
not be able to impose on civilians; however, these restrictions must be reasonable. For
example, a department may not prohibit “any activity, conversation, deliberation, or
discussion which is derogatory to the Department,” as such a rule obviously prohibits all
criticism of the agency by its officers, even in private conversation.51
Another First Amendment–related area is that of personal appearance. The Supreme
Court has upheld several grooming standards for officers (regarding length of hair, side-
burns, and mustaches) to make officers readily recognizable to the public and to maintain
the esprit de corps within the department.52
Searches and Seizures The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects,
against unreasonable searches and seizures.” The Fourth Amendment usually applies to
police officers when they are at home or off duty in the same manner as it applies to all
citizens. However, because of the nature of their work, police officers can be compelled
to cooperate with investigations of their behavior when ordinary citizens would not. For
example, regarding equipment and lockers provided by the department to the officers, the
officers have no expectation of privacy that affords or merits protection.53
However, lower courts have established limitations on searches of employees them-
selves. The question of whether prison authorities have the right to search their employees
arose in a 1985 Iowa case in which employees were forced to sign a consent form as a
condition of hire. The court disagreed with such a broad policy, ruling that the consent
form did not constitute a blanket waiver of all Fourth Amendment rights.54 Police officers
may also be forced to appear in a lineup, a clear “seizure” of their person.
Self-incrimination The Supreme Court has addressed questions concerning the Fifth Amendment as it applies to police officers who are under investigation. In Garrity v.
New Jersey,55 a police officer was ordered by the attorney general to answer questions or
be discharged. The officer testified that information obtained as a result of his answers
▲ Police officers generally possess the same rights, privileges, and immunities
held by all citizens; however, they are also held to a higher standard and at
times must even give up certain rights. (Courtesy Africa Studio/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 221
▼
was later used to convict him of criminal charges. The Supreme Court held that the
information obtained from the officer could not be used against him at his criminal trial
because the Fifth Amendment forbids the use of coerced confessions. However, it is
proper to fire a police officer that refuses to answer questions related directly to the
performance of his or her duties, provided that the officer has been informed that any
answers may not be used later in a criminal proceeding.56
Religious Practices Police work requires that personnel be available and on duty twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Although it is not always convenient or
pleasant, shift configurations require that many officers work weekends, nights, and
holidays. It is generally assumed that an officer who takes such a position agrees to
work such hours and abide by other such conditions; it is usually the personnel with
the least seniority on the job who must work the most undesirable shifts. However,
there are occasions when the requirements of the job interfere with an officer’s ability
to attend religious services or observe religious holidays. The carrying of firearms may
even conflict with an officer’s religious beliefs. In these situations, the employee may be
forced to choose between his or her job and religion.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits religious discrimination in employ-
ment. It requires reasonable accommodation of religious beliefs but not to the extent that
the employee has complete freedom of religious expression.57
Sexual Misconduct To be blunt, there is ample opportunity for police officers to become involved in adulterous or extramarital affairs. Few other occupations or
professions offer the opportunities for sexual misconduct that police work does. Police
officers frequently work alone, usually without direct supervision, in activities that
involve frequent contact with citizens, usually in relative isolation. The problem seems to
be pervasive in police departments of all sizes. Unfortunately, it is also an area of police
behavior that is not easily quantified or understood.58
In a related vein, several federal courts have recently considered whether police agen-
cies have a legitimate interest in the sexual activities of their officers when such activities
affect job performance. In one such case, the court held that the dismissal of a married
police officer for living with another man’s wife was a violation of the officer’s privacy and
associational rights.59
Other courts, however, have found that off-duty sexual activity can affect job perfor-
mance. When a married city police officer was found to be having consensual sexual rela-
tions with unmarried women other than his wife, the department contended that the
officer’s conduct—which became public—severely damaged public confidence in the
department. A Utah court held that adultery was not a fundamental right and refused to
strike down a statute criminalizing adultery.60 In a Texas case, when a male officer’s extra-
marital affair led to his being passed over for promotion, the city civil service commission,
the Texas Supreme Court, and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the denial; they concurred
with the city police chief’s argument that such a promotion would adversely affect the
efficiency and morale of the department and would be disruptive.61
Residency Requirements Many government agencies specify that all or certain members in their employ must live within the geographic limits of their jurisdiction—
that is, employees must reside within the county or city of employment. Such residency
requirements have been justified on the grounds that officers should become familiar with
and be visible in the jurisdiction of employment or that they should reside where they
are paid by the taxpayers to work.62 Perhaps the strongest rationale given by employing
agencies is that criminal justice employees must live near their work so they can respond
quickly in the event of an emergency.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 222
▼
Moonlighting The term moonlight means to hold a second job in addition to one’s normal full-time occupation. The courts have traditionally supported the limitations
police agencies have placed on the amount and kind of outside work their employees
can perform.63 For example, police restrictions on moonlighting range from a complete
ban on outside employment to permission to engage in certain forms of work, such as
investigations, private security, and criminal justice education. The rationale for agency
limitations is that “outside employment seriously interferes with keeping the [police and
fire] departments fit and ready for action at all times.”64
Misuse of Firearms As noted earlier, the use of firearms by police, whether justified or not, can have drastic consequences on both the officer(s) involved and the community.
Police agencies typically attempt to restrain the use of firearms through written policies
and frequent training of a “shoot/don’t shoot” nature. Still, a broad range of potential and
actual problems remains with respect to the use and possible misuse of firearms. Police
agencies generally have policies regulating the use of handguns and other firearms by
their officers, both on and off duty. The courts have held that such regulations need only
be reasonable and that the burden rests with the disciplined police officer to show that the
regulation was arbitrary and unreasonable.65
Police firearms regulations may address several basic topics: shooting in defense of life,
shooting to stop fleeing felons, identifying juveniles, shooting at or from vehicles, firing
warning shots, shooting animals, carrying secondary weapons, carrying weapons off duty,
and registering weapons.66 Next we briefly discuss each of these topics.
Following the 1985 Tennessee v. Garner decision (discussed previously), firearms
policies are likely to be written from the “defense of life” perspective, which permits
shooting only to defeat an imminent threat to an officer’s life or to another person’s life (as
opposed to previous policies, which included and allowed for the killing of fleeing fel-
ons).67 Regarding juveniles, agencies generally do not instruct their officers to make a
distinction between adults and juveniles when using deadly force, based on the pragmatic
view that an armed juvenile can kill as well as an adult and that it is often impossible to tell
if an offender is a juvenile or an adult.68
Shooting at or from moving vehicles has been severely limited in recent years. Some of
the reasons include difficulty in hitting the target, ricochets striking innocent bystanders,
difficulty in penetrating the automobile body and tires, and injuries and damages that might
result should the vehicle go out of control.69 A general consensus among police adminis-
trators is that warning shots should be prohibited as they might strike an innocent person.
From a safety standpoint, “what goes up must come down,” so firing a warning shot into
the ground or into a tree, if allowed at all, is restricted to only a few kinds of situations.
Police agencies generally allow their officers to kill animals in self-defense, either for
prevention of substantial harm to others or for relief from suffering when the animal is
injured so badly that humaneness requires its killing.70 Secondary, or backup, weapons are
generally permitted so that officers who are disarmed during a confrontation have a second
weapon and so that they can less conspicuously be prepared to protect themselves during
routine citizen stops. A concern is that backup weapons may be used as “throwaways” in the
event that an officer shoots an unarmed suspect, but the practice is generally accepted as long
as the weapons are registered.71 Similarly, carrying weapons off duty has also been contro-
versial; however, given that while in their jurisdictions they are viewed as being on duty
twenty-four hours a day, officers are generally allowed to carry such weapons, provided the
weapons are registered and officers qualify on the pistol range regularly with them.72
Most agencies require their officers to use only department-approved weapons on and
off duty and may require that the weapons be inspected, fired, and certified by the depart-
ment’s armorer. In addition, some agencies require that the firearms be registered by make,
model, serial number, and even ballistics sample.73
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 223
▼
Courts and juries are increasingly becoming harsher in dealing with police officers that
misuse their firearms. The current tendency is to investigate police shootings to determine
whether the officer acted negligently or whether the employing agency was negligent in
training and supervising the officer.
Alcohol and Drug Abuse
Alcoholism and drug abuse problems are much more acute when they involve police
employees. It is obvious, given the law of most jurisdictions and the nature of their work,
that police officers must not be walking time bombs; they must be able to perform their
work with a clear head that is unbefuddled by alcohol or drugs.74 Police departments typi-
cally specify in their policy manual that no alcoholic beverages may be consumed within a
specified period prior to reporting for duty. Such regulations have uniformly been upheld
as rational because of the hazards of police work.
Enforcing such regulations occasionally means that police employees are ordered to
submit to drug or alcohol tests. In 1989, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a major decision
on drug testing: National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab,75 which dealt with
drug-testing plans for U.S. customs workers. This decision addressed all three of the most
controversial drug-testing issues: whether testing should be permitted when there is no
indication of a drug problem in the workplace, whether the testing methods are reliable,
and whether a positive test proves there was on-the-job impairment.76
The Supreme Court held that although only a few customs employees tested posi-
tive, drug use is such a serious problem that the program was warranted. Second, the
Court found nothing wrong with the testing protocol. In addition, while tests may punish
and stigmatize a worker for extracurricular drug usage that may have no effect on his or
her on-the-job performance, the Court indicated that this dilemma is still no impediment
to testing.
▶ Brady Material
Consider the following scenario: At the end of his duty shift, Officer Jones acknowledges a
dispatch to assist an animal control unit that is struggling to pick up a large, vicious dog.
Because he has social plans after work and believes the incident to be minor in nature, Jones
opts instead to drive to the police station and leave for home. The animal control officer,
thus acting alone, incurs a number of severe dog bites, $10,000 in medical costs (she has
medical insurance), the loss of two week’s work, and potential long-term injuries. As a
result, Jones is contacted by his supervisor to justify his lack of response; he explains that he
was enroute to the call, but was diverted by seeing what he felt was a robbery in progress
that needed “checking out” (no robberies being reported). Largely owing to the animal con-
trol officer’s injuries, the matter is referred to the department’s Internal Affairs (IA) office
for investigation. Upon being questioned, Jones initially lied to IA investigators, but when
presented with evidence that he never reported a potential robbery, Jones finally admits to
IA that he thought the dog call was a minor problem and opted to ignore it. He is given two
weeks’ leave without pay, and placed on a performance review for six months.
To Jones, this matter may appear to be over with, a lesson learned for the future.
However, it is doubtful that Jones could have ever conceived of its ramifications or what
lay ahead for his career. Jones lied to his supervisor and the IA investigators. Police offi-
cers, by virtue of their position, are—first and foremost—required to tell the truth; to do
any less can be career-ending. An officer with credibility issues is unable to make cases
because he or she can no longer testify effectively in court from that point forward. His or
her department is required to advise the prosecutor’s office of this issue—and the prosecu-
tor is required to disclose it to the defense—in every criminal case in which Jones will
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 224
▼
testify during the remainder of his career. Furthermore, Jones may well have to endure the
following type of cross examination and/or closing argument by the defense attorney:
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, as you consider the testimony of Officer Jones, whom the
prosecution has called as its witness, it is my duty to inform you that you are being asked to
believe the testimony of an officer who will lie in his reports.
To further sully Jones’ reputation, the prosecutor’s office may also inform the chief of
police or sheriff that they will not take any future cases in which Jones was a witness.77
Questions for you to consider:
1. What internal (department-level, per agency policies and procedures) punishment, if
any, would you deem appropriate for Jones in this incident?
2. (Looking ahead at information presented in Chapter 9, on civil liability) Assume the
animal control officer files a civil suit against the city and Jones for his negligence,
seeking (1) compensatory damages (medical costs, pain and suffering, loss of wages,
etc.) and (2) punitive damages (money due to Jones’ acting in a wanton, malicious,
vindictive, or oppressive manner). How much is the animal control officer due?
Such is the current status of policing, a result of Brady v. Maryland (1963),78 with one
large Western police agency recently discovering more than 135 of its officers having
potential Brady problems in a disciplinary case.79 Brady was convicted of first-degree
murder and sentenced to death. He testified at trial about his participation in the crime, but
also stated that his companion, Boblit, was the actual murderer. Before trial, Brady’s attor-
ney had requested to see Boblit’s statements. The government provided some of his state-
ments, but did not turn over those in which Boblit actually admitted to the murder. Brady
was convicted, and later his attorney, then knowing of Boblit’s statement admitting guilt,
filed an appeal. The U.S. Supreme Court stated that Brady was entitled to obtain and use
Boblit’s statement, and that the government’s failure to provide the statement amounted to
a denial of his right to due process.
Brady thus established that in a criminal case the accused has a right to any exculpa-
tory evidence (sometimes termed Brady material—i.e., any evidence in the government’s
possession that is favorable to the accused and is material to either guilt or punishment).
Prosecutors must therefore disclose to the defense all exculpatory evidence.80
Today many police agencies take the “Brady officer” matter quite seriously, training
officers about its existence, sanctions, and ramifications. They are generating policies and
procedures that address this issue, explaining that the agency may be placed in a position
where the officer’s termination is the only appropriate outcome.
Finally, agencies are encouraged to review all officers’ personnel files to determine if
any of them has a disciplinary history that would seriously impeach his or her credibility as
a witness. Any such information should also be made available to the prosecutor before
such officers are allowed to testify in a criminal prosecution.81
▶ Social Networking: Issues and Policy Guidance
With Facebook membership reaching 1.5 billion in late 2015, Twitter at over 300 million,
and a host of others growing as well,82 it is probably no surprise to anyone that there have
been related issues and problems in policing. As examples:
• A deputy in Georgia was fired hours after he posted an entry on Facebook supporting a candidate for sheriff who was running against his boss, the current sheriff.83
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 225
▼
• An Indiana state trooper faced an internal investigation for posting what were termed compromising photographs and statements on the Internet and bragging about his
lewd activities and heavy drinking, and activities at work (which included threatening
people who resisted arrest).84
• A female officer in Massachusetts was investigated for uploading a crime scene photo- graph of a deceased male on her Facebook page.85
Social networking sites are providing benefits to police who are engaged in community
policing, problem solving, and investigative activities (see Chapters 4 and 5). But the ear-
lier examples show unequivocally that the sites can pose serious problems and challenges
as well. Police officers today must assume that, in our connected world, anything they put
in a report, letter, memo, email, blog, online post, or any other medium will be open for the
whole world to see. Not only do such online postings make headlines, reflect poorly on the
agency, and cost people their jobs, but they also affect agency morale and credibility and
even court cases (such postings can be subpoenaed and used to discredit and impeach an
officers’ testimony).86
These kinds of problems are thus compelling police administrators to consider such
questions as the following: what conduct should be allowed—and prohibited—by our
agency? How can we ensure our officers are not posting sensitive, disturbing, and confi-
dential information and photographs? How do we prevent their engaging in posting mate-
rials during on-duty time?
Several police organizations have addressed these questions and proactively provided
clear guidance to their officers by developing a policy that leaves no doubt as to what is
expected of them, both on and off duty, while also being cognizant of their First Amendment
rights. Such policies typically prohibit employees from posting any digital material that:
• expresses the opinions of the police organization.
• refers to the person posting the material as being a member of the police organization.
• is unprofessional, unbecoming, or illegal, such as lewd sexual conduct, or refers to excessive alcohol consumption, or similar behaviors.
▲ Social networking sites—used by both the public and the police-carry benefits,
problems, and policy implications for police agencies. (Courtesy DavidF/Getty Images.)
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 226
▼
• could have an adverse effect on agency morale, discipline, operation of the agency, safety of staff, or perception of the public.
• contains any recording or image obtained during the course of one’s official duties (i.e., enforcement activities, tactical situations).87
Such policies do not bar their employees from using social networking sites; nor do
they require officers to provide their agencies with department access to their personal sites.
The policies do, however, remind employees that their online behavior directly bears on
their organization’s integrity and function as well as its successfully ensuring public safety.
The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) has developed a model pol-
icy on social networking (see http://www.theiacp.org/portals/0/pdfs/socialmediapolicy.
pdf), and the IACP’s Center for Social Media offers police executives a tremendous
resource with fact sheets, and case studies.88 These are extremely valuable resources for
police leadership to use as they attempt to understand and confront the new and powerful
instruments of communication that now exist.
▶ Disciplinary Policies and Practices
Maintenance of Public Trust
Clearly, the public’s trust and respect are precious commodities, quickly lost through
improper behavior by police employees and the improper handling of an allegation of mis-
conduct. Serving communities with professionalism and integrity should be the goal of
every police agency and its employees in order to ensure that trust and respect are main-
tained. The public expects that police agencies will make every effort to identify and cor-
rect problems and respond to citizens’ complaints in a judicious, consistent, fair, and
equitable manner.
Employee misconduct and violations of departmental policy are the two principal areas
in which discipline is applied.89 Employee misconduct includes acts that harm the public,
such as corruption, harassment, brutality, and violations of civil rights. Violations of pol-
icy may involve a broad range of issues, from substance abuse and insubordination to tar-
diness or minor violations of dress.
Due Process Requirements
There are well-established minimum due process requirements for discharging
public employees:
1. They must be afforded a public hearing.
2. They must be present during the presentation of evidence against them and have an
opportunity to cross-examine their superiors.
3. They must have an opportunity to present their own witnesses and other evidence
concerning their side of the controversy.
4. They may be represented by counsel if they so choose.
5. They must have an impartial referee or hearing officer presiding.
6. There must be an eventual decision for or against them based on the weight of the
evidence introduced during the hearing.
Such protections apply to any disciplinary action that can significantly affect a police
employee’s reputation or future chances for special assignment or promotion.90
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 227
▼
At times, police administrators determine that an employee must be disciplined or ter-
minated. Grounds for discipline or discharge can vary widely from agency to agency, and
the agency’s formal policies and procedures should specify what constitutes proper and
improper behavior.
Complaints
Origins A personnel complaint is an allegation of misconduct or illegal behavior against an employee by anyone inside or outside the organization. Internal complaints—
those made from within the organization—may involve supervisors who observe officer
misconduct, officers who complain about supervisors, civilian personnel who complain
about officers, and so on. External complaints originate from outside the organization and
usually involve the public.
Every complaint, regardless of the source, must be accepted and investigated in accor-
dance with established policies and procedures. Anonymous complaints are the most dif-
ficult to investigate because there is no opportunity to obtain further information or to
question the complainant about the allegation. Such complaints can have a negative impact
on employee morale, as officers may view them as unjust and frivolous.
Types and Causes Complaints may be handled informally or formally, depending on the seriousness of the allegation and the preference of the complainant. A formal complaint
occurs when a written and signed or tape-recorded statement of the allegation is made
and the complainant asks to be informed of the investigation’s disposition. Figure 8-3 ■
provides an example of a complaint form used to initiate a personnel investigation.
An informal complaint is an allegation of minor misconduct, made for informational
purposes, which can usually be resolved without the need for more formal processes. The
supervisor may simply discuss the incident with the employee and resolve it through infor-
mal counseling as long as more serious problems are not discovered and there is no history
of similar complaints.
The majority of complaints against officers fall under the general categories of verbal
abuse, discourtesy, harassment, improper attitude, and ethnic slurs.91 It is clear that the
verbal behavior of officers generates a significant number of complaints.
In addition, minority citizens and those with less power and fewer resources are more
likely to file complaints of misconduct and to allege more serious forms of misconduct
than citizens with greater power and more resources.
Receipt and Referral Administrators must have a process for receiving complaints that is clearly delineated by departmental policy and procedures. Generally, a complaint is
made at a police facility and is referred to a senior officer in charge to determine its level
of seriousness and whether immediate intervention is needed.
In most cases, the senior officer will determine the nature of the complaint and will
identify the employee involved; he or she then refers the matter to the employee’s supervi-
sor to conduct an initial investigation. The supervisor completes the investigation, recom-
mends any discipline, and sends the matter to the internal affairs unit (IAU) and the agency
head to finalize the disciplinary process. This method of review ensures that consistent and
fair standards of discipline are applied.
investigative Process Generally the employee’s supervisor will conduct a preliminary inquiry of the complaint, commonly known as fact-finding. If it is determined that
further investigation is necessary, the supervisor may question employees and witnesses,
obtain written statements from those who were involved in the incident, and gather any
necessary evidence, including photographs. Care must be exercised that the accused
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 228
▼
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
*****************************************************************************
Date & Time Reported Location of Interview Interview Control Number
Type of complaint:
Source of complaint:
Force Other (Specify)
Procedural Conduct
Verbal Written Taped
TelephoneMailIn Person Other (Specify)
Complaint originally received by:
Supervisor IAU
On Duty Watch Commander Other (Specify)
Chief
Notifications made: received by:
Division Commander On-Call Command Personnel Watch Commander
Chief of Police
Other (Sepcify)
Copy of formal personnel complaint given to complainant? Yes No
Complainant’s Name:
Residence Phone:
DOB: Race:
Address:
Business Phone:
Sex:
Location of Occurrence:
Member(s) Involved: (1) (3) Witness(es) Involved: (1) (3)
Date & Time of Occurrence:
Member(s) Involved: (2) (4) Witness(es) Involved: (2) (4)
Zip
Occupation:
(1)
(2)
Complainant wishes to make a formal statement and has requested an investigation into the matter with a report back to him/her on the findings and actions.
Complainant wishes to advise the Police Department of a problem, understands that some type of action will be taken, but does not request a report back to him/her on the findings and actions.
(1)
(2)
(3)
If you have not yet provided the department with a signed written statement or a tape-recorded statement, one may be required in order to pursue the investigation of this matter. The complainant(s) and/or witness(es) may be required to take a polygraph examination in order to determine the credibility concerning the allegations made. Should the allegations prove to be false, the complainant(s) and/or witness(es) may be liable for criminal and/or civil prosecution.
CITIZEN ADVISEMENTS
Signature of Complainant Date & Time
Signature of Member Receiving Complaint
FigURe 8-3 Formal Complaint Form Based on City of Reno, NV, Police Department by Kenneth Peak.
employee’s rights are not violated. The initial investigation is sent to the appropriate
division commander and forwarded to the IAU for review.
Determination and Disposition Once an investigation has been completed, the supervisor or IAU officer must make a determination about the culpability of the accused
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 229
▼
employee and report that determination to the administrator. The following categories of
dispositions are commonly used:
• Unfounded. The alleged act did not occur.
• exonerated. The act occurred but was lawful, proper, justified, or in accordance with departmental policies, procedures, rules, and regulations.
• Not sustained. There was insufficient evidence to prove or disprove the allegation made.
• Misconduct not based on the complaint. Sustainable misconduct was determined but was not a part of the original complaint. For example, a supervisor investigating an
allegation of excessive force may find that the force used was within departmental
policy but that the officer made an unlawful arrest.
• Closed. An investigation may be halted if the complainant fails to cooperate or if it is determined that the action does not fall within the administrative jurisdiction of the
police agency.
• Sustained. The act did occur and was a violation of departmental rules and procedures. Sustained allegations include misconduct that falls within the broad outlines of the
original allegation.
Once a determination of culpability has been made, the complainant should be notified
of the department’s findings. Details of the investigation or recommended punishment
should not be included in the correspondence. As shown in Figure 8-4 ■, the complainant
will normally receive only information concerning the outcome of the complaint.
Appeal of Disciplinary Measures If an officer disagrees with a supervisor’s rec- o mme ndation for discipline, the first step of an appeal may involve a hearing before the
division commander, who usually holds the rank of captain or deputy chief. The accused
employee may be allowed labor representation or an attorney to assist in asking questions
of the investigating supervisor, clarifying issues, and presenting new or mitigating
evidence. If the employee is still not satisfied, an appeal hearing before the chief executive,
which is usually the final step in appeals within the agency, is granted. The chief or sheriff
communicates a decision to the employee in writing. Depending on labor agreements and
civil service rules and regulations, some agencies extend their appeals of discipline beyond
the department. For example, employees may bring their issue before the civil service
commission or city or county manager for a final review. Employees may also have the
right to an independent arbiter’s review.
Level of Discipline and Type of Sanction
When an investigation against an employee is sustained, the level of discipline and type of
sanction must be decided. Management must be very careful when recommending and
imposing discipline because of its impact on the overall morale of the agency’s employees.
If employees view the recommended discipline as too lenient, it may send the wrong mes-
sage that the misconduct was insignificant; on the other hand, discipline that is viewed as
too harsh may have a demoralizing effect on the officer involved and on other agency
employees and may result in allegations that the leadership is unfair.
Listed here, in order of severity from least to most, are the seven types of sanctions that
police agencies commonly use92:
1. Counseling. This counseling is usually a conversation between the supervisor and the
employee about a specific aspect of the employee’s performance or conduct. It is
warranted when an employee has committed a relatively minor infraction or when
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 230
▼
the nature of the offense is such that oral counseling is all that is required. No docu-
mentation or report is placed in the employee’s personnel file.
2. Documented oral counseling. Usually the first step in a progressive disciplinary pro-
cess, documented oral counseling is intended to address relatively minor infractions.
It takes place when the employee has had no previous reprimands or more severe
disciplinary action of the same or similar nature.
3. Letters of reprimand. These letters are formal written notices regarding significant
misconduct, more serious performance violations, or repeated offenses. It is usually
the second step in the disciplinary process and is intended to provide the employee
and the agency with a written record of the violation of behavior. It identifies what
specific corrective action must be taken to avoid subsequent and more serious disci-
plinary action.
4. Suspension. The step of suspension is a severe disciplinary action that results in
an employee being relieved of duty, often without pay. It is usually administered
when an employee commits a serious violation of established rules or after
written reprimands have been given and no change in behavior or performance
has resulted.
POLICE DEPARTMENT 3300 Main Street Downtown Plaza
Anywhere, U.S.A. 99999
June 20, 2007
Mr. John Doe
2200 Main Avenue
Anywhere, U.S.A.
Re: Internal Affairs #000666-98
Case Closure
Dear Mr. Doe,
Our investigation into your allegations against Officer Smith has been completed. It has been
determined that your complaint is SUSTAINED, and the appropriate disciplinary action has
been taken.
Our department appreciates your bringing this matter to our attention. It is our position that
when a problem is identified, it should be corrected as soon as possible. It is our goal to be
responsive to the concerns expressed by citizens so as to provide more efficient and effective
services.
Your information regarding this incident was helpful and of value in our efforts to attain that
goal. Should you have any further questions about this matter, please contact Sergeant Jane
Alexander, Internal Affairs, at 555-9999.
Sincerely,
I.M. Boss
Lieutenant
Internal Affairs Unit
FigURe 8-4 Citizen’s Notification of Discipline Letter Based on City of Reno, NV, Police Department by Kenneth Peak.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 231
▼
5. Demotion. In a demotion, an employee is placed in a position of lower responsibility
and pay. It is normally used when an otherwise good employee is unable to meet
the standards required for the higher position or when the employee has committed
a serious act requiring that he or she be removed from a position of management
or supervision.
6. Termination. The most severe disciplinary action that can be taken is termination. It
usually occurs when previous serious discipline has been imposed and there has
been inadequate or no improvement in behavior or performance, but it may also
occur when an employee commits an offense so serious that continued employment
would be inappropriate.
7. Transfer. Many agencies use the disciplinary transfer to deal with problem officers.
Officers can be transferred to a different location or assignment, and this action is
often seen as an effective disciplinary tool.
▶ Civilian Review Boards: A Blessing or a Curse?
extent and Rationale
Given the wisdom of community policing’s bringing together citizens and police to address
crime and disorder and solve problems, it would seem logical that civilian (or citizen)
review boards should be used in order to involve citizens in investigating and overseeing
police activities. This is a commonly discussed approach to police accountability, often
arising in the wake of fatal police shootings or corruption scandals. It is commonly argued
that the public expects—and that civilian review boards will provide—the kind of inde-
pendent and transparent oversight of policing that is needed today. There is even a national
organization devoted to such boards, the National Association of Civilian Oversight of
Law Enforcement, that provides a website, programs, training, conferences, and a number
of other resources in this regard.93
Today there are more than 200 civilian oversight entities around the country, though
their powers to investigate and punish officers vary.94 Some such boards are used to
investigate disciplinary actions regarding the use of force and in-custody deaths, but
also review their police agency’s budget and policies, and how police are using body-
worn cameras.
Police Distrust
However, there remains a robust debate about whether or not such boards are beneficial,
and if so, which model of citizen oversight should be adopted. Tensions run high when this
subject is discussed, and fights and scuffles have even broken out at public meetings where
citizen oversight is under consideration.95 The fact that so few jurisdictions use such boards
would indicate that police are winning this debate, arguing that the boards are often politi-
cized and unfair to them. Some police authorities are also concerned about the boards hav-
ing a “preconceived agenda,” that people appointed to a board by elected officials might
feel obligated to pursue specific policies.96
Even the establishment and power of such boards can be tricky, especially where
they are independently elected officials who are not accountable to county commission-
ers. In addition, some states’ laws protect personnel records of police officers from
most public disclosure and blocks access to investigative records, so experts say it’s
critical to persuade sheriffs and other law enforcement leaders to cooperate with over-
sight boards.97
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 232
▼
Summary This chapter has examined the current movement to increase the constitutional aspects of
police, legitimacy, and ethics as well as several related topics that might well be termed the
underbelly of the field: police use of force, police brutality, bias-based policing, police cor-
ruption, and the code of silence. We also considered a number of areas in which federal
courts have placed limitations on police behaviors by virtue of the unique role of the police
and the necessary higher standard of behavior (e.g., freedom of speech, search, and sei-
zure), as well as disciplinary policies and practices, EISs, and civilian review boards.
Clearly, today’s policing endeavors would be much improved if these issues and chal-
lenges would disappear, but ours is not a perfect world, nor are the police perfect. This
chapter underscored the serious nature of police misbehavior and society’s attempts to hold
officers accountable. Police behavior is being closely scrutinized today, and officers are
held to a much higher standard of behavior than ever before. The next chapter, on civil
liability, examines the high legal cost of the kinds of failures in policing that were discussed
in this chapter. Although liability is a form of accountability, it stands alone because it is a
reflection of the standard of accountability owed to the public and a means of measuring
public dissatisfaction with improper police performance.
exhibit 8-4
The Boston Police Department (BPD) was selected as
one of four agencies in the United States to receive
funding to enhance integrity within the department. The
BPD sought to better understand and improve civilian
oversight in the complaint review process, while also
evaluating the strengths and challenges of the current
complaint process in Boston, understand the best prac-
tices of complaint and use of force review nationally,
and to recommend a model of civilian oversight that
would meet the specific oversight needs within Boston.
Some of the key principles drawn from the project
were:
1. The community has a role in complaint review
and oversight, and strong civilian oversight
models increase communication with the public.
2. Oversight works best when it is triggered
automatically.
3. Oversight should be transparent.
4. There is no one best model—models must fit the
local needs, structure, and history.
The BPD has a high rate of sustained complaints in
its investigations. However, use of force, including
both lethal and nonlethal force, by BPD officers is low
compared with other departments of similar sizes and
those that serve similar cities. The BPD has a proven
track record working with groups outside the depart-
ment to identify the priorities of the community and
work toward meeting common goals.99
LESSONS LEARNED: CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT IN BOSTON
in Sum . . .
It seems the verdict is apparently still out on whether or not local units of government are
helped or hindered by having such citizen input. Because of this ongoing debate, the
President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing has recommended that the federal justice
department fund more research on civilian police oversight models.98 Exhibit 8-4 ■
discusses how the Boston Police Department undertook to enhance officer integrity and
civilian oversight.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 233
▼
Key Terms
absolute ethics
accountability
Brady material
civilian review board
code of silence
complaint
constitutional
policing
“Dirty Harry problem”
double effect
dynamic resistance response model
(DRRM)
early intervention system
(EIS)
ethics
Garrity v. New Jersey
legitimacy
limitations on officers’
constitutional rights
mass demonstrations
noble cause corruption
police brutality
police corruption
police firearms regulations
police shootings
police use of force
relative ethics
social networking
Tennessee v. Garner
use-of-force continuums
Review Questions
1. How would you define constitutional policing and
legitimacy?
2. What are the purposes of, and restrictions on police
use of force?
3. What is meant by use of force continuum, how can it be
problematic, and what is the general structure and func-
tion of the dynamic resistance response model (DRRM)?
4. What are some “lessons learned” with regard to
police handling of mass demonstrations?
5. What are the types of police brutality, and the
Supreme Court’s rulings with regard to police use of
deadly force during high-speed pursuits?
6. What are some of the issues and possible solutions
involved in the national debate concerning police
shootings?
7. What is an Early Intervention System, and what does
it accomplish?
8. What is meant by police ethics, noble cause corrup-
tion, and the “Dirty Harry problem,” and how do they
each relate to Packer’s crime-control and due process
models of law enforcement?
9. How and why does police corruption occur, and what
factors within both the community and policing seem
to foster and maintain it?
10. Which constitutional limitations have federal courts
placed on officers’ rights and personal behavior?
11. How did Brady v. Maryland affect policing in gen-
eral and, potentially, individual officers’ careers?
12. What are some examples of actual and potential mis-
use of social networking sites by police officers, and
how are such problems being addressed by agency
policies?
13. How do police agencies deal with citizen complaints,
and what are some levels of discipline and sanctions
that can be used with officers?
14. What are civilian review boards, and what are some
of the primary arguments for and against their use?
Learn by Doing
1. As the head of the professional standards unit in your
sheriff’s office, you are assigned to address the fol-
lowing letter, received by your sheriff. What will be
your actions in response to the matter?
Last night my seventeen-year-old daughter, Jamie,
was stopped by one of your deputies for speeding.
I do not know the deputy’s name, but his badge num-
ber is 336. I don’t know what kind of people you have
in your agency, but this one got very sarcastic with
my daughter and said some things that weren’t very
nice. He even told her that if she would go out with
him on a date, he wouldn’t give her a ticket. When
she told him that she would not go out with him, he
gave her a ticket. I know a dispatcher there, and if
I don’t hear that this deputy is disciplined for his
behavior, I will send a letter to the County Commis-
sion as well.
Signed: A Concerned, Irate Taxpayer
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 234
▼
Notes
1. Tracie Keesee, “Fairness and Neutrality: Addressing
the Issue of Race in Policing,” The Police Chief
(March 2011), http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/
magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&
article_id=2334&issue_id=32011.
2. Quoted in Police Executive Research Forum, Consti-
tutional Policing as a Cornerstone of Community
Policing, (Washington, D.C.: Police Executive
Research Forum, 2015), p. 2, http://ric-zai-inc.com/
Publications/copsf-p324-pub.pdf.
3. See T. R. Tyler, Why People Obey the Law: Proce-
dural Justice, Legitimacy, and Compliance. (Prince-
ton University Press, 2006); also see J. Sunshine and
T. R. Tyler, “The Role of Procedural Justice and
Legitimacy in Shaping Public Support for Policing,”
Law and Society Review 37(3) (2008), pp. 555–589.
4. Police Executive Research Forum, Constitutional
Policing as a Cornerstone of Community Policing,
pp. 16–17.
5. Quoted in ibid., p. 18.
6. Ibid.
7. Egon Bittner, “The Functions of the Police in Mod-
ern Society,” in Policing: A View from the Street, eds.
Peter K. Manning and John Van Maanen (Santa
Monica, CA: Goodyear, 1978), pp. 32–50.
8. Ibid., p. 36.
9. Adapted from Lorie A. Fridell, “Improving Use-of-
Force Policy: Policy Enforcement and Training,” in
Chief Concerns: Exploring the Challenges of Police
Use of Force, eds. Joshua A. Ederheimer and Lorie
A. Fridell (Washington, D.C.: Police Executive
Research Form, April 2005), p. 48.
10. Charles Joyner and Chad Basile, “The Dynamic
Resistance Response Model,” FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin, September 2007, p. 17.
11. Quoted in Police Executive Research Forum, Consti-
tutional Policing as a Cornerstone of Community
Policing, p. 18.
12. Ibid., p. 28.
13. Ibid.
14. Ibid.; for a thorough examination of police and mass
demonstrations, see U.S. Department of Justice, Office
of Community Oriented Policing Services, After-
Action Assessment of the Police Response to the August
2014 Demonstrations in Ferguson, Missouri, 2015,
http://ric-zai-inc.com/Publications/cops-p317-pub.pdf.
15. A. C. Germann, Frank D. Day, and Robert R. J. Gallati,
Introduction to Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice
(Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas, 1976), p. 225.
16. Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372 (2007).
17. Jon Swaine and Oliver Laughland, “Number of people
killed by US police in 2015 at 1,000 after Oakland
shooting,” The Guardian (U.S. Edition), November
16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/
nov/16/the-counted-killed-by-police-1000.
18. Kimberly Kindy, “Fatal police shootings in 2015
approaching 400 nationwide,” The Washington Post,
May 30, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/
2. Officer King has been a member of your agency for
six years and one of your subordinates for two years.
Her productivity, both in terms of quality and quan-
tity, as well as her interactions with the public, have
generally been at or above standard, and her perfor-
mance evaluations have been satisfactory or above. In
recent weeks, however, all aspects of her work have
shown a significant decline; furthermore, there have
been complaints from other officers about her not
responding to calls for service in a timely manner
(resulting in their having to cover for her) as well as
inadequate investigations of traffic collisions and
other matters. In addition, King’s reports are often
late or submitted only after you have sent her several
reminders. Today a citizen contacts you to complain
about her rudeness while taking a burglary report yes-
terday. You decide it is time to call her into your office
to discuss these matters. How will you address this
situation?
3. Your police agency has a policy concerning the solici-
tation and acceptance of gifts; essentially, it states that
no personnel shall accept any gift, gratuity, loan, fee,
or thing of value that might tend to improperly influ-
ence their actions in any manner. Your subordinate,
Officer Fisher, recently addressed a problem at a
municipal country club that involved a lot of after-
hours juvenile loitering and vandalism problems in
the club’s parking lot. The club manager, Mr. Chang,
wishes to show appreciation to the officer and has
made arrangements for the officer and family to
receive a 15 percent discount when eating or golfing
there. Fisher approaches you for guidance: accept the
offer or not? What would be your response and
accompanying explanation?
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 235
▼
national/fatal-police-shootings-in-2015-approaching-
400-nationwide/2015/05/30/d322256a-058e-11e5-
a428-c984eb077d4e_story.html.
19. “L.A. Police Corruption Case Continues to Grow,”
The Washington Post, February 13, 2000, p. 1A.
20. Human Rights Watch, Shielded from Justice: Police
Brutality and Accountability in the United States
(New York: Author, 1998).
21. Ibid.
22. The Cap Times (Madison, WI), February 19, 2013,
h t t p : / / h o s t . m a d i s o n . c o m / n ew s / l o c a l / w r i t e r s /
pat_schneider/no-comprehensive-reliable-database-
of-police-shootings-exists/article_9a0e40a2-7ac5-
11e2-9f0d-001a4bcf887a.html.
23. Las Vegas Review-Journal, Nov. 28, 2011, http://
www.reviewjournal.com/news/deadly-force/142-
dead-and-rising/national-data-shootings-police-not-
collected.
24. Kevin Johnson, “Panel to consider tracking of civil-
ians killed by police,” USA Today, December 12,
2014, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/
nation/2014/12/11/tracking-cop-deaths/20104193/.
25. See Dallas Police Department, http://dallaspolice.net/
ois/docs/narrative/2013/OIS_2013_311475A.pdf.
26. For a comprehensive overview of early intervention
systems, see Samuel Walker, Early Intervention Sys-
tems for Law Enforcement Agencies: A Planning and
Management Guide (Washington, D.C.: Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services, 2003), http://
www.cops.usdoj.gov/html/cd_rom/inaction1/pubs/
EarlyInterventionSystemsLawEnforcement.pdf.
27. Police Executive Research Forum, Critical Response
Technical Assessment Review: Police Accountability—
Findings and National Implications of an Assessment
of the San Diego Police Department (Washington,
D.C.: Office of Community Oriented Policing Ser-
vices, 2015), p. 9, http://www.sandiego.gov/police/pdf/
perfrpt.pdf.
28. Carolyn Kendrick and Steve Albrecht, “A Way to
Identify and Help Troubled Cops,” The San Diego
Union-Tribune, May 14, 2011, http://www.sandi-
egouniontribune.com/news/2011/may/14/a-way-
to-find-and-help-troubled-cops/; see also San Diego
Police Department, Enhancing Cultures of Integrity
(Washington, D.C.: Office of Community Oriented
Policing Services, 2011), http://ric-zai-inc.com/
Publications/cops-p184-pub.pdf.http://ric-zai-inc.com/
Publications/cops-p052-pub.pdf.
29. See Carl Klockars, “The Dirty Harry Problem,” in
Police and Society: Touchstone Readings, 2nd ed.,
ed. Victor E. Kappeler (Prospect Heights, IL: Wave-
land Press, 1999), pp. 329–346.
30. Herbert Packer, The Limits of the Criminal Sanction
(Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1968).
31. Jocelyn M. Pollack, “Ethics and Law Enforcement,”
in Critical Issues in Policing: Contemporary Read-
ings, 5th ed., eds. Roger G. Dunham and Geoffrey
P. Alpert (Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, 2005),
pp. 280–303.
32. Lawrence W. Sherman, ed., Police Corruption: A
Sociological Perspective (Garden City, NY: Anchor,
1974), p. 1.
33. See Peter Maas, Serpico (New York: Viking, 1973);
The Knapp Commission Report on Police Corruption
(New York: George Braziller, 1973).
34. Herman Goldstein, Policing a Free Society (Cam-
bridge, MA: Ballinger, 1977), p. 188.
35. Ibid.
36. Gordon Witkin, “When the Bad Guys Are Cops,”
Newsweek, September 11, 1995, p. 20.
37. Ibid., p. 22.
38. Lawrence W. Sherman, “Becoming Bent,” in Moral
Issues in Police Work, eds. F. A. Elliston and M. Feld-
berg (Totowa, NJ: Rowan and Allanheld, 1985),
pp. 253–265.
39. Christian P. Potholm and Richard E. Morgan, eds.,
Focus on Police: Police in American Society (New
York: Schenkman, 1976), p. 140.
40. Ellwyn R. Stoddard, “Blue Coat Crime,” in Think-
ing about Police: Contemporary Readings, ed.
Carl B. Klockars (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983),
pp. 338–350.
41. Walker, The Police in America, p. 175.
42. David Burnham, “Police Aides Told to Rid Com-
mands of All Dishonesty,” New York Times, October
29, 1970, p. 1.
43. Patrick V. Murphy and Thomas Plate, Commissioner:
A View from the Top of American Law Enforcement
(New York: Simon and Schuster, 1977), p. 226.
44. William A. Westley, Violence and the Police
(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1970), pp. 113–114.
45. Thomas E. Wren, “Whistle-Blowing and Loyalty to
One’s Friends,” in Police Ethics: Hard Choices in
Law Enforcement, ed. William C. Heffernan (New
York: John Jay Press, 1985), pp. 25–43.
46. David Weisburd and Rosanne Greenspan, Police
Attitudes Toward Abuse of Authority: Findings from
a National Study (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Depart-
ment of Justice, National Institute of Justice,
Research in Brief, May 2000), p. 5.
47. See 18 U.S.C., Section 1955.
48. See, for example, United States v. Hyde, 448 F.2d
815 (5th Cir. 1971), cert. den., 404 U.S. 1058 (1972);
United States v. Addonizia, 451 F.2d 49 (3d Cir.),
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 236
▼
cert. den., 405 U.S. 936 (1972); and United States v.
Kenney, 462 F.2d 1205 (3d Cir.), as amended, 462
F.2d 1230 (3d Cir.), cert. den., 409 U.S. 914 (1972).
49. Herbert Beigel, “The Investigation and Prosecution
of Police Corruption,” in Focus on Police: Police in
American Society, eds. Christian P. Potholm and
Richard E. Morgan (New York: Schenkman, 1976),
pp. 139–166.
50. Pickering v. Board of Education, 391 U.S. 563
(1968), p. 568.
51. Muller v. Conlisk, 429 F.2d 901 (7th Cir. 1970).
52. Kelley v. Johnston, 425 U.S. 238 (1976).
53. See People v. Tidwell, 266 N.E.2d 787 (Ill. 1971).
54. McDonell v. Hunter, 611 F. Supp. 1122 (SD Iowa
1985), aff’d. as mod., 809 F.2d 1302 (8th Cir. 1987).
55. Garrity v. New Jersey, 385 U.S. 483 (1967).
56. See Gabrilowitz v. Newman, 582 F.2d 100 (1st Cir.
1978).
57. United States v. City of Albuquerque, 12 EPD 11,
244 (10th Cir.); also see Trans World Airlines v.
Hardison, 97 S.Ct. 2264 (1977).
58. Allen D. Sapp, “Police Officer Sexual Misconduct:
A Field Research Study,” in Crime and Justice in
America: Present Realities and Future Prospects,
eds. Paul F. Cromwell and Roger G. Dunham (Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997), pp. 139–151.
59. See Briggs v. North Muskegon Police Department,
563 F. Supp. 585 (W.D. Mich. 1983), aff’d. 746 F.2d
1475 (6th Cir. 1984).
60. Oliverson v. West Valley City, 875 F. Supp. 1465 (D.
Utah 1995).
61. Henery v. City of Sherman, 928 S.W.2d 464 (Sup. Ct.
Texas), cert. den., 17 S.Ct. 1098 (1997).
62. See, for example, Cox v. McNamara, 493 P.2d 54
(Ore. 1972); Brenckle v. Township of Shaler, 281
A.2d 920 (Pa. 1972); Flood v. Kennedy, 239 N.Y.S.2d
665 (1963); and Hopwood v. City of Paducah, 424
S.W.2d 134 (Ky. 1968).
63. Richard N. Williams, Legal Aspects of Discipline by
Police Administrators, Traffic Institute Publication 2705
(Evanston, IL: Northwestern University, 1975), p. 4.
64. See Lally v. Department of Police, 306 So.2d 65 (La.
1974).
65. Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and Robert W.
Taylor, Police Administration, 5th ed. (Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2005), p. 586.
66. Ibid.
67. Ibid.
68. Kenneth James Matulia, A Balance of Forces: Model
Deadly Force Policy and Procedure (Alexandria, VA:
International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1985),
pp. 23–24.
69. Catherine H. Milton, Jeanne Wahl Halleck, James
Larndew, et al., Police Use of Deadly Force (Wash-
ington, DC: Police Foundation, 1977), p. 52.
70. Matulia, A Balance of Forces, p. 52.
71. Ibid., p. 177.
72. Ibid.
73. Ibid., p. 78.
74. See Krolick v. Lowery, 302 N.Y.S.2d 109 (1969), p.
115; and Hester v. Milledgeville, 598 F. Supp. 1456,
1457 (M.D. Ga. 1984).
75. National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab,
489 U.S. 656 (1989).
76. Robert J. Alberts and Harvey W. Rubin, “Court’s
Rulings on Testing Crack Down on Drug Abuse,”
Risk Management 38 (March 1991): 36–41.
77. Jaxon Van Derbeken, “Police with Problems are a
Problem for the D.A.,” San Francisco Chronicle,
May 16, 2010, http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/
article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/05/15/MNKC1DB57E.DTL.
78. Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963).
79. See Richard Lisko, “Agency Policies Imperative to
Disclose Brady v. Maryland Material to Prosecutors,”
The Police Chief 77(3) (March 2011), http://www.
policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?
fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=2329&issue_
id=32011.
80. Lisko, “Agency Policies Imperative to Disclose Brady
v. Maryland Material to Prosecutors;” also see Val
Van Brocklin, “Brady v. MD Can Get You Fired,”
Officer.com (August 16, 2010), http://www.officer.
com/article/10232477/brady-v-md-can-get-you-fired.
81. Jack Ryan, “Police Officers may be Liable for Failure
to Disclose Exculpatory Information under the Brady
Rule Managing Risks,” Policelink (n.d.), http://police-
link.monster.com/training/articles/2123-police-officers-
may-be-liable-for-failure-todisclose-exculpatory-
information-under-the-brady-rulemanaging-risks.
82. The Statistics Portal, “Leading social networks
worldwide as of August 2015, ranked by number of
active users (in millions),” http://www.statista.com/
statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-
number-of-users/.
83. Policeone.com, “Deputy Fired After Facebook Post
Supporting Candidate Running Against Sheriff,” July
18, 2012, http://www.policeone.com/chiefs-sheriffs/
articles/5839590-Deputy-fired-after-Facebook-post-
supporting-candidate-running-against-sheriff/.
84. Eric P. Daigle, “Social Networking Policies: Just
Another Policy?” The Police Chief, May 2010, http://
www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.
cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=2091&
issue_id=52010.
CHAPTER 8 Accountability 237
▼
85. Ibid., p. 2.
86. Michael Masterson and William Bones, “Protecting
Officers Online, Off Duty: How Police Chiefs Can
Safeguard Officers with Policy Guidance on Social
Networking,” The Police Chief, October 2012, http://
www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.
cfm?fuseaction=display&article_id=2426&issue_
id=72011.
87. Ibid.
88. See Center for Social Media, http://www.iacpsocial-
media.org/.
89. V. McLaughlin and R. Bing, “Law Enforcement Per-
sonnel Selection,” Journal of Police Science and
Administration 15 (1987): 271–276.
90. Ibid.
91. Allen E. Wagner and Scott H. Decker, “Evaluating
Citizen Complaints Against the Police,” in Critical
Issues in Policing: Contemporary Readings, 3rd ed.,
eds. Roger G. Dunham and Geoffrey P. Alpert (Pros-
pect Heights, IL: Waveland Press, 1989), pp. 302–318.
92. Kenneth J. Peak, Larry K. Gaines, and Ronald W.
Glensor, Police Supervision and Management: In an
Era of Community Policing, 3rd ed. (Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010), p. 260.
93. National Association of Civilian Oversight of Law
Enforcement, https://nacole.org/.
94. See ibid., for a listing of jurisdictions with citizen
review boards.
95. Martin Kaste, “Police Are Learning To Accept Civil-
ian Oversight, But Distrust Lingers,” NPR, February
21, 2015, http://www.npr.org/2015/02/21/387770044/
police-are-learning-to-accept-civilian-oversight-but-
distrust-lingers; also see Ben Brumfield, AnneClaire
Stapleton and Sara Sidner, “In Ferguson’s wake,
police and citizens scuffle at St. Louis meeting, CNN,
January 29, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/01/28/
us/st-louis-police-citizen-ferguson-outburst/.
96. Erika A., SoCal Cities Debate the Pros and Cons of
Police Oversight Models, published by Southern
California Public Radio © 2015.
97. Ibid.
98. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,
President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing,
March 2015, p. 26, http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/
taskforce/TaskForce_FinalReport.pdf.
99. Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,
“Boston Police Department: Enhancing Cultures
of Integrity” (April 2010), http://ric-zai-inc.com/
Publications/cops-p184-pub.pdf.
238
▼
9 Civil Liability Failing the Public Trust
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain the incidence, expense, and benefits of lawsuits against the police
❷ Explain basic terms and concepts relating to liability
❸ Describe the meaning and uses of U.S. Code Title 42, Section 1983
❹ Explain the liability of police officers and supervisors
❺ Explain the doctrine of qualified immunity as it relates to police officers
(Courtesy © Patti McConville/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 239
▼
Introduction
No one knows for certain how much money is paid by local police agencies each year to settle lawsuits.
What is known, however, is that some cities have seen lawsuits against their city’s police force soar.
From 2010 through 2014, the ten cities with the largest police agencies in the United States paid out
over $1.4 billion in settlements and court judgments due to lawsuits against police.1 Those same depart-
ments were responsible for almost $250 million in payouts due to misconduct cases alone in the year
2014—an increase of nearly 50% from 2010.2 Put another way, from 2002 to 2011 the Los Angeles Police
Department paid nearly 1,000 settlements and judgments to resolve lawsuits (for as much as $12,860,000
in one case), the majority of which were for civil rights cases, but about 400 of them—involving about
$24 million in settlements—stemmed from traffic crashes involving police officers.3
A police sergeant once commented to one of the authors, “The decision-making process is not directed
by the question ‘Is it right or wrong?’ but rather ‘How much will it cost us if we’re sued?’” While that
may be a bit overstated or in jest, the specter of lawsuits certainly looms large over police officers, their
supervisors, and their unit of government; however, we will see that civil liability has arguably provided
a number of benefits to policing. This chapter focuses on this omnipresent facet of contemporary police
work, discussing civil liability from a number of perspectives, and it cannot be overstated how impor-
tant it is for students of criminal justice and in-service police personnel to know and understand this
indispensable aspect of policing. To assist in this endeavor, dozens of examples and actual court cases
are provided.
Policing is a challenging occupation. The police must enforce the laws, perform welfare tasks, protect
the innocent, and attempt to prevent crime. They see people at their worst and participate each year in
tens of thousands of arrests, searches, seizures, major incidents (such as hostage situations), and high-
speed pursuits. They make split-second decisions, and they function as custodians of offenders in local
jails. Perhaps no other occupation, with the exception of medicine, is as vulnerable to legal attack for
the actions of its practitioners. Some observers even believe that community-oriented policing and
problem solving (discussed in Chapter 4) could lead to an increase in civil liability filings because of the
greater degree of involvement of police in the lives of citizens.4
The chapter begins by discussing the incidence, expense, benefits, and sometimes frivolous nature of
lawsuits against the police. Next, with an eye toward helping readers develop a better comprehension
of liability, is an overview of a number of basic terms and concepts. We then analyze the legal history of
the major tool that is used against the police by citizens who believe the police have violated their con-
stitutional rights: U.S. Code Title 42, Section 1983; included here is a comprehensive discussion, with
many examples, of the kinds of police actions that foster liability suits. The liability of supervisors who
fail to control their personnel is then reviewed. Finally, other areas of potential liability are examined:
duty of care, failure to protect, vehicle pursuits (including a sample agency policy addressing them), and
computer evidence. The chapter concludes with a summary, key terms, review questions, and several
scenarios and activities that provide opportunities to learn by doing.
▶ Incidence, Expense, Benefits, and Nature of Lawsuits
The police are not irrationally paranoid when it comes to their being sued—to some offi-
cers, it probably seems to be a contemporary rite of passage or a fact of life that one “isn’t
really a cop” unless he or she has been sued. There is some basis in fact for this belief:
Between 1980 and 2005, federal court decisions involving lawsuits against the police
nearly tripled, and according to one study, the police are currently faced with more than
thirty thousand civil actions annually.5 Yet this number might seem small given that the
police have millions of interactions with citizens each day.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 240
▼
One contemporary indication of police concern about liability is that many agencies
are now purchasing body-worn cameras (BWCs) for their officers. These cameras, which
are discussed more in Chapters 4 and 14, are small audio-video recording devices that can
be mounted on an officer’s uniform. Because BWCs are designed to record interactions
between police and citizens, agencies believe that they can help to guard against false alle-
gations of misconduct or abuse. Agency administrators, however, are scrambling to
develop policies for the use of such recording devices, in order to address a number of
legal issues, including potential privacy concerns.6
The cost of civil suits against police can be quite high. For example, according to one
study, during one decade Los Angeles paid in excess of $67.8 million in judgments and settle-
ments in eighty lawsuits targeting police use of excessive force as well as police officers
involved in sexual assault, sexual abuse, molestation, and domestic violence. This amount does
not include the millions of dollars the city spent defending itself against any civil suits or law-
suits stemming from the Rampart Division scandal of the late 1990s,7 during which a former
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officer testified that he and other officers routinely
lied in court, stole and resold drugs, beat handcuffed suspects in the police station, and killed
unarmed people and then planted guns and drugs on them; dozens of lawsuits were filed.8
Facing potential judgments amounting to millions of dollars, municipalities are forced
to secure liability insurance to protect against civil litigation—insurance that is very
expensive. But such expenditures are necessary: The cost of an average jury award of lia-
bility against a municipality is reported to be about $2 million.9 In an attempt to prevent
such large judgments, many cities and their insurers have made it a routine practice to
settle many claims of police misconduct out of court as opposed to having a jury give the
plaintiff(s) a large award. A U.S. Justice Department study of Los Angeles County (not
including the LAPD) found that county officials, in settling sixty-one police misconduct
cases, paid plaintiffs between $20,000 and $1.75 million per case.10
Even settlements, however, can be costly to city governments, especially those that concern
controversial cases involving the use of deadly force by police. The City Council of Chicago
approved a settlement with the family of Laquan McDonald for $5 million after he was shot
and killed by Chicago PD officer Jason Van Dyke in 201411; Van Dyke has been charged with
murder in the shooting.12 In another recent example from New York City, the city agreed to pay
$5.9 million to the family of Eric Garner to settle a wrongful-death claim (Garner
had been killed by NYPD officers after an altercation). Given the publicity of the case and the
controversial use-of-force tactics performed by the officers—including an inappropriate
chokehold — it was believed that the settlement saved the expense of a long legal process.13
Such litigation, although costly in terms of both money and police morale, does have ben-
eficial effects. Proponents of civil liabilities argue that these lawsuits keep the police account-
able, give real meaning to citizens’ rights, foster better police training, and can force police
agencies to correct any deficiencies and review all policies, practices, and customs.14
It would be understandable if some officers felt that most (if not all) such lawsuits are
frivolous in nature, merely an attempt to gain revenue from the officer(s) or jurisdiction
defending against the suit; however, their perception of what constitutes a frivolous lawsuit
may be very different from the legal definition: that it lacks an arguable basis in law or
fact.15 In fact, frivolous lawsuits against the police are quite rare. A study of published
cases by the federal district courts indicates that less than 0.5 percent of those cases resulted
in a judicial sanction against plaintiffs for cases that clearly lacked merit.16
▶ Basic Terms and Concepts
Laws are enacted in three ways: by legislation, by regulation, and by court decision.
Statutes and ordinances are laws passed by legislative bodies, such as the U.S. Congress,
state legislatures, county commissions, and city councils. These bodies sometimes create a
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 241
▼
general outline of the laws they enact, leaving to a particular governmental agency the
authority to fill in the details of the law through rules and regulations. During the past two
decades, administrative rules and regulations constituted one of the fastest-growing bodies
of new law.
When the solution to a legal dispute cannot be found in the existing body of law—
statutes, rules, or regulations—judges must rely on prior decisions that their own or other
courts have made on similar issues. These judicial decisions are known as stare decisis
(meaning “let the decision stand”), and the judges who follow them are said to be relying
on precedent. Of course, prior court decisions can be overruled or modified by a higher
court or by the passage of new legislation. Furthermore, judges sometimes create their own
tests to fairly resolve an issue. Statutes, judicial decisions, and tests may differ greatly from
state to state; therefore, it is important for lawyers and criminal justice practitioners to read
and understand the laws as they apply in their own jurisdictions.
It is also important to have a basic understanding of tort liability, a tort being an injury
inflicted on one person by another. Three categories of torts generally cover most of the
lawsuits filed against criminal justice practitioners: negligence, intentional torts, and con-
stitutional torts.
Negligence arises when a police officer’s conduct creates a danger to others; in other
words, the officer did not conduct his or her affairs in a manner so as to avoid subjecting
others to a risk of harm. The officer will be held liable for the injuries caused to others
through his or her negligent acts. The law recognizes various levels or degrees of negli-
gence: simple, gross, and willful or criminal negligence. Simple negligence involves a
reasonable act performed by a reasonable officer in the scope of employment but per-
formed without due care; the result is usually a charge of mental pain and anguish, for
which an employer or an insurance company will pay damages. Gross negligence involves
an unreasonable act for which damages for mental pain and anguish will be paid by either
the employer (if the officer’s acts were within the scope of employment) or the officer.
Willful or criminal negligence involves an intentional act rather than negligence; the
plaintiff will receive actual damages, mental pain and anguish damages, and punitive dam-
ages. These damages will be paid by the officer involved; neither the employer nor the
insurance company will be compelled to pay.17
Intentional torts occur when an officer engages in a voluntary act that had a substantial
likelihood of resulting in injury to another; examples are assault and battery, false arrest
and imprisonment, malicious prosecution, and abuse of process. Constitutional torts involve
police officers’ duty to recognize and uphold the constitutional rights, privileges, and
immunities of others, and violations of these guarantees may subject officers to civil suits,
most frequently brought in federal court under 42 U.S. Code Section 198318 (discussed
later in this chapter).
Allegations of false arrest, false imprisonment, criminal behavior (such as assault
and battery), and police misconduct (invasion of privacy, negligence, defamation, and
malicious prosecution) are examples of torts that are commonly brought against police
officers.19 False arrest is the arrest of a person without probable cause—an arrest that is
made even though an ordinarily prudent person would not have concluded that a crime
had been committed or that the person arrested had committed it. False imprisonment is
the intentional illegal detention and confinement of a person in a specified area, includ-
ing but not limited to jail. Most false arrest suits result in a false imprisonment charge as
well, but a false imprisonment charge sometimes can follow a valid arrest. For example,
the police might fail to release an arrested person after a proper bail or bond has been
posted, they might delay the arraignment of an arrested person unreasonably, or they
might fail to release a prisoner after they no longer have authority to hold him or her.
“Brutality” is not a legal tort action per se; rather, charges must be made as a civil assault
and/or battery.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 242
▼
A single act may also be a crime as well as a tort. For example, if Officer Smith, in an
unprovoked attack, injures Citizen Jones, the state will attempt to punish Smith in a
criminal action by sending him to prison or fining him or both. The state would have
the burden of proof at a criminal trial, having to prove Smith guilty “beyond a reason-
able doubt.” Furthermore, Jones may sue Smith for money damages in a civil action for
the personal injury he suffered. Jones would argue that Smith failed to carry out his duty
to act reasonably and prudently and that this failure resulted in Jones’s injury. This legal
wrong, of course, is a tort; Jones would have the burden of proving Smith’s acts were
tortious by a “preponderance of the evidence”—a lower standard and thus easier to sat-
isfy in civil court.
The U.S. system of government has both federal and state courts. Federal courts are
intended to have somewhat limited jurisdiction and tend not to hear cases involving private
(as opposed to public) controversies unless federal law is involved or both parties agree to
have their dispute settled there. Thus most tort suits are filed in state courts. There are two
means by which a federal court may acquire jurisdiction of police misconduct suits. The
first is the predominant source of our later discussions, referred to as a “1983 suit,” a name
that is derived from the fact that the suits are brought under the provisions of Title 42,
Section 1983, of the U.S. Code. The significant part of this statute and its legislative his-
tory follow.
The second means by which a federal court may assume jurisdiction over a police mis-
conduct suit is to allege what some legal commentators call a Bivens tort, a name that
derives from a 1971 case, Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the Federal Bureau of
Narcotics.20 The U.S. Supreme Court held that a civil suit based directly on the Fourth
Amendment could be filed. In Bivens, federal narcotics agents conducted an illegal search,
arrest, and interrogation, but a suit by the plaintiffs could not be filed under Section 1983
because that section covers only police agents acting under state law. Civil suits to recover
damages for violations of constitutional rights by federal officers have thus become known
as Bivens suits.
A suit may also be filed against an employer under the doctrine of respondeat superior,
an old legal maxim meaning “let the master answer”; this doctrine is also termed vicarious
liability. In sum, an employer is liable in certain instances for the wrongful acts of its
employee. It is generally inapplicable if a jury determines that the employee’s negligent or
malicious acts were outside the legitimate scope of the employer’s authority. Although
U.S. courts have expanded the extent to which employers can be sued for the torts of their
employees, the courts are still reluctant to extend this doctrine to police supervisors (ser-
geants and lieutenants) and administrators. The courts realize that, first of all, police super-
visors have little discretion in hiring decisions. Second, the duties of police officers are
largely established by the governmental authority that hired them rather than by their
supervisors. However, if a supervisor has abused his or her authority, was present when the
misconduct occurred and did nothing to stop it, or otherwise participated in the miscon-
duct, he or she can be held liable for the tortious behavior of his or her officers.21 (This
issue is discussed at greater length later in this chapter.)
Another issue that involves the question of who may be sued involves immunity and
whether police departments and the employing governmental unit can be sued for damages
caused by police misconduct. Under common law, the government could not be sued
because the king could do no wrong. This doctrine, known as sovereign immunity, was also
adopted in 1795 in the Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which states, “The
judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or
equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of another
state, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign state.”22 This amendment therefore bars suits
against states, state agencies, and instrumentalities in federal courts; the Supreme Court
has also said it bars suits by citizens of the same state.23
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 243
▼
Municipal governments, however, do not enjoy the same protection since they are cre-
ations of state laws and, as such, are not truly “sovereigns.” Thus, they do not enjoy blanket
immunity and are only cloaked with immunity to the extent that the state sees fit to do so.24
▶ Section 1983 Litigation
History and Escalation
Prior to discussing specific kinds and examples of civil litigation against the police and
their supervisors, it is prudent to first gain an understanding of a major legal instrument
that is used by citizens against the police when they feel the police have acted in such a
manner as to violate their individual rights: U.S. Code Title 42, Section 1983.
In the years following the Civil War, Congress, in reaction to the states’ inability to
control the Ku Klux Klan’s lawlessness, enacted the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871. This
was later codified as Title 42, Section 1983, of the U.S. Code. Its statutory language is
as follows:
Every person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage of
any State or Territory, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States
or any other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privi-
leges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party
injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress.
—Statute, Title 42, Section 1983 of the U.S. Code, U.S Department of Justice.
This legislation was intended to provide civil rights protection to all persons protected
under the act when a defendant acted “under color of any statute” (misused power of
office). It was also meant to provide an avenue to the federal courts for relief of alleged
civil rights violations.
The original intent of the law did not include police misconduct litigation. In fact, the
law was virtually ignored for ninety years until the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1961 decision in
Monroe v. Pape,25 where thirteen members of the Chicago Police Department broke into a
home without a warrant, forced the family out of bed at gunpoint, made them stand naked
while the officers ransacked the house, and subjected the family to verbal and physical
abuse. The plaintiffs (Monroe and his family) claimed that the officers acted “under color
of law” as set forth in Section 1983, thus violating their constitutional rights. The U.S.
Supreme Court agreed, holding the officers liable.
There was a virtual boom of Section 1983 suits from 1967 through 1976.26 Several fac-
tors contributed to this surge in Section 1983 actions. First, some lawyers believe that cli-
ents receive more competent judges and juries in the federal forum than in state courts
because federal judges, who are appointed for life, may be less concerned about the politi-
cal ramifications of their decisions than locally elected judges often are. Also, federal pros-
ecutors may be more aggressive in arguing to jurors from a multicounty area, whereas
local prosecutors must argue to jurors who elected them and who may know the defendant
officer. Furthermore, federal rules of pleading and evidence are uniform, federal proce-
dures of discovery are more liberal, and lawyers have easier access to published case law
in assisting them to prepare a federal suit.27 Just as important, Congress passed Section
1988 of the Civil Rights Act in 1976, which allows attorney’s fees to the prevailing party
over and above the award for compensatory and punitive damages, meaning that a plain-
tiff’s verdict in a police shooting case can be quite profitable.
Also, in 1978, in Monell v. Department of Social Services,28 the Supreme Court held
that Congress, in the 1871 act, did intend that municipalities and other local governments
be included as “persons” to whom Section 1983 applies. Local governing bodies and
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 244
▼
corporate “persons,” therefore, can be sued for damages under Section 1983 if such depri-
vation was the direct result of an official policy or custom of a local unit of government.
Defenses and immunities against Section 1983 suits exist, however. The states them-
selves, for example, are granted absolute immunity from Section 1983 suits,29 as are
judges, prosecutors, legislators, and federal officials. Federal officials usually act under
color of federal law, as opposed to state law, as specified in the act.
Police Actions Leading to Section 1983 Liability
Following are some cases based on Section 1983 liability:
• In 1991, Los Angeles motorist Rodney King was beaten following a pursuit by police officers, an incident that was captured on an eighty-one-second videotape that captured
the nation’s attention. He was awarded $3.8 million.30
• In 1995, federal law enforcement officers at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, used deadly force to seize two citizens, resulting in the federal government’s agreement to pay survivors
almost $4 million because of unconstitutional use of deadly force. That same year, a
federal jury awarded Ramona Africa, the sole survivor of a bombing of her residence
by Philadelphia police, $1.5 million (the police had dropped explosives into the home
of a radical group trying to make members leave their home). The bombing destroyed
sixty-one other homes and killed eleven people, and the total cost to the city exceeded
$59 million.31
• A jury acquitted four New York police officers of criminal charges in the shooting death of Amadou Diallo. The officers had mistaken Diallo’s wallet for a gun and
opened fire, discharging forty-one rounds and striking him nineteen times. His parents
were awarded $3 million in a settlement with the city.32
The common thread in all these highly publicized cases was that they used U.S. Code
Title 42, Section 1983. Exhibit 9-1 ■ provides an example of a Section 1983 lawsuit—an
outgrowth of the 2011 pepper spraying of Occupy protestors by campus police officers at
the University of California at Davis.
As suggested, Section 1983 is an appropriate legal tool for citizens who believe they
have been victims of police brutality. In Jennings v. City of Detroit,33 a twenty-two-year-old
exhibit 9-1
In November 2011, students nonviolently demonstrat-
ing against a tuition hike were pepper-sprayed by a
campus police officer, handcuffed and arrested. Some
students were hospitalized due to the highly potent
chemical, sprayed at close range. Defending his
actions, the officer said the students had refused to
leave and surrounded him.
However, a university task force report found the
use of force was “unreasonable” and dismissed the
officer’s claim he was trapped. The students filed a
lawsuit against the university alleging use of excessive
force, and the university paid about $1 million to settle
the suit. Each student involved was awarded $30,000.
Later, the officer was given more than $38,000 in
workers’ compensation for the psychological suffering
he experienced in being blamed for the incident.
Sources: From University of California to pay nearly $1 million in
deal with 21 pepper-sprayed UC-Davis Occupy protesters NBC
News, September 26, 2012, http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/
2012/09/ 26/14112860-university-of-california-to-pay-nearly-1-
million-indeal-with-21-pepper-sprayed-uc-davis-occupy-
protesters?lite; UC Davis pepper-spray officer awarded $38,000 Joe
Garofoli San Francisco Gate, Oct. 23, 2013, http://www.sfgate.com/
politics/joegarofoli/article/UC-Davis-pepper-spray-officer-
awarded-38-000-4920773.php; The Reynoso Task Force Report
University of California at Davis, April 11, 2012, http://
reynosoreport.ucdavis.edu/reynoso-report.pdf
AN EXAMPLE OF U.S. CODE TITLE 42, SECTION 1983
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 245
▼
single African-American man was permanently paralyzed following a beating at a police
station; the jury award was $8 million (settled for $3.5 million). In Gilliam v. Falbo,34 the
U.S. District Court for Ohio awarded $72,000 to a young man beaten by two officers, and
in Haygood v. City of Detroit,35 a thirty-five-year-old plaintiff was awarded $2.5 million
in punitive damages and $500,000 in compensatory damages after being subjected to
racial slurs, beaten, and chained to a bed for 12 hours (charges against the officers were
never filed).
Even off-duty activities may get police officers into serious difficulty for acting “under
color of law.” Part-time work as security guards often opens the door to legal problems. In
Carmelo v. Miller,36 two off-duty officers were working security at a baseball game. They
received information that someone was displaying a gun and stopped a man who fit the descrip-
tion. The officers searched, arrested, beat, and kicked the suspect and his companion. No gun
was found in the area, and one of the beaten men required medical treatment. The officers were
found liable. In Stengel v. Belcher,37 an off-duty officer entered a bar carrying a .32-caliber
handgun (which he was required to carry off duty at all times) and a can of Mace. An alterca-
tion broke out, and without identifying himself the officer got involved, killing two men and
seriously wounding another. The plaintiffs recovered $800,000 in compensatory damages.
Clearly, the use of off-duty weapons and policies requiring that they be carried pose a
risk of liability. In Bonsignore v. New York,38 a mentally unstable twenty-three-year vet-
eran police officer shot his wife five times and then killed himself, using a .32-caliber pis-
tol that departmental policy required him to carry when off duty. Evidence produced at
trial demonstrated that Officer Bonsignore’s unsuitability for police duties was well known
by the department—it had even provided him a limited-duty assignment as station house
janitor—yet the police code of silence protected him. The jury awarded Mrs. Bonsignore
nearly a half million dollars.
Suits involving wrongful death are also becoming more frequent, and the following cases
illustrate how the law applies in this regard. In Prior v. Woods,39 a twenty-four-year-old man
was killed outside his home by police officers who mistook him for a burglar; the jury awarded
his estate $5.75 million. In Burkholder v. City of Los Angeles,40 a Los Angeles police officer
killed a man in his early twenties who, while naked and under the influence of drugs, was
climbing a light pole (the man had seized the officer’s club but had not struck the officer). The
jury awarded $450,000 in damages and $150,000 in attorney’s fees to his survivors.
Generally, police officers are not liable for damages under Section 1983 for merely
arresting someone, but that protective shroud vanishes if the plaintiff proves the officer was
negligent or violated an established law or right (as in cases of false arrest). As an illustra-
tion, in Murray v. City of Chicago,41 Murray’s purse and checkbook were stolen; she
reported the theft to the police. Later, some of the stolen checks were cashed (by another
party) and Murray was arrested; she appeared in court and cleared up the matter, explain-
ing that she had been the victim, and all charges were dropped. Several months later, she
was arrested again at her home by Chicago officers who used an invalid arrest warrant that
was related to the earlier mix-up. Murray was taken to the police station, strip-searched by
male officers, and detained for six hours before being released. The federal court ruled that
the officers acted in good faith but that if the policy or custom of the city was shown to
have encouraged such unwarranted arrests, the city could be held liable.
Search and seizure, an especially complicated area of criminal procedure, is ripe for
Section 1983 suits, primarily because of the ambiguous nature of the probable cause doc-
trine. In Duncan v. Barnes,42 police officers obtained a warrant to search a suspect’s home
for heroin and executed the warrant in early morning hours. With guns drawn, officers
entered two bedrooms, forcing the two females and one male inside to stand nude, spread-
eagled against a wall, while their rooms were searched. Soon the officers realized that they
had entered the wrong apartment, and they left the apartment in total disarray. The occupants,
students at a court-reporting school, were so upset that they missed classes for two weeks;
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 246
▼
as a result, their certification and employment as court reporters were delayed. The court
had little difficulty finding that the officers had acted in an unreasonable manner.
Negligence by police officers is another cause of action under Section 1983. Negligence
can be found in the supervision and training of personnel, among other things. In Sager v. City
of Woodland Park,43 an officer accidentally killed a person when the shotgun he was pointing
at the head of the prisoner discharged while the officer was attempting to handcuff the prisoner
with his other hand. At trial, the officer stated that he had seen the technique in a police train-
ing film. The training officer, however, testified that the film was intended to show how not to
handcuff a prisoner; unfortunately, none of the trainers had made that important distinction to
the class, so the court ruled that improper training resulted in the prisoner’s death. In Popow v.
City of Margate,44 an innocent bystander was killed on his front porch at night by a police
officer engaged in foot pursuit, and the court held the city negligent because the officer had no
training on night firing, shooting at moving targets, or using firearms in a residential area.
The accompanying Career Profile addresses the very weighty matter of police
civil liability.
Career Profile Name: Samuel G. Chapman
Degrees: Bachelor’s and mas- ter’s, criminology, University of California, Berkeley
What CJ-related jobs have
you held?
Consultant on police functions and use of police dogs; pro- fessor emeritus, University of Oklahoma; Assistant Director,
President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, Washington, D.C.; Chief, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, Portland, Oregon; police officer, Berkeley, California
As a long-time police practitioner, university professor,
and expert witness, what advice do you have
concerning police liability?
Police departments must take civil rights litigation seri- ously. Actually, civil rights lawsuits are seen by many as an occupational hazard in policing.
When a lawsuit has been filed, the allegations should
be evaluated by the government’s attorneys. Fact-finding
may disclose that the allegations appear to have little
merit. It could be that the lawsuit is of dubious substance,
really seeking what is called a “convenience settlement”—
a defendant’s paying the plaintiff a dollar amount less
than what the defendant’s costs would be to prepare for
trial. But if after fact-finding it appears that the department
and its officers are culpable, the defense team should
start settlement negotiations early. The defense should
make a meaningful offer, keeping it in the range of settle-
ments for cases of a similar sort elsewhere.
At the same time, the defense (both the government
and the officer) must commence their discovery, with the
goal of minimizing loss should the case eventually go to
trial. Settlements that occur just before trial are invariably
costly. The defense team should also evaluate the court-
room record of the plaintiff’s law firm and opposing attor-
neys, since some firms are more competent than others.
Fact-finding will often indicate that a case is real-
istically defensible. If so, the defense team may decide
to reject a convenience settlement and prepare for
trial. This will cause the plaintiffs to evaluate whether to
expend resources and time in pursuing a case that they
are not likely to win. When the defense decides to stand
up and fight, it establishes the jurisdiction as a “hard tar-
get” and sends a message that lawsuits with little merit
are going to be forcefully defended.
Whoever is named to defend officers and police
agencies must be skilled in handling civil rights cases.
It is a grave mistake for the government to take a “bar-
gain basement” approach by assigning staff attorneys
who have little or no experience working with these
highly technical types of litigation.
The police can fight back by suing those who sue
them, but this means hiring counsel, which is expensive.
And even if the lawsuit is successful and brings a dol-
lar judgment against the defendant, such a defendant
is usually poor and thus unable to meet any financial
judgment levied against him or her.
The government’s best defense against an adverse
judgment in a civil rights lawsuit is to thoroughly train and
regularly retrain its police personnel, and to supervise
them well. Also, the police department’s rules, regulations,
policies, and procedures must be kept current. Then, if
officers perform as trained properly under departmen-
tal guidelines, a persuasive defense can be mounted
against any allegations of misconduct.
(Courtesy Chapman,
Samuel G.)
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 247
▼
Criminal Prosecutions for Police Misconduct
Whereas Section 1983 is a civil statute, Title 18, Section 242, of the U.S. Code makes it a
criminal offense for any person acting willfully “under color of law,” statute, regulation, or
custom to deprive any person of the rights and privileges guaranteed under the Constitution
and laws of the United States. This law, like Section 1983, dates from the post–Civil War
era and applies to all people regardless of race, color, or national origin. Section 242
applies not only to police officers but also to other public officials; prosecutions of judges,
bail-bond agents, public defenders, and even prosecutors are possible under the statute.
An example of the use of Section 242 is the murder of a drug courier by two U.S. cus-
toms agents while the agents were assigned to the San Juan International Airport. The
courier flew to Puerto Rico to deposit approximately $700,000 in cash and checks into his
employer’s account. He was last seen being interviewed by the two customs agents in the
airport; ten days later, his body was discovered in a Puerto Rico rain forest. An investiga-
tion revealed that the agents had lured the victim away from the airport and had murdered
him for his money, later disposing of the body. They were convicted under Section 242
and related federal statutes, and each agent was sentenced to a prison term of 120 years.45
Although cases have increased and there is growing pressure for more criminal prose-
cutions of police under Section 242, such prosecutions remain relatively rare. Prosecutors
must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officer violated an individual’s civil rights
and that he or she had done so “willfully.” Proving intent to juries is often difficult in these
cases, and prosecutors are generally reluctant to bring charges against an officer when
faced with such high standards of proof. One source indicates that of the 13,233 civil rights
complaints against police between 1995 and 2015, federal prosecutors from the U.S.
Department of Justice declined to bring charges 96 percent of the time.46
▶ Liability of Police Supervisors
Negligent supervision and direction of officers involve a breach of a duty to provide effec-
tive systems for the evaluation, control, and monitoring of police employees’ perfor-
mance. This breach of duty may come in the form of failure to provide written and verbal
directives, to develop adequate policies and guidelines, to articulate clearly to employees
how duties are to be performed, or to implement proper disciplinary procedures for
employees. It may involve cases where a supervisor is deliberately indifferent to the inap-
propriate actions of an employee.47 It could also involve a supervisor’s direction to an
employee to engage in an illegal activity or the supervisor’s approval of an illegal activity.48
In such cases, Section 1983 allows for a finding of personal liability on the part of police
supervisory personnel.
McClelland v. Facteau,49 a Section 1983 suit against a state police agency chief as well
as a local police chief, was such a case. McClelland was stopped by Officer Facteau (a state
employee) for speeding. He was taken to the city jail; there he was not allowed to make
any phone calls, he was questioned but not advised of his rights, and he was beaten and
injured by Facteau in the presence of two city police officers. McClelland sued, claiming
that the two police chiefs were directly responsible for his treatment and injuries due to
their failure to properly train and supervise their subordinates. Evidence was produced of
prior misbehavior by Facteau. The court ruled that the chiefs could be held liable if they
knew of prior misbehavior yet did nothing about it.
Another related case was that of Brandon v. Allen.50 In this case, two teenagers who
were parked in a “lovers’ lane” were approached by an off-duty police officer, Allen, who
showed his police identification and demanded that the boy exit the car. Allen struck the
boy with his fist and stabbed him with a knife; then he attempted to break into the car
where the girl was seated. The boy was able to reenter the car and manage an escape.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 248
▼
As the two teenagers sped off, Allen fired a shot at them with his revolver, and the shat-
tered windshield glass severely injured the youths to the point that they required plastic
surgery. Allen was convicted of criminal charges, and the police chief was also sued
under Section 1983. The plaintiffs charged that the chief and others knew of Allen’s repu-
tation for being mentally unstable (none of the other police officers wanted to ride in a
patrol car with him). At least two formal charges of misconduct had been filed previously,
yet the chief had failed to take any remedial action or even to review the disciplinary
records of officers. The court called this behavior “unjustified inaction,” held the police
department liable, and allowed the plaintiffs’ damages. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld
this judgment.51
Police supervisors have also been found liable for injuries arising out of an official
policy or custom of their department. Injuries resulting from a chief’s verbal or written
support of heavy-handed behavior resulting in excessive force by officers have resulted in
such liability.52
Today’s police supervisors are definitely in a “need to know” position where the law is
concerned. They are caught in the middle: Not only can they be sued for improper hiring,
training, and supervision of their officers, but other civil rights laws can be used by officers
who believe they were improperly disciplined or terminated. Indeed, Section 1983 can also
be used by unsuccessful job applicants if they can show that the administrator’s tests were
not job related, included inherent bias, or were not properly administered or graded. The
same holds true if it can be shown that proper testing methods were not used in the promo-
tion or the discipline or firing of personnel. Police supervisors have lost in suits in which
they disciplined male and female officers who were having a private relationship,53 in
which they disciplined African-American officers who removed the U.S. flag from their
uniforms to protest perceived discriminatory acts by the city,54 and in which they disci-
plined officers for “improper” political party membership.55
▶ Other Areas of Potential Liability
Next we look at several interrelated areas in which liability on the part of the police may be
found if they fail to perform their duties properly, perform them in a negligent manner,
make poor decisions, or abuse their authority.
Less-Lethal Tools and Technologies
Chapter 14 discusses many of the technologies or “tools for the tasks” that are now
employed in policing, and certainly many if not most such tools—from batons to chemi-
cals to dogs—can result in injury and possibly even death if employed improperly.
Therefore, the specter of liability is cast over all such tools, and the public is constantly
vigilant concerning their use. As an example, Amnesty International—which estimates
at least 500 people in the United States died between 2001 and 2015 after being shocked
with electronic control devices (ECDs) either during their arrest or while in jail—called for
national standards and tighter limits on police use of the weapons. Such standards, Amnesty
argued, would effectively replace thousands of individual policies now followed by state
and local agencies that currently permit a wide use of the weapons, often in situations
that are believed to not warrant such a high level of force.56 Thus far, there have been
lawsuits involving officer use of ECDs where: They were deployed accidentally (e.g., the
officers believed they were deploying their ECDs but instead discharged their firearm),
subjects were standing in an elevated position and fell, being seriously injured; and a
subject was fleeing on foot and sustained serious injuries as a result of an uncontrolled
fall on a hard surface. Questions have also been raised concerning whether or not the use
of ECDs in certain situations was excessive.57
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 249
▼
Duty of Care
While citizens often speak of the broad police duty to serve and protect their community,
their lives, and their property, a legal duty is very specific and more limited. This doctrine
of duty of care is derived from common law and holds that police have no duty to protect
the general public from harm, absent a special kind of relationship (discussed later). The
Supreme Court addressed this doctrine in 1856 in South v. Maryland,58 a case in which a
sheriff was sued for refusing to protect a citizen from injuries inflicted from a violent crowd.
The court said that peace officers protect the general public, not specific individuals. Since
South, the doctrine of duty of care has been adopted at the state and federal levels, with most
courts ruling that the state is not required to provide police services.59 This may come as a
surprise to many people, but the legal view is that police can only act once a crime is or has
already been committed and that they cannot be held liable for failure to arrive in time to
save any particular individual from harm unless the victim has a special relationship with
the police, such as a protected witness. There are neither sufficient resources nor enough
police to act as personal bodyguards for every citizen, 24 hours a day. No duty of care exists
unless it is established that the agency owed a special duty to the injured party.
Police legal duties can arise from many sources, including laws, customs, court deci-
sions, and agency policies. As examples, a state statute prohibiting drunk driving might
also order the police to arrest any persons operating motor vehicles while under the influ-
ence of intoxicants, and a police department policy in the same state may require officers
who stop such suspected motor vehicle operators to perform field sobriety tests at the
scene of the traffic stop.60
Special Relationships Special relationships are those where the officer knows or has reason to know the likelihood of harm to someone if he or she fails to do his or her duty;
they are thus defined by the circumstances surrounding an injury or damage. A special
relationship can be based on the following three criteria:
1. Whether the officer could have foreseen that he or she was expected to take action in
a given situation to prevent injury is one consideration61 (e.g., a police officer failed
to remove an intoxicated operator of a motor vehicle from a highway).
2. Departmental policies or guidelines that prohibit a certain course of action are also
examined62 (e.g., when a drunk driver killed another driver, the court noted that the
police department had a standard operating procedure manual that mandated that an
intoxicated individual who would likely do physical injury to himself or others “will
be taken into protective custody”).
3. Spatial and temporal proximity of the defendant-officer’s behavior to the injury dam-
age is another factor63 (e.g., an individual was arrested for drunk driving, taken into
custody, found to have a 0.166 blood alcohol level, and released 3 hours later, then
had a fatal car accident).
Proximate Cause Related to the duty of care and liabilities of the police is the matter of proximate cause. Once a plaintiff has demonstrated the existence of a police duty of
care and has shown the officer breached that duty, he or she must still prove that the
officer’s conduct was the proximate cause of the injury or damage. Proximate cause is
established by asking “But for the officer’s conduct, would the plaintiff have sustained
the injury or damage?” If the answer to this question is no, then proximate cause is
established, and the officer can be held liable for the damage or injury. This requirement
of negligence limits liabilities, however, in situations where damage would have
occurred regardless of the officer’s behavior.64 For example, an officer is involved in a
high-speed chase, and the offending driver strikes an innocent third party. Generally, if
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 250
▼
the officer did not act in a negligent fashion and did not cause the injury, there would be
no liability on the officer’s part.65
Proximate cause may be found in such cases as when an officer leaves the scene of
an accident aware of dangerous conditions (spilled oil, smoke, vehicle debris, stray
animals) without proper warning to motorists.66 In such a case, Louisiana state troopers
responded to a one-car accident caused by an oil spill on a dangerous portion of the
roadway. Initially, the troopers asked the state’s department of transportation to cover
the spill with sand and then ignited flares to warn oncoming motorists of the danger; the
troopers then returned to other patrol duties. Soon the oil had absorbed the sand and the
flares went out; then an unsuspecting motorcyclist slid on the oil, struck a tree, and
died. The court held that the troopers breached their duty to provide warning to drivers
of the danger and that this breach was the proximate cause of the motorcyclist’s death.67
Persons in Custody Courts generally recognize that police officers have a duty of care to persons in their custody.68 This means that police officers have a legal responsibility to
take reasonable precautions to ensure the health and safety of persons in their custody,
keeping detainees free from harm, rendering medical assistance when necessary, and
treating detainees humanely.69 Custody is not restricted to those persons who are
incarcerated, however; a duty of care is owed by the police, for example, to persons in
their physical custody outside a jail setting, such as when arresting or transporting
prisoners and mental patients or when holding persons in booking or interrogation areas
regardless of whether they have been formally charged with a crime.70
This general duty of care to persons in police custody seldom results in liability for
self-inflicted injury or suicide because these acts are normally considered to result from the
detainee’s own intentional conduct rather than from some form of police negligence.71
There are exceptions to this rule, however.72 Most courts, for example, have held that if a
prisoner’s suicide is “reasonably foreseeable,” the jailer owes the prisoner a duty of care to
help prevent that suicide. As the court stated in Joseph v. State of Alaska (where an intoxi-
cated jail inmate hanged himself with a nylon cord not taken from his sweatpants at book-
ing, and the jail’s video camera lens had been obscured):
While a prisoner’s mental illness, intoxication, or other impairment may be the reasons why
the jailer knows or should know that the prisoner is suicidal, other signs—such as declared
intent to commit suicide—are also sufficient.73
If the suicidal tendencies of an inmate are known, the duty of care required of the
custodian is elevated.74 In such special cases, officers must ensure that measures are
taken to prevent self-inflicted harm; included here are detainees who suffer from a dis-
turbed state of mind and those who are impaired by drugs or alcohol. Duty of care to an
impaired individual may include removing shoes, belts, clothing, and other articles
from the detainee.75
Safe Facilities Another area of police liability, one that involves both persons in custody and proximate cause, is the need to provide safe facilities. Courts have even
considered the design of detention facilities as a source of negligence, such as in a
Detroit case where the construction of a jail’s holding cell did not allow officers to
observe detainees’ movements: The construction of the cell doors hampered detainee
supervision, there were no electronic monitoring devices for observing detainees,
and there was an absence of detoxification cells required under state department of
corrections rules. Therefore, following a suicide in this facility, the court concluded
that these conditions constituted building defects and were the proximate cause of the
decedent’s death.76
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 251
▼
The need to provide a secure environment for detainees extends beyond the confines
of the detention center. In a Delaware case, a constable used his private vehicle to trans-
port mental patients and did not handcuff patients while in transport. One patient, who
had declared his intention to kill himself, unfastened his seat belt, jumped out of the
vehicle while it was in motion, and died. The court found that because the constable knew
his vehicle was inadequate for such transports and did not restrain the patient or heed his
intention to commit suicide, his misconduct constituted wantonness.77
Failure to Protect
A failure to protect may occur if a police officer neglects to protect a person from a known
and foreseeable danger, a claim that most often involves battered women. However, other
circumstances can create a duty to protect people from crime. Informants, witnesses, and
other people dependent on the police can be a source of police liability if the police fail to
take reasonable action to prevent victimization—officers’ conduct cannot place a person in
peril or demonstrate deliberate indifference for his or her safety.
For example, one morning Juan Penilla was on the porch of his home and became seri-
ously ill. His neighbors called 911, and two police officers arrived first. They found him to
be in grave need of medical care, cancelled the request for paramedics, broke the lock and
door jamb on the front door of Penilla’s residence, moved him inside the house, locked the
door, and left. The next day, family members found Penilla dead inside the house as a
result of respiratory failure. His mother sued under Section 1983, and the court found that
the officers’ conduct clearly placed Penilla in a more dangerous position than the one in
which they found him.78 Another example is when the Green Bay, Wisconsin, Police
Department released the tape of a phone call from an informant, which led to the infor-
mant’s death.79
Vehicle Pursuits
In Chapter 8 we briefly discussed a 2007 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the
proper level of deadly force that may be used by officers during vehicle pursuits. Still, the
police must act reasonably in such instances or they may be found civilly liable. In this
section, we discuss vehicle pursuits in more detail, including the kinds of actions by offi-
cers that may lead to their being civilly liable.
First, police officers are afforded no special privileges or immunities in the routine
operation of their patrol vehicles.80 Police officers driving in nonemergency situations do
not have immunity for their negligence or recklessness and are held to the same standard
of conduct as private citizens. When responding to emergency situations, however, offi-
cers are governed by statutes covering emergency vehicles.81 In such circumstances,
most jurisdictions afford the police limited immunity for violations of traffic laws; in
other words, they are accorded some protections and privileges not given to private citi-
zens and are permitted to take greater risks that would amount to negligence if under-
taken by citizens.82
Few operational patrol issues are of greater concern to police leadership than police
pursuits because of the tremendous potential for injury, property damage, and liability that
accompanies them. As one police procedure manual describes it, “The decision by a police
officer to pursue a citizen in a motor vehicle is among the most critical that can be made.”83
Civil litigation arising out of collisions involving police pursuits reveals such pursuits to
be high-stakes undertakings with serious and sometimes tragic results.84 Indeed, several
hundred people are killed each year during police pursuits,85 and many of them are innocent
third parties. Long-term trends reveal the extent of the dangers associated with police chases.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 252
▼
One source estimates that over 270,000 people were injured as the result of police pursuits
in the United States between 1979 and 2013.86 The same source indicates that more than
11,500 people were killed as the result of police chases, over 5,000 of which were bystand-
ers or passengers.87
Pursuits place the police in a delicate balancing act. On one hand is the need for police
to show criminals that flight from the law is no way to freedom. If a police agency com-
pletely bans high-speed pursuits, its credibility with both law-abiding citizens and law
violators may suffer; public knowledge that the agency has a no-pursuit policy may encour-
age people to flee, decreasing the probability of apprehension.88 Still, according to
one observer, because of safety and liability concerns, “a growing number of agencies
have the position that if the bad guy puts the pedal to the metal, it’s a ‘freebie.’ They will
not pursue him.”89
On the other hand, there is indeed the high-speed threat to everyone within range of the
pursuit, including suspects, their passengers, other drivers, and bystanders. One police
trainer asks a simple question to help officers determine whether to continue a pursuit: “Is
this person a threat to the public safety other than the fact the police are chasing him?” If the
officers cannot objectively answer yes, the pursuit should be terminated.90
In May 1990, two Sacramento County, California, deputies responded to a call
about a fight. At the scene, they observed a motorcycle with two riders approaching
their vehicle at high speed. Turning on their red lights, the deputies ordered the driver
to stop. The motorcycle operator began to elude the officers, who initiated a pursuit that
reached speeds of more than a hundred miles per hour over about 1.3 miles. The pursuit
ended when the motorcycle crashed; the deputies’ vehicle could not stop in time and
struck the bike’s passenger, killing him. The passenger’s family brought suit, claiming
that the pursuit violated the crash victim’s due process rights under the Fourteenth
Amendment.
In County of Sacramento v. Lewis,91 decided in May 1998, the U.S. Supreme Court
held that the proper standard to be employed in these cases is whether the officer’s conduct
during the pursuit “shocks the conscience.” (Was the conduct offensive to a reasonable
person’s sense of moral goodness?) The Court further determined that high-speed chases
with no intent to harm suspects do not give rise to liability under the Fourteenth Amendment
and therefore closed the door on liability for officers involved in pursuits that do not “shock
the conscience.” But the Court left unanswered many important questions, such as whether
it will allow an innocent third party to file a claim against the police for damages and
whether a municipality can be held liable for its failure to train officers in pursuit issues.
In sum, a pursuit is justified only when the necessity of apprehension outweighs the
degree of danger created by the pursuit. Agencies generally require field supervisors (ser-
geants) to discontinue the pursuit when it is unjustified or becomes too dangerous.92
Exhibit 9-2 ■ shows an example of a police agency’s vehicle pursuit policy.
Computer Evidence
It is almost impossible to investigate a fraud, embezzlement, or child pornography case
today without dealing with some sort of computer evidence. Even evidence in a homicide or
narcotics case may be buried deep within a computer’s hard drive. As a result, many police
agencies have recruited self-taught “experts” to fill the role of computer evidence special-
ists. These specialists are usually highly motivated and have some knowledge of the rules of
evidence and some experience in testifying in court. Other police agencies have enlisted the
support of personnel at local universities or computer repair shops to help them with com-
puter evidence.93
The increased exposure to computer evidence by people both inside and outside polic-
ing brings an increase in potential legal liabilities. For example, if a police agency seizes
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 253
▼
exhibit 9-2
[Authors’ Note: Such policies, because of their nature and
the need to address many circumstances, are quite
lengthy; therefore, the sample below has been greatly
abridged and modified, with only the more pertinent
aspects included.]
Vehicle Pursuits
A. Justification
A. Justification for engaging in a vehicle pursuit
must be based on facts known by the police
member when the decision is made to engage in
a pursuit. In all instances of vehicle pursuits, the
initiating officer must be able to clearly articu-
late the reason(s) why a pursuit was initiated.
B. Vehicle pursuits are justified only when the
police member knows or has probable cause
reasonable grounds to believe:
The suspect presents a clear and immedi-
ate threat to the safety of others; or the
occupant(s) suspect has committed, or is
attempting to commit a violent felony
(i.e., armed robbery, recklessly endanger-
ing safety, and other crimes against a per-
son in which violence is an element to the
felony offense); or the occupant(s) pres-
ents a clear and immediate threat to the
safety of others and therefore the necessity
of immediate apprehension outweighs
the level of danger created by the vehicle
pursuit, as in the case of a serious traffic
violation such as OWI, reckless driving, etc.
B. Decision to Initiate Vehicle Pursuits
The decision to initiate a vehicle pursuit, which is lim-
ited by this policy, rests in the sole discretion of the
individual police member.
C. Pursuit Procedures
1. The police member initiating a pursuit shall
notify the Communications Division as soon as
reasonably possible that a pursuit is underway
and provide the following information:
a. Police unit identification
b. Location, speed, and direction of travel
c. Reason for the pursuit
d. Pursued vehicle description, including
license number, if known
e. Number of occupants
f. Road conditions
g. Traffic density
2. A field supervisor or higher authority must
acknowledge that he/she is aware of and
monitoring the pursuit as soon as practicable.
D. Decision to Continue Pursuit
1. The authority of the primary unit to continue the
pursuit is, at all times, under the command of:
a. The watch commander field deputy inspec-
tor, if on duty.
b. His/her immediate district/division
commander.
c. His/her immediate shift commander.
d. His/her immediate field supervisor.
e. The field supervisor assigned by Technical
Communications Division in the event
there is no district field supervisor avail-
able from the primary unit’s district or
division.
E. Decision to Terminate the Pursuit
Officers and field supervisors must continually evaluate
the risk assessment criteria and assess whether the
seriousness of the incident justifies continuing the pursuit.
When a decision is made to terminate a pursuit, police
members shall:
a. Immediately pull over, turn off their emergency
lights and siren, radio their position to the dis-
patcher, and verbally acknowledge the order to
terminate the pursuit.
b. No longer follow the suspect vehicle, nor may
they violate any traffic laws in an effort to catch
up to, or parallel the suspect vehicle.
c. Remain at the termination point for the
responding field supervisor so that a debrief
may occur and the field supervisor can collect
the necessary information in order to complete
a pursuit report.
SAMPLE POLICE VEHICLE PURSUIT POLICY
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 254
▼
the computerized records of an ongoing business, there may be negative financial conse-
quences for the business. If it can be shown that the police accidentally destroyed business
records through negligence, a criminal investigation might well become the civil suit of
the decade. Furthermore, if a seized computer contains a newsletter, a draft of a book,
or any computer bulletin board system, there may be liability under the Privacy
Protection Act.94
The risk of liability in such cases may be reduced substantially if police investigators
follow generally accepted forensic computer evidence procedures. Guidelines approved by
the Department of Justice’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section dictate how the
police are to search, seize, and analyze computers. It is crucial that the police are trained in
the proper procedures for handling computers as well as in the rules of evidence. The fed-
eral government has made computer evidence training a priority for federal, state, and
local law enforcement officers.95
▶ Qualified Immunity for Police
Police officers can and are sued for actions they perform in the course of their duties
because someone believes their constitutional rights were violated. However, the Supreme
Court has indicated a desire to “give (police) breathing room to make reasonable but mis-
taken judgments.”96 And, in certain circumstances, these lawsuits may be dismissed at an
early stage of the litigation.
Twice the U.S. Supreme Court has addressed the question of when police officers are
granted qualified immunity. In the first case, Saucier v. Katz,97 in 2001, the Court
established a two-pronged test to determine whether a public employee could claim
qualified immunity. The test required the courts to determine: (1) whether the police
actions constituted a violation of someone’s constitutional rights; and, if such a violation
was found, (2) whether that right was “clearly established” at the time of the employee’s
misconduct (i.e., the right was obvious to a reasonable person). This test, although rather
cumbersome and confusing, was applied for eight years until the decision in Pearson v.
Callahan,98 in 2009. The facts in this case are important toward understanding the
doctrine of qualified immunity.
Police searched Afton Callahan’s home without a warrant, and he sued the officers for
violating his civil rights. A narcotics task force had first sent a confidential informant into
Callahan’s house to purchase drugs; then, after the transaction, the informant gave a signal
and police officers entered the home and searched without a warrant. The police defended
their warrantless search under the “consent once removed” doctrine. (Several federal cir-
cuits have approved this doctrine, which provides that if a suspect in a home consents to
the entry of an undercover police operative (such as a narcotics agent), he or she is also
granting permission to the police to enter as well.) This doctrine had not been officially
adopted in Utah where Callahan lived, however, and thus the officers argued it was not a
“clearly established” right and believed they held qualified immunity. Here, in Pearson,
the Supreme Court broke from Saucier, believing its mandatory two-step test was too rigid
and that trial courts had to waste too much time and resources analyzing the constitutional
question at the outset of the lawsuit. In sum, Pearson allowed lower courts discretion in
qualified immunity cases over which prong of the qualified immunity analysis to address
first—(1) whether there was a constitutional violation or (2) whether the constitutional
right at issue was clearly established at the time of the alleged violation. If there is no vio-
lation of a clearly established right—one that is so obvious that the employee should have
been aware of it—then the employee is immune from suit. Here, in Pearson, the police
were entitled to qualified immunity in Pearson because it was not “clearly established” at
the time of the search that their conduct was unconstitutional.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 255
▼
Summary This chapter examined the incidence, expense, benefits, and sometimes frivolous nature of
lawsuits against the police; a number of basic terms and concepts that are ingrained in the
area of civil liability; Section 1983, a major litigation tool that is used against the police by
citizens who believe the police have violated their constitutional rights; the liability of
supervisors who fail to control their personnel; and other areas of potential liability such as
duty of care, failure to protect, vehicle pursuits, and computer evidence. Included were
many examples of the kinds of police actions that foster liability lawsuits, police actions
leading to liability, and new areas of potential police liability such as vehicle pursuits and
computer evidence.
The weight and breadth of the chapter’s litigated cases and decisions against police
officers— and their organizations and cities or counties—speak for themselves. Perhaps
what has been shown most unequivocally is that the consequences of failing to properly
hire, train, and supervise police personnel can be quite costly, in both human and financial
terms. The need is clear and present for officers to know and understand the law regarding
liability, to always project themselves in the best possible light, and to conduct themselves in
a manner that demonstrates that their behavior was a good-faith effort to do their job properly.
Americans know the police have a difficult job to do and are likely willing to accept less
than perfect behavior from them, but the kinds of improper and illegal actions shown in this
chapter simply cannot and will not be tolerated.
Key Terms
Bivens tort
“consent once removed” doctrine
constitutional torts
duty of care
failure to protect
frivolous lawsuit
intentional torts
negligence
negligent supervision
proximate cause
qualified immunity
respondeat superior
Section 242
Section 1983
sovereign immunity
special relationship
stare decisis
tort liability
vicarious liability
wrongful death
Review Questions
1. What are the incidence and benefits of lawsuits
against the police?
2. What is the legal definition of a frivolous lawsuit?
3. What is meant by Title 42, Section 1983, of the
U.S. Code?
4. What would be an example of police behavior
that would result in a plaintiff winning a Section
1983 suit?
5. What are some types of police actions that are vul-
nerable to Section 1983 actions?
6. On what grounds are lawsuits challenging police use
of ECDs?
7. What is meant by duty of care and failure to protect?
8. How might police facilities and vehicles be involved
in police liability?
9. What are the areas of civil liability in the area of
police vehicle pursuits?
10. What are some of the elements of a policy concern-
ing vehicle pursuits?
11. What are some examples of how police supervisors
may be held criminally liable for their officers’
misconduct?
12. What are some of the liability issues related to com-
puter evidence?
13. How does the doctrine of qualified immunity apply
to police officers?
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 256
▼
Learn by Doing
1. Sergeant Tom Gresham is newly promoted and
assigned to patrol on the graveyard shift; he knows
each officer on his shift, and several of them are his
close friends; you are his patrol lieutenant. Gresham
was an excellent patrol officer and prides himself on
his reputation and ability to get along with his peers.
He believes that doing so will result in greater
productivity from his officers, and he makes efforts to
socialize with them after work. Gresham also believes
that a supervisor should not “get in the way of good
police work,” and his officers say he is “a cop’s cop.”
In his view, his duty shift officers perform very well,
generating the highest number of arrests and citations
in the entire department. Unfortunately, his shift is
also generating the highest number of citizen
complaints for abusive language and improper use of
force. Gresham believes that such complaints are “the
price of doing business.” One Monday morning,
Gresham is surprised at being summoned to your
office. You show Gresham a substantial number of
use-of-force complaints lodged against his officers
during the past two weeks while he was away on
vacation. Despite your efforts to explain the gravity of
the situation, Gresham fails to grasp the seriousness
of the complaints and how his supervisory style may
have contributed to them.
a. What do you believe are some of Sergeant
Gresham’s problems as a new supervisor? Could
anything have been done before he assumed his
new position to help him understand his role
better?
b. As Gresham’s superior officer, what advice
would you give to him? Are there any other
supervisory or command officers who you should
ask to be involved in dealing with the situation?
c. What corrective action must Sergeant Gresham
take immediately with his team of officers?
2. Independently employ a number of methods in order
to get a good understanding of police liability, such as
the following:
• Interview a district attorney, judge, or private attorney who is experienced in matters involving
police misconduct, or research the literature and
news articles to determine the nature of civil suits
and amounts of awards against the police, as well
as what the police and citizens can do to avoid
civil litigation.
• Interview some police executives to determine what they are doing in terms of training and
policies to minimize the chances of successful
lawsuits against their officers.
• Discuss with police practitioners the techni- cal areas of their work in which they must be
constantly be retrained and certified because of
possible litigation and to avoid causing unneces-
sary harm to citizens (focusing on the weapons
and tools they use).
• Determine how local police attempt to protect themselves against lawsuits, such as with false
arrest insurance, keeping abreast of court deci-
sions involving police negligence, and so on.
Notes
1. Zusha Elinson and Dan Frosch, “Police-misconduct
costs soar—data from big cities show rising payouts
for settlements and court judgments; video affects
cases,” Wall Street Journal, July 16, 2015, p. A1.
2. Ibid., p. A1.
3. The Los Angeles Times, “Legal payouts in LAPD
lawsuits,” http://spreadsheets.latimes.com/lapd-
settlements/.
4. See, for example, John L. Worrall and Otwin
Marenin, “Emerging Liability Issues in the
Implementation and Adoption of Community
Oriented Policing,” Policing: An International
Journal of Police Strategies and Management 22
(1998): 121–136.
5. Isidore Silver, Police Civil Liability (New York:
Matthew Bender, 2005), p. 4.
6. Matt Pearce, “Growing use of police body cameras
raises privacy concerns,” Los Angeles Times,
September 27, 2014, http://www.latimes.com/nation/
la-na-body-cameras-20140927-story.html.
7. The Feminist Majority Foundation and the National
Center for Women & Policing, “Gender Differences
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 257
▼
in the Cost of Police Brutality and Misconduct: A
Content Analysis of LAPD Civil Liability Cases:
1990–1999,” http://www.womenandpolicing.org/
ExcessiveForce.asp?id=4516.
8. “LAPD Officers Take Stand in Rampart Scandal
Trial,” archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/10/16/lapd.
corruption.tria.
9. Victor E. Kappeler, Critical Issues in Police Civil
Liability, 4th ed. (Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press,
2005), p. 4.
10. Ibid., p. 11.
11. Editorial, “The Laquan McDonald case: Where were
you in April, Chicago aldermen?,” Chicago Tribune,
December 8, 2015, http://www.chicagotribune.com/
news/opinion/editorials/ct-laquan-mcdonald-
chicago-aldermen-edit-1209-20151208-story.html.
12. Steve Schmadeke, “Chicago cop indicted on 6
murder counts in Laquan McDonald slaying,”
Chicago Tribune, December 16, 2015, http://www.
chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-jason-
v a n - d y k e - i n d i c t e d - l a q u a n - m c d o n a l d - m e t -
20151216-story.html.
13. J. David Goodman, “Eric Garner case is settled by
New York City for $5.9 million,” New York Times,
July 13, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/14/
nyregion/eric-garner-case-is-settled-by-new-york-
city-for-5-9-million.html?_r=0.
14. G. P. Alpert, R. G. Dunham, and M. S. Stroshine,
Policing: Continuity and Change (Long Grove, IL:
Waveland Press, 2006).
15. Harper v. Showers, 174 F.3d 716, 718 (5th Cir.
1999).
16. S. F. Kappeler and V. E. Kappeler, “A Research Note
on Section 1983 Claims Against the Police: Cases
Before the Federal District Courts in 1990,” American
Journal of Police 11 (1): 65–73.
17. H. E. Barrineau III, Civil Liability in Criminal Justice
(Cincinnati, OH: Pilgrimage, 1987), p. 58.
18. Ibid., p. 5.
19. Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and Robert W.
Taylor, Police Administration: Structures, Processes,
and Behavior, 6th ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2005), p. 549.
20. Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the Federal
Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388, 29 L.Ed.2d 619,
91 S.Ct. 1999 (1971).
21. Swanson, Territo, and Taylor, Police Administration,
pp. 438–439.
22. Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, U.S
Department of Justice.
23. Hans v. Louisiana, 134 U.S. 1 (1890); also see “Sovereign
Immunity,” www.lectlaw.com/def2/s103.htm.
24. Ibid.
25. Monroe v. Pape, 365 U.S. 167, 81 S.Ct. 473 (1961).
26. Wayne W. Schmidt, “Section 1983 and the Changing
Face of Police Management,” in Police Leadership in
America, ed. William A. Geller (Chicago, IL:
American Bar Foundation, 1985), p. 228.
27. Ibid., p. 227.
28. Monell v. Department of Social Services, 436 U.S.
6587 (1978).
29. Alabama v. Pugh, 438 U.S. 781 (1978).
30. Kappeler, Critical Issues in Police Civil Liability, p. 2.
31. J. R. Daughen, “Potential Cost of Philadelphia
House-Bombing Incident Up to $59 Million,”
Philadelphia Daily News, April 14, 2005, p. B8.
32. Ibid.
33. Jennings v. City of Detroit, Wayne County Circuit
Court, Michigan (August 1979).
34. Gilliam v. Falbo, U.S. District Court, Southern
District of Ohio (April 1982).
35. Haygood v. City of Detroit, Wayne County Circuit
Court, Michigan, No. 77-728013 (December 29, 1980).
36. Carmelo v. Miller, 569 S.W. 365 (1978).
37. Stengel v. Belcher, 522 F.2d 438 (6th Cir. 1975).
38. Bonsignore v. New York, 521 F. Supp. 394, aff’d., 683
F.2d 635 (2d Cir. 1982).
39. Prior v. Woods, U.S. District Court, (E.D. Michigan)
(October 1981).
40. Burkholder v. City of Los Angeles, L.A. County
Superior Court, California (October 1982).
41. Murray v. City of Chicago, 634 F.2d 365 (1980).
42. Duncan v. Barnes, 592 F.2d 1336 (1979).
43. Sager v. City of Woodland Park, 543 F. Supp. 282
(D. Colo. 1982).
44. Popow v. City of Margate, 476 F. Supp. 1237 (1979).
45. On appeal, the Section 242 convictions were
vacated, as the victim was not an inhabitant of
Puerto Rico; therefore, he enjoyed no protection
under the U.S. Constitution. On resentencing
in January 1991, the agents each received fifty years
in prison for convictions of several other federal
crimes under Title 18.
46. Andrew Conte and Brian Bowling, “Trib investiga-
tion: Cops often let off hook for civil rights com-
plaints,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, March 12,
2016, http://triblive.com/usworld/nation/9939487-
74/police-rights-civil.
47. L. Cary Unkelbach, “Chief ’s Counsel: Beware:
Supervisor Individual Liability in Civil Rights
Cases,” The Police Chief Magazine, March 2016,
http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/
index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&article_
id=648&issue_id=72005.
CHAPTER 9 Civil Liability 258
▼
45. Kappeler, Critical Issues in Police Civil Liability, p. 29.
49. McClelland v. Facteau, 610 F.2d 693 (10th Cir.
1979).
50. Brandon v. Allen, 516 F. Supp. 1355 (W.D. Tenn.
1981).
51. Brandon v. Holt, 469 U.S. 464, 105 S.Ct. 873 (1985).
52. See, for example, Black v. Stephens, 662 F.2d 181
(1991).
53. See, for example, Swope v. Bratton, 541 F. Supp. 99
(W.D. Ark. 1982).
54. See, for example, Leonard v. City of Columbus, 705
F.2d 1299 (11th Cir. 1983).
55. See, for example, Elrod v. Burns, 427 U.S. 347
(1975).
56. “Amnesty International Urges Stricter Limits on
Police Taser Use as U.S. Death Toll Reaches 500,”
February 15, 2012, http://www.amnestyusa.org/
news/press-releases/amnesty-international-urges-
stricter-limits-on-police-taser-use-as-us-death-toll-
reaches-500.
57. See, for example, Legal and Liability Risk Management
Institute, “ECW/TASER® Legal Issues & Litigation,”
http://www.llrmi.com/training/defending_taser_
litigation.shtml.
58. South v. Maryland, 59 U.S. (18 How.) 396 (1856).
59. Reiff v. City of Philadelphia, 477 F. Supp. 1262 (E.D.
Pa. 1979).
60. Kappeler, Critical Issues in Police Civil Liability,
pp. 25–26.
61. Irwin v. Ware, 467 N.E.2d 1292 (1984).
62. Fudge v. City of Kansas City, 239 Kan. 369, 720 P.2d
1093 (1986), at 373.
63. Kendrick v. City of Lake Charles, 500 So.2d 866
(La. App. 1 Cir.1986).
64. Kappeler, Critical Issues in Police Civil Liability, p. 27.
65. Fielder v. Jenkins, 833 A.2d 906 (N.J. Super. A.D.
1993).
66. Silver, Police Civil Liability, p. 4; also see Coco v.
State, 474 N.Y.S.2d 397 (Ct.Cl. 1984); and Duvernay
v. State, 433 So.2d 254 (La. App. 1983).
67. Naylor v. Louisiana Dept. of Public Highways, 423
So.2d 674 (La. App. 1982).
68. Joseph v. State of Alaska, 26 P.3d 459 (2001).
69. Thomas v. Williams, 124 S.E.2d 409 (Ga. App. 1962).
70. Morris v. Blake, 552 A.2d 844 (Del. Super. 1988).
71. Guice v. Enfinger, 389 So.2d 270 (Fla. App. 1980).
72. Manuel v. City of Jeanerette, 702 So.2d 709
(La. App. 3 Cir. 1997).
73. Joseph v. State of Alaska, 26 P.3d 459 (2001), at 474.
74. Saunders v. County of Steuben, 693 N.E.2d 16 (Ind.
1998).
75. Manuel v. City of Jeanerette, 702 So.2d 709
(La. App. 3 Cir. 1997).
76. Davis v. City of Detroit, 386 N.W.2d 169 (Mich. App.
1986).
77. Morris v. Blake, 552 A.2d 844 (De. Super. 1988).
78. Penilla v. City of Huntington Park, 115 F.3d 707
(9th Cir., 1997).
79. Monfils v. Taylor, 165 F.3d 511 (7th Cir. 1998), cert.
den., 528 U.S. 810 (1999).
80. Seide v. State of Rhode Island, 875 A.2d 1259 (2005).
81. Silver, Police Civil Liability, p. 8.
82. Seide v. State of Rhode Island, 875 A.2d 1259 (2005).
83. Tulsa, Oklahoma, “Police Department,” Procedure
Manual (Ronald Palmer, chief of police), June 10,
1998, p. 1.
84. John Hill, “High-Speed Police Pursuits: Dangers,
Dynamics, and Risk Reduction,” FBI Law Enforcement
Bulletin 71 (July 2002): 14–18.
85. Voices Insisting on Pursuit Safety, “Facts and
Statistics,” www.pursuitsafety.org/mediakit/
statistics.html.
86. Thomas Frank, “High-speed police chases have
killed thousands of innocent bystanders,” USA
Today, July 30, 2015, http://www.usatoday.com/
story/news/2015/07/30/police-pursuits-fatal-
injuries/30187827/.
87. Ibid.
88. C. B. Eisenberg, “Pursuit Management,” Law and
Order 47 (March 1999): 73–77.
89. A. Belotto, “Supervisors Govern Pursuits,” Law and
Order 47 (January 1999): 86.
90. G. T. Williams, “When Do We Keep Pursuing?
Justifying High-Speed Pursuits,” Police Chief 64
(March 1997): 24–27.
91. County of Sacramento v. Lewis, 118 S.Ct. 1708
(1998).
92. Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel, quoted in
Nicole Marshall, “Hot Pursuit,” Tulsa World 93
(June 15, 1998), p. A11.
93. Michael R. Anderson, “Reducing Computer
Evidence Liability,” Government Technology
(February 1997): 24, 36.
94. Ibid.
95. Ibid.
96. Ashcroft v. al-Kidd, 131 S.Ct. 2074 (2011).
97. Saucier v. Katz 533 U.S. 194 (2001).
98. Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223 (2009).
259
▼
Part 4 has as its unifying theme the fact that federal and state law enforcement as well as
local (municipal and county) policing in the United States don’t just “happen” or occur
in random, unplanned fashion. Such organizations are in fact organized and administered
by virtue of their sovereignty, jurisdiction, and type of assignment so as to be more
effective and efficient. Chapter 10 examines the organization and administration of U.S.
federal and state law enforcement agencies, and Chapter 11 discusses the organization and
administration of local agencies (i.e., municipal police departments and county sheriff’s
offices); included are profiles of each, and comparisons with each other. Also discussed are
definitions of organizations; organizational communication; functions of police executive
officers, middle managers, and supervisors; influence of politics; media relations; contract
and consolidated policing; and agency accreditation.
Part 4
Agency Organization and Administration
10 Federal and State Agencies: Protecting Our Borders and Freedoms
11 Municipal and County Agencies: Organization, Administration,
and Roles
260
▼
10 Federal and State Agencies Protecting Our Borders and Freedoms
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ List the major organizations that compose the Department of Homeland Security and their primary functions
❷ Explain the functions of the primary law enforcement agencies within the Department of Justice
❸ Explain the functions of other federal agencies: the CIA, IRS, and FLETC
❹ Explain the types and functions of state law enforcement agencies
❺ Analyze the pros and cons of a consolidated police force
❻ List key elements of employment in many state and federal law enforcement positions
(Courtesy 1000 Words/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 261
▼
Introduction
In large measure, this chapter reflects the impact of the events of September 11, 2001, when foreign ter-
rorists attacked the United States on its own soil. No segment of the U.S. society was altered more than
the nation’s police organizations, particularly federal agencies (the impact on local police agencies will
be discussed more in Chapter 11). Therefore, this chapter examines how our federal and state police
agencies are now structured and how they function, particularly during this time when our nation’s very
existence depends on the ability to be proactive to prevent more terrorist attacks.
This chapter begins with a broad view of federal police agencies that possess arrest and firearms author-
ity, and then it focuses on the major agencies and offices that comprise the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS). Next is a discussion of the U.S. Department of Justice and its four primary law enforce-
ment organizations: the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms,
and Explosives (ATF); the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); and the U.S. Marshals Service
(USMS); included in this chapter section is an exhibit describing the role and functions of the Interna-
tional Criminal Police Organization, or INTERPOL. Then the chapter reviews the functions of three
related organizations: the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); the Criminal Investigation Division of the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS); and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC). Next is an
overview of state agencies, to include types and duties. Included at the chapter’s end are a discussion of
some career requirements and considerations, a discussion on the federalization of U.S. policing, a sum-
mary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and activities providing opportunities for you to
learn by doing. Also note that terrorism will be discussed more fully in Chapter 12, including legislation
that gives the aforementioned federal agencies greater authority for preventing and combating such acts.
▶ Federal Law Enforcement Agencies with Arrest and Firearms Authority
This section describes the major law enforcement arms of the federal government, most
of which are found within DHS and the Department of Justice. (Note: As can be seen
in Figure 10-1 ■, bear in mind that a number of other federal agencies—such as
▲ In the midst of the WTC destruction, agents and professional staff started
collecting evidence, conducting interviews, and analyzing data. (Courtesy Federal
Bureau of Investigations.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 262
▼
Figure 10-1 Federal Agencies Employing 250 or More Sworn Law Enforcement Personnel with Arrest and Firearm Authority Federal Law Enforcement Officers by Brian A. Reaves, published by U.S Department
of Justice, 2008.
the U.S. Postal Service, the Veterans Administration, National Park Service, U.S. Capitol
Police, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service—
also employ full-time officers with authority to carry firearms and make arrests.)
▶ Department of Homeland Security
Within one month of the attack on U.S. soil on September 11, 2001, President George W.
Bush issued a proposal to create a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—which
would be activated in January 2003 and become the most significant transformation of the
Agency Number of Officers
U.S. Customs and Border Protection 36,863
Federal Bureau of Prisons 16,835
Federal Bureau of Investigation 12,760
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement 12,446
U.S. Secret Service 5,213
Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts* 4,696
Drug Enforcement Administration 4,308
U.S. Marshals Service 3,313
Veterans Health Administration 3,128
Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation 2,636
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives 2,541
U.S. Postal Inspection Service 2,288
U.S. Capitol Police 1,637
National Park Service—Rangers 1,404
Bureau of Diplomatic Security 1,049
Pentagon Force Protection Agency 725
U.S. Forest Service 644
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 598
National Park Service—U.S. Park Police 547
National Nuclear Security Administration 363
U.S. Mint Police 316
Amtrak Police 305
Bureau of Indian Affairs 277
Bureau of Land Management 255
TOTAL 115,147
* Limited to federal probation officers who are allowed to carry firearms
Source: Brian Reaves, Federal Law Enforcement Officers, 2008. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
June 2012, p. 2, http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/fleo08.pdf.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 263
▼
U.S. government in over a half century. All or part of twenty-two different federal depart-
ments and agencies were combined, and 80,000 new federal employees were immediately
put to work.1 Congress committed $32 billion toward safeguarding the nation, developing
vaccines to protect against biological or chemical threats, training and equipping first
responders (local police, firefighters, and medical personnel), and funding science and
technology projects to counter the use of biological weapons and assess vulnerabilities. In
the ten years after 9/11, the federal government appropriated more than $635 billion to
support homeland security.2
Figure 10-2 ■ shows the organizational structure of DHS.
Following are brief descriptions of the major law enforcement agencies that are orga-
nizationally located within the DHS:
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is one of the largest federal law enforce- ment agencies, with more than 60,000 agents who work as CBP officers (20,000), bor-
der patrol agents (20,000), air and marine agents (1,000), and agriculture specialists
(2,200). CBP is responsible for preventing terrorists and terrorist weapons from enter-
ing the United States while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. On a
typical day, the CBP will process nearly a million passengers and pedestrians, appre-
hend nearly 1,000 criminal suspects, and seize nearly 12,000 pounds of narcotics. The
CBP protects nearly 7,000 miles of border with Canada and Mexico and 95,000 miles
of shoreline.3
• Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE): This is the largest investigative arm of DHS with more than 20,000 employees in more than 400 offices worldwide. ICE is
responsible for identifying and shutting down vulnerabilities both in the nation’s bor-
ders and in economic, transportation, and infrastructure security.4 Because of its key
role in providing national security, a further breakdown of its three main branches (or
“directorates”) is provided subsequently:
• Homeland Security Investigations (HSI): This branch is responsible for investigating a wide range of domestic and international activities arising from the illegal
movement of people and goods into, within and out of the United States. HSI
investigates immigration crime, human rights violations and human smuggling,
smuggling of narcotics, weapons and other types of contraband, financial crimes,
cybercrime and export enforcement issues.5
• Enforcement and Removal Operations: This unit identifies, apprehends, and removes undocumented immigrants from the United States. It prioritizes the appre-
hension, arrest and removal of convicted criminals, those who pose a threat to
national security, fugitives and recent border entrants.6
• Management and Administration: This directorate oversees ICE’s budget, expenditures, accounting and finance, procurement, human resources and personnel,
workforce recruitment, equal employment opportunity, information technology
systems, facilities, property and equipment needs.7
• The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) protects the nation’s transportation systems. TSA also administers the Federal Air Marshal Service, which deploys air
marshals to protect U.S. aircraft around the world and to perform detection, response,
and assessment activities at airports.8
• The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is responsible for the administration of immigration and naturalization adjudication functions, and the estab-
lishment of immigration services policies and priorities.
• The Coast Guard protects the public, the environment, and U.S. economic interests in the nation’s ports, on its waterways, along the coast, on international waters, or in any
maritime region as required, to support national security.
C H
A P
T E R 1
0
F e
d e
ra l a
n d
S ta
te A
g e
n c
ie s
264
▼
Secretary
Chief of Staff
Executive Secretariat
Military Advisor
Deputy Secretary
Management Directorate
Chief Financial Officer
Science & Technology Directorate
National Protection
& Programs Under Secretary
Policy General Counsel
Legislative Affairs
Public Affairs Inspector General
Health Affairs Intelligence &
Analysis
Federal Law Enforcement
Training Center
Transportation Security
Administration
Federal Emergency
Management Agency
U.S. Coast Guard U.S. Customs &
Border Protection
U.S. Citizenship & Immigration
Services
U.S. Secret Service
U.S. Immigration & Customs
Enforcement
Domestic Nuclear
Detection Office
Operations Coordination & Planning
Citizenship & Immigration
Services Ombudsman
Chief Privacy Officer
Civil Rights & Civil Liberties
Inter- governmental
Affairs
FigurE 10-2 u.S. Department of Homeland Security Organizational Chart U.S. Department of Justice.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 265
▼
▲ A CBP agent uses a fiber optic scope to look inside a vehicle gas tank, where traf-
fickers often conceal packages of drugs. (Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Protection.)
▲ ICE works with U.S. Border Patrol and a Florida county sheriff’s department to arrest mem-
bers of a large Mexican-American human smuggling operation. (Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border
Protection.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 266
▼
• The Secret Service protects the president and other high-level officials and investigates counterfeiting and other financial crimes, including financial institution fraud, identity
theft, computer fraud, and computer-based attacks on our nation’s financial, banking,
and telecommunications infrastructure. The Secret Service’s Uniformed Division pro-
tects the White House complex and the vice president’s residence, as well as foreign
embassies and missions in the Washington, D.C., area. The Secret Service has agents
assigned to approximately one hundred and fifty offices located in cities throughout the
United States and in select foreign cities.9
• The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) provides training for more than one hundred federal, state, and local agencies, and is discussed in more
detail later.
▲ Pope Francis is protected by Secret Service agents in Washington, D.C. in 2015; a Secret Service agent had plucked a
blonde toddler from the crowd and hoisted him up for the Pope to bless. (Courtesy Gary Cameron/Reuters).
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 267
▼
exhibit 10-1
INTERPOL is the oldest, the best-known, and probably
the only truly international crime-fighting organization
for crimes committed on an international scale, such as
drug trafficking, bank fraud, money laundering, and
counterfeiting. INTERPOL agents do not patrol the
globe, nor do they make arrests or engage in shootouts.
They are basically intelligence gatherers who have
helped many nations work together in attacking
international crime since 1923.10
Lyon, France, serves as the headquarters for
INTERPOL’s crime-fighting tasks and its one hundred
and ninety member countries.11 INTERPOL focuses
on many crime areas that have a transnational
dimension, including: cybercrime, corruption, drugs,
financial and high-tech crime, fugitives, maritime
piracy, organized crime, terrorism (including
bioterrorism), and trafficking in human beings. It also
manages a range of databases with information on
names and photographs of known criminals, wanted
persons, fingerprints, DNA profiles, stolen or lost
travel documents, stolen motor vehicles, child sex
abuse images, and stolen works of art. INTERPOL
also disseminates critical crime-related data through
its system of international notices. There are eight
kinds of notices, of which the most well known is the
Red Notice, an international request for an individual’s
arrest.12
INTERPOL has one cardinal rule: It deals only with
common criminals; it does not become involved with
political, racial, or religious matters. It has a basic three-
step formula for offenses that all nations must follow for
success: pass laws specifying the offense is a crime;
prosecute offenders and cooperate in other countries’
prosecutions; and furnish INTERPOL with and exchange
information about crime and its perpetrators. This
formula could reverse the trend that is forecast for the
world at present: an increasing capability by criminals
for violence and destruction. The following crimes,
because they are recognized as crimes by other
countries, are covered by almost all U.S. treaties of
extradition: murder, rape, bigamy, arson, robbery,
burglary, forgery, counterfeiting, embezzlement, larceny,
fraud, perjury, and kidnapping.13
INTERPOL’s annual report may be viewed at:
h t t p : / / w w w . i n t e r p o l . i n t / N e w s - a n d - m e d i a /
Publications2/Pages/Publications/Annual-reports
INTERPOL
Because its roles and purpose are closely related to the protection of the United
States against terrorism and other crimes, a discussion of INTERPOL is provided in
Exhibit 10-1 ■.
▶ Department of Justice
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is headed by the attorney general, who is appointed by the
U.S. president and approved by the Senate. The president also appoints the attorney gen-
eral’s assistants and the U.S. attorneys for each of the judicial districts. The U.S. attorneys
in each judicial district control and supervise all federal criminal prosecutions and represent
the government in legal suits in which it is a party. These attorneys may appoint commit-
tees to investigate other governmental agencies or offices when questions of wrongdoing
are raised, or when possible violations of federal law are suspected or detected.
The DOJ is the official legal arm of the government of the United States. Within the
Justice Department are several law enforcement organizations that investigate violations
of federal laws; we will discuss the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA); and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). (Note that the DOJ’s Office of Community
Oriented Policing Services, from 1994-2014, spent more than $14 billion to hire and train
more than 125,000 officers for community policing and problem solving in 13,000 agen-
cies, and provided many other resources.)
Figure 10-3 ■ shows the organizational chart for the Department of Justice.
C H
A P
T E R 1
0
F e
d e
ra l a
n d
S ta
te A
g e
n c
ie s
268
▼
Office of the Attorney General
Deputy Attorney General
Solicitor General
Office of the Solicitor General
Office of Justice
Programs
Office of Information
Policy
Civil Rights
Division
Civil Division
Community Relations Service
Antitrust Division
Environment and Natural Resources Division
Tax Division
Foreign Claims
Settlement Commission
Office of Access to
Justice
Office on Violence Against Women
Community Oriented Policing
Services (COPS)
Executive Office for
U.S. Trustees
Associate Attorney General
Office of Legal Policy
Office of Legislative
Affairs
Office of Legal
Counsel
Federal Bureau of
Investigation
Criminal Division
National Security Division
Bureau of Prisons
Drug Enforcement
Admini- stration
Justice Management
Division
Executive Office for
U.S. Attorneys
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms, & Explosives
Interpol Washington
Executive Office for
Immigration Review
U.S. Parole
Commission
Office of the Inspector
General
Office of the Pardon Attorney
Office of Professional
Responsibility
U.S. Marshals Service
Professional Responsibility
Advisory Office
Executive Office for Organized Crime Drug
Enforcement Task Forces
U.S. Attorneys
Office of Tribal Justice
Office of Public Affairs
FigurE 10-3 Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney general, Organizational Chart U.S. Department of Justice.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 269
▼
Federal Bureau of investigation (FBi)
Beginnings The Federal Bureau of investigation was created and funded through the Department of Justice Appropriation Act of 1908. The FBI was first known as the Bureau
of Investigation. With thirty-five agents, it originally had no specific duties other than
the “prosecution of crimes,” focusing on bankruptcy fraud, antitrust crimes, neutrality
violations, and crimes on Native American reservations. Espionage and sabotage incidents
during World War I, coupled with charges of political corruption reaching into the
Department of Justice and the bureau itself, prompted angry demands for drastic changes.14
A new era was begun for the FBI in 1924 with the appointment of J. Edgar Hoover as
director; he served in that capacity until his death in 1972. Hoover was determined that the
organization would become a career service in which appointments would be made strictly
on personal qualifications and abilities, and promotions would be based on merit. Special
agents were college graduates, preferably with degrees in law or accounting. A rigorous
course of training had to be completed, and agents had to be available for assignment
wherever their services might be needed. Hoover coordinated the development of the
Uniform Crime Reporting system, and during his tenure in office many notorious crimi-
nals, such as Bonnie Parker, Clyde Barrow, and John Dillinger, were tracked and captured
or killed. The building housing the FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C., bears J. Edgar
Hoover’s name.15
The bureau’s Identification Division was created on July 1, 1924, and its laboratory
opened in 1932. Then, in 1933, all of the bureau’s functions were consolidated and trans-
ferred to a Division of Investigation, which became the FBI on March 22, 1935.
Contemporary Priorities and roles Today the FBI has fifty-six field offices, approximately four hundred resident agencies, and more than sixty foreign liaison
posts called legal attachés. About 35,000 people are employed by the FBI, including
sworn special agents and nonsworn support employees, who perform professional,
administrative, technical, and other functions.16
▲ J. Edgar Hoover. (Courtesy Executive Branch of
Government.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 270
▼
The national priorities of the FBI have been modified in major fashion since September 11,
2001; today the following are four of its priority areas17:
1. Protect the United States from terrorist attack.
2. Protect the United States against foreign intelligence operations and espionage.
3. Protect the United States against cyber-based attacks and high-technology crimes.
4. Protect the United States against weapons of mass destruction.
Other priorities include combating public corruption, civil rights violations (e.g., hate
crimes, human trafficking), organized crime, white-collar crime, and major thefts/violent
crimes. Figure 10-4 ■ depicts the organizational chart that is designed to facilitate the
accomplishment of these priorities and goals.
Recently, the FBI was given new powers to aid its reform efforts to battle terrorism.
The bureau can now monitor Internet sites, libraries, churches, and political organizations.
In addition, under revamped guidelines, agents can attend public meetings for the purpose
of preventing terrorism.18 The bureau also participates with local police in dozens of task
forces that target fugitives and violent gangs nationwide.
But counterterrorism still constitutes only a fraction of the bureau’s workload; the
FBI also continues to investigate bank robberies, white-collar crimes, and organized
crime and drug syndicates—staples of the agency’s workload for a long time—while it
combats radical Islamic fundamentalism and global terrorism with a workforce in which
just 1 percent of the FBI’s 12,200 agents have any familiarity with the Arabic
language.19
Ancillary investigative, Training, and reporting Services Today the FBI’s laboratory examines blood, hair, firearms, paint, handwriting, typewriters, and other types
of evidence. Highly specialized techniques are now utilized—at no charge to state police
and local police agencies—for analysis of DNA, explosives, hairs and fibers, tool marks,
drugs, plastics, and bloodstains.
Another feature of the bureau is its National Academy, which graduated its first class
in 1935. Today thousands of local police managers from across the country have received
training at the National Academy in Quantico, Virginia, which has twenty-one buildings
on 385 acres. The FBI also provides extensive professional training to national supervisory-
level police officers at the National Academy.
A very successful function of the FBI, inaugurated in 1950, is its “Ten Most Wanted
Fugitives” list, which over the years has contained many notable fugitives. As of 2000, the
bureau had captured around 460 of the top ten fugitives; the Internet has helped to invigo-
rate the program, with the “Ten Most Wanted” Web page receiving about 25 million hits
per month.20
The FBI also operates the National Crime information Center (NCiC), through which
millions of records relating to stolen property and missing persons and fugitives are instan-
taneously available to local, state, and federal authorities across the United States and
Canada. Following are some of the categories of individuals and items that are included in
the NCIC files.21
1. There are 14 “Persons” files that cover categories such as:
• Wanted persons (for whom warrants are outstanding, who have committed or have been identified with a felony or serious misdemeanor offense); persons on
supervised release; missing persons (e.g., those with proven physical/mental dis-
ability or who are senile, or who are possibly kidnapped, are missing after a
catastrophe, are members of violent criminal gangs or terrorist organizations),
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 271
▼
Exec. Assist. Director Intelligence
Office of Strategic Planning
Records Management
Division
Security Division
Administrative
Services Division
Finance
Division
Information Resources Division
Exec. Assist. Director Counterterrorism/
Counterintelligence
Exec. Assist. Director Criminal
Investigations
Exec. Assist. Director Law Enforcement
Services
Exec. Assist. Director Administration
Director
Deputy Director
Chief of Staff
Inspection Division
Office of Public Affairs
Congressional Affairs Office
Office of the Ombudsman
Office of General Counsel
Chief Information Officer
Office of Equal Employment Opportunity
Office of Professional Responsibility
Office of Intelligence
Cyber Division
Criminal Investi- gation Division
Counterterr- orism Division
Counterintelli- gence Division
Office of Law Enforcement
Coordination
Training Division
Office of International Operations
Laboratory Division
Critical Incident Response Group
Investigative Technologies
Division
Criminal Justice
Information
Services Division
FigurE 10-4 Federal Bureau of investigation Organizational Chart Bureau of Justice Statistics, Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, Federal Bureau of
Investigation.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 272
▼
sex offenders, unidentified deceased persons, and persons who have been denied
a National Instant Criminal Background Check.
2. There are seven property files that cover categories such as:
• Stolen vehicles, vehicle parts or plates, boats, guns, articles, securities, and vehi- cles wanted in conjunction with felonies or serious misdemeanors.
In a related vein, one of the FBI’s several annual publications is the uniform Crime
reports (uCr), which includes crime data reported from more than 15,000 state and local
police agencies concerning twenty-nine types of offenses: eight Part I (or index) offenses
(criminal homicide, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny–theft,
motor vehicle theft, and arson) and twenty-one Part II offenses. The UCR also includes a
so-called crime clock, shown in Figure 10-5 ■.
One
every 33.5 minutes
One RAPE
every 4.2 minutes
One ROBBERY
every 1.6 minutes
One VIOLENT CRIME
every 26.3 seconds
One PROPERTY CRIME
every 3.9 seconds
One AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
every 41.3 seconds
One BURGLARY
every 20.0 seconds
One LARCENY-THEFT
every 5.5 seconds
One MOTOR VEHICLE THEFT
every 44.6 seconds
MURDER
FigurE 10-5 Crime Clock Statistics Federal Bureau of Investigation.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 273
▼
Several shortcomings characterize the UCR data, however. First, the data are depen-
dent on crimes being reported to, and by, the police; many crime victims do not report
their victimization to the police, so there is the so-called shadow of crime—those
crimes that are hidden and unknown. Furthermore, the reporting system is not uniform,
so crimes may be reported incorrectly or inaccurately. In addition, the UCR operates
under the hierarchy rule, which means that when a number of separate crimes are com-
mitted as part of a single act (e.g., a burglar enters a home and then, at gunpoint, robs
the residents living there, and then murders one of them when a struggle ensues), only
the most serious crime—the murder—will be reported to the FBI. At best, theUCR has
several limitations and must be used cautiously. It is because of these limitations, how-
ever, that the FBI is currently considering an overhaul of its reporting systems to
include more offense categories, more details about criminal incidents, and other types
of information that are of interest to the public (such as how often police use deadly
force against citizens).22
A large amount of information concerning the FBI’s application and hiring process—
including its minimum requirements and the kinds of knowledge, skills, and abilities it
is now seeking for special agents and professional staff—is available on the agency’s
web site at www.fbijobs.gov/.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)
• The ATF originated as a unit within the IRS in 1862, when certain alcohol and tobacco tax statutes were created. The next year, Congress authorized the hiring
of three “detectives” to aid in the prevention, detection, and punishment of tax
evaders. Originally called the Alcohol, Tobacco, Tax Unit, it eventually became the
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Division within the IRS. In 1972, it became the
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, under the direct control of the Treasury
Department; in January 2003, it was moved to the Justice Department and renamed
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.23 Like the FBI and several
other federal agencies, the ATF has a rich and colorful history, much of which has
involved capturing bootleggers and disposing of illegal whiskey stills during
Prohibition.24 From 1920 to 1933, congressional Prohibition legislation (the
Volstead Act) made it illegal to manufacture, possess, or sell intoxicating liquors
in the United States (with a few exceptions). Still, the country was awash with
liquor. History is replete with accounts of violations of Prohibition laws; much has
been written and portrayed in movies of that era, when the moonshiners tried to
outsmart and outrun the law. Speakeasies (secret bars) proliferated across America
to satisfy the American yearning for liquor. This era bolstered the popularity of
such G-men (short for “government man,” meaning a federal agent) as Eliot Ness;
the 1960s television program and later film, The Untouchables, were inspired by
his career.
The ATF administers the U.S. Criminal Code provisions concerning alcohol and
tobacco smuggling and diversion. Over 2,600 agents are responsible for the following:
• Investigating and preventing violations of federal laws involving the unlawful traf- fic in contraband liquor and tobacco.
• Curbing the illegal use and trafficking of firearms. • Regulating and educating the explosives industry, as well as enforcing federal laws
related to bombs and arson.25
ATF also maintains a U.S. Bomb Data Center (to collect information on arson and
explosives related incidents) and the Bomb Arson Tracking System (BATS), which
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 274
▼
allows local, state, and other federal agencies to share information about bomb and
arson cases; a National Response Team of highly trained agents that can be deployed
to major explosion and fire scenes in the United States; an International Response
Team that provides assistance in other countries; accelerant and explosives
detection canine teams; and three national forensic science laboratories and one fire
research laboratory.
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
The Drug Enforcement Administration can trace its origins to the passage of the Harrison
Narcotic Act, signed into law on December 17, 1914, by President Woodrow
Wilson. The act made it unlawful for any “nonregistered” person to possess heroin,
cocaine, opium, morphine, or any of their by-products. In 1921, the Narcotic
Division of the Bureau of Internal Revenue was established in order to enforce the
provisions of the Harrison Act. Thus began the history of national drug enforcement in
the United States.26
Today’s DEA is also an outgrowth of the former Bureau of Narcotics, which was
established in 1930 under the direct control of the Treasury Department. In 1968, the
Bureau of Narcotics was transferred from the Treasury to the Department of Justice
and was renamed the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. In 1973, the DEA
was established, and in 1982, the organization was given primary responsibility
for drug and narcotics enforcement, sharing this jurisdiction with the FBI.
Succinctly, major responsibilities of over 5,000 DEA agents, under the U.S. Code,
include the following27:
• Investigation of, and coordination with major violators of controlled substance laws in domestic and international venues.
• Management of a national drug intelligence program in cooperation with federal, state, local, and foreign officials.
• Seizure and forfeiture of assets derived from, traceable to, or intended to be used for illicit drug trafficking.
• Liaison with the United Nations, INTERPOL, and other organizations, on matters relating to international drug control programs.
Figure 10-6 ■ depicts DEA’s various programs and operations.
u.S. Marshals Service (uSMS)
The u.S. Marshals Service is one of the oldest federal police agencies, established under the
Judiciary Act of 1789; George Washington appointed thirteen marshals, one for each of
the original thirteen states. The USMS formally assumed the responsibility for the appre-
hension of federal fugitives in 1979.28
Today the USMS has ninety-four U.S. marshals, one for each federal court district.
Each district headquarters office is managed by a politically appointed U.S. marshal and a
chief deputy U.S. marshal, who direct a staff of supervisors, investigators, deputy mar-
shals, and administrative personnel. As in the so-called Wild West, the backbone of the
USMS today are the deputy U.S. marshals—numbering nearly 4,000 deputy U.S. marshals
and criminal investigators, who pursue and arrest fugitives (nearly 275 arrests per day)
wanted for federal violations; pursue escaped federal prisoners; transport federal prisoners
(nearly 716 prisoner movements per day); and provide a secure environment for judges,
attorneys, witnesses, and others in the federal courts.29
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 275
▼
FigurE 10-6 u.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Programs and Operations
Drug Enforcement Administration.
In 1971, the USMS created the Special Operations Group (SOG), consisting of a well-
trained elite group of deputy marshals that could respond to priority or dangerous mis-
sions anywhere within the United States within a few hours. Another important function
of the USMS is the operation of the Witness Protection Program. Federal witnesses are
sometimes threatened by defendants or their associates (e.g., they sometimes testify
against organized crime figures). If certain criteria are met, the USMS will provide a
complete change of identity for witnesses and their families, including new Social
Security numbers, residences, and employment. More than 8,600 witnesses and 9,900 of
their family members have been protected, relocated, and given new identities since the
program began in 1971.30
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 276
▼
▶ Other Federal Agencies
Central intelligence Agency (CiA)
Although not a law enforcement agency, the Central intelligence Agency (CIA) is of
significance at the federal level to the nation’s security, and warrants a brief discussion.
The National Security Act of 1947 established the National Security Council, which in
1949 created a subordinate organization, the CIA. Considered the most clandestine
government service, the CIA participates in undercover and covert operations around
the world for the purposes of managing crises and providing intelligence.31 In sum, the
CIA carries out what is termed “the intelligence cycle,” which is defined as the process
of collecting, analyzing, and disseminating intelligence information to top U.S. govern-
ment officials.32
The CIA is an independent agency which is responsible, through its director, to the
U.S. president. The agency offers career opportunities in thirty different areas, ranging
from cyber security and counterterrorism analysis, to work in the directorate of operations
(clandestine services).33
internal revenue Service (irS)
The internal revenue Service has, as its main function, the monitoring and collection of
federal income taxes from American individuals and businesses. Since 1919, the IRS has
had a Criminal Investigation (CI) Division employing “accountants with a badge.”
The CI branch of the IRS is composed of approximately 3,500 employees worldwide,
approximately 2,500 of whom are special agents whose investigative jurisdiction includes
tax, money laundering, and Bank Secrecy Act laws. While other federal agencies also have
investigative jurisdiction for money laundering and some bank secrecy act violations,
the IRS is the only federal agency that can investigate potential criminal violations of the
Internal Revenue Code.34
▲ U.S. Marshals plan an arrest. (Courtesy U.S. Marshals Service.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 277
▼
The first chief of the Special Intelligence Unit, Inspector Elmer I. Irey, gained notori-
ety by participating in investigations that included income tax evasion charges against
organized crime kingpin Alphonse (“Al”) Capone and the kidnapping of Charles
Lindbergh’s baby in 1932.35 Since then, the list of celebrated, prosecuted CI “clients” has
been impressive and includes federal judges, prominent politicians, and famous athletes,
and actors. Indeed, today there is a much greater appreciation for what a financial investi-
gator can do for almost any type of criminal investigation.36
IRS agents are armed; the U.S. Code authorizes them to execute search warrants,
make arrests without warrants for tax-related offenses, and seize property related to vio-
lations of the tax laws. Agents engage in money-laundering investigations under Title 18
of the U.S. Code and investigate activities that finance illicit narcotics operations and
terrorism.37
The CI Division enforces nearly all of the provisions of the Bank Secrecy Act, requir-
ing financial institutions or individuals to report certain domestic and foreign currency
transactions to the federal government. The CI Division also enforces the wagering tax
laws and conducts investigations related to the pornography industry. Another important
area of the division is the Questionable Refund Program, which attempts to detect and stop
fictitious claims for tax refunds.
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC)
The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) states as its mission: “We train those
who protect our homeland.” To carry out this mission, the FLETC serves as the primary
provider of law enforcement training for more than 90 federal agencies. The FLETC also
provides training to state, local, rural, tribal, territorial, and international law enforcement
agencies. During 2014, nearly 60,000 students received FLETC training, and since it was
▲ FLETC training using a scenario simulator. (Courtesy Federal Law Enforcement Training Center,
Department of Homeland Security.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 278
▼
established in 1970 approximately one million law enforcement officers and agents have
been trained at FLETC. Although the FLETC trains officers and agents from all federal
departments and all three branches of government, it is a component of the DHS. The
center is headquartered in Glynco, Georgia, where it occupies a 1,500-acre campus with
state-of-the-art classrooms. Other domestic campuses are located in Artesia, New Mexico;
Charleston, South Carolina; and Cheltenham, Maryland.
FLETC offers more than 150 basic and advanced training programs, including special-
ized courses such as: cyberterrorism (such as Internet forensics and investigations), finan-
cial forensics, international banking and money laundering, critical infrastructure
protection, land transportation antiterrorism, weapons of mass destruction, seaport secu-
rity, and antiterrorism intelligence awareness training for state and local agencies. FLETC
increasingly uses technology-based, distance learning when the programs being taught do
not require specialized facilities; furthermore, FLETC often uses alternative training tech-
nologies, especially simulation and modeling to augment existing training delivery sys-
tems and methodologies.38
▶ State Agencies
State Police and Law Enforcement Agencies: general Types
As with federal police organizations, there is a variety of organizations, duties, and spe-
cialization found in the fifty states—although, generally, state troopers and highway patrol
officers actually perform a lot of the same functions that are found with their county and
municipal counterparts: enforcing state statutes, investigating criminal and traffic offenses
▲ State police officers include bureau of investiga-
tion agents, highway patrol troopers, and other
professionals. Here, state law enforcement agents
conduct training on an active-shooter scenario.
(Courtesy bibiphoto/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 279
▼
(and, by virtue of those roles, knowing and applying laws of arrest, search, and seizure),
making arrests, testifying in court, communicating effectively in both oral and written
contexts, using firearms and self-defense tactics proficiently, and effectively performing
pursuit driving, self-defense, and lifesaving techniques until a patient can be transported to
a hospital. Such agencies also maintain a wide array of special functions, including special
weapons and tactics (SWAT) teams, drug units and task forces, marine and horse patrol,
and so on.39
A first distinction to be made between state agencies concerns their name or designa-
tion, which will also indicate their primary functions: 24 (48 percent) of the states identify
their organizations as “State Police”; 16 (32 percent) are designated in some form of
“patrol”—e.g., “Highway Patrol” or “State Highway Patrol”; and nine (18 percent) of the
states identify their organizations as a “Department of Public Safety” (one, Alaska’s, is
termed “State Troopers”).40 State police organizations are typically tasked, under state
statute, to perform more general police functions than are highway patrol troopers, to
include criminal investigations as well as highway patrol, traffic control, crash investiga-
tions, and related functions. Public safety organizations are often more complex and may
encompass several agencies or divisions. For example, the Hawaii Department of Public
Safety, by statute, includes a Law Enforcement Division (with general arrest duties, narcot-
ics division, sheriff division, and executive protection unit), a Corrections Division (inmate
intake, incarceration, paroling authority, and industries), and a Victim Compensation
Commission.41
State bureaus of investigation (SBIs), as their name implies, are investigative in
nature and might be considered a state’s equivalent to the FBI; they investigate all man-
ner of cases assigned to them by their state’s laws and usually report to the state’s attor-
ney general. SBI investigators are plainclothes agents who usually investigate both
criminal and civil cases involving the state and/or multiple jurisdictions. They also
provide technical support to local agencies in the form of laboratory or record services,
and may be asked by the city and county agencies to assist in investigating more serious
crimes (e.g., homicide).
Other Special-Purpose State Agencies
In addition to the traffic, investigative, and other units mentioned earlier, several other
special-purpose state agencies, including police and other law enforcement organizations,
have developed over time to meet particular needs. For example, many state attorney gen-
eral’s offices have units and investigators that investigate white-collar crimes; fraud against
or by consumers, Medicare providers, and food stamp recipients; and crimes against chil-
dren and seniors.42
As shown in Figure 10-7 ■, states may also have limited-purpose units devoted to
enforcing the following:
• Alcoholic beverage laws (regarding the distribution and sale of such beverages, moni- tor bars and liquor stores, and so on).
• Fish and game laws (relating to hunting and fishing, to ensure that such persons have proper licenses, and do not poach, hunt, or fish out of season, exceed their
limit, and so on).
• State statutes and local ordinances on college and university campuses.
• Agricultural laws, to include cattle brand inspection and enforcement.
• Commercial vehicle laws, such as those federal and state laws pertaining to interstate carriers’ (i.e., tractor-trailer rigs) weights and permits, and ordinances applying
to taxicabs.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 280
▼
Type of Special Jurisdiction Agencies Full-Time Sworn Personnel
Total 1,733 56,968
Public buildings/facilities 1,126 21,418
4-year university/college 508 10,916
Public school district 250 4,764
2-year college 253 2,648
State government buildings 29 1,138
Medical school/campus 18 747
Public hospital/health facility 48 715
Public housing 13 250
Other state-owned facilities 7 240
Natural resources 246 14,571
Fish and wildlife conservation laws 56 5,515
Parks and recreational areas 124 4,989
Multi-function natural resources 16 2,926
Boating laws 10 461
Environmental laws 7 368
Water resources 18 185
Forest resources 9 65
Levee district 6 62
Transportation systems/facilities 167 11,508
Airports 103 3,555
Mass transit system/railroad 18 3,214
Transportation—multiple types 5 2,000
Commercial vehicles 12 1,320
Harbor/port facilities 25 876
Bridges/tunnels 4 543
Criminal investigations 140 7,310
State bureau of investigation 22 3,527
County/city investigations 66 2,006
Fraud investigations 13 636
Fire marshal/arson investigations 21 478
Tax/revenue enforcement 6 177
Other/multiple types 12 486
Special enforcement 54 2,161
Alcohol/tobacco laws 22 1,280
Agricultural laws 12 387
Narcotics laws 5 233
Gaming laws 10 231
Racing laws 5 30
Note: excludes agencies employing less than one full-time officer or the equivalent in part-time officers.
Source: Brian Reaves, Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2008. U.S. Department of Justice,
Bureau of Justice Statistics, July 2011, p. 8, http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/csllea08.pdf.
Figure 10-7 Special Jurisdiction State Law Enforcement Agencies, by Type of Jurisdiction Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies by Brian A. Reaves, U.S.
Department of Justice, 2008.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 281
▼
Most of these organizations have their own training academies, but some—campus
police officers and fish and game agents, for example—may attend the regular police acad-
emies that train county deputies and local police officers.
▶ Why No Single, Consolidated Police Force?
In this chapter, we have discussed police agencies in the United States that have national
jurisdiction (such as the FBI). This is different, however, from having a national police
force. In many countries, a single police agency operates at the national level—the federal
governments of those countries have the primary responsibility for developing police pol-
icy and managing public safety services. There are potential advantages to having a
national model for police, including consistent standards for recruitment and training, uni-
formity of policies and procedures, balanced allocation of funding and resources, direct
lines of communication, coordination of efforts, and ease of information and data sharing.
Rather than having a national police force, however, policing in the United States is
much more fragmented. When policing was first organized in the United States during the
mid to late 1800s, Americans were generally distrustful of a strong central government. As
a result, responsibility over most aspects of governance in the United States (including the
police) was placed primarily with the states and local municipalities, rather than with
the federal government. This resulted in a decentralized system of policing that today is
unlike most systems around the world: The United States has over 17,000 individual
municipal and county police departments. Furthermore, federal law enforcement agencies
in the United States have virtually no authority over local police departments. In other
words, even though the FBI has national jurisdiction, the Director of the FBI has no author-
ity over the Chief of the Chicago Police Department, the Commissioner of the New York
City Police Department, the Sheriff of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, or
any other local police leader. The idea that a federal agent can walk into a local police
precinct and “pull rank” on a city police officer is largely the product of Hollywood fiction
(and, remember too, that there must be a federal crime involved for federal agents to have
proper jurisdiction to investigate). Federal agencies can, of course, investigate local depart-
ments under certain circumstances, such as allegations of serious corruption or ongoing
violations of citizens’ civil rights, but these are very rare and special cases.
Although it is fragmented, the U.S. model of policing has its benefits. The indepen-
dence of each department, for example, spurs a great deal of innovation. Almost all of the
advances in community policing, problem-solving, Smart Policing, and crime prevention
were initiated as ideas in local agencies, and then spread throughout the nation. Another
important advantage involves local accountability. Local control over policing means that
officers ultimately answer to the citizens of that locality rather than to some remote federal
authority. Such an arrangement offers opportunities for close partnerships and relation-
ships to develop between police and citizens. Finally, while considerable cost savings can
be realized with any police consolidation effort by combining expensive services (e.g., jail,
communication, economies of scale with equipment, and so on), in short, many people fear
the tremendous power and lack of accountability that might exist in having a single, con-
solidated police force (such as that seen in many foreign venues).
▶ Career Considerations
Key elements—known as KSAs (for knowledge, skills, and abilities)—of employment in
many federal as well as state law enforcement positions are as follows:
• U.S. citizenship.
• Age requirement—applicants must be under thirty-seven years of age.
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 282
▼
• Written test.
• Structured oral interview—typically consisting of situational questions posed by an oral board that do not require technical questions.
• Writing sample assessment—applicants might, for example, be provided with a photo- graph and then asked to prepare a narrative report describing the overall scene and
details shown in the photograph.
• Medical exam—to test for any chronic disease or condition affecting the respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, digestive, nervous, endocrine, or
genitourinary systems that would impair full performance of the job duties; it might
also include vision and hearing examinations.
• Drug testing—satisfactory completion of a drug test is a condition of placement
• Background investigation43
Furthermore, the following minimum qualifications may also be in effect prior to an
offer of employment, depending on the agency:
• Successful hirees will attend and successfully complete a mandatory basic training program of about six months’ duration.
• Any person convicted of a crime of domestic violence cannot lawfully possess a fire- arm or ammunition (see 18 U.S.C. Section 1001).
• Persons required to carry a firearm while performing their duties must satisfactorily complete the firearms component.
• Positions may require mobility, not only as concerns some travel related to the duties of the job, but also in terms of assignment to a duty station; applicants must sign a
mobility agreement.44
Several government and nongovernment websites offer information concerning federal
state and local law enforcement careers, including the following:
• USAJOBS, jobsearch.usajobs.gov (search for “Law Enforcement”)
• Federal Jobs Net, “Law Enforcement Jobs,” federaljobs.net/law_agencies.htm
• Dennis V. Damp, The Book of U.S. Government Jobs: Where They Are, What’s Available, and How to Get One, federaljobs.net/governmentjobs.htm
• Police Employment, the Police Job Board, “Federal Police Jobs,” policeemployment. com/federal-police
Most agencies also have links to career opportunities on their websites, along with
information on qualifications, physical fitness/health standards, and pre-training require-
ments. As just one example, the USMS recommends that prospective deputies begin phys-
ical conditioning practice weeks before the academy in order to prepare for strenuous
hours of physical training, including lengthy runs in humid weather, vigorous calisthenics,
and intense defensive tactics exercises.45
More general information concerning federal employment may be obtained from the
U.S. Office of Personnel Management, www.opm.gov. The federal hiring process varies
by agency and position, but normally takes eighteen to thirty months.
One’s academic performance can enhance his or her pay scale in the federal system.
For example, in the past, federal agencies have paid higher entry-level salaries to people
having higher academic degrees as well as grade-point averages that were higher than 3.0
(or “B” level).
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 283
▼
Summary Although modern policing in the United States is still based on the nineteenth-century
British model of the Metropolitan Police of London, a tremendous amount of specialization
has evolved in today’s sphere of policing, especially among federal, state, and local agen-
cies. Policing has developed into a highly organized discipline with many branches and
narrow fields of jurisdiction and responsibility. This has happened not so much because of
needs being demonstrated by formal research, but because of the necessity of keeping
abreast of activities of sophisticated criminals and would-be terrorists, who would violate
the peace and dignity of people in many different ways.
Specifically, this chapter described the major federal law enforcement agencies of the
new DHS, the Department of Justice, and other federal agencies and provided an overview
of state police agencies. Perhaps what was most evident is how the law enforcement agen-
cies of the federal government have retooled to meet today’s challenge of terrorism.
It is clear that now, more than any other time in the history of the United States, “busi-
ness as usual” cannot be the order of the day. Federal and state law enforcement agencies
must take a more farsighted approach to their work while learning new methods for pre-
venting and responding to potential terrorist attacks. This chapter has demonstrated that
law enforcement agencies must be—and are being—flexible as the need arises.
Key Terms
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Department of Homeland Security
(DHS)
Department of Justice
Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA)
Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI)
Federal Law Enforcement Training
Center (FLETC)
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
National Crime Information Center
(NCIC)
State Bureaus of Investigation (SBI)
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR)
U.S. Marshals Service (USMS)
review Questions
1. What are the major component agencies of DHS, and
their primary functions?
2. What are the major functions of the four agencies of the
Department of Justice that are described in this
chapter?
3. Where and how are federal agents trained?
4. What functions do the CIA and the IRS perform?
5. What are the primary differences between federal and
state law enforcement agencies?
6. What are the differences between a national police
agency and a police agency with national jurisdiction?
Learn by Doing
1. Your criminal justice professor requires you to pre-
pare a research paper on the measures that have been
adopted by federal law enforcement and state and
local police for homeland security, to include the
training that has been provided in the event of a ter-
rorist attack or other critical incident, What agencies
would you contact for this paper, and what questions
would you pose to them?
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 284
▼
Notes
1. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, “Creation of
the Department of Homeland Security,” http://www.
dhs.gov/creation-department-homeland-security.
2. National Priorities Project, “U.S. Security Spending
Since 9/11,” May 26, 2011, http://nationalpriorities.
org/analysis/2011/us-security-spending-since-911/.
3. U.S. Customs and Border Protection, “On a Typical
Day,” http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/about/
accomplish/typical_day_fy12.ctt/typical_day_
fy12.pdf.
4. Department of Homeland Security, ICE: “Who We
Are,” https://www.ice.gov/about.
5. Department of Homeland Security, ICE, “Homeland
Security Investigations,” https://www.ice.gov/hsi.
6. Department of Homeland Security, ICE,
“Enforcement and Removal Operations,” https://
www.ice.gov/ero.
7. Department of Homeland Security, ICE,
“Management & Administration,” https://www.ice.
gov/management-administration.
8. Department of Homeland Security, Transportation
Security Administration, “Leadership and
Organization,” https://www.tsa.gov/about/tsa-
leadership.
9. United States Secret Service, “United States Secret
Service,” http://www.secretservice.gov.
10. INTERPOL, “About INTERPOL,” http://www.
interpol.int/About-INTERPOL/Overview.
11. Ibid.
12. Ibid.
13. Michael Fooner, INTERPOL: Issues in World Crime
and International Criminal Justice (New York: Plenum
Press, 1989), p. 179.
14. David R. Johnson, American Law Enforcement History
(St. Louis, MO: Forum Press, 1981), pp. 166–170.
15. Ibid.
16. U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, “About Us—Quick Facts,” http://
www.fbi.gov/about-us/quick-facts/quickfacts.
17. U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, “What We Investigate,” http://www.
fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/what_we_investigate.
18. “FBI Seeks Sweeping New Powers,” The Nation,
August 22, 2008, www.thenation.com/article/fbi-
seeks-sweeping-new-powers.
19. “FBI Agents Still Lacking Arabic Skills,” www.
washingtonpost.com/wp-yn/content/article/2006/
10/10/AR2006101001388.html.
20. Jeff Glasser, “In Demand for Fifty Years: The FBI’s
‘Most Wanted’ List—Good Publicity, and a History
of Success,” U.S. News and World Report, March 20,
2000, p. 60.
21. U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, “National Crime Information Center
(NCIC),” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ncic.
22. Kevin Johnson, “FBI will overhaul tracking report,
add missing crimes,” USA Today, April 2, 2015.
h t t p : / / w w w . u s a t o d a y . c o m / s t o r y / n e w s /
nation/2015/04/02/fbi-crime-report/70393428/
23. US Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, “ATF History
Timeline,” https://www.atf.gov/our-history/atf-
history-timeline.
24. US Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, “Our History,”
https://www.atf.gov/our-history.
2. You have been requested to provide a two-hour block
of instruction concerning federal and state law
enforcement agencies for your police department’s
Citizens’ Police Academy; prepare a lecture covering
the major agencies—and their functions—that com-
prise both the Department of Justice and the
Department of Homeland Security; include such
ancillary functions as the FBI’s Uniform Crime
Reports and NCIC, as well as the complementary
roles of INTERPOL.
3. As your department’s public information officer, you
have been invited by a local civic organization to
appear at a noon luncheon to discuss your agency’s
roles and functions. During your presentation, some-
one in the audience raises her hand and asks how the
duties of the local police department and sheriff’s
offices generally differ from those of your state-level
police organization. How would you respond?
4. Assume that you and a fellow student of criminal jus-
tice are engaged in a conversation about law enforce-
ment careers. Your friend is undecided about whether
to seek employment in a federal, state, or local agency
upon graduating; furthermore, he wonders about the
possible pros and cons of working at each level, as
well as working within a large-, medium-, or small-
size agency. How would you respond?
CHAPTER 10 Federal and State Agencies 285
▼
25. US Department of Justice, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, “What We Do,”
https://www.atf.gov/about/what-we-do.
26. National Archives, “Records of the Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA),” http://www.archives.gov/
research/guide-fed-records/groups/170.html#170.3.
27. U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement
Administration, “DEA Mission Statement,” http://
www.dea.gov/about/mission.shtml.
28. U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service,
“Historical Timeline,” http://www.usmarshals.gov/
history/timeline.html.
29. U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service,
“Fact Sheet: U.S. Marshals Service 2016,” http://
www.usmarshals.gov/duties/factsheets/overview.pdf.
30. U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service,
“Witness Security Program,” http://www.usmarshals.
gov/witsec/index.html.
31. Central Intelligence Agency, “CIA Vision, Mission,
Ethos & Challenges,” https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/
cia-vision-mission-values.
32. Central Intelligence Agency, “About CIA,” https://
www.cia.gov/about-cia/todays-cia.
33. Central Intelligence Agency, “Careers & Internships,”
https://www.cia.gov/careers/opportunities/cia-jobs.
34. Internal Revenue Service, “Criminal Investigation
(CI) At-a-Glance,” https://www.irs.gov/uac/Criminal-
Investigation-(CI)-At-a-Glance.
35. Ludovic Kennedy, “The Airman and the Carpenter:
The Lindbergh Kidnapping and the Framing of Richard
Hauptmann,” Seton Hall Law Review 14, 574–598.
36. Don Vogel, quoted in Department of the Treasury,
Internal Revenue Service, CI Digest 1827, June
1994, p. 12.
37. U.S. Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue
Service, “Criminal Enforcement,” https://www.irs.
gov/uac/Criminal-Enforcement-1.
38. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Law
Enforcement Training Center, “Welcome to FLETC,”
http://www.fletc.gov/.
39. U. S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Census of State and Local Law Enforcement
Agencies, 2008, July 2011, pp. 1–6, http://www.bjs.
gov/content/pub/pdf/csllea08.pdf.
40. Ibid.
41. Ibid.
42. See, for example, State of California, Department of
Consumer Affairs, http://www.dca.ca.gov.
43. Gregory M. White, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S.
Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration
and Customs Enforcement, personal communica-
tion, October 29, 2009.
44. Ibid.
45. U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service,
“Deputy U.S. Marshal Hiring Programs,” http://www.
usmarshals.gov/careers/deputy_positions.html.
11 Municipal and County Agencies Organization, Administration, and Roles
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Describe the characteristics of bureaucratic organizations and the organizational structure and communication patterns of a police agency
❷ Explain and distinguish the characteristics of municipal police departments and county sheriff’s offices
❸ Describe the major roles of police executives using the Mintzberg model of chief executive officers
❹ Discuss the roles and functions of mid-level managers and first-line supervisors
(Courtesy Vladru/Shutterstock.)
286
▼
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 287
▼
❺ Describe the influence of politics in the context of policing
❻ Review the unique aspects and challenges of policing in small and rural areas
❼ Explain how police resources may be stretched through contract, consolidated, and civilianized operations
❽ Explain the process for, and benefits of, accreditation of police agencies
Introduction
The public has long held a fascination with all things involving the police, as noted in Chapter 5 con-
cerning the many television programs and movies aired during past decades. While there are not nearly
as many police programs on television today as in the past—for example, in the 1970s, forty-two such
programs premiered1—certainly the manner in which the police are depicted today in film and on tele-
vision has a strong influence on how the police are viewed by society.
Chapter 10 examined the roles and functions of selected federal police agencies, including how they
have changed their mission and priorities since 9/11; the general nature and duties of state-level police
organizations were also examined. This chapter examines policing at the local (municipal and county)
levels, specifically in terms of their organization, administration, and roles. First we begin with a defini-
tion of organizations, to include the principles of bureaucracies and organizational communications;
then we examine police agencies as organizations, including their structure, command principles, use
of policies and procedures, and communications processes. Next we compare local agencies (municipal
police departments and county sheriff’s offices) in terms of their operations, policies and procedures,
equipment, screening and testing of new recruits, and technologies; included is a review of the func-
tions of the municipal police chief and the county sheriff, using a management model developed by
Mintzberg to better understand those roles. We then briefly consider the roles and functions of middle
managers, and examine more thoroughly the complex role of first-line supervisors.
We then address the relationships between police administrators and politicians as well as the police
and media. Following that are descriptions of how agencies may contract, consolidate, and civilianize
their services, and then we consider how police agencies may become accredited. The chapter ends
with a summary, key terms, review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide opportu-
nities for you to learn by doing.
It should be noted that other important and related topics that concern local police officers—women and
minorities, higher education, stress, and collective bargaining—were discussed in Chapters 2 and 6.
▶ Organizations, Generally
What Are Organizations?
It is no surprise that one of the most widely read and long-running cartoon strips is that
of “Dilbert,” Scott Adams’ mouthless engineer who is surrounded by downtrodden
workers, inconsiderate bosses, and a dysfunctional organization. Unfortunately, many
people in our society identify with Dilbert: One survey found that more than 70 percent
of U.S. workers experience stress at work because of red tape, unnecessary rules, poor
communication with management, and other causes.2 But it does not have to be so, as we
will see in this chapter.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 288
▼
Organizations are entities of two or more people who cooperate to accomplish an
objective. In that sense, undoubtedly the first organizations were primitive hunting
parties. Organization and a high degree of cooperation were required to bring down
large animals. Organizations were also used to build pyramids and other monuments.3
Thus, organization may be defined as arranging and utilizing resources of personnel
and materials to attain specified objectives.
Every organization is unique. Gaines, Southerland, and Angell provide an excellent
analogy that helps us understand organizations:
Organization corresponds to the bones which structure or give form to the body. Imagine
that the fingers were a single mass of bone rather than four separate fingers and a thumb
made up of bones. The mass of bones could not, because of its structure, play musical
instruments, hold a pencil, or grip a baseball bat. A police department’s organization is
analogous. It must be structured properly if it is to be effective in fulfilling its many diverse
goals. Organization may not be important in a police department consisting of three offi-
cers, but it is extremely important in [larger] cities.4
As Gaines et al. also note, the development of an organization should be done with
careful evaluation or the agency may become unable to respond efficiently to commu-
nity needs. For example, the implementation of too many specialized units in a police
agency (such as community relations, crime analysis, or media relations units)
may leave too few people to do the general grassroots work of the organization.
(As a general rule, at least 55 percent of all sworn police personnel should be assigned
to patrol.5)
Organizations as Bureaucracies: In Principle and Perception
Prior to looking at the bureaucratic organization of police agencies in America, we need to
understand what constitutes a bureaucracy. First, a bureau (derived from the French lan-
guage) is a desk or, by extension, an office. Bureaucracy is rule conducted from a desk or
office (i.e., by the preparation and dispatch of written documents—or, these days, their
electronic equivalent). In the office are kept records of communications sent, received,
filed, and archived.6
Any discussion of bureaucracies must also include the seminal work of Max Weber,
a German sociologist who wrote that bureaucracies generally adhere to the
following principles7:
1. Specialization: The principle of fixed jurisdictional areas. Stated simply, every
bureaucracy has its own specialized area; thus, physicians do not arrest criminals,
police officers do not teach elementary school, firefighters do not make dentures.
Duties are assigned, and everyone has a role (a jurisdiction).
2. Hierarchy of offices: A bureaucracy creates a clear system of authority, with superiors
and subordinates. The authority to give commands is distributed in a formal way and
regulated; certain people have the right to control others, and this is spelled out
clearly (as in police department organizational structures, described subsequently).
This means that any position has only one immediate supervisor, allowing for clear
lines of authority (see the discussions concerning police unity of command and span
of control, subsequently).
3. Rules and regulations: Every bureaucracy has written rules and files that serve as
the organizational memory of the bureaucracy (a police sergeant’s threat to a subordinate:
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 289
▼
“Don’t do that, or it will go in your personnel file”). These guide the actions of personnel
(see the discussion of policies and procedures) who are in a given position.
4. Technical competence: People are appointed to offices based on explicit
qualifications. Only qualified persons are employed; therefore, individuals may
come and go, but the position is defined by the workf low and the rules guiding
behavior of occupants in that position (police training and promotional exams were
discussed in Chapter 2).
5. Official activity demands the full working capacity of the official: An office holder is
responsible for completing the tasks of the office, regardless of the number of hours
it might take (thus, many people working in a police organization work until the job
is done, not until the clock tells them they can drop their work and go home).
6. Office management follows exhaustive, stable, written rules, which can be learned:
Weber believed that in a bureaucracy, knowledge of the organization’s rules and
responsibilities is key to job performance (this is why police chiefs and sheriffs
are typically hired based on experience and education, not based on “on-the-job
training”—unlike, say, politically appointed foreign ambassadors who might do
poorly because they do not understand the culture and “rules” of the country to
which they are assigned).
Today many people view bureaucracies in negative terms, as too often “going by the
book”—relying heavily on rules and regulations and on policies and procedures (“red
tape”) and not being flexible enough to respond to individual needs and problems. Weber’s
ideal bureaucracy, however, as described earlier, was designed to eliminate inefficiency and
waste in organizations. As shown for each of the preceding six principles, many of the char-
acteristics that Weber proposed many years ago—well-trained personnel, precision, speed,
unambiguity (clear division of labor), knowledge of the files and forms, continuity (when
one employee leaves and another replaces), unity, and clear lines of authority (supervisors
overseeing subordinates) are found in today’s police agencies as well as in other bureaucra-
cies (e.g., political parties, churches, educational institutions, and private businesses).
Organizational Communication
Communication is one of the most important dynamics of an organization. Indeed, a major
role of today’s administrators and other leaders is communication. Managers of all types
of organizations spend an overwhelming amount of time engaged in the process of—and
coping with problems in—communication.
Today we communicate via electronic mail, social media, websites, facsimile machines,
video camcorders, cellular telephones, satellite dishes, and other high-tech means. We
converse orally, in written letters and memos, through our body language, via television
and radio programs, and through newspapers and meetings. Even private thoughts—
which take place four times faster than the spoken word—are part of communication.
Every waking hour our minds are full of ideas and thoughts; psychologists say that nearly
one hundred thousand thoughts pass through our minds every day, conveyed by a multi-
tude of media.8
Studies have long shown that communication is the primary problem in administration,
however, and lack of communication is the primary complaint of employees about
their immediate supervisors.9 Managers are in the communications business. Consider
the following:
Of all skills needed to be an effective manager/leader/supervisor, skill in communicating is
the most vital. In fact, more than 50 percent of a manager’s time is spent communicating.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 290
▼
First-line supervisors usually spend about 15 percent of their time with superiors, 50 percent
of their time with subordinates, and 35 percent with other managers and duties. These
estimates emphasize the importance of communications in everyday . . . operations.10
Several elements constitute the communications process: encoding, transmission,
medium, reception, decoding, and feedback.11 Following are brief descriptions of
these elements:
Encoding. To convey an experience or idea to someone, we translate, or encode, that expe-
rience into symbols. We use words or other verbal behaviors and gestures or other
nonverbal behaviors to convey the experience or idea.
Transmission. This element involves the translation of the encoded symbols into some
behavior that another person can observe. The actual articulation (moving our lips,
tongue, and so on) of the symbol into verbal or nonverbal observable behavior
is transmission.
Medium. Communication must be conveyed through some channel, or medium. Media for
communication may include our sight, hearing, taste, touch, or smell. Some other
media are the television, radio, telephone, and paper and pencil. The choice of the
medium is very important; for example, a message that is transmitted via a formal let-
ter from the chief executive officer will carry more weight than if the same message is
conveyed via a secretary’s memo.
Reception. The stimuli, the verbal and nonverbal symbols, reach the senses of the receiver
and are conveyed to the brain for interpretation.
Decoding. The individual who receives the stimuli develops some meaning for the verbal
and nonverbal symbols and decodes the stimuli. These symbols are translated into
some concept or experience of the receiver.
Feedback. When the receiver decodes the transmitted symbols, he or she usually provides
some response, or feedback, to the sender. If someone appears puzzled, we repeat the
message or we encode the concept differently and transmit some different symbols to
express the same concept. Feedback acts as a guide or steering device and lets us know
whether the receiver has interpreted our symbols as we intended.
Communication as it occurs within police organizations is discussed later in this chapter.
▶ Police Agencies as Organizations
Chain of Command
The administration of most police organizations is based on a traditional pyramidal,
quasi-military organizational structure that contains the elements of an organization
and a bureaucracy. First, these agencies are organized into a number of specialized
units. Figure 11-1 ■ shows the hierarchy of managers within the typical police organi-
zation and the inverse relationship between rank and numbers of personnel; in
other words, as rank increases, the number of people who occupy that rank decreases.
Some larger agencies have additional ranks, such as corporal and major, but this
can lead to concerns about becoming too top-heavy. The rank hierarchy allows an
organization to designate authority and responsibility at each level and to maintain a
chain of command.
Administrators (chiefs and assistant chiefs), mid-level managers (captains and lieuten-
ants), and first-line supervisors (sergeants) ensure that these units work together toward a
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 291
▼
common goal. If each unit worked independently, fragmentation, conflict, and competition
would result, subverting the goals and purposes of the entire organization. Police agencies
consist of people who interact within the organization and with external groups, and they
exist to serve the public.
Police departments are different from most other kinds of organizations for the simple
reason that policing is significantly different from most other kinds of work. A special
organizational structure has evolved to help carry out the complex responsibilities of polic-
ing. The highly decentralized nature and the varying size of American police departments,
however, compel police agencies to vary in organization.
Organizational Structure
Every police agency, no matter what its size, has an organizational structure, which is often
prominently displayed for all to see in the agency’s facility. Even a community with only
a town marshal has an organizational structure, although the structure will be very hori-
zontal, with the marshal performing all of the functions displayed in Figure 11-2 ■, the
basic organizational chart for a small agency.12
Operations, or line, personnel are engaged in active police functions in the field. They
may be subdivided into primary and secondary operations elements. The patrol function—
often called the backbone of policing—is the primary operational element because of its
major responsibility for policing. (The patrol function was examined in Chapter 3.) In
most small police agencies, patrol forces are responsible for all operational activities: pro-
viding routine patrols, conducting traffic and criminal investigations, making arrests, and
functioning as generalists.13 The investigative and youth functions are the secondary oper-
ations elements. (We discussed the investigative function thoroughly in Chapter 5 and
juvenile rights in Chapter 7.)
The support (or non-line) functions and activities can become quite numerous, espe-
cially in a large agency. These functions fall into two broad categories: staff (or adminis-
trative) services and auxiliary (or technical) services. The staff services usually involve
personnel and include such matters as recruitment, training, promotion, planning and
research, community relations, and public information services. Auxiliary services are the
kinds of functions that civilians rarely see. They include jail management, property and
evidence, crime laboratory services, communication processes, and records and identifica-
tion. Many career opportunities exist for those who are interested in police-related work,
but who cannot or do not want to be a field officer.
FIguRE 11-1 The Hierarchy of Managers Within the Typical Police Organization
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 292
▼
Obviously, the larger the agency, the greater the need for specialization and the more
vertical the organizational chart will become. With greater specialization come the need
and opportunity for officers to be assigned to different tasks, often rotating from one
assignment to another after a fixed interval. For example, in a medium-sized department
serving a community of one hundred thousand or more, it would be possible for a police
officer with ten years of police experience to have been a dog handler, a motorcycle officer,
a detective, and a traffic officer while simultaneously holding a slot on the special weapons
or hostage negotiations team.
The organizational structure of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) of
St. Louis, Missouri (separate from the St. Louis County Police Department), shown in
Figure 11-3 ■, displays the various types of units that might exist in a large agency.
Although the city of St. Louis has a population of about 318,000, the Greater St. Louis area
totals about 2.8 million14; the MPD has nearly 2,000 employees.15
This organizational structure provides an excellent depiction of the various compo-
nents of police organizations while also illustrating several major functions: (1) it appor-
tions the workload among members and units according to a logical plan; (2) it ensures
that lines of authority and responsibility are as definite and direct as possible; (3) it speci-
fies a unity of command throughout, so there is no question about which orders should be
followed; (4) it assigns responsibility and authority, and if responsibility is delegated, the
delegator is held responsible; and (5) it coordinates the efforts of members so that all will
work harmoniously to accomplish the mission.16 In sum, this structure establishes the
chain of command and determines lines of communication and responsibility.
In addition to these generally well-known and visible areas of specialization, other
areas of policing are lesser known, such as community crime prevention, child abuse, drug
education, and missing children units.17
unity of Command and Span of Control
A related principle is unity of command, an organizational principle dictating that every
officer should report to one and only one superior (following the chain of command) until
that superior officer is relieved. Ambiguity about authority can and does occur in police
organizations (i.e., who should handle calls, who is in charge at a crime scene, and so on).
Nevertheless, the unity-of-command principle ensures that multiple and/or conflicting
orders are not issued to the same officer by several supervisors. It is important that all offi-
cers know and follow the chain of command at critical incidents.
The term span of control refers to the number of subordinates that one individual can
effectively supervise. The limit is small; it is normally three to five at the top level of the
FIguRE 11-2 A Basic Police Organizational Structure
C H
A P
T E R 1
1
M u
n ic
ip a
l a n
d C
o u
n ty
A g
e n
c ie
s
293
▼
Metropolitan Police Department–City of St. Louis Organizational Chart
Circuit Attorney‘s Investigators
Crime Analysis Unit
District 1
District 2
District 3
SPD Executive
Staff
CPD Executive
Staff
NPD Executive
Staff
District 4
Deputy Commander
Fleet Services Records
Communications Buildings
Communications Service Center
Telephone Reporting
Property Custody Laboratory/
Identification
Housing
Budget & Finance
Supply
Purchasing Legal
Crimes Against Persons and Property
Sex Crimes/Child Abuse/ D.A.R.T.
Homicide
Bombing & Arson
Fraud/Cyber Crimes
Technical Enforcement
Narcotics
Violent Offenders
Unit
Anti Crime Unit
Warrant & Fugitive
Support Operations
Mobile Reserve/Canine
Emergency Management
Public Transportation
Internal Affairs
Private Security
Audit Advisory Unit
CALEA
Academy
Human Resources
Prisoner Processing
Admin. StaffAdmin. StaffAdmin. Staff
Planning & Research Intelligence
Information Technology Public Information
Compliance Administrator
Operational Planning
District 5
District 9
District 6
District 7
District 8
Deputy Commander
Admin. Staff
Traffic Safety/ Mounted Patrol
Special Operations Team
Special Operations Team
Special Operations Team
Bureau Commander BOCP
Bureau Commander BOIS
Bureau Commander BOPS
Bureau Commander BOAS
Chief of Police Chief of Staff
Administrative Staff
Board of Police Commissioners Board of Secretary
FIguRE 11-3 St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department Organizational Chart From Metropolitan Police Department, City Of Saint Louis Annual Report To The Community, published by St. Louis Metropolitan Police, © 2012.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 294
▼
organization and is often broader at the lower levels.18 The tendency in modern police
operations is to have supervisors spread too thinly.
Organizational Policies and Procedures
It has been said that a well-written policy and procedure manual serves as the foundation
of a professional law enforcement agency.19 In policing, policies and procedures and rules
and regulations are also important for defining role expectations for officers. Police leaders
rely on these directives to guide officers’ behavior and performance. Because police agen-
cies are intended to be service oriented in nature, they must work within specific and well-
defined guidelines designed to ensure that all officers conform consistently to behavior that
will enhance public protection.20
This tendency for organizations to promulgate policies and procedures as well as rules
and regulations has been caused by three contemporary developments. First is the require-
ment for administrative due process in employee disciplinary matters, encouraged by fed-
eral court rulings, police officer bill of rights legislation, and labor contracts. The second
development is the threat of civil litigation. Lawsuits against local governments and their
criminal justice agencies and administrators (see Chapter 9) have become commonplace;
written guidelines by police agencies prohibiting certain acts provide a hedge against suc-
cessful civil litigation.21 The third stimulus is the trend toward the accreditation of police
agencies (discussed later). Agencies that either are pursuing accreditation or have become
accredited must follow policies and practice procedures.22
Policies are quite general and serve basically as guidelines to thinking, rather than
action. Policies reflect the purpose and philosophy of the organization and help interpret
them for the officers. An example of a policy might be that everyone found to be driving
while under the influence of drugs or alcohol must be arrested; or that all juveniles who are
to be detained must be taken to a certain facility. Procedures are more detailed than poli-
cies and provide the preferred methods for handling matters pertaining to investigation,
patrol, booking, radio transmissions, filing reports, roll call, activation of body worn
cameras, use of force, arrest, sick leave, evidence handling, promotion, and many other
elements of the job. Most police agencies are awash in procedures. Methods for accom-
plishing certain tasks are also found in myriad city or county administrative regulations
and police agency general orders (such as when a new federal court decision relating to
search and seizure is announced, or a new state or local law regarding the use of force
takes effect).
Rules and regulations are specific guidelines that leave little or no latitude for individ-
ual discretion. Some examples are: requirements that police officers not smoke in public;
that they check the operation of their vehicle and equipment before going on patrol; that
they not consume alcoholic beverages within a specified number of hours before going on
duty; or that they arrive in court or at roll call early. Rules and regulations are not always
popular, especially if they are perceived as unfair or unrelated to the job. Nonetheless, it is
the supervisor’s responsibility to ensure that officers perform these tasks with the same
degree of professionalism as they perform other job duties.
A sample policy on vehicle pursuits has been provided in Chapter 9.
Communication Within Police Organizations
Communication becomes exceedingly important and sensitive in nature in a police organi-
zation because of the nature of the information that is processed by officers—who often
see people when they are at their worst and when they are in their most embarrassing and
compromising situations. To “communicate” what is known about these kinds of behav-
iors could be devastating to the parties concerned.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 295
▼
Types of Communication Communication within police organizations may be down- ward, upward, or horizontal. There are five types of downward communication within such
an organization23:
1. Job instruction. Communication that relates to the performance of a certain task.
2. Job rationale. Communication that relates a certain task to organizational tasks.
3. Procedures and practice. Communication about organizational policies, procedures,
rules, and regulations.
4. Feedback. Communication about how an individual performs an assigned task.
5. Indoctrination. Communication designed to motivate the employee.
Upward communication in a police organization may encounter several obstacles.
First, the physical distance between superior and subordinate impedes upward communi-
cation. Communication is often difficult and infrequent when superiors are isolated. In
large police organizations, the administration may be located in headquarters that are
removed from the operations personnel. The complexity of the organization may also
cause prolonged delays in communication. For example, if a patrol officer observes a prob-
lem that needs to be taken to the highest level, normally this information must first be
taken to the sergeant and then to the lieutenant, the captain, the deputy chief or the chief,
and so on. At each level, the superiors reflect on the problem, putting their own interpreta-
tion on it (possibly including how the problem might affect them professionally or even
personally) and perhaps diluting or distorting the problem. Thus, delays in communication
are inherent in a bureaucracy.
Horizontal communication thrives in an organization when formal communication
channels are not open.24 The disadvantage of horizontal communication is that it is
much easier and more natural to achieve than vertical communication; therefore, it
often replaces vertical channels. Horizontal channels are usually of an informal nature,
including the grapevine (which is discussed next). The advantage is that horizontal
communication is essential if the subsystems within a police organization are to func-
tion in an effective and coordinated manner. Horizontal communication among peers
may also provide emotional and social bonds that build morale and feelings of team-
work among employees.
The grapevine Something “heard through the grapevine” is a rumor from an anony- mous source. The expression “grapevine telegraph” is also sometimes used, referring to
the speed with which rumors spread. Rumors are another type of communication, and
police agencies certainly have their share of scuttlebutt. Departments even establish rumor
control centers during major riots. Compounding the usual barriers to communication is
the fact that policing is a twenty-four-hour, seven-day occupation, so rumors are easily car-
ried from one shift to the next.
The grapevine’s most effective characteristics are that it is fast, it operates mostly at the
place of work, and it supplements regular formal communication. On the positive side, it
can be a tool that management can use to get a feel for employees’ attitudes, to spread use-
ful information, and to help employees vent their frustrations. The grapevine, however,
can also carry untruths and be malicious. Without a doubt, the grapevine is a force for
administrators to reckon with every day.
Written Communication Within complex organizations, confidence is generally placed in the written word. It establishes a permanent record, but transmitting infor-
mation in this way does not necessarily ensure that the message will be clear to the
receiver, despite the writer’s best efforts. This may be due in large measure to short-
comings in the writer’s skills. Nonetheless, police organizations rely heavily on written
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 296
▼
communication, as evidenced by the proliferation of written directives and reports
found in most of these agencies.
In the same vein, written communication is also preferred as a medium for dealing with
citizens or groups outside the police agency. This means of communication provides the
greatest protection against the growing number of legal actions taken against agencies by
activists, citizens, and interest groups. In recent years, e-mail has also proliferated as a
communications medium in criminal justice organizations. E-mail can provide an easy-to-
use and almost instantaneous communication through a computer—in upward, downward,
or horizontal directions. For all its advantages, however, e-mail messages can lack security
and be ambiguous not only with respect to the meaning of the contents but also with regard
to what they represent. Are such messages, in fact, mail that should be given the full weight
of an office letter or memo, or should they be treated more as offhand comments?25
Barriers to Effective Communication
In addition to the inaccurate nature of the grapevine and the preponderance of poor writing
skills, several other potential barriers to effective communication exist. Some people, for
example, are not good listeners. Unfortunately, listening is one of the most neglected and
least understood of the communication arts.26 We allow other things to obstruct our com-
munication, including time, too little or too much information, the tendency to say what
we think others want to hear, the failure to select the best word, prejudices, and strained
sender–receiver relationships.27 Also, subordinates do not always have the same “big pic-
ture” viewpoint that superiors possess and may not communicate well with more fluent
and persuasive superiors.
▶ Local Agencies
Police Departments and Sheriff’s Offices: A Comparison
Today Sir Robert Peel (discussed in Chapter 1) would be amazed because there are over
17,000 general-purpose municipal police departments and county sheriff’s departments in
the United States.28 The municipal agencies are comprised of about 477,000 sworn full-
time police officers,29 and 3,012 sheriff’s offices employ about 189,000 sworn full-time
deputies.30 Following is a brief overview of their employee composition, educational
requirements, starting salaries, and some authorized equipment. Municipal police
d epartments employ an average of 2.1 full-time officers per 1,000 population; about one in
eight of these sworn employees is a woman, and one in four is a member of a racial or
ethnic minority. For educational requirements, about 15 percent of local police agencies
require new officers to have some college experience, with 11 percent requiring at least a
two-year college degree. The average starting salary for an entry-level local officer is about
$44,000. Significantly, about half of local police agencies employ fewer than ten sworn
personnel. Almost 75 percent of these agencies require their officers to wear protective
body armor at all times while on duty; 68 percent use video cameras in patrol cars, over
80 percent authorize the use of electronic control devices (such as a Taser), and more than
90 percent of agencies serving 25,000 or more residents use in-car computers. More infor-
mation concerning municipal police agencies may be obtained at http://www.bjs.gov/
content/pub/pdf/lpd13ppp.pdf.31
In county sheriff’s departments, about one in eight sworn employees is a woman,
and 19 p ercent are members of a racial or ethnic minority. For educational requirements, about
10 percent of sheriff’s offices require new deputies to have some college experience, with
7 percent requiring at least a two-year college degree. The average starting salary for an
entry-level deputy is about $31,000. About three-fifths of sheriff’s departments employ
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 297
▼
fewer than twenty-five sworn personnel. Fifty-seven percent of these agencies require their
officers to wear protective body armor at all times while on duty; two-thirds use video
cameras in patrol cars, 66 percent authorize the use of electronic control devices (such as a
Taser), and over 85 percent of agencies serving 100,000 or more residents use in-car com-
puters. More information concerning county sheriff’s departments may be obtained at
http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/sop9313.pdf.32
Executive Officers: Police Chief and County Sheriff
Having analyzed police organizations, we now look at the two primary chief executive
officers: the police chief (also known as the police superintendent, commissioner, or direc-
tor) and the county sheriff. After looking at the qualifications for and functions of these
positions, we consider their roles in more detail with the Mintzberg model of chief execu-
tive officers.
The chief or sheriff of a ten-person agency faces many of the same problems and
expectations as his or her big-city counterpart. The difference between managing large and
small departments is a matter of scale. Executives of large departments face a larger vol-
ume of many of the same problems that executives of small departments face. The leader
of a small department must not only deal with all these managerial concerns but in many
cases must also perform the duties of a working officer.
Furthermore, the police commissioner’s style must be flexible. Management style is
always contingent on the situation and the people being managed.33 The police commis-
sioner would behave one way at the scene of a hostage situation and another way at the
scene of a shoplifting. A less experienced employee will require a more authoritarian style
of management than a more experienced employee.
Chiefs of Police Qualifications, Selection, and Tenure The required qualifica- tions for the position of chief of police vary widely, depending on the size of the agency
and the region of the country. Smaller agencies, especially those in rural areas, may not
have any minimum educational requirement for the job. Large agencies, on the other
hand, may require college education plus several years of progressively responsible police
management experience.34
Although it is certainly cheaper to select a police chief from within the organization
than to recruit an outsider, the value of doing so is open to debate. There are obvious
advantages and disadvantages to both practices. One study of police chiefs promoted from
within and hired from outside in the West found significant differences in only one area:
educational attainment. The outsiders were more highly educated, but the two groups did
not differ in other areas, including background, attitudes, salary, tenure in current position
or in policing, and size of agency, community, or current budget.35 Some states have made
it nearly impossible for nonresidents to be hired as police chiefs. For example, California
has mandated that the chief be a graduate of its full Peace Officers Standards and Training
(POST) academy; New Jersey and New York also encourage “homegrown” chiefs.36
A survey of 358 police chiefs in larger jurisdictions (50,000 or more residents) con-
ducted by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) found that these chiefs were more
educated than ever before (87 percent held a bachelor’s degree and 47 percent had a mas-
ter’s degree) and were more likely to have been chosen from outside the agencies they
head. Even so, most chiefs spent less than five years in the position.37
To obtain the most capable people for executive positions in policing—and to avoid
personnel, liability, and other kinds of problems that can arise from poor personnel
choices—many agencies have adopted the assessment center method (discussed in
Chapter 2), an elaborate yet efficacious means of hiring and promoting personnel.
Although more costly and time consuming than conventional testing methods
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 298
▼
(e.g., candidates’ resumes are examined and oral interviews are held), the assessment
center method is well worth the extra investment. Money invested at the early stages
of hiring or promotion can save untold dollars and problems for many years to come.
The process may include interviews; psychological tests; management tasks; group
discussions; simulations of interviews with subordinates, the public, and the
news media; fact-finding exercises; oral presentation exercises; and written communi-
cation exercises.38
Job security for police chiefs ranges from full civil service protection in a small per-
centage of agencies to appointment and removal at the discretion of the mayor or city
manager. There is a growing trend for a fixed term of office, such as a four- or five-year
contract. Traditionally, however, the tenure of police chiefs has been short. A federal study
in the mid-1970s found that the average term in office by chiefs of police was 5.4 years.39
Another study by PERF a decade later found the average to be practically unchanged:
5.5 years. That figure has not changed in more recent times.40 Those who are appointed
from within the agency tend to have longer tenure than those appointed from outside. This
lack of job tenure has several negative consequences, including the difficulty of long-range
planning, the possible negative effect of frequently having new policies and administrative
styles, the inability of the short-term chief to develop a political power base and local influ-
ence, and the time and expense involved in hiring a new chief.
A Career Profile describes the work of the police chief.
Sheriff Nature of Position As discussed in Chapter 1, the position of sheriff has a long tradition. Sheriffs today tend to be elected; thus most candidates are aligned with a politi-
cal party, and it is possible that the only qualification a person brings to the office is the
ability to get votes.
In some areas of the country, the sheriff’s term of office is limited to two years, and the
sheriff is prohibited from serving successive terms. In most counties, however, the sheriff
has a four-year term and can be reelected. Sheriffs enjoy no guarantee of tenure in office,
although a federal study found that sheriffs (who average 6.7 years in office) had longer
tenure in office than police chiefs.41 The politicization of the office of sheriff can obviously
result in both high turnover rates of personnel who do not have civil service protection and
a lack of long-range (strategic) planning.
Also, largely due to the political nature of the office, sheriffs tend to be older, are
less likely to have been promoted through the ranks of the agency, have less special-
ized training, and are less likely to be college graduates compared to police chiefs.
Research has also found that sheriffs in small agencies have more difficulty with orga-
nizational problems (e.g., field activities and budget management), whereas sheriffs in
large agencies find dealing with local officials and using planning and evaluation to be
more troublesome.
Functions. Because of the diversity of sheriffs’ offices throughout the country, it is
difficult to describe a “typical” sheriff’s department; the offices run the gamut from the
traditional, highly political, limited-service office to the modern, fairly nonpolitical, full-
service police organization.42 It is possible, however, to list functions commonly
associated with the sheriff’s office:
• Maintaining and operating the county correctional institutions
• Serving civil processes (protective orders, liens, evictions, garnishments, and attach- ments) and performing other civil duties, such as extradition and transportation
of prisoners
• Collecting certain taxes and conducting real estate sales (usually for nonpayment of taxes) for the county
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 299
▼
▲ About three-fourths of all sheriff’s offices operate a jail. (Courtesy Washoe County Sheriff ’s
Office.)
• Performing order-maintenance duties by enforcing state statutes and county ordi- nances, arresting offenders, and performing traffic and criminal investigations
• Serving as bailiff of the courts
Other general duties vary from one region to another. In some parts of the country, the
sheriff’s office serves a correctional or civil function but no major patrol function. As a
result, many citizens may be unaware of their sheriff’s office because there is so little
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 300
▼
Career Profile Name: Theron L. Bowman, Ph.D.
Position: Police Chief
City, State: Arlington, Texas
College attended: University of Texas at Arlington
Academic Majors: Ph.D., urban and public administration; Master’s, public administration; Bachelor’s, biology
How long have you occupied this position/assignment?
I served as Arlington, Texas (APD) Police Chief for 13.5 years. I began my career in law enforcement there in 1983 and served in narcotics, patrol, personnel/recruiting, and community affairs before being promoted to sergeant, lieutenant, deputy chief and assistant chief. I became police chief in 1999. [Authors’ note: Mr. Bowman is currently Deputy City Manager of Arlington]
How would you briefly describe this
position/assignment?
As Chief of Police, I serve as the chief administrator of a department consisting of about 640 sworn officers. I am responsible for policy development, supervision and implementation of programs administered by the APD, and work to ensure that established goals, long-range plans, objectives and policies are being administered across the organization. I am responsible for budgetary oversight of the APD and work closely with law enforce- ment officials from other jurisdictions. An inordinate amount of time is spent looking at the future, so the position requires being visionary, forward-leaning, and to some extent prophetic. The APD upholds the highest standards in policing and accountability, as evidenced by its accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies.
What attracted you to this position/assignment?
My passion for law enforcement and public safety began as a young boy growing up in Fort Worth, where a police officer in my neighborhood made a lasting and positive impact on my life. Upon graduation from college I applied to the APD because I wanted a rewarding career in law enforcement. I was attracted to the Police Chief’s position because I wanted to make a bigger impact on quality of life in our city, specifically in our neighborhoods and with our youth. I wanted to work closely with the city’s executive team and our City Council to preserve the
quality of life in our neighborhoods. This was an oppor- tunity for me to leverage partnerships and encourage more community investment in making Arlington a safer city. Arlington is also a tourist destination (more than six million visitors travel here annually), so the safety of our guests is also very important to me.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position/assignment?
It is important to have a proven history as an innovative leader. One must be knowledgeable of the principles and practices of modern police administration; have extensive knowledge of state statutes, codes, federal guidelines, protocols and all local ordinances relat- ing to law enforcement; have a true passion for public service and law enforcement; and have demonstrated success in the areas of communications and planning. He or she must also be able to grow community and regional partnerships and have a good combination of experience and education. The “icing on the cake” would be a healthy dose of political savvy: be capa- ble in political arenas, be politically astute, and drive appropriate legislative agendas without being political.
How would you describe a typical day for one in this
position/assignment?
Attending meetings with command staff to discuss and understand the day-to-day issues and challenges occur- ring in the department and city. We consistently work to identify ways to maintain high-quality, cost-effective services that improve safety for our citizens and visitors. My day may also include meetings with neighborhood groups, youth groups, school officials, business/economic partners, the city manager, mayor and city council mem- bers. The day could also include coordination of regional projects that might impact public safety in North Texas.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
Study and learn about policing methods. Learn every- thing you can about the history and culture of policing because they impact current operational and manage- ment philosophies. Seek exposure to disciplines outside of policing as well to assist in developing well-rounded approaches to policing communities. Maintain high morals and values and always make good choices. Take advantage of internship opportunities where avail- able. Pursue graduate studies. Seek out opportunities to enhance leadership skills. Understand that with the call into policing comes an obligation to yourself, your agency and the field to make it better than it would have been without your influence.
(Courtesy Oklahoma State
Bureau of Investigation.)
interaction between deputies and most members of the public. In other parts of the country,
however, the sheriff’s office is the primary provider of public safety and emergency ser-
vices. Here, the position of sheriff is often the most important locally elected official.
Next we continue to discuss the roles of police chiefs and sheriffs but in a different
manner, using the Mintzberg model of chief executive officers.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 301
▼
▶ Mintzberg Model of Chief Executive Officers
What do contemporary police executives really do? Ronald Lynch described in simple
terms their primary tasks:
They listen, talk, write, confer, think, decide—about men, money, materials, methods,
facilities—in order to plan, organize, direct, coordinate, and control their research service,
production, public relations, employee relations, and all other activities so that they may
more effectively serve the citizens to whom they are responsible.43
A police executive actually has many roles. Some chief executive officers (CEOs)
openly endorse and subscribe to the philosophy of Henry Mintzberg, who described a set of
behaviors and tasks of CEOs in any organization.44 Following is an overview of the roles of
the police agency CEO—that is, the chief of police or sheriff—using the Mintzberg model
and its interpersonal, informational, and decision-maker roles as an analytic framework.
Interpersonal Role
First we will consider the interpersonal role, which includes figurehead, leadership, and
liaison duties. As a figurehead, the CEO performs various ceremonial functions. Examples
include riding in parades and attending other civic events; speaking before school and uni-
versity classes and civic organizations; meeting with visiting officials and dignitaries;
attending academy graduations and swearing-in ceremonies and some weddings and
funerals; and visiting injured officers in the hospital. Like the mayor who cuts ribbons and
kisses babies, the CEO performs these duties simply because of his or her position within
the organization; the duties come with being a figurehead. Although police chiefs and
sheriffs cannot realistically be expected to commit to every committee meeting, speaking
engagement, and other event to which they are invited, they are obligated from a profes-
sional standpoint to attend as many as they can.
The leadership function requires the CEO to motivate and coordinate workers while
resolving different goals and needs within the department and the community. A chief or
sheriff may have to urge the governing board to enact a code or ordinance that, whether
popular or not, is in the best interest of the jurisdiction. For example, a police chief recently
led a drive to pass an ordinance that prohibited university students from parking in residential
neighborhoods surrounding the campus, which was a highly unpopular undertaking, but
the chief pursued it because of the hardships suffered by the area residents. CEOs also
provide leadership in such matters as bond issues (to raise money for more officers or new
buildings) and should advise the governing body on the effects of proposed ordinances.
The role as liaison is performed when the CEO of a police organization interacts with
other organizations and coordinates workflows. It is not uncommon for police executives
from one geographic area—the police chief, the sheriff, the ranking officer of the local
highway patrol office, the district attorney, the campus police chief—to meet informally
each month to discuss common problems and strategies. Also, the chief executives serve
as liaisons between their agencies and others in forming regional police councils, narcotics
units, crime labs, dispatching centers, task forces, and so forth. They also meet with repre-
sentatives of the courts, the juvenile system, and other criminal justice agencies.
Informational Role
The second major role of a CEO under the Mintzberg model is the informational role,
which involves the CEO in monitoring/inspecting and disseminating information and act-
ing as spokesperson. In the monitoring/inspecting function, the CEO constantly looks at
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 302
▼
the workings of the department to ensure that things are operating smoothly (or as smoothly
as a police agency can be expected to run). This function is often referred to as “roaming
the ship,” and many CEOs who have isolated themselves from their personnel and from
the daily operations of the agency can speak from experience of the need to be alert and to
create a presence. Many police executives use daily staff meetings to discuss any informa-
tion about the past twenty-four hours that might affect the department.
The disseminating tasks involve both getting information to members of the department
and to the public. The former may include memorandums, special orders, general orders,
and policies. For the latter, it must be remembered that news organizations, especially the
television and print media, are highly competitive businesses that seek to obtain the most
complete news in the shortest amount of time—which often translates to wider viewership
and therefore greater advertising revenues for them. From one perspective, the media must
appreciate that a criminal investigation can be seriously compromised by premature or
excessive coverage. From another perspective, the public has a legitimate right to know
what is occurring in the community, especially matters relating to crime. Therefore, the
prudent police executive attempts to have an open and professional relationship with the
media in which each side knows and understands its responsibilities. Many chief executives
employ a public information officer (PIO) who is trained in public speaking as well as what
kinds of and how much information should be divulged to media outlets. Unfortunately,
however, there is no lack of police executives who failed to develop and maintain an appro-
priate relationship with the media. Such chief executives must recognize the power of the
pen or, as one person put it, “Don’t argue with someone who buys his ink by the barrel!”
Decision-Maker Role
As a decision maker, the CEO of a police organization serves as an entrepreneur, a distur-
bance handler, a resource allocator, and a negotiator. As entrepreneur, the CEO must sell
ideas to the governing board or the department. Ideas might include new computers or a
new communications system, a policing strategy (such as community policing), or differ-
ent work methods, all of which are intended to improve the organization. Sometimes there
is a blending of roles, as when several police executives band together (functioning as
liaisons) and go to the state attorney general and the legislature to lobby (in an entrepre-
neurial capacity) for new crime-fighting laws.
As a disturbance handler, the executive’s tasks range from the minor (perhaps resolv-
ing trivial disputes between staff members) to the major (such as handling riots or mug-
gings in a local park or cleaning up the city’s downtown). Sometimes the intradepartmental
disputes can reach major proportions; for example, if the patrol commander tells the street
officers to arrest more public drunks, it might create a severe strain on the jail division
commander’s resources, causing enmity between the two commanders and forcing the
chief executive to intervene.
As a resource allocator, the CEO must be able to say no to subordinates. However,
subordinates should not be faulted for trying to obtain more resources or for trying to
improve their unit as best they can. The CEO must have a clear idea of the budget and what
the priorities are and must listen to citizen complaints and act accordingly. For example,
ongoing complaints of motorists speeding in a specific area will result in a shifting of
patrol resources to that area or neighborhood.
As a negotiator, the police manager resolves employee grievances and sits as a mem-
ber of the negotiating team for labor relations. A survey by PERF found that seven out of
ten municipal police departments with more than seventy-five employees have some form
of union representation.45
Collective bargaining puts the CEO in a difficult position. As a member of manage-
ment, the CEO is often compelled to argue against salaries and benefits that would benefit
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 303
▼
the rank and file. As mentioned earlier, however, as long as a limited supply of funds is
available to the jurisdiction, managers will have to draw the line at some point and say no
to subordinates. Again, the collective-bargaining unit and individual officers cannot be
faulted for trying to improve salaries, benefits, and working conditions, but sometimes
these associations go outside the boundary of reasonableness and reach an impasse or
deadlock in contract negotiations with management. These situations can become uncom-
fortable and even disastrous, leading to work stoppages, work speedups, work slowdowns,
or other such tactics (discussed in detail in Chapter 6).
▶ Middle Managers: Captains and Lieutenants
Few police administration books discuss the middle managers of a police department: cap-
tains and lieutenants. This is unfortunate because they are too numerous and too powerful
within police organizations to ignore. Opinions vary about these mid-management person-
nel, however. Normally, captains and lieutenants are commissioned officers, with the posi-
tion of captain second in rank to the executive managers. Captains generally have authority
over officers of the agency below the chief or sheriff, to whom they are solely responsible.
Lieutenants are in charge of sergeants and all officers and report to captains. Captains and
lieutenants may perform the following functions46:
• Inspecting assigned operations.
• Reviewing and making recommendations on reports.
• Helping to develop plans.
• Preparing work schedules.
• Overseeing records and equipment.
• Overseeing recovered or confiscated property.
• Enforcing all laws and orders.
The prospective or newly promoted lieutenant or captain can obtain formal training con-
cerning the role and functions that accompany the domain of middle management. Courses
of more than 100 hours’ duration are commonly offered on this topic, usually at state police
academies and even colleges and universities, and cover the kinds of topics listed earlier. In
addition to those topics, information is often provided concerning general leadership, strate-
gic planning, fiscal management, personnel and legal issues, critical incident management,
ethics, risk management, media relations, and project presentations and reports.47
To avoid having their middle managers become mired in paperwork—myriad
reports, budgets, grants, and so on—police agencies should take a hard look at which
managerial services are essential and whether lieutenants are needed to perform such
services. Some communities, such as Kansas City, Missouri, eliminated the rank of lieu-
tenant, finding that this move had no negative consequences and some positive effects.48
This process—removing ranks of middle management—is sometimes referred to as
“flattening” the organization.
Obviously, when a multilayered bureaucracy is created, a feudal kingdom and several
fiefdoms will occupy the building.49 It is important to remember that the two crucial
elements to organizational effectiveness are top administrators and operational personnel.
Middle management should not become a barrier between these two primary elements.
Research has shown an inverse relationship between the size of the hierarchy in an
organization and its effectiveness.50 Normally, the closer the administrator is to the
operations, the more effective the agency.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 304
▼
▶ First-Line Supervisors
At some point during the career of a patrol officer who has acquired the minimum years of
experience, he or she has the opportunity to test for promotion to first-line supervisor, or
sergeant in most agencies. Competition for this position is quite keen in most departments.
To compete well, officers are often advised to rotate into different agency assignments to
gain exposure to a variety of both police functions and supervisors before testing for the
sergeant’s position. The promotional system, then, favors not only those officers who are
skilled at test taking but also those who have experience outside the patrol division.51
The supervisor’s role, put simply, is to get his or her subordinates to do their very best.
This task involves a host of activities, including communicating, motivating, mediating,
mentoring, leading, team building, training, developing, appraising, counseling, and
disciplining. As a result, no other rank in the police hierarchy exerts more direct influence
over the working environment, morale, and performance of employees.
Adding to the complexity of the supervisor’s role is the fact that the supervisor is
generally in his or her first leadership position. A new supervisor must learn how to
exercise command and be responsible for the behavior of several other employees.
▲ Bothell, Washington, Police Chief Carol Cummings congratulates two newly promoted sergeants, Ethan Nguyen and
Steve Kerzman. The rank of sergeant is one of the most difficult and challenging positions in a police organization. (Courtesy
Bothell Police Department.)
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 305
▼
Long-standing relationships are put under stress when one party suddenly has official
authority over former equals. Expectations of leniency or preferential treatment may
have to be dealt with.
The supervisor is caught in the middle, working with rank-and-file employees—
labor—on the one hand and middle or upper management on the other. While it is manage-
ment’s job to squeeze as much productivity out of workers as possible, labor’s motivation
often seems to be to avoid work as much as possible. Supervisors find themselves right in
the middle of this contest.
Ten Tasks
For all these reasons, the first-line supervisor has one of the most complex roles in the
organization. If the supervisor fails to make sure that employees perform correctly, the
unit will not be very successful, causing difficulties for mid-level managers and adminis-
trators. The following ten tasks are most important for sergeants and are listed in order of
their importance52:
1. Supervising subordinate officers in the performance of their duties (including such
tasks as maintaining inventory of equipment, training subordinates, preparing
monthly activity reports, scheduling vacation leave).
2. Disseminating information to subordinates.
3. Ensuring that general and special orders are followed.
4. Observing subordinates in handling calls and other duties (including securing major
crime scenes).
5. Reviewing and approving various departmental reports.
6. Listening to problems voiced by officers.
7. Answering backup calls.
8. Keeping superiors apprised of ongoing situations.
9. Providing direct supervision for potential high-risk calls or situations.
10. Interpreting policies and informing subordinates.
As with middle managers, discussed earlier, the prospective or newly-promoted ser-
geant need not feel as though he or she is about to be sent into the supervisory arena
without any formal preparation. There are opportunities available for them to attend
related formal training sessions (often in courses of 80-hour duration) and learn not only
about the ten tasks delineated previously, but also about conducting personnel evalua-
tions, handling critical incidents, engaging in organizational communication, various
leadership styles, performing conflict management, and differentiating between decision-
making models.53
▶ Police and Politics
good Politics, Bad Politics
As we saw in Chapter 1, the history of policing is so replete with politics that it even
experienced a political “era.” Still, this is an aspect of policing that is often overlooked,
and it has had both good and bad elements. Political influence can range from major ben-
eficial policy, personnel, and budgetary decisions to the overzealous city manager or city
council member who wants to micromanage the police department and even appears
unexpectedly at night at a crime scene (overheard on his or her police scanner) to “help”
the officers.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 306
▼
Norm Stamper, former chief of police in Seattle, Washington, described the relation-
ship between politics and policing very well:
Everything about policing is ultimately political. Who gets which office: political. Which
services are cut when there’s a budget freeze: political. Who gets hired, fired, promoted:
political, political, political. The challenge . . . is to make sure the politics of picking and
promoting people is as fair as possible, and as mindful of the greater good of the organiza-
tion and of the community as possible. I hire my brother-in-law’s cousin, a certifiable doo-
fus, because he’s got a bass boat I wouldn’t mind borrowing—bad politics. I promote a
drinking buddy—bad politics. I pick an individual because he or she will add value to the
organization and will serve the community honorably—good politics.54
Policing can be said to be very similar to politics, which is defined as: “The activities
associated with the governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict
among individuals or parties having or hoping to achieve power.”55 Both words derive
from the Greek terms for “citizen” and “citizenship,” and police also comes from the
Greek word for “city”: polis; furthermore, both politics and policing certainly involve
debate or conflict.
Historically, police departments in the United States have been political bodies, exten-
sions of the municipal political authority.56 Because of the close relationship between
police departments and the political leadership of the community, political power has often
been abused (see Exhibit 11-1 ■). From the beginning of the twentieth century, when the
exhibit 11-1
In the 1920s and 1930s, Thomas Pendergast’s political
“machine” ran Kansas City, Missouri: workers were
provided jobs, handpicked politicians ran the
government, and Pendergast profited handsomely. In
1932, the City Council, under Pendergast’s influence,
approved a home-rule ordinance bringing the police
department (KCPD) under city governance for the first
time since its inception in 1874. Thus the department
was another cog in the Pendergast machine, and
officers ignored illegal gambling, prostitution and
saloons in order to stay in the boss’s favor. In 1939,
however, the state attorney general began a campaign
against the machine, and the governor had the police
department returned to state control. Thus was
reinstated the governor-appointed Board of Police
Commissioners, the system in use today.
Today, the KCPD Board of Police Commissioners
is statutorily mandated to provide police service to the
citizens of Kansas City. The state’s governor, with the
consent of the senate, appoints four citizens to serve on
the Board for four-year terms. The fifth member of the
Board is the city’s mayor, with the Board’s secretary
appointed by the Commissioners and acting as legal
consultant. The KCPD is one of only two police depart-
ments in the nation (in addition to St. Louis) that is so
governed, as opposed to being overseen by a city council/
commission.
It is believed that this concept is excellent for keep-
ing politics and corruption out of policing, given that
the Board, except for the mayor, is composed of people
who are not elected politicians, not running for office,
and not raising campaign funds. Indeed, those four
police commissioners must take an oath not to engage
in political activity.
The city government does, however, provide (and
control) the department with funding, and police com-
manders and others regularly attend city meetings and
work on consolidated projects in such areas as radio
maintenance, parking control, dispatching, and infor-
mation technology.
Source: Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners
Reducing oR eliminating Politics: the Kansas city, missouRi, BoaRd
of Police commissioneRs
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 307
▼
journalist Lincoln Steffens exposed corruption in American cities, to more recent times,
when police scandals have rocked departments in New York City, Chicago, and Miami,
politics has been shown to be entwined in the relationships that often bind criminals and
police officers. Partisan politics has often been the cause of police corruption.57
Police Executive Relations and Expectations
The chief of police is generally considered to be one of the most influential and prestigious
people in local government. However, much of the power of the office has eroded because
of the high attrition rate, the increased power of local personnel departments, and the
strong influence of police unions. Furthermore, mayors, city managers and administrators,
members of the agency, citizens, special-interest groups, and the media all have differing,
often conflicting, expectations of the role of chief of police.
The mayor or city manager is likely to believe that the chief of police should be an
enlightened administrator whose responsibility is to promote departmental efficiency,
reduce crime, improve service, and so on. Other mayors and managers will appreciate the
chief who simply “keeps the lid on” and manages to keep the morale high and the number
of citizen complaints low.58 However, the mayor or city manager may also properly expect
the chief to be part of the city management team, communicate city management’s policies
to police personnel, establish agency goals and objectives, select and effectively manage
people, and be a responsible steward of the budget.59
The relationship between the police chief and the mayor is difficult to articulate. However,
several points are indispensable in the relationship. First, the mayor is boss; indeed,
the mayor possesses the legal or political power to fire or force the police chief out of office
almost on a whim. Second, the mayor has the responsibility for assuring the public that the
police are doing the best they can with available resources. Third, the police executive, if
chosen on merit, has considerable knowledge about the problems of the community, and a
wide array of possible solutions—expertise that will serve city hall well—and the mayor
should come to rely on the chief’s pragmatism and take-charge approach as well. Finally, the
mayor must give the chief the authority to run his or her department day-to-day; without this
autonomy, perhaps guided by the mayor’s input, the chief’s authority will be eroded.60
Members of the police agency may have different expectations of the chief executive.
They may be less concerned with cost-effectiveness and more concerned with good sala-
ries, benefits, and equipment. The officers expect the chief to be their advocate, backing
them up when necessary and representing the agency well in dealings with judges and
prosecutors who may be indifferent or hostile to their interests. Citizens, for their part,
expect the chief of police to provide efficient and cost-effective police services while
keeping crime and tax rates down and eliminating corruption and improper use of force.
Special-interest groups expect the chief to advocate desirable policy positions; for
example, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) insists on strong police measures
combating driving under the influence. Finally, the media expect the chief to cooperate
fully with their efforts to obtain fast and complete crime information.
▶ Policing in Small and Rural Jurisdictions
Fewer People, greater Needs
Although (and perhaps because) rural America is disappearing according to the latest U.S.
census—now accounting for only 16 percent of the nation’s population61—as indicated
previously, about half of municipal police agencies employ fewer than ten employees, and
about three-fifths of sheriff’s offices have fewer than twenty-five employees. Therefore,
special mention is warranted of policing in rural and small-town venues.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 308
▼
In 2007, the U.S. Congress formally recognized the important roles and needs of
rural police agencies, creating the Rural Policing Institute (RPI) within the Federal Law
Enforcement Training Center (FLETC, discussed in Chapter 10) and requiring
the RPI to: evaluate the needs of law enforcement agencies and other emergency
responders in rural areas; develop expert training programs based on identified needs;
deliver training programs to rural law enforcement officers and other emergency
response providers; and conduct outreach efforts to ensure rural agencies are aware
of the training.62
unique Duties
Police officers and deputy sheriffs in small and rural venues often have vastly different
duties than their urban counterparts. First, although the annual reports published by
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) do not indicate a proportionately high
number of officers in small towns and rural areas being killed either by felonious or
accidental means,63 the work is more solitary in nature and thus danger is omnipresent,
with a county deputy’s nearest backup unit—if there is one—possibly being dozens of
miles away.
Where actual police work is concerned, because of their much more flattened organi-
zational structure, these officers typically must be generalists rather than having special-
ized assignments, working all manner of criminal cases from beginning to end (with the
possible exception of serious, violent crimes, which might require that the state’s bureau
of investigation, or SBI, discussed in Chapter 10, be called for assistance). And the work
varies considerably; for example, a deputy sheriff may be working a burglary today and a
livestock theft tomorrow; protecting a crime scene involving a murder this morning and
patrolling the most remote areas in a four-wheel drive truck or on a horse later in the day.
Rural and small-town officers may be assigned more mundane chores than their larger
agency counterparts, such as locking and unlocking municipal parking lots, emptying
parking meters, delivering meeting agendas to the homes of governing officials, picking
up the daily receipts at the local swimming pool or golf course, and so on. Finally, they
work more in the public eye—the “fishbowl effect,” which can certainly cause a higher
level of stress.
A Career Profile describes some of the challenges of providing police services in a
small/rural jurisdiction.
Criminal Activity
According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, rape and larceny-theft are the two Part I
offenses reported by police as committed in rural areas at a higher rate than the national
average (in jurisdictions of less than 10,000 population).64 Also problematic, however, is
rural narcotics enforcement; in fact, some authorities argue it cannot be done. One
source states that agencies serving less than 7,000 citizens are unable to dedicate sworn
officers to full-time narcotics enforcement, so planning and executing investigations is
not feasible.65
If there does appear to be a drug problem in the area (based perhaps on surveys,
arrest statistics, and discussions with local citizens and area police agencies), local
agencies are urged to determine the most effective investigative approach, such as use
of undercover agents, confidential informants, reverse stings (also known as “buy and
bust,” where an officer pretends to be a drug dealer and sells to an unsuspecting cus-
tomer), and so on; then—depending on their level of resources—the agency can either
contact an outside state bureau of investigation, or attempt to perform the investiga-
tion itself.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 309
▼
Career Profile Name: Pat Soukup
Position: Captain, Administrative Services, Lyon County (Nevada) Sheriff’s Office (currently managing the Jail Division and Dispatch Center)
City, State: Yerington, Nevada
College attended: University of Nevada, Reno
Academic Major: Criminal Justice
How long have you occupied this position/assignment?
Employed by the sheriff’s office for 23.5 years, serving in the Field and Administrative Services Divisions; have served in this current position for the past 4.5 years. [Authors’ note: Cpt. Soukup left this position in 2015]
How would you briefly describe this position/assignment?
My primary roles are: managing the jail and dispatch supervisors and assist with administrative processes; overseeing entry level and promotional testing; secur- ing advanced training for personnel; assisting the sheriff with budgets and policies; completing progress reports on grant funding; and monitoring/enforcing professional standards throughout the agency (via the internal/citizen complaint process).
What attracted you to this position/assignment?
After serving for several years as the Patrol Services Captain, I was attracted to this position because it was new and challenging to me. The Jail Division has more liability than any other division of this agency, and both the jail and dispatch have a mixture of sworn and non-sworn employees, which makes supervision more diverse.
What qualities/characteristics are most helpful for this
position/assignment?
Education, confidence, trustworthiness, and most impor- tantly, the ability to trust your subordinate supervisors to do the job they were trained for, with minimal input.
How would you describe a typical day for one in this
position/assignment?
Communicating with my lieutenant who is in charge of the jail and also with the dispatch manager, to remain current on any issues facing either division; completing
grant reports; reviewing/writing employee evaluations; and researching training and reviewing any adminis- trative situations assigned to me by my superiors. I also might attend meetings involving a multi-agency advi- sory board and others covering such topics as budgets, training, policies, etc.
What advice would you offer someone who is beginning
their studies of policing and criminal justice?
Truly understand the education you are receiving at the college level. It isn’t designed to train you how to immediately do a job in law enforcement, but it will give you a well-rounded background to draw from as you deal with diverse groups in our society. Plan your career as well as you can from the beginning, and obtain training that is conducive to attaining those goals.
Challenges of policing in small and rural jurisdictions:
The effects on the smaller agencies caused by bud- gets and legislation are significant. My county con- tains several townships that are serviced by the Sheriff’s Office, which increases costs for our office space, patrol cars, fuels, manpower, supplies, and sup- port staff. Each patrol area must be supplied with a similar infrastructure. In addition, the jail is located in the county seat requiring each area to transport pris- oners. Also, rural areas have the same types of crimes as large urban areas, just not in the same frequency. When serious crimes occur, there can be a major impact on the county budget. Furthermore, rural agencies generally don’t have the budgets to main- tain seldom-used equipment or personnel (e.g., DNA laboratories, psychiatrists, coroners, and so on), so we must normally contract for such services through larger agencies. In addition, major crimes such as homicides can be very expensive in the investigative phase, trial preparation, and the actual trial. If several homicides occur within a calendar year, the District Attorney and Sheriff’s Office budgets could be almost entirely consumed, resulting in contingency requests. Finally, as science and technology increasingly enter crime and the criminal justice system, police training must keep pace. Many agencies conduct their own in-house training for basic (e.g., firearms, defensive tactics) but must pay for and travel to larger juris- dictions to receive advanced training. Unfortunately, when budgets decrease, two of the first items to be cut are usually training and travel; thus the quality of investigations can decrease and threats of lawsuits can increase from investigative shortcomings.
(Courtesy Pat Soukup.)
▶ Ways to Stretch Resources
The United States has many small police agencies; in fact, of the estimated 17,000
local police departments, nearly half (45.5 percent) employ fewer than ten sworn per-
sonnel; three-fourths employ twenty-five or fewer sworn personnel.66 Many communities
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 310
▼
that are small in size find it extremely difficult (if not impossible) to maintain a 24/7 police
or sheriff’s department—particularly one that is trained and staffed well enough to provide
a full range of policing services. Several factors complicate this issue. Many small depart-
ments, for example, are still struggling to recover from the recession of the mid-2000s that
reduced their budgets and prevented upgrades to equipment, training, and personnel. In
addition, police agencies of all sizes have come under intense scrutiny following recent
incidents around the United States that involved controversial encounters between officers
and citizens. Policy makers are especially concerned about the impact of these incidents on
smaller agencies that lack the capacity, resources, and experience to prevent major commu-
nity incidents or manage them should they occur in their jurisdictions.67
Options are available for small agencies facing concerns about quality standards as
well as staffing and funding shortages. Next, we discuss two of these options: consolida-
tion and civilianization.
Consolidated Policing
A means of unifying agencies and possibly achieving cost savings is through consolidated
policing, which is the merging of two or more city and/or county governments into a single
policing entity. There are variations of consolidation that occur to a lesser degree, however,
including: functional (two or more agencies combine certain functional units, such as jail,
communications/dispatch, or records), cross deputization/overlapping jurisdictions (such
as a county agency permitting a city’s police officers to make arrests in the county, or a city
allowing a sheriff’s department’s deputies to make arrests in the city), public safety (city or
county governments may unite all police, fire, and emergency medical services agencies),
local merger (two separate police agencies form a single new entity), regional (a number
of agencies combine to police a geographic area rather than a jurisdictional one),
metropolitan (two or more agencies serving overlapping jurisdictions join forces to
become one agency serving an entire metropolitan area), and government (a city and
adjoining county consolidate their entire governments, creating a “metro” form of
government for all citizens).68
Separate jurisdictions that combine into a single agency can have their sworn personnel
enforcing a single set of statutes or ordinances, wearing the same uniform, driving the
same type of patrol vehicle, and so on. One benefit involves better quality control that
comes with consistency of recruitment, training, supervision, and policy standards.
Another advantage is avoiding duplication of services (e.g., by having the ability to
purchase equipment in larger volume), which leads to economy of scale. As a caveat,
however, the initial cost of implementing consolidation can be high. In some states, the
enabling legislation requires that when two or more agencies combine their operations, the
best salary and benefits packages that already existed be brought into the newly consolidated
organization. This so-called cherry picking can obviously be quite expensive, especially in
the initial stages of consolidation when the new consolidated agency may also be top-
heavy with administrative personnel. Cost savings to be realized through consolidation,
therefore, may not be realized for many years (if ever), depending on how the agency is
structured, how the enabling legislation is written, and so on.
Civilianization
Most citizen calls for police service do not involve a crime or require a sworn officer to
enforce the laws. For that reason, many agencies are increasingly using civilianization for a
lot of functions performed traditionally by sworn personnel. This has worked particularly
well for such aspects of policing as dispatching, crime analysis (forensics), crime-scene
investigation, report taking, and even supplemental patrol duties. And as with consolidated
police services, doing so can be much more cost-effective by using non-sworn personnel,
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 311
▼
thus freeing sworn officers for critical police work. This is especially important when
many agencies today are being tasked to do more with less.
In fact, the use of civilians has become so widespread that an area of controversy has
arisen surrounding their use: How civilianized should the department become? Police
unions are becoming increasingly wary of management’s outsourcing of traditional police
tasks to civilians, viewing the latter as potential threats to their livelihood. Therefore, as
civilianization becomes more widespread, police chief executives must be mindful of the
potential for friction and poor officer morale because no one—citizens, sworn officers, or
civilian personnel—will benefit by losing a healthy and productive work environment.
Where they exist, the unions should be included in any planning and discussion of civilian-
ization and should help to fashion a plan that benefits the agency in ways that will be
received well by the rank and file.69
▶ Agency Accreditation
In 1979, the accreditation of police agencies began with the creation of the Commission
on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), located in Gainesville,
Virginia. Since then, several states have created accrediting bodies for their police and
corrections organizations.70
CALEA is a nonprofit organization that has developed and administers 464 voluntary
standards in nine subject areas for law enforcement agencies to meet. Although its primary
program is for police agencies as a whole, there are also separate, stand-alone accredita-
tions available for communications (dispatch) centers, training academies, and campus
policing organizations. Prior to being accredited, the agency first completes a self-
evaluation questionnaire to determine its current status. Then, when the agency is ready to
attempt accreditation, an on-site team appointed by CALEA conducts an assessment and
writes a report on its findings.71 Today nearly 750 agencies are accredited or recognized in
one of CALEA’s various programs, with several hundred others working toward their first
award.72 Given the resources of time, effort, and funds involved in becoming accredited,
what are the perceived benefits? According to one state-level accrediting body, the benefits
of being accredited include:
• enhancing community understanding of the agency and its role in the community, as well as its goals and objectives.
• providing an in-depth review of the agency’s organization, management, operations, and administration—and correcting of deficiencies before they become problems.
• evaluation of whether resources are being used in accord with agency goals, objec- tives, and mission.
• evaluation of agency policies and procedures.
• the opportunity to reorganize without the appearance of personal attacks on any personnel.
• providing objective measures to justify budget and personnel decisions and policies.
• increased employee morale and confidence in the effectiveness and efficiency of their agency.73
In 2011, CALEA adopted a tiered accreditation model that allows police agencies to
choose between levels of accreditation based on budget situations and staff reductions.
One level is comprised of 189 standards specifically linked to life, health, and safety issues
as well as those standards that are essential to the effective delivery of services for contem-
porary law enforcement agencies. The second level represents the full complement of
CALEA’s Standards for Law Enforcement Agencies, currently 464 standards.74
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 312
▼
Summary This chapter has presented local (municipal and county) police agencies as organizations
and bureaucracies and has explored organizational communication and the roles and func-
tions of police executives, middle managers, and first-line supervisors. A management
model (per Mintzberg) was employed to clarify the general roles and functions of police
administrators, and the relationship between the police and politics and how it permeates
the field were also addressed. Consolidated policing and civilianization, policing in small
and rural areas, as well as agency accreditation were also examined.
In the past, particularly during the political era of policing, many administrators, manag-
ers and supervisors, and officers were hired and attained their level of leadership responsibil-
ity through political favoritism. This hiring and promoting of unqualified personnel
contributed heavily to the massive growth of employee labor unions. This chapter has dem-
onstrated that today’s challenges are too complex and dangerous to leave personnel admin-
istration and hiring to chance. Today, to be an effective administrator, the individual must not
only know about policing but must also learn all he or she can about the most valuable
asset—people. Upon acquiring these human skills, the technical, conceptual, and other nec-
essary skills of the job must follow, lest the new leader walk off the gangplank and then sink
in an ocean of “alligators.” Poor administration and management skills can and do lead to
serious problems of ethics, civil liability, and accountability, as was seen in earlier chapters.
Key Terms
accreditation
bureaucracy
chain of command
chief of police
civilianization
Commission on Accreditation for
Law Enforcement Agencies
(CALEA)
communication
consolidated policing
county sheriff’s departments
first-line supervisor
middle managers
Mintzberg model
municipal police departments
organizational structure
organizations
policies and procedures
rules and regulations
Rural Policing Institute
sheriff
span of control
unity of command
Review Questions
1. What is an organization, and what elements of an organi-
zation, per Weber, are said to constitute a bureaucracy?
2. What are the elements—and purposes—of the basic
organizational structure of a police agency? Diagram
these basic elements.
3. What is meant by the terms chain of command, unity
of command, and span of control?
4. What are the differences between policies and proce-
dures and between rules and regulations (and what are
some examples of each)?
5. What processes of, and barriers to effective communi-
cation can exist within a police organization?
6. What are the primary differences between municipal
police departments and sheriff’s offices?
7. What are the roles of the police executive under the
Mintzberg model of chief executive officers?
8. How do the roles and functions differ for contempo-
rary chiefs of police and county sheriffs?
9. What are the roles and functions of mid-level manag-
ers and first-line supervisors?
10. How do political influences affect policing, and how
is a Board of Police Commissioners reputed to
diminish or eliminate them?
11. How do consolidated and civilianized police services
operate, and what are their advantages?
12. How does a police organization become accredited,
and what are advantages to doing so?
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 313
▼
Notes
1. The Museum of Broadcast Communications, “Police
P r o g r a m s ,” h t t p : / / w w w. m u s e u m . t v / e o t v /
policeprogra.htm.
2. Steven Levy, “Working in Dilbert’s World,”
Newsweek, August 12, 1996, pp. 52–57.
3. David A. Tansik and James F. Elliott, Managing
Police Organizations (Monterey, CA: Duxbury,
1981), p. 1.
4. Larry K. Gaines, Mittie D. Southerland, and John E.
Angell, Police Administration (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1991), p. 9.
5. Ibid.
6. John Kilcullen, “Max Weber: On Bureaucracy,”
Lecture; Pol., 246, Modern Political Theory,
Macquarie University Sydney, Australia, 1996.
7. Adapted from Max Weber, Essays in Sociology, ed.
and trans., H. H. Gerth and C. Wright Mills (New
York: Oxford University Press, 1946), pp. 196–204.
8. Samuel Walker, The Police in America: An Introduction,
2nd ed. (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1992), p. 86.
9. Interpersonal Communication: A Guide for Staff
Development (Athens: University of Georgia,
Institute of Government, August 1974), p. 15.
10. Wayne W. Bennett and Karen Hess, Management
and Supervision in Law Enforcement, 2nd ed.
(St. Paul, MN: West, 1996), p. 85.
11. See R. C. Huseman, quoted in Bennett and Hess,
Management and Supervision in Law Enforcement,
pp. 21–27. Material for this section was also drawn
from Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and
Robert W. Taylor, Police Administration: Structures,
Processes, and Behavior, 6th ed. (Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2005), pp. 309–311.
12. See George D. Eastman and Esther M. Eastman,
eds., Municipal Police Administration, 7th ed.
(Washington, DC: International City Management
Association, 1971), p. 17.
13. Ibid., p. 18.
14. St. Louis Regional Regional Chamber, “Regional
Data: Demographics,” http://www.stlregionalchamber.
com/regional-data/demographics.
15. Metropolitan Police Department, St. Louis, Missouri,
“Welcome from Chief Sam Dotson,” http://www.
slmpd.org/index.shtml.
16. President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and
Administration of Justice, Task Force Report: The
Police (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing
Office, 1967), p. 46.
17. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Police Departments in Large Cities, 1987
(Washington, D.C.: Author, 1989), p. 5, Table 10
(Special Report NCJ-119220).
18. M. D. Iannone and Nathan F. Iannone, Supervision of
Police Personnel, 6th ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2000).
19. Michael Carpenter, “Put It in Writing: The Police
Policy Manual,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 69
(October 2000): 1.
Learn by Doing
1. Your commander comes to you, having heard and
personally observed a number of problems concern-
ing the manner in which communication is occurring
from one duty shift to another; these problems pri-
marily involve inaccurate information being dissemi-
nated as well as a grapevine that seems bent on
carrying incorrect, malicious information. You are
assigned to look at the problem as well as recommend
means by which communications could be improved.
How would you proceed, and what kinds of ideas
might you put forth?
2. Your county sheriff has recently come out publicly
in favor of consolidating all police agencies in your
county. Having caught your new police chief off-
guard, your police chief asks you—the agency’s
director of research, planning, and analysis—
to explain in a memorandum all that would be
involved in creating and maintaining a single
county-wide police agency, to include advantages
and disadvantages of doing so. How do you
respond?
3. While you are working on the assignment in #2 (i.e.,
preparing a report on creating and maintaining a
consolidated police agency in your county), you are
asked by a local civic organization to appear at one
of its functions and describe and compare the roles
and functions of police chiefs and sheriffs. You
decide to use the Mintzberg model for chief execu-
tive officers to meet this address. Prepare a presenta-
tion that does so.
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 314
▼
20. Robert Sheehan and Gary W. Cordner, Introduction
to Police Administration, 2nd ed. (Cincinnati, OH:
Anderson, 1989), pp. 446–447.
21. Charles R. Swanson, Leonard Territo, and Robert W.
Taylor, Police Administration: Structures, Processes,
and Behavior, 5th ed. (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2001), p. 248.
22. Stephen W. Mastrofski, “Police Agency Accreditation:
The Prospects of Reform,” American Journal of
Police 5(3) (1986): 45–81.
23. D. Katz and R. L. Kahn, The Social Psychology of
Organizations (New York: John Wiley and Sons,
1966), p. 239; as cited in P. V. Lewis, Organizational
Communication: The Essence of Effective
Management (Columbus, OH: Grid, 1975), p. 36.
24. See R. K. Allen, Organizational Management
Through Communication (New York: Harper and
Row, 1977), pp. 77–79.
25. Alex Markels, “Managers Aren’t Always Able to Get
the Right Message Across with E-mail,” Wall Street
Journal, August 6, 1996, p. 2.
26. See, for example, Michael P. Nichols, The Lost Art of
Listening: How Learning to Listen Can Improve
Relationships, 2nd ed. (New York: The Guilford
Press, 2009).
27. Bennett and Hess, Management and Supervision in
Law Enforcement, p. 101.
28. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Census of State and
Local Law Enforcement Agencies, 2008, July 2011,
p. 2, http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/lpd13ppp.pdf.
29. Ibid.
30. Ibid.
31. Ibid. See also Brian Reaves, Local Police
Departments, 2013: Equipment and Technology.
U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, July 2015, http://www.bjs.gov/content/
pub/pdf/lpd13et.pdf.
32. Andrea Burch, Sheriffs’ Offices, 2007. U.S.
Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics,
December 2012, http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/
pdf/so07st.pdf.
33. Gaines et al., Police Administration, pp. 10–11.
34. Ibid., p. 42.
35. Janice Penegor and Ken Peak, “Polices Chief
Acquisitions: A Comparison of Internal and External
Selections,” American Journal of Police 11(1)
(1992): 17–32.
36. Richard B. Weinblatt, “The Shifting Landscape of
Chiefs’ Jobs,” Law and Order, October 1999, p. 50.
37. “Survey Says Big-City Chiefs Are Better-Educated
Outsiders,” Law Enforcement News, April 30,
1998, p. 7.
38. R. J. Filer, “Assessment Centers in Police
Selection,” in Proceedings of the National Working
Conference on the Selection of Law Enforcement
Officers, ed. C. D. Spielberger and H. C. Spaulding
(Tampa: University of South Florida, March
1977), p. 103.
39. National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice
Standards and Goals, Police Chief Executive
(Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office,
1976), p. 7.
40. Weinblatt, “The Shifting Landscape of Chiefs’
Jobs,” p. 51.
41. National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice
Standards and Goals, Police Chief Executive, p. 7.
42. Clemens Bartollas, Stuart J. Miller, and Paul B.
Wice, Participants in American Criminal Justice:
The Promise and the Performance (Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1983), pp. 51–52.
43. Ronald G. Lynch, The Police Manager: Professional
Leadership Skills, 3rd ed. (New York: Random
House, 1986), p. 1.
44. Henry Mintzberg, “The Manager’s Job: Folklore and
Fact,” Harvard Business Review 53 (July–August
1975): 49–61.
45. Donald C. Witham, The American Law Enforcement
Chief Executive: A Management Profile (Washington,
D.C.: Police Executive Research Forum, 1985), p. 12.
46. Bennett and Hess, Management and Supervision in
Law Enforcement, pp. 44–45.
47. For a comprehensive description of a police manage-
ment course and related certification process, see the
California Commission on Peace Officers Standards
and Training, “Management Course,” https://www.
post.ca.gov/management-course.aspx.
48. Richard N. Holden, Modern Police Management
(Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1986),
pp. 294–295.
49. Ibid., p. 295.
50. Thomas J. Peters and Robert H. Waterman Jr., In
Search of Excellence (New York: Warner, 1982),
pp. 306–317.
51. John Van Maanen, “Making Rank: Becoming an
American Police Sergeant,” in Critical Issues in
Policing: Contemporary Readings, ed. Roger G.
Dunham and Geoffrey P. Alpert (Prospect Heights,
IL: Waveland Press, 1989), pp. 146–161.
52. Kenneth J. Peak, Larry K. Gaines, and Ronald W.
Glensor, Police Supervision and Management: In an
Era of Community Policing, 2nd ed. (Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2004), pp. 33–34.
53. For a comprehensive description of a supervisory
course and related certification process, see ibid.,
CHAPTER 11 Municipal and County Agencies 315
▼
“Supervisory Course,”, https://www.post.ca.gov/
supervisory-course.aspx.
54. Norm Stamper, Breaking Rank: A Top Cop’s Exposé
of the Dark Side of American Policing (New York:
Nation Books, 2005), p. 185.
55. O x f o r d D i c t i o n a r i e s O n li n e , h t t p : / / w w w.
oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_
english/politics.
56. Richard Brzeczek, “Chief-Mayor Relations: The
View from the Chief’s Chair,” in Police Leadership
in America: Crisis and Opportunity, ed. William A.
Geller (New York: Praeger, 1985), pp. 48–55.
57. George F. Cole and Christopher Smith, The American
System of Criminal Justice, 9th ed. (Belmont, CA:
West/Wadsworth, 2001), p. 237.
58. Bartollas, Miller, and Wice, Participants in American
Criminal Justice, p. 35.
59. Ibid., pp. 39–40.
60. Ibid., pp. 49–50.
61. Hope Yen, “Rural US disappearing? Population
share hits low,” Yahoo News, July 27, 2011, http://
news.yahoo.com/rural-us-disappearing-population-
share-hits-low-205818711.html.
62. See U.S. Government Publishing Office, “Rural
Policing Institute,” https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/
granule/USCODE-2010-title6/USCODE-2010-
title6-chap1-subchapII-partA-sec124j.
63. See, for example, U.S. Department of Justice,
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement
Officers Killed & Assaulted 2014, https://www.fbi.
gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/leoka/2014/resource-pages/
about-leoka.
64. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime in the
United States: Uniform Crime Reports, 2014, Table 16,
https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-
t h e - u . s / 2 0 1 4 / c r i m e - i n - t h e - u . s . - 2 0 1 4 / t a b l e s /
table-16.
65. Jerry Carlton, “Setting Up Rural Narc Teams,” Law
Enforcement Technology 36(8) (August 2009): 52,
54–57.
66. U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice
Statistics, Law Enforcement Management and
Administrative Statistics: Local Police Departments,
2003 (Washington, D.C.: Author, May 2006), p. 2.
67. Kevin Johnson, “Lack of training, standards mean
big problems for small police departments,” USA
Today, June 23, 2015, http://www.usatoday.com/
s t o r y / n ew s / n a t i o n / 2 0 1 5 / 0 6 / 2 3 / s m a l l - p o li c e -
departments-standards-training/28823849/.
68. International Association of Chiefs of Police,
“Consolidating Police Services,” May 2003, pp. 1–2,
https://it.ojp.gov/documents/IACP_Consolidating_
Police_Services.pdf.
69. Jerome H. Skolnick and James J. Fyfe, Above
the Law: Police and the Excessive Use of Force
(New York: Free Press, 1993).
70. See, for example, New York State Law Enforcement
A c c r e d i t a t i o n , h t t p : / / w w w. t r o o p e r s . ny. g ov /
Introduction/Accreditation/; Florida Accreditation
O f f i c e , h t t p s : / / w w w. f d l e . s t a t e . f l . u s / c m s /
Accreditation/Accreditation.aspx.
71. Steven M. Cox, Police: Practices, Perspectives,
Problems (Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 1996), p. 90.
72. Personal communication, CALEA, October 25,
2006; also see the CALEA Web site, www.calea.org.
73. Adapted from Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation
Commission, “Benefits of Accreditation,” http://
www.flaccreditation.org/benefits.htm.
74. Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement
Agencies, “CALEA Announces Tiered Law
Enforcement Accreditation Program,” http://www.calea.
org/calea-update-magazine/issue-105/calea-announces-
tiered-law-enforcement- accreditation-program; also see
http://www.calea.org/content/standards-titles.
This page intentionally left blank
317
▼
This Part, like the four previous ones, is intended to have a grouping effect in terms of
common attributes, with the emphasis here being on the problems caused by special
populations of criminals, the challenges they pose for the police, and some of the methods
and tools being used to deal with those problems. Chapter 12 examines several criminal
syndicates that plague our society, including drug traffickers/users, terrorists,
cybercriminals, and gangs. Methods, relevant legislation, and other tools for coping with
these crime collectives is included. Chapter 13 largely moves away from the “collective”
grouping of offenders in Chapter 12, looking more closely at selected individual offenders
as well as other “people problems.” Included in this chapter are problems and crimes
involving persons with mental illness, domestic violence, undocumented immigrants (and
the protection of our nation’s borders), and human trafficking. And again, as in Chapter 12,
the emphases here are placed on policing methods, relevant legislation, and other tools that
are available to the police for coping with these challenges.
Finally, Chapter 14 examines a wide array of exciting police technologies that exist today
or are on the horizon for detecting crime, analyzing evidence, and doing everyday work.
Part 5
Best Practices: Addressing Special Populations, Using Specialized Equipment
12 Policing Criminal Organizations: The Changing War on Drugs,
Terrorism, Cybercriminals, and Gangs
13 Policing Special Populations and Problems: Mental Illness, Domestic
Violence, Immigrants, and Human Trafficking
14 Information Technologies: Contributions and Caveats
12 Policing Criminal Organizations The Changing War on Drugs, Terrorism, Cybercriminals, and Gangs
Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain how society’s war on drugs is changing, including legislation and police strategies for combating drug abuse
❷ Define terrorism and explain legislative measures enacted in the war on terror and strategies for providing homeland security
(Courtesy Prince James/Getty Images.)
318
▼
❸ Discuss cybercrime and police strategies to combat it
❹ Explain the extent and nature of youth gang activities, and police responses to it
There is no doubt that our nation’s security and defeating terrorism trump all other priorities.
—Arlen Specter, Former United States Senator
Introduction
While the eleven preceding chapters have examined policing from a number of perspectives, this
chapter (as well as the one following) looks at “what works” for police as they attempt to address a vari-
ety of crime problems. First we consider the policing of criminal organizations—four areas that are par-
ticularly troublesome or challenging for today’s society and police: the war on drugs, terrorism,
cybercrime, and gangs.
First we examine the changing war on drugs (particularly with respect to marijuana laws) and the gen-
eral problem of drug sales and use, to include how “pulling levers” and legislative enactments assist the
police in addressing this long term. Following that is an examination of terrorism; even though Osama
bin Laden has been neutralized (killed in Pakistan in April 2011), terrorists continue seeking ways to
attack America; protecting our homeland thus requires the development of new investigative and
intelligence-gathering techniques as well as specialized training and technologies for law enforcement.
Included here are new worries of homegrown extremists and the “lone wolf” terrorist, a review of police
methods and legislative measures to address terrorism, and the use of community policing and social
media. Next is a brief discussion of the related problems of cybercrime and identity theft. Finally, we
look at the problem of gangs, including their nature, extent, and related police strategies. Eight exhibits
as well as a number of examples and case studies are disseminated throughout the chapter and help to
demonstrate successful police initiatives and problems. The chapter concludes with key terms and con-
cepts and items for review sections, as well as “Learn by Doing” scenarios, where you can experience
some difficult challenges that police officers might confront.
▶ The Changing War on Drugs
The year 2013 will go down in history as the onset of major changes with the U.S. war on
drugs. That is when states began to change their laws with respect to marijuana, a majority of
Americans supported marijuana legalization, and world leaders began calling for an end to
the drug war. Furthermore, the U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., took a stand against
over incarceration and mandatory minimum drug laws that result in racial disparities.
Celebrities issued a letter to President Obama saying “No More Drug War,” and Uruguay
(followed by several other foreign venues) became the first country in the world to legalize
marijuana.1 This chapter section expounds on several of these developments.
Marijuana: Conflicting Federal and State Laws
The United States now imprisons about 2.2 million persons, and the majority of those
incarcerated are in prison or jail for drug violations.2 Many of those violations involve
marijuana, where the social and political opinion is changing, as evidenced by state
legalization and the federal government’s response. To date, four states—Colorado,
Washington, Oregon, and Alaska—and the District of Columbia have passed measures
to legalize marijuana use, while more than a dozen additional states have decriminalized
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 319
▼
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 320
▼
certain amounts of marijuana possession. About half of the U.S. states plus the District
of Columbia now allow use of medical marijuana. Such modifications in law and atti-
tude represent a significant “chink in the armor” of the nation’s drug laws. It is no sur-
prise, then, that marijuana is the most commonly used and abused illicit drug in the
United States, with more people using marijuana than all other illicit drugs. Eighty
percent of police agencies report that marijuana availability is high in their jurisdic-
tions, due to large-scale marijuana importation from Mexico, increasing domestic
indoor grows, and an increase of marijuana cultivated in states that have legalized med-
ical marijuana initiatives.3
Public support around the world for legalizing adult use of marijuana has been increas-
ing during the New Millennium (see Exhibit 12-1 ■).4 Opponents, however, argue that
marijuana legalization can serve as a stepping-stone to harder drugs, result in people driv-
ing while “stoned” and thus pose a danger, increase the chances of the drug being used by
kids, cause physical damage to users, and lead to the possible legalization of harder drugs.5
A glaring aspect of marijuana legalization is that such reversals of laws are wholly in
violation of federal law. Specifically, since 1970 the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21,
Section 1308.11, has listed marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance,6 meaning that
it has no medical value and that the potential for abuse is high.7
Support for marijuana legalization is rapidly outpacing opposition, but the debate goes
on (see Exhibit 12-2 ■). A slim majority (53%) of Americans say the drug should be made
legal, compared with 44% who want it to be illegal. Opinions have changed drastically
since 1969, when Gallup first asked the question and found that just 12% favored legaliz-
ing marijuana use. Much of the change in opinion has occurred over the past few years—
support rose 11 points between 2010 and 2013 (although it has remained relatively
unchanged since then).13
A Harvard University economist estimated that legalizing marijuana would save
$13.7 billion per year in government expenditures on enforcement of prohibition by elimi-
nating arrests for trafficking and possession as well as costs for related courts and jail/prison
activities.14 Exhibit 12-2 asks you to decide where you stand on the issue of legalization.
Other Controlled Drugs
Cocaine Since 2007, cocaine availability levels in the United States have fluctuated slightly but continued at consistently lower levels than prior to 2007.15 Most cocaine
exhibit 12-1
Following are recent actions taken in five selected for-
eign venues regarding the enforcement, legalization,
and/or possession of marijuana under their laws.
• In August 2013, Uruguay became the world’s first nation to legalize marijuana; the new law allows
the government to control the cultivation, trade,
and sale of the crop.8
• In Colombia, the country’s highest court ruled that minor possession of the drug was not a jail-
able offense.9
• The Czech Republic decriminalized minor posses- sion of marijuana for private use in 2010 and
enacted a law legalizing medical use (however,
local growth is restricted to registered firms).10
• Argentina’s Supreme Court deemed it unconstitu- tional in 2009 to punish people for private mari-
juana use as long as no one else was harmed, thus
effectively authorizing its personal use.11
• In Mexico, marijuana users can possess up to 5 grams legally; two former presidents have advocated for
decriminalization in order to curb cartel violence.12
FOREIGN VENUES SUPPORT MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 321
▼
exhibit 12-2
It may be ironic that both sides of the marijuana con-
troversy actually have the same goal: putting an end to
the U.S. drug problem. However, each side makes
arguments that should be examined prior to making
public policy.
First, those who are opposed to marijuana legal-
ization argue that punishing its users with fines and
jail time will deter other people from using the
drug (however, that has not been the case through-
out marijuana’s history). Furthermore, many if not
most such users are nonviolent, petty offenders
who are expensive to incarcerate and may well
come out of jail or prison more dangerous and
hardened than before. The relative success of drug
courts suggests that these “offenders” need treat-
ment rather than punishment.
In the other camp are those who believe marijuana
is a part of our culture, has medical value, and should
be legalized and its users go unpunished. Potential
problems with this latter view are that legalization may
well substantially increase the use of marijuana
(including by motor vehicle operators), and that there
is no evidence to support the notions that legalization
will result in close regulation and the cessation of ille-
gal sales.
More arguments can certainly be made on both
sides, but which faction’s arguments wins your sup-
port, and why?
THE DEBATE CONCERNING MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION
available in the United States continues to be produced in Colombia and smuggled across
the Southwest Border and, to a lesser extent, through the Caribbean. The federal gov-
ernment has retreated somewhat even in its treatment of cocaine offenders. In 2010,
Congress passed the Fair Sentencing Act, reducing the disparity between sentences for
crack cocaine offenses versus powder cocaine offenses.
Prescription Drug Abuse: When Jails Become Rehab Clinics A problem that is expanding and increasingly confronting our society and its criminal justice system is
prescription drug abuse, specifically, the abuse of prescription painkillers (see T able 12-1 ■).
An estimated 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. Therefore, as new
painkillers have been developed and increasingly prescribed by health professionals to
provide extended relief, it is no surprise that about 219 million opioid prescriptions are
now written each year in the United States16; the longer a person is on such a drug, the
better the chance that he or she will become addicted or develop a resistance to the drug’s
effects; indeed, about 2.1 million Americans are estimated to be addicted. Some people
have addictions so severe that they dissolve their pills and inject them with a syringe as
▲ Because more than 2 million Americans are estimated to be addicted to prescription drugs, the federal Drug Enforcement
Administration sponsors an annual drug “take-back” day when citizens can anonymously dispose of unwanted and expired
medications. (Courtesy Drug Enforcement Administration.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 322
▼
often as twenty times per day, often sharing the same needles. About 50 Americans per
day, more than 17,000 per year in total—die from prescription-opioid overdoses.17
Law enforcement efforts include the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
fining Walgreens $80 million for allowing opioids to be possessed by criminals, and two
CVS stores had their pharmaceutical licenses revoked for lax oversight of opioids. In Scott
County, Kentucky, a common means of getting rid of one’s addiction is by going cold tur-
key in jail. The sheriff has stated that the local jail is in fact the county’s rehab and counsel-
ing clinic; about 90 percent of the jail’s inmates are incarcerated for prescription-drug-related
crimes. The sheriff convinced the state’s governor to issue an emergency order overriding
the state’s law against needle-sharing in order to allow syringe-swapping in the area.18
In November 2013, the Federal Drug Quality and Security Act (HR 3204) was signed
into law. The Act establishes a system to track prescription drugs from the time they are
manufactured until they are sold to the consumer. The Act calls for drug manufacturers,
re-packagers, wholesale distributors, and dispensers to maintain and to issue key
information about each drug’s distribution history. Within four years of the law’s
establishment, prescription drugs are to be serialized in a consistent way industry-wide.
This will allow for efficient tracking in order to respond to recalls and notices of theft and
counterfeiting.19
Methamphetamine Methamphetamine (meth) availability is increasing in the United States, and availability is directly related to high levels of methamphetamine production in
Mexico; the number of meth laboratories seized in Mexico has increased significantly since
2008, and seizures at the Southwest Border increased more than three-fold over the past five
years. Still, about 40 percent of police agencies report that meth is highly available and easily
obtained at any time. Its abuse and availability are much higher in the Western United States,
although thousands of kilograms of Mexican meth are seized along the Southwest Border
annually. The vast majority of methamphetamine laboratories seized in the United States
are the small capacity production laboratories, known as “one-pot” or “shake-and-bake”
TABLe 12-1
Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 323
▼
laboratories. These laboratories produce small amounts of methamphetamine, generally for
personal use or use among a small group of people. Small lab operators use simple methods
to manufacture methamphetamine, such as mixing pseudoephedrine and other household
items in a plastic soda-type bottle. The mixture creates a chemical reaction, which produces
methamphetamine. This method of production is highly volatile and dangerous, and is
susceptible to error resulting in fires or explosions.20
Heroin The threat posed by heroin in the United States is increasing in areas across the country, with about 30 percent of police agencies reporting that heroin is the greatest drug
threat in their area (second only to meth, at 32 percent). Furthermore, heroin availability
is increasing throughout the nation. As with meth, seizures at the Southwest Border are
also rising as Mexican traffickers increase heroin production and transportation. Heroin
seizures at the border more than doubled over five years, since 2009.21 As a result, heroin
overdose deaths are increasing in many U.S. cities and counties. In addition to increased
enforcement actions toward heroin, following are some measures law enforcement agen-
cies are taking to address the problem:
• The Quincy, MA Police Department (PD) became the first in the nation (in October 2010) to require every officer on patrol to carry naloxone (naloxone blocks or reverses
the effects of opioid medication and is used to treat a narcotic overdose in an emer-
gency situation)22; since that time they have administered the drug more than 200 times
and have reversed more than 95 percent of those overdoses.
• Police departments in other areas are training officers to carry naloxone in response to increased opioid overdoses in those areas. All Vermont State Troopers will also be
issued naloxone.
• In March 2014, the U.S. Attorney General publicly urged law enforcement agencies to train and equip their personnel to administer naloxone, noting that 17 states and
Washington, D.C. have amended their laws to increase access to naloxone, resulting in
over 10,000 overdose reversals since 2001.
• Also in March, 2014, Massachusetts’ governor declared the growing opioid addiction a public health emergency and used his emergency powers to permit first responders to
carry and administer naloxone.23
Synthetic “Designer” Drugs Synthetic cannabinoids, commonly known as “synthetic marijuana,” “K2,” or “Spice”, are often sold in legal retail outlets as “herbal incense” or
“potpourri,” and synthetic cathinones are often sold as “bath salts” or “jewelry cleaner.”
Known as designer drugs, they are labeled “not for human consumption” to mask their
intended purpose and avoid Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory oversight of the
manufacturing process. Users claim they mimic the psychoactive effects of marijuana.24
▲ Both methamphetamine (left) and heroine (right) avail-
ability are increasing in the U.S., owing to high levels of
methamphetamine production in Mexico. (Courtesy Drug
Enforcement Administration.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 324
▼
The use of synthetic drugs is quite high, especially among young people. Therefore, fed-
eral, state, and local agencies have worked to enact policies and legislation to combat this
threat and to educate people about the tremendous health risk posed by these substances.
Legislative measures include the Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act (part of the FDA
Safety and Innovation Act of 2012) which permanently placed 26 types of synthetic drugs
into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In 2012, four of these substances
were permanently designated as Schedule I substances under the Synthetic Drug Abuse
Prevention Act; and in 2013, DEA designated three more types of synthetic cannabinoids. At
least forty-three states have taken action to control one or more synthetic cannabinoids.25
What Works: “Pulling Levers”
Although it is highly doubtful that the police can completely eradicate the sale (supply)
and abuse (demand) of illicit and prescription drugs, they have achieved considerable suc-
cess through the use of problem-solving strategies and the assistance of legislative enact-
ments. It should be noted, however, that merely employing police crackdowns (abrupt
escalations in law enforcement activities to address certain offenses) tends to have mini-
mal, short-term effects on drug problems. Similarly, police foot and bike patrols typically
show only small reductions in drug-related arrests.
Generally, however, problem-oriented policing initiatives can have extremely positive
results. One such approach—known as “pulling levers” (see Exhibit 12-3 ■) or focused
deterrence—uses creative methods such as directly communicating incentives and disin-
centives to targeted offenders (such as the promise of swift and sure prosecution if their
criminal acts do not cease). Using an interagency working group of law enforcement,
▲ The use of synthetic drugs is quite high, especially among young people. Therefore, federal,
state, and local agencies have worked to enact policies and legislation to combat this threat.
(Courtesy Drug Enforcement Administration.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 325
▼
prosecution, other justice agency officials, local government, social services, and commu-
nity-based practitioners, police use a menu of sanctions to stop offenders from continuing
their violent behavior and make them understand that they will be receiving special
attention. These new strategic approaches have shown promising results in the reduction
of crime.26
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program
The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, created by Congress with the
Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, provides assistance to federal, state, local, and tribal law
enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions
of the United States. HIDTA primarily supports drug supply reduction, but law enforce-
ment agencies also implement problem-oriented policing strategies and promote and par-
ticipate in community-based drug prevention and treatment programs. The program hopes to
expand prevention efforts in the future, and support initiatives that provide access to treat-
ment for substance use disorders as part of a diversion or other alternative sentencing or
community reentry program. HIDTA’s budget is about $250 million per year.28
▶ The Many Faces of Terrorism
Definitions and Types
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) succinctly defines terrorism as the “unlawful
use of force against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian
population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”29 More
broadly, terrorism can be both domestic and international in nature; definitions for both are
provided in the United States Code (see endnotes).30
exhibit 12-3
A successful problem-solving initiative for addressing
drug abuse is the Rockford, Illinois, “Pulling Levers
Drug Market Intervention” program. This strategy
used by the city police department (RPD) combats
open-air drug markets and related crimes in an effort to
interrupt open-air drug markets and make the high-
crime community more inhabitable. The focused-
deterrence, “pulling levers” approach consists of
several steps:
• diagnosing a specific crime problem
• organizing an interagency working group of crimi- nal justice personnel
• identifying the crime patterns of chronic offenders and their criminal networks
• responding to law violators with a variety of sanctions
• providing targeted offenders with social services and community resources, and
• continuously communicating with offenders so they know they are receiving special attention.
Deterrence theory serves as the foundation for the
Rockford Pulling Levers Drug Market Intervention;
this theory holds that humans are rational beings who
consider the consequences of their actions and are
deterred from engaging in continual patterns of offend-
ing as a result of the certainty, severity, and celerity of
punishment. In pulling levers initiatives, police officers
target high-risk offenders, using specific sanctions as
leverage to obtain compliance and reduce the risk of
future offending. It is believed that these deterrence-
based policing approaches, coupled with proactive
policing, have the potential to reduce violence and
other disruptive behaviors in an urban environment.27
“PULLING LEVERS” FOR DRUG ENFORCEMENT AND REDUCTION
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 326
▼
▲ The FBI’s “Most Wanted Terrorists” website describes federally indicted terrorists. The Rewards
For Justice Program offers several millions of dollars as a reward for information leading directly to
their apprehension or conviction, and has paid more than $125 million for such information. (Courtesy
Federal Bureau of Investigations)
As has been demonstrated in the United States, terrorist acts can take many forms and
does not always involve bombs and guns; as examples, environmental and animal activists
seek to further their agendas by burning greenhouses, tree farms, logging sites, ski resorts,
and mink farms. Terrorist acts are also perpetrated by hate-filled white supremacists, anti-
government extremists and radical separatist groups.
An International Problem
Meanwhile, terrorism is on the rise around the world as dozens of suicide bombings and
shootings, kidnappings, assassinations, and beheadings each year will attest. Meanwhile,
international terrorist groups have become more adept at recruiting “foot soldiers” through
the Internet and other means. These attacks have become increasingly focused on civilian
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 327
▼
targets, with terrorists using more traditional methods of violence such as using guns and
hostage-taking, rather than large-scale bombings. Such attacks pointedly demonstrate the
need for the international law enforcement community to become much more knowledge-
able about terrorists’ methods, how to predict and possibly prevent future attacks, and how
to respond when terrorists do strike in the event of an attack.
New Worries: Homegrown Violent extremists and the Lone Wolf Terrorist
In December 2015, a husband and wife wearing military-style clothing and black masks
entered a Christmas party for employees of the San Bernardino, California county health
department and opened fire with two assault-style weapons, killing 14 people in what was
the most deadly terrorist attack in the United States since 9/11. The man and woman were
parents and college graduates, solidly middle-class and without a criminal record, and typi-
cal homegrown “jihadists”—a war fought by Muslims to defend or spread their beliefs.
And, like all other such jihadists in the United States, they were not formally affiliated with
a foreign terrorist group. Such jihadists—predominantly male (93 percent) and averaging
29 years of age—killed 45 Americans from 2010 through 2015.31
Homegrown violent extremists (HVEs, such as the San Bernardino couple; the attackers in
Paris, France, in November 2015; and the Boston bombers, discussed in Chapter 14 previ-
ously) warrant particular concern today. They are self-radicalized and encourage, endorse, con-
done, justify, or support the commission of a violent criminal act in order to achieve a political,
ideological, religious, social, or economic goal. HVEs can include U.S.-born citizens, natural-
ized citizens, green card holders or other long-term residents, foreign students, or illegal immi-
grants wishing to commit terrorist acts inside Western countries or against Western interests
abroad. Some might have been inspired by calls by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
(ISIL) for individual jihadists in the West to retaliate for U.S.-led airstrikes on ISIL.32
According to Michael Morell, twice the acting director of the Central Intelligence
Agency (CIA), there is now a compelling threat from the Islamic State (ISIS) on U.S. soil:
3,500 to 5,000 “jihadist wannabes” have traveled from the United States, Western Europe,
Canada, and other countries to Syria and Iraq to gain battlefield experience and have easy
access to the U.S. homeland (part of at least 20,000 foreign nationals from about 90 countries
who have joined ISIS). Morell states that while an attack in the United States from such
fighters at the direction of ISIS has not yet occurred, “. . . it will.” Indeed, in November
2014 an individual with sympathies for ISIS attacked two New York City police officers
with a hatchet.33 And, in June 2016, a man who claimed allegiance to the Islamic State
killed 49 people and injured 53 others at an Orlando nightclub—the largest mass shooting
by an individual in U.S. history.
A related concern is the lone offender who becomes radicalized (see Exhibit 12-4 ■ )—
a single individual driven to hateful attacks based on a particular set of beliefs without a
larger group’s knowledge or support. As Secretary of the Department of Homeland
Security Jeh Johnson stated:
We worry about the potential domestic-based, home-grown terrorist threat that may be
lurking in our own society—the independent actor or ‘lone wolf’—those who did not train
at a terrorist camp or join the ranks of a terrorist organization overseas, but who are inspired
at home by a group’s social media, literature or extremist ideology.34
Bioterrorism
Another means of attack by terrorists involves the use of chemical/biological agents, or bioter-
rorism. Poisons have been used for several millennia; recent attacks using chemical/biological
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 328
▼
agents including toxins, viruses, or bacteria such as anthrax, ricin, and sarin have underscored
their potential dangers and uses by terrorists today. Chemical weapons— including several
types of gases—suffocate the victim immediately or cause massive burning. Biological weap-
ons are slower acting, spreading a disease such as anthrax or smallpox through a population
before the first signs are noticed. Many experts believe it is only a matter of time before
chemical/biological weapons are used like explosives have been to date. All that is required is
for a toxin to be cultured and put into a spray form that can be weaponized, and disseminated
into the population. Fortunately, such dissemination is extremely difficult for all but specially
trained individuals to make in large quantities and in the correct dosage; they are also difficult
to transport because live organisms are delicate.36
Police Approaches and Methods
Since 9/11 law enforcement agencies have certainly been compelled to adapt so as to
anticipate and address such attacks. Broadly speaking, the police have four means of
addressing terrorism:
1. Gathering raw intelligence on the organization’s structure, its members, and its plans
(or potential for the use of violence)
2. Determining what measures can be taken to counter or thwart terrorist activities
3. Assessing how the damage caused by terrorists can be minimized through rapid
response and containment of the damage
4. Apprehending and convicting individual terrorists and dismantling their organizations37
exhibit 12-4
Zachary Chesser was an average high school student
in northern Virginia. He participated in his high
school’s Gifted and Talented program, joined his high
school break-dancing team, was an avid soccer player
with aspirations of getting a scholarship to play in col-
lege, and worked part-time at a video rental store.
In the summer of 2008, the 18-year-old Chesser
converted to Islam and quickly became radicalized,
solely on the Internet. He began posting views that
supported Islamist terrorist groups, watching sermons
by Anwar al Awlaki, and he exchanged emails with the
cleric about joining Al Shabab. Within weeks, he had
quit his job because he “objected to working at a place
that rented videos featuring naked women,” and
became increasingly hostile to his parents.
Soon Chesser had committed himself solely to
using his computer and graphics skills to contribute
to and promote violent extremist messages. He also
attempted to travel to Somalia with his wife to join
Al Shabab, but was unsuccessful when his mother-in-
law hid his wife’s passport. Next, he uploaded a video
to YouTube in which he threatened the creators of the
television show South Park after an episode depicted
the Prophet Muhammad dressed in a bear costume. He
then attempted to join Al Shabab once again, but was
held for questioning at the airport. A few days after
being questioned, Chesser was arrested for attempting
to provide material support to a terrorist organization.
He pled guilty to three federal felony charges—
communicating threats, soliciting violent jihadists to
desensitize law enforcement, and attempting to pro-
vide material support to a designated foreign terrorist
organization—and was sentenced to 25 years in federal
prison.35
HOW DOES ONE BECOMES RADICALIZED? THE CASE OF ZACHARY CHESSER
(Courtesy Washoe County
Sheriff ’s Office)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 329
▼
More specifically, federal, state, and local strategies for addressing terrorism include:
• The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which has as its founding mission the protection of the United States from terrorism. DHS works with domestic, interna-
tional, and private sector partners to protect our nation against terrorist threats.
Following are descriptions of some of those related efforts38:
• Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative: To date, more than 229,000 frontline law enforcement personnel have received Suspicious Activity Reporting
(SAR) training to recognize behaviors potentially related to terrorism.39
• The “If You See Something, Say Something” campaign, which emphasizes the importance of training frontline personnel.40
• Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN): this is a DHS-hosted tool which provides a secure, internet-based network for real-time sharing of information
between federal agencies and local first responders.41
• Grant Funding: Since fiscal year 2003, DHS has awarded more than $36 billion in preparedness grant funding to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from
threats or acts of terrorism.
• Screening for Airline Passengers: DHS has strengthened its operations to identify high-risk travelers who are likely to be inadmissible to the United States and to
prevent those individuals from boarding a commercial aircraft through its Pre -
Departure program.42
• Secure Flight: TSA’s Secure Flight program conducts passenger watch list match- ing for all covered U.S. aircraft operator and foreign air carrier flights to identify
individuals who may pose a threat to aviation or national security, and to designate
them for enhanced screening or prohibit them from boarding an aircraft.43
• The FBI lists terrorism, and protection of the United States and citizens around the world from terrorist attack, as its highest priority. It is the nation’s lead federal law
enforcement agency for investigating and preventing acts of domestic and international
terrorism, including those involving chemical, radiological, or biological agents or
nuclear weapons. The FBI also investigates terrorism-related offenses such as violence
at airports, money laundering, attacks on U.S. officials, and others.44
• Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF): overseen by the FBI, JTTFs bring together more than 500 state and local agencies and 55 federal agencies into a single team to address
terror threats of all kinds. JTTFs are essentially small cells of highly trained, locally
based, investigators, analysts, linguists, SWAT experts, who chase down leads, gather
evidence, make arrests, provide security for special events, conduct training, collect
and share intelligence, and respond to threats and incidents at a moment’s notice.45
(Courtesy Department of Homeland Security)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 330
▼
• National Counterterrorism Center: the NCTC integrates and analyzes all intelligence information pertaining to terrorism possessed or acquired by the U.S. government
(except purely domestic terrorism). It then shares its knowledge with multiple depart-
ments and agencies from across the intelligence community.46
• Fusion Centers: State and major urban area fusion centers serve as focal points for the receipt, analysis, gathering, and sharing of threat-related information between the
federal government and state, local, tribal, and other agencies.47
Also in Law enforcement’s Toolkit: Legislation, Planning, and Social Media
Immediately after the 9/11 attacks, Congress enacted the Uniting and Strengthening
America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act
of 2001 (known as the USA PATRIOT Act). The Act dramatically expanded the federal govern-
ment’s ability to investigate Americans without establishing probable cause for “intelli-
gence purposes” and to conduct searches if there are “reasonable grounds to believe” there
may be national security threats. Certain federal agencies are given access to financial, men-
tal health, medical, library, and other records. The act was reauthorized in March 2006,
providing additional tools for protecting mass transportation systems and seaports from
attack, the “roving wiretap” portion and the “sneak and peek” section. The first allows the
government to get a wiretap on every phone a suspect uses, while the second allows federal
investigators to get access to library, business, and medical records without a court order.
Then, in June 2015, Congress extended the Act through 2019, but amended it to stop the
National Security Agency from continuing its mass phone data collection program.48
The Military Commissions Act allows the president to establish military commissions to
try unlawful enemy combatants; the commissions are also authorized to sentence
▲ At Fusion Centers, information or intelligence is gathered and analyzed by local and federal
agencies for a particular geographical area. (Courtesy Washoe County, Sheriff’s Office.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 331
▼
defendants to death, and defendants are prevented from invoking the Geneva Conventions
as a source of rights during commission proceedings. The law contains a provision strip-
ping detainees of the right to file habeas corpus petitions in federal court and also allows
hearsay evidence to be admitted during proceedings, so long as the presiding officer deter-
mines it to be reliable. This law also allows the Central Intelligence Agency to question
key terrorist leaders and operatives.49
Finally, while the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 prohibits using the military to execute
the laws domestically; the military may be called on to provide personnel and equipment
for certain special support activities, such as domestic terrorist events involving weapons
of mass destruction.50
Furthermore, the DHS developed and administers a National Incident Management
System (NIMS); this system provides a nationwide approach for federal, state, and local
governments to work together to prepare for, prevent, respond to, and recover from domes-
tic incidents. All federal departments and agencies must adopt and use the NIMS, and its
use by state and local agencies is a condition for federal preparedness assistance.
Local police agencies should have plans in place for addressing a terrorist threat. They
might also: create a counterterrorism unit; reassign officers to assess and protect the kinds
of critical infrastructure described earlier; send officers to receive training in new skills
relating to terrorism; shift personnel from lower priority programs, such as DARE or foot
patrols; and attempt to obtain federal grants to help cover these additional tasks. In addi-
tion, police executive staff should ensure that intelligence data is collected and analyzed,
limit access to and parking near critical facilities, have personnel and the community be
alert for suspicious packages, monitor all municipal reservoirs and wastewater treatment
plants, and ensure that such related assets as command posts, public information, officer
shift modification and family assistance, and equipment are in place.51
Finally, community policing and problem solving also plays an integral role in home-
land security (see Exhibit 12-5 ■ ). This approach helps to build trust between the com-
munity and law enforcement, which allows officers to develop knowledge of the community
and resident activity and can provide vital intelligence relating to potential terrorist actions.
Problem-solving models typically used in community policing (discussed in Chapter 4)
are well suited for preventing and responding to possible terrorist activity. Using existing
data sources, agencies can conduct target vulnerability assessments and develop risk-
management and crisis plans.52
Note that in Chapter 14, which discusses police technologies, we review the related matter
of unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) and the question of how to balance security and privacy.
▶ Cybercriminals
According to INTERPOL, cybercrime is one of the fastest growing areas of crime and
includes attacks against computer hardware and software, financial crimes and corruption,
and abuse in the form of grooming or “sexploitation,” especially crimes against children.56
Not Only in Film: extent of Victimization
Cybercrime is not something that is only found in fiction—such as the movies “Hackers,”
“War Games,” “The Net,” “Firewall,” and “Untraceable.” There are an estimated 1.5 million
annual cyber attacks per year (4,000 per day, 170 per hour), so online crime is a real threat to
anyone on the Internet. It is also estimated that businesses are attacked an average of about
17,000 times per year.57 Of course, governments make tempting targets for cyber criminals
as well. About half of American adults have their personal information stolen by hackers
each year, primarily through data breaches at large companies. That amounts to about
$18 billion in credit card fraud for the year.58 And although it is difficult to measure the
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 332
▼
financial costs of cybercrime, one antivirus protection firm estimates that the annual global
cost of such crime could be over $400 billion.59
The most challenging and potentially disastrous type of cybercrime—actually,
cyberespionage— now being perpetrated against the United States is by Chinese hackers,
who are estimated to be responsible for the theft of 50 to 80 percent of all American
intellectual property and have compromised many of the nation’s most sensitive advanced
weapons systems, including missile defense technology and combat aircraft. It is believed
that Chinese hackers have accessed designs for more than two dozen of the U.S. military’s
most important and expensive weapon systems (the cost to develop plans for one aircraft
alone—the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter—was $1.4 trillion). Doing so enables China to under-
stand those systems and be able to jam or otherwise disable them. The Pentagon recently
concluded that another country’s computer sabotage can constitute an act of war, which
could eventually lead to U.S. use of military force. China’s computer hacking targets also
include corporate and business secrets, and there are also concerns about threats posed to
U.S. nuclear reactors, banks, subways, and pipeline companies. The specter of electricity
going out for days and perhaps weeks, the gates of a major dam opening suddenly and
exhibit 12-5
Many agencies have used the community policing
strategy to protect their own “homeland,” by develop-
ing solid programs. Following are two examples.
• In Boston, Massachusetts, the PortWatch program is a collaboration between public (federal, state,
and local law enforcement agencies) and private
stakeholders (private companies and security
agencies) to ensure public safety in and around the
Port of Boston. These entities share relevant infor-
mation and intelligence, to include current trends
in local, national, and international criminal or ter-
rorist activity that may be relevant to the Port and
its surrounding areas; upcoming significant events;
and any operations that may impact daily routines.
Security awareness programs are tailored to each
company that is a part of the program. In addition,
PortWatch includes a training component, build-
ing on the federal “See Something, Say Something”
campaign. Employees of area hotels, restaurants,
and other “soft targets” are taught how to recog-
nize and assess suspicious behaviors, as part of
enhancing the safety and security of the Port of
Boston and surrounding communities.53
• A collaborative approach by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and the Los Angeles
County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) provides
officers and deputies with some of the most
comprehensive violent extremist training. LAPD
officers and LASD deputies, trained as Terrorism
Liaison Officers, attend courses on criminal
networks as they pertain to terrorism and money
laundering schemes as well as extremist ideologies.
The two agencies partnered with the Muslim Public
Affairs Council to develop a training video for
officers and deputies regarding Muslim contacts. In
addition, recruits must complete cultural
competency courses that cover cultural sensitivities
and differences between religions and sects of the
same religion. Furthermore, the LAPD partnered
with regional representatives of the Anti-
Defamation League to ensure that all of the training
modules were developed with civil rights and civil
liberties in mind.54
• Law enforcement agencies can also engage and communicate with residents through social media.
Agencies can post questions and encourage
comments as a way to solicit tips and feedback and
engage in dialogue with community members.
Agencies can encourage residents to play an active
role in addressing crime and disorder in their
neighborhood by disseminating information about
unsolved crimes and crime trends in the community
on social media sites, effectively creating force
multipliers. More information can be obtained
concerning how law enforcement can use social
media to engage community members by visiting:
www.IACPSocialMedia.org.55
COMMUNITY POLICING PROGRAMS FOR HOMELAND SECURITY
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 333
▼
flooding complete cities, or pipes in a chemical plant rupturing and releasing deadly gas are
nightmare scenarios that keep homeland security professionals awake at night.60
Types, Tactics, and Training
Cybercrime occurs in many forms—online identity theft, financial fraud, stalking, bully-
ing, hacking, e-mail spoofing, information piracy and forgery, intellectual property crime,
and more. In this chapter section, we will focus on some examples of cybercrime and
police training for responding to it, and discuss in more detail the problem of identity theft.
To begin, Exhibit 12-6 ■ describes a cybercriminal plying his deeds.
One of the most ambitious attempts to combat cybercrime is the New York Electronic
Crimes Task Force (NYECTF), which is actually a partnership between the U.S. Secret
Service and several other public safety agencies and private corporations. NYECTF,
formed in January 1995, was originally a small squad of Secret Service agents for fight-
ing telecommunications fraud. But as technologies improved and criminals found more
sophisticated ways to use those technologies, it became necessary for law enforcement
to do likewise.63
Today ECTFs exist in 28 states, the District of Columbia, and in London and Rome; they
work with INTERPOL and private concerns to investigate information technology-related
crimes, including credit card theft, attacks on the banking and finance infrastructure, and iden-
tity fraud.64 Some related criminal statutes also fall under U.S. Secret Service jurisdiction; for
example, Title 18 U.S. Code Sections 1028-1030 address identity fraud, device access fraud
and computer fraud. In addition to the Secret Service, the DHS also works with U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations Cyber
Crimes Center to investigate cross-border crime. Also within DHS is the Law Enforcement
▲ According to INTERPOL, cybercrime is one of the fastest growing areas of crime and includes
attacks against computer hardware and software, financial crimes and corruption, and abuse.
(Courtesy Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 334
▼
Cyber Incident Reporting resource, which provides information for state, local, tribal, and ter-
ritorial law enforcement on when, what and how to report a cyber incident to a federal entity.
In any given year, the Secret Service will arrest more than 1,000 individuals for cyber-
crime violations that, in total, are responsible for nearly $250 million in fraud losses.
Recent cases include the recent Target department store database breach and theft of about
40 million credit and debit card records and 70 million additional records with customer
information, including addresses and telephone numbers.65
exhibit 12-6
Brian Hile, 29, traveled to San Diego from Michigan
intending to kill a woman and her boyfriend after the
pair had unwittingly gotten caught up in Hile’s virtual
love affair. Hile had been ensnared in a “catfishing”
scheme, where a person uses social media to pretend to
be someone they are not, typically to engage in mis-
leading online romances. During one Internet-only
relationship lasting two years, Hile exchanged explicit
photos and romantic communications with someone he
believed to be a woman. When he learned that “she”
was actually a man living in South Africa, Hile became
enraged and vowed to find the man who deceived him
as well as the woman whose images played a role in
the deception.61
Hile’s primary target for revenge was the man who
duped him, but South Africa was too far away so
instead he went after the woman. Even though he knew
she had nothing to do with the actual romance scam, he
assumed that because her photos were used, she was
somehow responsible for what had happened to him.
Determined to learn the woman’s identity, Hile con-
ducted an extensive online search and used hacking
tools. Eventually, he was able to hack into her e-mail
account and compile detailed personal information
about her and her live-in boyfriend as well as their
extended family and friends. Armed with her address,
Hile traveled from Michigan to San Diego to exact
his revenge. Fortunately, his family sensed that he was
planning something and alerted police, which led to
his detention in San Diego. At the time of his arrest,
he was in possession of the woman’s address, tele-
phone numbers, and even information concerning
favorite restaurants. He also had duct tape, zip ties, and
a to-do list that included obtaining a knife and chloro-
form. Had he gotten to her residence, he would likely
have hurt or killed the woman. Hile was convicted in
August 2013 and sentenced to five years in federal
prison for interstate stalking.62
A CAUTIONARY TALE: A CYBERCRIMINAL AT WORK
(Courtesy Kentucky Office of Homeland Security)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 335
▼
Still, a lack of resources and trained personnel has prevented many police agencies
from being able to keep abreast of investigative techniques and technologies for combat-
ting cybercrime. To meet this growing need, the CyberScience Laboratory (CSL) at the
National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center and its e-Crime Intern
Program in Rome, New York, provide college and high school students with a unique
opportunity to gain knowledge and hands-on experience in the field of cyberscience.66
▶ Identify Theft
An inextricable aspect of cybercrime is the crime of identity theft, which is where a thief
steals one’s personal information, such as his or her full name or social security number, to
commit fraud. Next we discuss this growing problem and what police are doing to address it.
Nature and Victim/Police Responses
The perpetrator of identity theft uses someone else’s personal information to fraudulently
apply for credit, file taxes, or get medical services. These acts can damage one’s credit
status and cost considerable amounts of time and money to restore their good name. Worse
yet, one may not know that he or she is a victim of identity theft until encountering mys-
tery bills, credit collections, denied loans, and so on.67
It is estimated that 17.6 million persons ages 16 or older are victims of at least one
incident of ID theft each year. Most such victims discover the incident only when a finan-
cial institution contacts them about suspicious activity or they notice fraudulent charges on
an account. The majority of ID theft victims have no idea how the offender obtained their
personal information, and 9 in 10 cases, ID theft victims did not know anything about the
offender. Two-thirds of identity theft victims suffer financial losses, and victims whose
personal information was used to open new account in their name experienced greater out-
of-pocket financial losses. About half of these victims suffer losses of $99 or less, while
about one in seven lose $1,000 or more.68
Most (52 percent) victims are able to resolve their problems in a day or less, but about
one in ten spends more than a month trying to clear their name and financial problems. The
latter victims are more likely to experience work and personal problems than those who
resolve their victimization relatively quickly. Some victims must spend six months or
more resolving financial and credit problems; in these cases, about 29 percent experience
severe emotional distress.69
Very few (about 10 percent) identity theft victims report the incident to police. The
majority (87 percent) of these victims do, however, contact a credit card company or bank
to report misuse or attempted misuse of an account or personal information.70
The response strategies provided subsequently provide some essential actions for com-
bating ID theft. As always, it is critical that officers tailor responses to the offense circum-
stances and can justify each response based on a reliable analysis.
Toward an effective Response Strategy
Because ID theft is a complex crime, often composed of many sub-crimes and related to
many other problems, it falls under the authority of several different agencies: the local
police, Secret Service, Postal Inspection Service, FBI, Homeland Security, local govern-
ment offices, and motor vehicle departments, to name a few. Regional and state law
enforcement agencies may also have multiagency task forces to combat identity fraud. An
example is the Financial Crimes Task Force of Southwestern Pennsylvania, described in
Exhibit 12-7 ■.
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 336
▼
Exhibit 12-7
Established in 1995, the Financial Crimes Task Force
of Southwestern Pennsylvania investigates, arrests,
and prosecutes criminals involved with financial
crimes including mail theft and identity theft, while
maintaining a cooperative effort with various federal,
state, and local law enforcement agencies. The Task
Force investigates and prosecutes crimes involving
counterfeit checks and money orders, mail theft, wire
and internet fraud, stolen government checks, iden-
tity theft and identity takeovers, placing an emphasis
on organized activity. The task force aggressively
investigates and prosecutes offenders in state and
federal courts.
This website is designed to assist and educate
citizens in dealing with the complexity of financial
crimes. Information is provided in dealing with the
prevention of financial crime and the necessary steps
to take if you become a victim. This website has a
comprehensive section dealing with the most com-
mon scams and a listing of agencies and organiza-
tions that can provide citizens with additional
information.71
A FINANCIAL CRIMES TASK FORCE IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
Following are four recommended measures that police adopt for responding to
identity theft:
1. Encourage business awareness of the responsibility to protect employee and client
records. This includes having a privacy policy, training employees, and limiting data
collection and access to information needed.
2. Educate people about protecting their personal information. Inform people that the
Internet has an enormous amount of information about how to avoid becoming an
identity theft victim.
(Courtsey Snyfer/Fotolia.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 337
▼
3. Collaborate with government and other service organizations to protect private
information. Police should work with agencies and businesses to keep Social
Security numbers, birth certificates, and other such information out of general
circulation; prohibit their sale; restrict access to such information; and help vic-
tims resolve problems.
4. Work with local banks to encourage credit card issuers to adopt improved security
practices. The police can work with local banks to establish procedures for local
identity theft victims to repair the damage done and to get their credit card accounts
operating again. Credit card companies can also be pressured to provide better
credit-card identity verification, photographs on credit cards, and passwords on
credit accounts.72
▶ Addressing Youth Gangs: “Pulling Levers”
An old criminal-justice adage states that crime is a “young person’s game.” Indeed,
that would appear to be the case given that 36 percent of all arrests, and 37 percent of
arrests for violent crimes, are of persons under 25 years of age.73 As you read this
chapter section, consider the generally nonpunitive, rehabilitative goals of the juvenile
justice system, as well as what point juveniles who commit particularly heinous crimes
should lose the juvenile court’s protective shroud and be transferred to the adult courts
for processing. First we discuss youths as they are involved with criminality as well as
their gang activity.
Juvenile Offending Today
First, the good news in terms of numbers of juveniles who are arrested in the United States:
the juvenile arrest rate for all offenses climbed to and reached its highest level about two
decades ago (in 1996), and has been declining since. However, there is still ample room for
concern with juvenile crime. According to arrest data by the FBI, juveniles (under age 18)
commit about 11 percent of all violent crimes, and about 16 percent of all property crimes
in the United States.74
Although many theories have been offered by experts to explain juvenile crime, no
single theory has been universally accepted. Experts agree, however, that there is a corre-
lation between juvenile crime and family dysfunction (one of the most potent influences on
juvenile development), drug use and deviance (alcohol and tobacco are the drugs of choice
for many juveniles, socioeconomic class (children from poor and working-class back-
grounds are much more likely to engage in delinquent behavior), and educational experi-
ences (academic achievement is considered to be one of the principal stepping-stones
toward success in American society).75
Gang Overview
Certainly one of the most troubling criminal activities of our nation’s youth involves
their membership in gangs, which is generally defined as: a group or association of
peers sharing a gang name, recognizable symbols, identifiable leadership, having an
identified geographic territory, holding regular meetings, and being collectively
engaged in illegal activities.76
The latest National Youth Gang Survey estimates that there are approximately
30,000 gangs and 850,000 gang members across the United States; since about 2000, the
estimated number of gangs has increased 8 percent, and the number of gang members
11 percent during the past five years; however, studies have repeatedly found that most
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 338
▼
youth who join a gang do not remain in it for an extended period of time. Most youth
who join a gang only remain active members for about one to two years.77
What Works?
Targeted patrols or a dedicated gang unit (or officer) appear to be the most frequently
used measures used to combat gangs, followed by participation in a multiagency gang
task force and coordinated probation searches. Less frequently reported measures are
civil gang ordinances or injunctions (a court order issued in a civil case against a crimi-
nal street gang and its members to prohibit certain behavior within a defined Safety
Zone—which may include associating together in public—and violating trespass and
curfew laws).78
It should be noted that, as with other crime and disorder problems, arrests alone do
not solve problems in the long term. In order to address gang problems, there must be a
comprehensive, multifaceted approach to the gang problem, to include: fundamental
changes in the way schools operate (acting as community centers involved in teaching,
providing services, and serving as locations for activities before and after the school
day); job skills development; a range of services provided to families (parental training,
child care, health care, and crisis intervention); changes in the way the criminal justice
system–particularly policing–responds generally to problems by increasing their under-
standing of the communities they serve and to solving problems; and intervention and
control of known gang members–either by diverting peripheral members from gang
involvement and criminal activity, or by arresting and incapacitating hard-core gang
members, thus sending a message that the community will not tolerate intimidating, vio-
lent, and/or criminal gang activity.79
The federal Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) also
argues that a comprehensive, coordinated response to America’s gang problem is
required that coordinates prevention, intervention, enforcement, and reentry strategies.
▲ The Mara Salvatrucha
(MS-13) gang is so violent that
the FBI maintains an MS-13
National Gang Task Force.
(Courtesy Federal Bureau of Investigations.)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 339
▼
In the 1980s, Father Greg Boyle realized that a need
existed to provide jobs and education as alternatives
to the gangs and the senseless violence they created.
So, he began a mission in 1988, which became
Homeboy Industries in 2001. The program has since
grown to become one of the largest, most compre-
hensive and successful gang intervention, rehabilita-
tion, and re-entry programs in the country. Since the
beginning, it has sought alternatives to violence,
given second chances, and provided jobs and educa-
tion. It is a therapeutic community, a place of heal-
ing, and a place to discover resilience. Since moving
to its current location in Downtown Los Angeles, it
has grown exponentially. Now, each month: More
than 1,000 people walk through its doors seeking job
placement, free services, and referrals; there more
about 800 tattoo removal sessions; more than 400
students are tutored and mentored, and nearly 400
people receive legal and mental health counseling.
• Case Management - a multi-disciplinary method of monitoring a trainee’s 18-month plan of action as they
establish and attain personal, educational, and voca-
tional goals.
• Tattoo Removal • Employment Services—job preparation and placement • Mental Health Services—individual therapy, sub-
stance abuse counseling, and group classes
• Legal Services • Curriculum and Education—including a GED pro-
gram, Charter High School, life skills and enrich-
ment classes80
Focus On Homeboy Industries
Certainly the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) Program, a school-
based, law enforcement officer-instructed, classroom curriculum administered by
OJJDP, serves to combat risk factors and helps youth develop positive life skills that will
help them avoid gang involvement and violent behavior. Another program, the Blueprints
for Violence Prevention project, has identified activities that have been shown to reduce
violence, delinquency, and drug use with gang members or youth at risk for gang
membership.81
Some jurisdictions have also been experimenting with new problem-oriented policing
approaches for preventing youth gun violence (see Exhibit 12-8 ■), using a “pulling
levers” strategy (discussed earlier in this chapter) and focused deterrence. This approach
makes would-be offenders believe that severe consequences would follow gun violence; a
key element of the strategy is the delivery of rapid follow-up prosecution when such activ-
ities persist. Evaluation research has shown this strategy to be effective in reducing gun
violence among serious young offenders.82
(Courtesy homeboy industries)
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 340
▼
exhibit 12-8
Operation Peacekeeper is a problem-oriented policing
program that was implemented in 1997 to address gun
violence among youth gang members in Stockton,
California. The program’s goal is to reduce gang
involvement among urban youth aged 10 to 18 and
decrease gun-related violence among gang-involved
youths. It is similar to a successful initiative first imple-
mented in the Boston metropolitan area that used
detailed information about gang activity to identify
problem areas and reduce gang-related violence.
To convey a credible, clear message about the
consequences of gang violence to youths already
involved in or at risk of being involved in gangs,
Operation Peacekeeper relies on Youth Outreach
Workers to communicate to youths that they have bet-
ter options for their lives. Youth Outreach Workers
are streetwise young men and women trained in com-
munity organizing, mentoring, mediation, conflict
resolution, and case management. Working in neigh-
borhood settings wherever young people at risk of
violence are found—including schools, parks, street
corners, and apartment complexes—the Youth
Outreach Workers serve as mentors and positive role
models for youth. Their role is to make sure youths
understand the consequences of violence and that
there are positive alternatives to gang membership.
The program uses a problem-oriented policing
paradigm to address specific problem areas and
offenders. In particular, it uses the “pulling levers”
deterrence strategy, which tackles a specific problem-
atic criminal activity by implementing specialized
prevention or intervention techniques. In Stockton,
this strategy focused on the issue of gun violence
among youth gang members.
Operation Peacekeeper uses outreach workers in
collaboration with government and community-based
organizations to provide resources for youths to escape a
gang lifestyle. The program also depends on the involve-
ment of the community to help influence criminal justice
agencies to construct customized solutions.83
OPERATION PEACEKEEPER, A PROBLEM-SOLVING RESPONSE IN STOCKTON
Summary This chapter has described several highly problematic criminal enterprises active in both
the United States and internationally, and includes how and why, in stark terms, we are no
longer safe in America; the problems wrought by cybercriminals and gangs; and how the
war on drugs is radically being altered. Eight exhibits and other examples demonstrated the
kinds of methods that the police are adopting to address these problems.
Of particular emphasis was the efficacy of the community-oriented policing and
problem- solving strategy in dealing with these problems. The police agencies described in
this chapter and their peers across the United States have realized much success by breaking
with tradition and attacking the contributing or underlying problems, while empowering
neighborhoods to defend themselves against crime and deterioration. We also emphasized
that for each of the problem areas discussed, the success of policing strategies was highly
dependent on the police having laid the groundwork—doing the kinds of preparatory work
described in Chapter 4.
Key Terms
bioterrorism
cybercrime
“designer” drugs
domestic terrorism
Electronic Crimes Task Force
extremists
fusion center
gangs
High Intensity Drug Trafficking
Areas Program
homegrown violent extremists
identity theft
international terrorism
Joint Terrorism Task
Forces
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 341
▼
lone wolf
legislative measures
marijuana legalization/
decriminalization
Military Commissions Act
National Counterterrorism
Center
Operation Peacekeeper
Posse Comitatus Act of 1878
Prescription Drug Abuse
pulling levers
social media (use of)
USA PATRIOT Act
war on drugs
Review Questions
1. How is the war on drugs changing, primarily with
marijuana and prescription drug abuse?
2. How would you describe the current national epi-
demic of prescription drug abuse?
3. What are the definition and types of terrorism, per
the FBI?
4. Why are domestic, “lone wolf” extremists of con-
cern today?
5. What are some of the kinds of activities cybercrimi-
nals engage in?
6. Why have those who would use bioterrorism thus far
been largely unsuccessful?
7. What are law enforcement’s four means of addressing
terrorism?
8. What roles are played by the USA PATRIOT Act,
Military Commissions Act, and Posse Comitatus Act
of 1878 in combatting terrorism?
9. What roles are played by each of the following in
combatting terrorism:
a. Drones
b. Local police
c. Community policing
d. Social media
10. What can police attempt to do to address identity
theft? Gang activities?
Learn by Doing
1. Terrorists would prefer to attack critical targets—
several of which exist in nearly any city or county.
You, as a lieutenant in your local police agency, have
been assigned to work in your countywide fusion cen-
ter. The captain who oversees the unit informs you
that your first task is to identify all critical targets;
then, once identified, the center must consider
responses for the time when a terrorist attack or other
significant event occurs.
a. What types or categories of critical infrastructure
should concern you?
b. What structures in your county do you feel should
be listed as critical targets?
c. Might local politics come into play when devel-
oping this list, especially if someone’s business is
(or is not) included? If so, how will you deal
with it?
d. What should your fusion center do once this list
is compiled?
2. You are a small-town police chief. Early one morning
—although you don’t yet know it—a man rows his
small fishing boat, containing a duffel bag and two
fishing rods, down the remote side of a river that runs
through your city. After a slow, thirty-minute ride, the
fisherman approaches the dam’s spillway. He then
removes four interconnected backpacks from the duf-
fel bag and lowers them into the water along the slop-
ing spillway. A button on a control device is depressed,
and a large explosion is heard for miles. The under-
water explosion blows a massive hole in the earthen
wall, leading to a huge avalanche of water carving a
wide chasm in the dam. Within minutes, the first call
of the dam break reaches you; a frantic scramble
ensues as media and emergency rescue teams begin to
alert everyone living downstream. Reports are also
quickly coming in about people drowning near the
dam. People are in a state of panic and trying franti-
cally to escape. Several miles of roads have been
wiped out.
Your task: Consider the kinds of advance planning
that should have been done to prepare for such a
situation. Also, what would be the initial duties and
responsibilities of law enforcement and other
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 342
▼
Notes
1. Tony Newman, “10 ways the War on Drugs changed for-
ever in 2013,” Salon, December 17, 2013, http://www.
s a l o n . c o m / 2 0 1 3 / 1 2 / 1 7 / 1 0 _ w a y s _
the_war_on_drugs_changed_forever_in_2013_
partner/.
2. “The Drug War, Mass Incarceration and Race,” Drug
Policy Alliance Fact Sheet, January 2015, http://
www.drugpolicy.org/sites/default/files/DPA_Fact_
Sheet_Drug_War_Mass_Incarceration_and_Race_
Jan2015.pdf.
3. U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement
Administration, National Drug Threat Assessment
Summary 2014 (Washington, D.C.: Author,
November 2014), p. 25.
4. Micah Cohen, “Marijuana Legalization and States
Rights,” New York Times, December 8, 2012, http://
fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/08/mari-
j u a n a - l e g a l i z a t i o n - a n d - s t a t e s - r i g h t s / ?
pagewanted=print.
5. BalancedPolitics.org, “Should Marijuana Be
Legalized Under Any Circumstances?” August 6,
2011, http://www.balancedpolitics.org/marijuana_
legalization.htm.
6. See Drug Enforcement Administration, “Title 21
CFR, Part 1300-1399,” http://www.deadiversion.
usdoj.gov/21cfr/cfr/index.html.
7. “Medical Marijuana: Research, Not Fear,” Los
Angeles Times, July 13, 2011, http://articles.latimes.
c o m / 2 0 1 1 / j u l / 1 3 / o p i n i o n / l a - e d - m a r i j u a n a -
20110713.
8. Lizette Borelli, “Uruguay to Legalize Marijuana for
Entire Country: Will the Bill Save Money and
Lives?” Medical Daily, August 13, 2013, http://
w w w. m e d i c a l d a i l y. c o m / u r u g u a y - l e g a l i z e -
marijuana-entire-country-will-bill-save-money-and-
lives-248250.
9. Natalie Dalton, “Marijuana Should Be Legalized
Worldwide: Santos,” Colombia Reports, October 25,
2011, http://colombiareports.com/marijuana-should-
be-globally-legalized-santos/.
10. “Czech Republic Legalizes Medical Marijuana
Use,” The Huffington Post, February 15, 2013,
h t t p : / / w w w. h u ffi n g t o n p o s t . c o m / 2 0 1 3 / 0 2 / 1 5 /
czech-republic-medical-marijuana_n_2693657.
html.
11. Arthur Brice, “Argentina Court Ruling Would
Allow Personal Use of Pot,” CNN.com/World,
August 25, 2 0 0 9 , h t t p : / / w w w. c n n . c o m / 2 0 0 9 /
W O R L D / a m e r i c a s / 0 8 / 2 5 / a r g e n t i n a . d r u g .
decriminalization/.
12. Washington Post, “Time to Legalize Marijuana in
Mexico City” (editorial appearing in TicoTimes.net,
July 27, 2013), http://www.ticotimes.net/More-
n e w s / N e w s - B r i e f s / T i m e - t o - l e g a l i z e -
marijuana-in-Mexico-City_Sunday-July-28-2013.
13. Pew Research Center, “6 Facts about Marijuana,”
April 14, 2015, http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-
tank/2015/04/14/6-facts-about-marijuana/.
14. Rob Reuteman, “The Cost-and-Benefit Arguments
Around Enforcement,” CNBC, April 20, 2010, http://
www.cnbc.com/id/36600923.
15. Drug Enforcement Administration, National Drug
Threat Assessment Summary 2014, p. 23.
16. Massimo Calabresi, “The Price of Relief,” Time,
June 15, 2015, pp. 25–33.
17. Drug Enforcement Administration, National Drug
Threat Assessment Summary 2014, p. 4.
18. Calabresi, “The Price of Relief,” p. 33.
19. Drug Enforcement Administration, National Drug
Threat Assessment Summary 2014, p. 7.
20. Ibid., p. 19.
21. Ibid., p. 16.
22. Drugs.com, “Naloxone,” http://www.drugs.com/
naloxone.html.
23. Drug Enforcement Administration, National Drug
Threat Assessment Summary 2014, p. 17.
first-response personnel? The types of technologies
and equipment needed? Public information respon-
sibilities? What multiagency coordination must
be accomplished?
3. To better grasp the methods of, and problems con-
fronted by, federal/state law enforcement agencies
and local police departments, you could do no bet-
ter than to seek out and interview those individuals
who work in these arenas on a daily basis. Better
yet, if your interests are keen in any one of these
areas, you could attempt to accomplish a university-
sponsored internship with one of those agencies or,
perhaps, offer to volunteer your time at the agency
(be forewarned, however: either of these latter
objectives may not be accommodated by these
agencies or, if so, would no doubt involve a thor-
ough and lengthy background check prior to your
being accepted).
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 343
▼
24. Office of National Drug Control Policy, “Synthetic
Drugs,” https://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/ondcp-
fact-sheets/synthetic-drugs-k2-spice-bath-salts.
25. Ibid.
26. Bureau of Justice Assistance, Smart Policing
Initiative, “The Effects of ‘Pulling Levers’ Strategies
on Crime,” http://www.smartpolicinginitiative.com/
l i b r a r y - a n d - m u l t i m e d i a - r e s o u r c e s / c r i m e /
effects-pulling-levers-strategies-crime.
27. Adapted from National Institute of Justice,
CrimeSOLUTIONS.GOV, “Rockford Pulling Levers
Drug Market Intervention,” http://www.crimesolutions.
gov/ProgramDetails.aspx?ID=400.
28. Drug Enforcement Administration, “High Intensity
Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA),” http://www.dea.
gov/ops/hidta.shtml.
29. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “What We
Investigate,” https://www.fbi.gov/albuquerque/
about-us/what-we-investigate.
30. 18.U.S.C. § 2331, states that international terrorism
involves: violent acts or acts dangerous to human
life that violate federal or state law; that appear to
be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian
population; (ii) to influence the policy of a govern-
ment by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect
the conduct of a government by mass destruction,
assassination, or kidnapping; and occur primarily
outside the territorial jurisdiction of the United
States, or transcend national boundaries in terms of
the means by which they are accomplished, the per-
sons they appear intended to intimidate or coerce,
or the locale in which their perpetrators operate or
seek asylum.
Domestic terrorism includes activities that:
involve acts dangerous to human life that violate
federal or state law; appear intended to intimidate or
coerce a civilian population; to influence the policy of
a government by intimidation or coercion; or to affect
the conduct of a government by mass destruction,
assassination, or kidnapping; and occur primarily
within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States.
31. Peter Bergen, “Can We Stop Homegrown Terrorists?”
The Wall Street Journal, January 23–24, 2016,
pp. C1–C2.
32. See Michael Steinbach, Assistant Director,
Counterterrorism Division, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Statement Before the House Committee
on Homeland Security Washington, D.C. February 11,
2015, https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/the-
urgent-threat-of-foreign-fighters-and-homegrown-
terror; also see U.S. Department of Justice Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services, Awareness
Brief: Homegrown Violent Extremism (2014), http://
ric-zai-inc.com/Publications/cops-w0738-pub.pdf.
33. Michael Morell, “The Gathering Threat,” Time,
May 25, 2015, pp. 20–21.
34. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, “Remarks
by Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson at
the Canadian American Business Council at the
Canadian American Business Council,” October 1,
2014, http://www.dhs.gov/news/2014/10/01/
remarks-secretary-homeland-security-jeh-johnson-
canadian-american-business-council.
35. Majority and Minority Staff of the Senate Committee
on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs,
Zachary Chesser: A Case Study in Online Islamist
Radicalization and Its Meaning for the Threat of
Homegrown Terrorism (Washington, D.C.: United
States Senate, 2012).
36. Dana A. Shea and Frank Gottron, Small-Scale
Terrorist Attacks Using Chemical and Biological
Agents: An Assessment Framework and Preliminary
Comparisons, Congressional Research Service,
Report for Congress, May 20, 2004, http://www.fas.
org/irp/crs/RL32391.pdf.
37. Edward J. Tully and E. L. Willoughby, “Terrorism:
The Role of Local and State Police Agencies,”
National Executive Institute Associates, May 2002,
h t t p : / / w w w. n e ia s s o c ia t e s . o rg / t e r r o r i s m - r o l e -
local-state-pol/.
38. See U.S. Department of Homeland Security,
“Preventing Terrorism Overview,” July 16, 2015,
http://www.dhs.gov/topic/preventing-terrorism-
overview.
39. Bureau of Justice Assistance, “The Nationwide SAR
Initiative,” https://nsi.ncirc.gov/?AspxAutoDetect
CookieSupport=1.
40. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, “If You See
Something, Say Something,” http://www.dhs.gov/
see-something-say-something.
41. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland
Security Information Network (HSIN), September 23,
2015, http://www.dhs.gov/homeland-security-
information-network-hsin.
42. See DHS, “Aviation Security,” http://www.dhs.gov/
aviation-security.
43. See ibid.; also see a TSA video of the Secure Flight
program at: https://www.tsa.gov/node/2271.
44. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Frequently Asked
Questions,” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/faqs.
45. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Protecting America
from Terrorist Attack: Our Joint Terrorism Task
Forces,” https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/
terrorism/terrorism_jttfs.
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 344
▼
46. See National Counterterrorism Center, “Who We
Are,” http://www.nctc.gov/; https://www.fbi.gov/
about-us/investigate/terrorism.
47. U.S. Department of Homeland Security, “State and
Major Urban Area Fusion Centers,” http://www.dhs.
gov/state-and-major-urban-area-fusion-centers.
48. Gary Peck and Laura Mijanovich, “Give Us Security
While Retaining Freedoms,” Reno Gazette Journal,
August 28, 2003, p. 9A; also see “House Approves
Patriot Act Renewal,” http://www.cnn.com/2006/
POLITICS/03/07/patriot.act.
49. Jurist: Legal News and Research, “Bush Signs
Military Commissions Act,” http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/
p a p e r c h a s e / 2 0 0 6 / 1 0 / b u s h - s i g n s - m i l i t a r y -
commissions- act.php.
50. D. G. Bolgiano, “Military Support of Domestic Law
Enforcement Operations: Working Within Posse
Comitatus,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin
(December 2001), pp. 16–24.
51. Kaveh Waddell, “Few Privacy Limitations Exist on
How Police Use Drones,” The National Journal,
February 5, 2015, http://www.nationaljournal.com/
t e c h / f e w - p r i v a c y - l i m i t a t i o n s - e x i s t - o n -
how-police-usedrones-20150205.
52. Dennis J. Stevens, Case Studies in Community
Policing (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall,
2001); also see, generally, U.S. Office of Community
Oriented Policing Services, “Homeland Security
Through Community Policing,” http://www.cops.
usdoj.gov/Default.asp?Item=2472.
53. From U.S. Department of Justice Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services, Using
Community Policing to Counter Violent Extremism:
5 Key Principles for Law Enforcement (2014),
pp. 11–19, http://ric-zai-inc.com/Publications/cops-
p299-pub.pdf.
54. Ibid.
55. Ibid., p. 13.
56. Interpol, “Cybercrime,” http://www.interpol.int/
Crime-areas/Cybercrime/Cybercrime.
57. “These Cybercrime Statistics Will Make You Think
Twice About Your Password: Where’s the CSI Cyber
team when you need them?” CBS, March 4, 2015,
h t t p : / / w w w. c b s . c o m / s h ow s / c s i - c y b e r / n ew s /
1 0 0 3 8 8 8 / t h e s e - c y b e r c r i m e - s t a t i s t i c s - w i l l -
make-you-think-twice-about-your-password-where-
s-the-csi-cyber-team-when-you-need-them-/.
58. Ibid.
59. McAfee, “Net Losses: Estimating the Global Cost of
Cybercrime,” June 2014, http://www.mcafee.com/
u s / r e s o u r c e s / r e p o r t s / r p - e c o n o m i c - i m p a c t -
cybercrime2.pdf.
60. See “The World’s Most Hacked,” Time, June 8, 2015,
p. 10; “Admit Nothing and Deny Everything,” The
Economist, June 8, 2013, http://www.economist.
com/news/china/21579044-barack-obama-says-he-
ready-talk-xi-jinping-about-chinese-cyber-attacks-
makes-one (accessed June 13, 2013); Siobhan
Gorman and Julian E. Barnes, “Cyber Combat: Act
of War,” The Wall Street Journal, May 30, 2011,
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405270230
4563104576355623135782718.html (accessed
June 13, 2013); Michael Riley and John Walcott,
“China-Based Hacking of 760 Companies Shows
Cyber Cold War,” Bloomberg Business, December 14,
2011, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-13/
china-based-hacking-of-760-companies- ref lects-
undeclared-global-cyber-war.html.
61. Adapted from Federal Bureau of Investigation,
“Cyber Stalker: A Cautionary Tale About Online
Romance and Revenge,” December 23, 2013, https://
w w w. f b i . g o v / n e w s / s t o r i e s / 2 0 1 3 / d e c e m b e r /
cautionary- tale-of-online-romance-and-revenge/
cautionary-tale-of-online-romance-and-revenge.
62. Ibid.
63. National Institute of Justice, “Tech Beat: Catching
the Cyber Crook,” Summer 2000, https://www.
justnet. org/pdf/CyberCrookSum2000.pdf.
64. George I. Seffers “Ramping Up the Cyber Criminal
Hunt,” Signal, March 1, 2014, http://www.afcea.org/
content/?q=ramping-cyber-criminal-hunt.
65. Ibid.
66. National Institute of Justice, “Tech Beat: Cyber
Cops in Training,” https://www.justnet.org/pdf/
CyberCopsWint04.pdf.
67. Graeme R. Newman, “Identity Theft,” 2004, http://
www.popcenter.org/problems/identity_theft/; also
see USA.gov, “Identity Theft,” at: https://www.usa.
gov/identity-theft.
68. Ibid.
69. Ibid.
70. Ibid.
71. Adapted from Financial Crimes Task Force of
S o u t h w e s t e r n P e n n s y l va n i a , h t t p : / / w w w.
financialcrimestaskforce.com/.
72. Ibid.
73. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Uniform Crime
Reports, Crime in the United States 2014, “Arrests,”
Table 41, https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-
in-the-u.s/2014/crime-in-the-u.s.-2014/tables/table-41.
74. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention, Statistical Briefing Book (December 9,
2014), http://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/crime/JAR_
Display.asp?ID=qa05200.
CHAPTER 12 Policing Criminal Organizations 345
▼
75. David W. Roush, A Desktop Guide to Good Juvenile
Detention Practice (Washington, D.C.: Office of
Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 1996),
pp. 26–27.
76. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Youth Gangs
(December 1997), p. 1, file:///C:/Users/Ken/AppData/
L o c a l / M i c r o s o f t / W i n d o w s / T e m p o r a r y %
20Internet%20Files/Content.IE5/2KMZTFCP/
youthgangs.pdf.
77. National Gang Center, “Frequently Asked Questions
About Gangs,” http://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/
About/FAQ#q1.
78. See U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention, NGC Newsletter
(Winter 2013), p. 1, file:///C:/Users/Ken/AppData/
L o c a l / M i c r o s o f t / W i n d o w s / T e m p o r a r y %
20Internet%20Files/Content.IE5/FUNLYTW9/
NGC-Newsletter-2013-Winter.pdf.
79. Catherine H. Conly, Patricia Kelly, Paul Mahanna,
and Lynn Warner, Lynn, Street Gangs: Current
Knowledge and Strategies (Washington, D.C.: U.S.
Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice,
1993).
80. See Homeboy Industries, http://www.homeboy-
industries.org/; also see Homeboy Industries,
file:///C:/Users/Ken/AppData/Local/Microsoft/
Windows/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/Content.
IE5/SH3Z9DN4/HB-Book-2013.pdf.
81. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention, Statistical Briefing Book.
82. Anthony Braga, “Responses to the Problem of Gun
Violence Among Serious Young Offenders,” Center
for Problem-Oriented Policing, 2012, http://www.
popcenter.org/problems/gun_violence/3.
83. Adapted from National Institute of Justice,
CrimeSOLUTIONS.GOV, http://www.crimesolutions.
gov/ProgramDetails.aspx?ID=51
346
▼
13 Policing Special Populations and Problems Mental Illness, Domestic Violence, Immigrants, and Human Trafficking
Learning Objectives
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain the U.S. mental health crisis and the approaches police use to address it
❷ Describe domestic violence and methods for addressing it
(Courtesy Lisa F. Young/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 347
▼
The human story does not always unfold like a mathematical calculation on the principle
that two and two make four. Sometimes in life they make five or minus three; and some-
times the blackboard topples down in the middle of the sum and leaves the class in disorder.
—Winston Churchill
Introduction
The four major crime problems that were addressed in Chapter 12 in relation to problem-oriented polic-
ing and problem solving—terrorists, cybercriminals, gang members, and drug users and traffickers—can
and do plague many Americans in their communities. However, millions of Americans and the criminal
justice systems are also affected each year by the four issues and problems that are discussed in this
chapter: mental illness, domestic violence, immigration, and human trafficking. For that reason, these
are in no way lesser problems that the police must hope to contain.
As was the case in Chapter 12, the emphasis with these four types of issues will be on the kinds of
problem-solving responses that have been developed by police for dealing with them. Examples of such
responses are provided in seven exhibits disseminated throughout the chapter. The chapter concludes
with key terms and concepts, as well as review items and some “Learn by Doing” scenarios where you
can apply your knowledge to chapter materials.
▶ Coping with the Mentally Ill Population
When the Problem Becomes Lethal
• Aaron Alexis entered Building 197 of the Washington Navy Yard in September 2013, carrying a backpack containing a disassembled shotgun and ammunition and a plan to
kill multiple people. In less than 90 minutes, Alexis had shot and killed twelve and
injured three. A disturbing question entered the nation’s collective mind: was Alexis
mentally ill and could police or medical professionals have stopped him? During
Alexis’ four years in the U.S. Navy, he was cited eight times for misconduct and
arrested three times for mischief and disorderly conduct, with two of his arrests stem-
ming from shooting-related incidents. Later, Alexis reported hearing voices and
believed low-frequency electromagnetic waves were controlling him. He twice sought
help at hospital emergency rooms for insomnia and after reporting to health professionals
that he was not in danger of harming anyone, he was prescribed antidepressants.
To most mental health and law enforcement professionals, these symptoms—voices,
delusions, and attention-seeking behaviors—are all hallmarks of potentially serious
mental illness, such as schizophrenia, paranoia, or schizoaffective disorder.1
• In September of 2012, when Mohamad Bah’s mother became concerned about his erratic behavior as he holed up in his apartment, she called 911 and asked for help for
her mentally ill son. New to the country, she expected medical professionals to arrive,
but instead NYPD officers responded. When Bah opened the door to officers, he was
naked and holding a knife. Officers pulled the door shut and called for an emergency
❸ Describe the pros and cons of immigration, the status of related federal laws, and police approaches to enforcing them
❹ Explain human trafficking and societal, legislative, and law enforcement strategies for addressing it
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 348
▼
▲ America’s jails and prisons have been termed the “new asylums” because they house more
mentally ill persons than any psychiatric hospital in the country. (Courtesy Photographee.eu/Shutterstock.)
▲ Police obtain crisis intervention training and work with mental health centers and emergency
hospitals to address the problem of mental illness. (Courtesy Halfpoint/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 349
▼
services unit (ESU) because Bah was apparently “emotionally disturbed.” When Bah
refused to open the door to ESU officers, the team forced its way in and Bah lunged at
them with the knife. Officers deployed an electronic control device and shot him with
a rubber bullet, but Bah continued to come at them, eventually stabbing two officers.
Police then fatally shot Bah—and later unleashed considerable criticism against the
NYPD for not having an effective training program for officers to deal with the men-
tally ill.2
And so begins the criminal justice system’s role as the primary mental health system in
this country. These brain diseases bring the mentally ill into increasing contact with the
police and the criminal justice system, which has become the nation’s de facto mental
health system. But being mentally ill is not a crime, and the rule of law and due process
means that we cannot prosecute persons for mere status or for behaving oddly unless they
are indeed breaking the criminal law.
Consider at what point police officers and other criminal justice professionals should
see trouble brewing, and what legal tools are available to them to help the mentally ill.
Why was someone like Alexis able to buy the gun he used to commit this mass shooting?
And what happens to ill offenders if they are processed in the system?
Front-End, Back-End Issues
At the front end of the problem, an estimated 20 to 40 percent of police calls for service
involve mentally ill persons,3 while an estimated 7 percent of police contacts in jurisdic-
tions with 100,000 or more people involve the mentally ill. One survey found that about 9
in 10 (92 percent) of patrol officers have at least one encounter with a mentally ill person
in crisis each month, and officers average about six such encounters per month.4 On the
back end, America’s jails and prisons have been termed by the Treatment Advocacy
Center5 as the “new asylums” because they house more mentally ill persons than any psy-
chiatric hospital in the country. Researchers have found that more than half the inmates in
jails and state prisons are mentally ill, particularly with depressive disorder, schizophrenia
and bipolar disorder.6
What Can Police Do? The Success of CIT
The deinstitutionalization of mental health centers began to occur in the latter half of
the twentieth century—what has been termed a “psychiatric Titanic”7—and left police
officers with few options or resources when dealing with individuals struggling with
mental disorders. [This movement was justified for the most part, however; previously,
when dispatched to homes to deal with mentally ill individuals, officers could in effect
unilaterally elect to remove them from their homes and put them in jail, from which
they might be committed to a mental health facility.] Many of these persons who were
prevented from entering the nation’s public psychiatric hospitals were severely men-
tally ill and found themselves living on the streets or in shelters. Fewer locations existed
where law enforcement personnel could take these persons for treatment, and, due to
funding restrictions, the individuals were expected to pay for their own mental health
care. Often, they could not afford or simply did not have medical insurance. Police offi-
cers thus became first responders and the criminal justice system became America’s
mental health system.8
However, there are solutions and responses available to the police. Perhaps the best-
known response is a result of a Memphis, Tennessee police officer’s response to a call in
1988, involving a man wielding a knife.9 The man would not comply with the officer’s
demands to disarm, and the officer had to resort to deadly force. The man suffered from
schizophrenia and likely could not separate fact from fiction when dealing with the officer.
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 350
▼
This incident led to reforms and what is now known as the “Memphis Model”—a program
to train officers to deal with mentally ill individuals.
Another result was the creation of Crisis Intervention Training/Teams (CIT; see an exam-
ple described in Exhibit 13-1 ■), where officers learn to approach mentally ill suspects
differently, using body language and voice commands to de-escalate situations and to ease
emotionally disturbed persons into compliance and safety. Officers are also trained to
know the various diversionary options in their jurisdiction—where to admit such people
into mental health/medical facilities rather than taking them to jail. CIT training is critical
for the modern officer. But to date, only about 2,700 agencies nationwide use the program,
although advocates call for such programs to be standard police training everywhere.10
Some researchers believe that programs like CIT are difficult for organizations to fully
adopt because they involve making large-scale changes to almost every facet of police
operations—from training and scheduling to dispatch and patrol as well as forging partner-
ships with the mental health community. In the current landscape of CIT, one organization
can make changes to their training requirements while another can make systemic changes
to all standard operating procedures and both agencies can purport to practice the program.
These differences make it difficult to measure the effectiveness of CIT as whole.12
Following are several strategies for police that are essential for providing a foundation
for problem reduction:
• Work with the mental health community. Mental health professionals can be viable partners with the police. They can provide training and direct assistance during emer-
gencies as well as inpatient and outpatient services for people with mental illness and
operate emergency facilities.
• Work with emergency hospitals. Emergency hospitals (whether general hospitals or special- ized psychiatric hospitals) to which police may take people in crisis are important elements
of the mental health system. Police agencies should meet with hospital staff periodically to
clarify expectations, develop workable protocols, and address problems and issues.
exhibit 13-1
The Roanoke, Virginia, County Police Department,
one of the first to implement CIT training in
Southwestern Virginia, provides an example of how a
CIT program may be structured. First, roughly half of
their 140 police officers are certified in CIT methods.
There always is at least one CIT-trained officer avail-
able during each shift. Police recruits receive various
CIT training blocks throughout their academy instruc-
tion, although this training does not meet all standards
necessary for certification. The department also partic-
ipates in an annual, weeklong CIT training course,
hearing from speakers and professionals from mental
health arenas who offer seminars to police officers. The
training also includes on-site visits to local rehabilita-
tion centers and hospitals. Officers participate in role-
playing scenarios and other hands-on training.
When working with persons having mental disor-
ders, the department uses a three-prong test to ascertain
(1) whether individuals pose a danger to themselves, (2)
if a person endangers others, or (3) whether individuals
cannot care for themselves. If a person meets any of
these criteria, the officer will take the individual into
emergency custody as provided in state statute. The per-
son then will be transported to an emergency medical
facility where an emergency outreach service worker
further evaluates the individual. After the evaluation, if
the EOS worker deems the individual to be at risk or a
threat, a temporary detention order may be placed on the
person, and the individual will be held in a mental health
facility pending further evaluation.11 [Note: the Seattle,
Washington, Police Department website provides a
short video of police partnering with mental health
experts at: http://www.seattle.gov/police/work/cit.htm]
Source: Responding to Persons with Mental Illness: Can Screening
Checklists Aid Law Enforcement? by Christian Mason, Tod W.
Burke, Stephen S., Federal Bureau of Investigation.
A CIT EXAMPLE IN VIRGINIA
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 351
▼
• Appoint police liaison officers. Officers can liaise with the entire mental health community, including sitting on appropriate boards and committees. In addition,
departments can appoint liaison officers for each mental health facility (hospital, shel-
ter, group home, etc.) in the jurisdiction for problem-solving location-specific issues
to reduce and prevent crimes, disorder, and calls for service at current and potential
hot spots
• Train generalist police officers. Officers must know how to handle incidents involving people with mental illness. Proper training typically integrates lecture, discussion,
tours of mental health facilities, and role-playing. Several recent studies have found
improvements in both attitudes and knowledge about mental illness as well as improve-
ments in officers’ confidence in identifying and responding to persons with mental
illness. Thus, evidence to date suggests that CIT training improves officer knowledge,
attitudes and confidence, at least in the short term.
• Use less-lethal weapons. Maintaining a calm demeanor, using good oral and nonverbal communication, and using proper tactics are far better alternatives, when possible, than
deadly force.
• Target repeat criminals, locations, and hotspots (see Exhibit 13-2 ■). It is widely rec- ognized that a relatively small proportion of offenders and locations are responsible for
a relatively large proportion of offenses, so attention should be focused on them.13
▶ Domestic Violence
Dangers and Approaches
As with their dealings with mentally ill persons, police responses to domestic violence has
undergone fundamental changes over the last 30 years. In the past, a police officer had
virtually limitless authority to arrest one, both, or neither of the parties involved in domes-
tic violence (even when one or both of them had been severely injured). Still, much work
remains to be done, because domestic violence too often remains the “hidden crime,” com-
mitted behind closed doors, and thus does not receive the same level of focus as crimes
that are committed in public. It can also become a violent incident; a survey of police agen-
cies by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) found that 14 percent of all homi-
cides involve domestic violence, and about one-fourth of all aggravated assaults involved
domestic violence.15
exhibit 13-2
In Charlotte, North Carolina, police were called to a
single residential address over one-hundred times in
regard to trash, property in disrepair, and threats to
neighbors. An unmarried couple lived at the resi-
dence, and when police targeted the situation, they
learned that the woman suffered from mental illness
and that she had completely intimidated her
common-law husband while also terrorizing the
neighborhood. Police identified relatives of the man
and gained their assistance once a long-term involun-
tary commitment for the woman was obtained. The
house and property were then completely cleaned up.
The man chose to remain at the residence. Once the
woman was released from inpatient care, she moved to
a different residence and started working. During
the follow-up period, both people were reported as
doing well, and the police department received no
further calls.14
REPEAT CALLS IN NORTH CAROLINA
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 352
▼
Nearly all (95 percent) of the agencies surveyed had a specific policy regarding offi-
cers’ response to incidents of domestic violence (see Exhibit 13-3 ■). Common practices
discussed in the policies include:
• Approach carefully: First responders are to observe and listen before announcing their presence, in order to protect themselves and gather information. Many agencies also
require that at least two officers be sent to any domestic violence call.
▲ Domestic violence is often a “hidden crime,” committed behind closed doors,
and thus not receiving the same level of focus as crimes that are committed in
public. (Courtesy Knox County Sherffi’s Office.)
exhibit 13-3
What, if any, legal obligation is held by the police to
protect someone from their estranged spouse who has
been served with a legal restraining order? That question
was at the crux of a lawsuit from Castle Rock, Colorado,
which was ultimately heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Jessica Gonzales’ restraining order required her husband
to remain at least 100 yards from her and their three
daughters except during specified visitation times. One
evening the husband took possession of the three chil-
dren in violation of the order; Mrs. Gonzalez repeatedly
urged the police to search for and arrest her husband, but
they took no immediate action (due to Jessica’s allowing
her husband to take the children at various hours). At
approximately 3:20 a.m., the husband appeared at the
city police station and instigated a shoot-out with
the police (he died). A search of his vehicle revealed the
corpses of the three daughters, whom the husband had
killed. U.S. cities are generally immune from lawsuits,
so in this case the Supreme Court was asked to decide
whether Jessica Gonzales could sue the city because of
inaction by its police officers.
1. Were the police morally responsible for the
deaths of the three girls?
2. Were the police legally responsible for their deaths?
3. If you believe Jessica should be allowed to sue
the city, and the police were liable, how much
financial compensation should Jessica receive?
[See the Notes section at chapter’s end for the out-
come and to learn whether or not the city was deemed
to be liable for its police department’s actions.]17
LEGAL ASPECTS OF DV
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 353
▼
• Separate the parties: Many agencies have officers separate the parties at domestic dis- pute calls and interview them separately, so each can speak candidly without being
overheard.
• Some departments require that photographs of the victim be taken.
• Collect evidence: photographs of victims’ injuries, the crime scene, weapons recov- ered, witness statements, medical records, and/or audio/video recordings of statements.
• Obtain protection orders: Most agencies assist victims who desire emergency orders of protection; about 9 in 10 agencies provide victims with information on how to obtain
an order; 44 percent assist victims in filling out paperwork for an order, and 29 percent
accompany victims to court to obtain an order.
• Perform lethality assessments: 42 percent of agencies use lethality assessments to determine the level of danger to the victim. These tools consist of questions to indicate
whether the victim is at high risk, such as whether the offender’s violence has increased
in frequency or severity, has a criminal record or a history of drug or alcohol abuse, has
violated a restraining order, has made threats of homicide or suicide, has access to
firearms, and so on.
• Do domestic violence crime analysis: High percentages of agencies document domes- tic violence incidents by location and by perpetrator.
• Have protocols for protecting children: About half of police agencies have special follow-up protocols for cases in which children are present. For example, many agen-
cies require that a local child protective services agency be contacted, and some can
file child abuse charges or increase the penalties for domestic abuse if a child witnesses
the domestic violence.16
An innovative program for addressing domestic violence is the Family Justice Center
Concept, an example of which is the San Diego Family Justice Center (SDFJC). Created
in 2002, by 2003 the SDFJS had become a national model; in fact, that same year President
George W. Bush created the President’s Family Justice Center Initiative with the goal of
instituting Family Justice Centers across the nation. All necessary services are located at
the FJC, which is staffed with 8 detectives, 12 attorneys, 23 sheriff’s deputies, and 8 victim
advocates who collaborate and share information. Exhibit 13-4 ■ discusses SDFJC in
more detail.
exhibit 13-4
The San Diego Family Justice Center (SDFJC) was the
first of its kind in the United States and provides help
and hope to victims of family violence and their chil-
dren. Every day, those impacted by family violence,
child abuse, and elder abuse, find safety, protection
from their abuser, legal help, counseling, food, cloth-
ing, spiritual support, medical assistance, and so many
other free services from the Center’s professionals and
volunteers. Its mission is to stop family violence, make
victims safer, hold batterers accountable, and provide
long-term support for victims and children through
collaboration and coordinated services.
The FJC is a “one-stop” help center that provides
the majority of services needed by victims of family
violence. Under one roof, 25 agencies have come
together to provide medical, legal, and social services
to victims of domestic violence, elder abuse, and child
abuse. Since opening, the FJC has effectively engaged
law enforcement, prosecutors, medical professionals,
clergy, social service workers, volunteers, hospitals,
and shelters to provide comprehensive services to
approximately 23,000 victims of family violence and
their children.18
THE SAN DIEGO FAMILY JUSTICE CENTER
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 354
▼
▶ Immigration to the Land of Opportunity
Immigration to the United States presents a vexing problem, as it has been both a boon and
a curse. On the one hand, the nation is richer in culture, diversity, and civilization as it is
reshaped by people from around the world. However, immigration also carries illegal and
dangerous aspects that threaten the nation’s security (see the discussion of terrorism,
Chapter 12). Indeed, the latter issue was a prime topic of debate and conjecture during the
run-up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election and commands attention at countless other
Congressional and state/local political gatherings. In this chapter section, we focus on the
status of, and challenges posed by illegal immigration to the United States, including their
numbers, views of some police officials, local police activities toward immigrants, and the
crackdown on sanctuary cities.
The Changing Numbers, Faces of Undocumented Immigrants in the United States
Notwithstanding the “hot button” issue that immigration represents, according to the
Center for Migration Studies, in 2016 the illegal immigrant population in the United States
fell to 10.9 million—continuing a nearly decade-long decline in the total undocumented
immigrant population since 2003. This decline is primarily due to reductions in illegal
immigrants from Mexico. Although specific reasons for the decline are unknown, it is
speculated that the reductions are due to a combination of factors, including tighter U.S.
border security and economic and demographic changes in Mexico (e.g., women having
fewer children).19 The protracted debate continues over what to do with undocumented
aliens residing in the United States, however, and has led to what is often described as a
“broken” system.
In the meantime, the face of immigration has changed. In past years, illegal immigrants
tended to be young men who crossed the Southern border seeking decent jobs;
▲ Illegal migrants are placed in holding facilities by Customs and Border Protection agents
before they are returned to Mexico. (Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Protection.)
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 355
▼
▲ Vehicles at the border. One is parked under an improvised fence to protect the
agent from rocks thrown from the Mexican side of the border; the other got stuck
when the driver attempted to drive over a 14-ft. fence. (Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border
Protection; USCBP/REX/Shutterstock/AP images.)
now, however, the typical illegal immigrant is as likely to be someone who is 35 or older
and has lived in the United States for a decade or more.20
Making the issue even more perplexing for policymakers is that U.S. citizens them-
selves cannot seem to agree on whether or not the presence of such persons helps or hurts
the U.S. economy or whether those who are living here should be allowed to remain. A
recent national survey revealed that 72 percent of Americans (80 percent of Democrats and
56 percent of Republicans) believe that undocumented immigrants currently living in the
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 356
▼
United States should be allowed to remain in this country if meeting certain requirements.
In terms of securing the border with a wall or a fence, about half (46 percent) of Americans
favor building a fence along the entire border with Mexico, while a nearly equal amount
(47 percent) are opposed.21
Looking at the views of police officials themselves concerning illegal immigration is
also befuddling. For example, a 40-member Task Force of the National Immigration
Forum, composed of law enforcement personnel, has argued that immigration enforce-
ment is, first and foremost, a federal responsibility. They believe that immigration enforce-
ment at the state and local levels diverts limited resources from already financially strapped
public safety agencies. They argue that local police should therefore not be charged with
the federal government’s role in enforcing federal immigration laws. The Task Force also
maintains that their priority is to build trust with residents, apprehend criminals, and main-
tain public safety. The enforcement of federal immigration law poses real threats to com-
munity policing efforts and to existing relationships with immigrant communities.22
The Role of Local Police
Still, the burden of dealing with undocumented aliens cannot be completely discharged by
local police (see Exhibit 13-5 ■, concerning Haitians). They will come into frequent con-
tact with immigrants, and thus should possess a working knowledge of immigration law
and policy. Accordingly, the federal Office of Community Oriented Policing Services
funded a web-based Basic Immigration Enforcement Training program to train officers in
such areas as determining immigrant/nonimmigrant status, identifying false identification,
and notifying foreign nationals’ embassy or consulate.23
exhibit 13-5
In the early 1990s, officers of the Delray Beach,
Florida, police department (DBPD) began hearing peo-
ple asking more and more often if they understood the
Creole language. Eventually, it came to light that the
city was in the midst of an immigrant explosion of
mostly illegal Haitian immigrants (Creole is one of two
official languages of Haiti, the other being French).
Unfortunately, a large element within this popula-
tion included criminals who fed on the fears of the ille-
gal Haitian immigrants and committed numerous
felonies against them. And, because the undocumented
Haitians were fearful of the police—and dissuaded by
a ruthless system of policing in their home country—
they opted to let these crimes go unreported. Only after
a few immigrants became legal residents and thus had
no fear of being deported, did they come forward and
reveal to police the extent of their victimization.
In order to combat the Haitian criminal element,
the DBPD realized it would need to engage the Haitian
community. The first attempt to do so was the creation
of a successful citizens’ police academy, conducted
in Creole and with forty individuals attending. Next, a
Haitian citizens’ patrol was developed, using graduates
of the citizens’ academy to establish more volunteer
patrols; members patrolled in specially marked volun-
teer vehicles and dressed in volunteer uniforms.
Volunteers also assisted the DBPD and surrounding
agencies with translation, and, during times of crisis,
such as an earthquake and hurricane in Haiti, collected
five tractor-trailers worth of donated goods to be
shipped to Haiti.
The Haitian citizens’ academy and volunteers have
also helped other police agencies in Florida with grow-
ing Haitian communities by providing training for ini-
tiating both the citizens’ academy and volunteer
programs. In addition, a youth cadet academy has been
launched in a high school so students can also learn
about policing.
Through community policing efforts and creative
community partnerships, the DBPD continues to foster
trust with the Haitian community, overcome the crimi-
nal subculture that took advantage of immigrants, and
help Haitian residents take an active role in their
community.
COMMUNITY POLICING WITH FLORIDA’S HAITIANS
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 357
▼
States around the country are considering laws that would crack down on “sanctuary
cities”—cities known to protect undocumented immigrants from being deported. The
crackdown was prompted by the July 2015 murder of Kathryn Steinle of San Francisco,
discussed in Exhibit 13-6 ■.
Sanctuary cities came into being in recent years in response to a federal program that
uses local law enforcement to help identify undocumented immigrants living in the country.
People who are arrested on local charges and booked into local jails have their fingerprints
sent to the Department of Homeland Security to check for immigration violations. If a
violation(s) exists, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents can ask local police
to hold the suspect until such time as agents can pick up the person and begin deportation
proceedings. Opponents of this practice complained that the program was being abused by
ICE to round up people who had been arrested for nonviolent, minor crimes; that, in turn, led
to city policies that limit local officials, including police, from assisting ICE in those efforts.
Conversely, ICE has argued that a number of potentially dangerous immigrants were
set free. That debate came to a head in July 2015 when, despite a criminal record that
included seven felony convictions, Lopez-Sanchez was free and in the country to allegedly
shoot Kathryn Steinle (see Exhibit 13-6).
Finally, although progress on immigration law and policy has obviously been (and
remains) slow, in January 2016 there was a major step on the legal front. The U.S. Supreme
Court agreed to hear the Obama Administration’s contention that the President has
the power to change immigration policy without going through Congress and thus shield more
than 4 million undocumented immigrants from deportation. Hearing the appeal is a result of
challenges brought by the State of Texas and 25 other states which charge that in November
2014 the President engaged in executive overreach, which they feel was both “unlawful and
unconstitutional” by unilaterally creating a new program to allow parents of U.S. citizens and
permanent residents to remain in the United States and work without fear of deportation.25
exhibit 13-6
Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, 52, will face murder
charges in San Francisco, being accused of fatally
shooting 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle in the back while
she strolled in the city in July 2015. Lopez-Sanchez,
arrested less than an hour later, stated that he had acci-
dentally fired a gun he said he found wrapped in a
T-shirt, and that he had taken strong sleeping pills
before the incident.
Lopez-Sanchez, who had returned to the United
States after being deported to Mexico five times,
became the focal point in the debate over immigration
law and what are termed sanctuary cities. In March
2015, Lopez-Sanchez completed serving his third fed-
eral prison term for felony reentry into the United
States from Mexico. He was transferred to local cus-
tody because of a warrant for alleged marijuana pos-
session, but was released after prosecutors decided not
to pursue the case. Federal and state reactions to the
shooting were swift. Members of Congress, state
legislatures, and local governments called for changes
in the policy, and the U.S. House of Representatives
approved a bill (the “Stop Sanctuary Policies and
Protect Americans Act”) in July cracking down on
those cities. (The U.S. Senate, however, killed the bill
in late October, by a vote of 54-45 (60 votes were
required for passage). At the state level, in October
2015 North Carolina became the first state to enact
such a law, its governor saying that “Public safety offi-
cials must have the flexibility and tools to investigate
crimes and sanctuary city policies deprive law enforce-
ment of those tools.”
San Francisco, a sanctuary city, honors immigra-
tion holds only if the person has a violent record or if a
judge has examined the hold or approved a warrant.
Several city politicians have defended the policies as a
way to protect immigrants without violent criminal
records, and encourage them to report crimes to
police.24
THE STEINLE CASE: CHALLENGES TO SANCTUARY CITIES
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 358
▼
▶ Human Trafficking
By Presidential decree, each January is designated as National Slavery and Human
Trafficking Prevention Month, which, according to the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS), is to remind Americans more than 150 years since the Emancipation Proclamation
that we need to “rededicate ourselves to bringing an end to slavery and human traffick-
ing.”26 Although we discussed the crime of human trafficking briefly in Chapter 12 in con-
nection with gangs, here we discuss it in more detail in terms of its nature, extent, and what
police can do about this growing crime problem.
“Modern Day Slavery” for Victims
Human trafficking is essentially modern-day slavery and affects thousands of people in the
United States. Under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), human traf-
ficking is the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for
labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion, for the purpose of subjection
to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery. It includes sex trafficking, in
which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the victim
is under 18 years of age.
Men, women, and children are victimized by human trafficking and often recruited due to
pre-existing problems such as mental illness, drug abuse, and/or family dysfunction.
Trafficked persons originate from countries around the world but can also be U.S. citizens.
They are often forced to work in the sex industry; indeed, the United Nations estimates that
of the 2.4 million people in the world who are victims of human trafficking at any one time,
about 80 percent of them are being exploited as sexual slaves.27 However, many are in
forced-labor situations such as domestic servitude, manufacturing, construction, or migrant
agricultural work.28
▲ Human trafficking is essentially modern-day slavery and is the forced recruitment, harboring,
transportation, provision or obtaining of a person for labor or services. (Courtesy otnaydur/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 359
▼
What Works? Collaboration is Key
No one agency can prevent human trafficking, protect victims of human trafficking, and
prosecute traffickers; therefore, first and foremost, relationships must be developed
between law enforcement and social services agencies before human trafficking can be
addressed and victims assisted. Both parties, in order to delegate tasks and to clearly define
each agency’s role, should have relationships fostered before the two agencies ever work
together to serve a victim of trafficking.
Human trafficking typically occurs behind the closed doors of private homes or under
the radar of legitimate businesses; crime rings have also become quite astute in the meth-
ods of smuggling persons across borders and hiding victims of trafficking as they
move them between cities. Victims believe the promise of traffickers of a better life in the
United States, only to find they have been lied to, forced into servitude, or otherwise vic-
timized. These victims need assistance and benefits, the TVPA granted Congress the ability
to appropriate funding for human trafficking prevention and prosecution.
The T Visa
Several immigration laws were created to protect victims of trafficking. For example, the
“T” visa was created in 2000 and allows some victims of human trafficking and immediate
family members to remain and work temporarily in the United States if they agree to assist
law enforcement in testifying against the perpetrators. Such legislation was necessary
because victims of human trafficking are usually undocumented in the United States and
subject to deportation; therefore, while a criminal case is developing against the victim’s
trafficker or traffickers, the victim may now be granted continued presence in order to
legally remain here to assist with the legal prosecution. The T visa also thus protects the
victim from being forced to return to his or her country of origin and be vulnerable to
threats and abuse by the traffickers. Furthermore, three years after obtaining a T visa, one
▲ Today, gangs are increasingly involved in sex trafficking, which is one of the world’s fastest
growing criminal enterprises. (Courtesy chairoij/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 360
▼
may apply for permanent resident status here and even file for immediate family members
to join them legally in the United States.29
In addition, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has a certifica-
tion process for victims of human trafficking allowing them to apply for federal and state
benefits and programs; they may receive food stamps, Medicaid, and cash assistance, and
may be deemed eligible for early employment and cash assistance programs. Such benefits
offer victims a fresh start and the opportunity to obtain legal employment and appropriate
and safe housing.30
The Office of Victims of Crime
The Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) also offers funding for
anti-trafficking programs to serve pre-certified victims of trafficking; this program also
supports the TVPA’s goals of preventing and prosecuting human trafficking; it also offers
victims case management, legal assistance, clinical intervention, housing, and medical
care. Victims may also obtain transportation, emergency financial assistance, literacy
classes, English as second language classes, and employment services.31
Additional Efforts: The Diagnostic Center
Effectively addressing human trafficking can be extremely challenging for communities that
do not possess established practices for identifying and protecting human trafficking victims
and investigating and prosecuting cases. Now, however, the U.S. Department of Justice
(DOJ), Office of Justice Programs, provides assistance in what is termed a Diagnostic Center.
Established in 2012, Diagnostic Centers employ data-driven strategies for combating human
trafficking. As shown in Exhibit 13-7 ■ with the situation in Albert Lea, Minnesota, the
Center has programs and initiatives that can address problems of human trafficking.
exhibit 13-7
The city of Albert Lea, Minnesota, became involved
with the federal Diagnostic Center to assess the impact
of human trafficking, particularly sex trafficking, and to
identify best police practices to address these crimes.
With a population about 20,000 and a geographical area
less than 15 square miles, Albert Lea would not other-
wise have had the ability to address a case of human
trafficking that surfaced because of a detective’s
encountering several exotic dancers who were victims.
Seeking to be proactive, the Albert Lea Police
Department (ALPD) asked the Diagnostic Center for
help. Specifically, it requested assistance with: (1) iden-
tifying the extent of human trafficking for sexual pur-
poses by collecting and analyzing data; (2) improving
law enforcement training in human trafficking; and
(3) raising community awareness to combat the problem.
The center analyzed: the locations of offenses; arrest
data for sex trafficking and prostitution and for those
soliciting sex; data on juvenile offenses such as runaways;
a case review of charges of child abuse and drug
trafficking; referrals for prosecution for any of these
offenses; and victim and offender demographic informa-
tion. In addition, interviews were conducted with police
officers and others in criminal justice agencies, victim ser-
vice providers, community leaders, health care providers,
school administrators, and other key stakeholders.32
Following this analysis, in about three weeks four
men were arrested for solicitation. Although the diagnos-
tic analysis did not identify a specific sex trafficking ring,
it did find the presence of sex trafficking indicators in the
community, including a related high volume of vehicles
passing through, hotel occupancy rates, and Albert Lea’s
proximity to communities with known human trafficking.
The Diagnostic Center spurred community efforts to rec-
ognize these crimes and the creation of a support network
for victims to help them escape their perpetrators. These
developments also led to intense training of ALPD offi-
cers to recognize human trafficking more proactively.33
THE DIAGNOSTIC CENTER APPROACH IN MINNESOTA
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 361
▼
Gang Involvement
Sex trafficking has traditionally been perpetrated by small-time local opportunists looking
to make a large profit with little work. Today, however, sex trafficking rings are increas-
ingly run by gangs and other large criminal enterprises. Indeed, human trafficking is now
the world’s fastest growing criminal enterprise, second only to drug trafficking and as
profitable as the illegal arms trade. One can sell a person for sex many times as compared
to drugs or guns, which can only be sold once.
Global Centurion has identified over 200 cases of human trafficking in the United
States in which gang members have been involved. The Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) reports that The Bloods, MS-13, Sureños, and Somali gangs are involved in human
trafficking. Due to available technology and social media, street gangs are able to meet the
high demand for sex with young girls and women, both luring young girls into commercial
sexual exploitation as well as customers. While federal and local law enforcement agen-
cies are aware and monitor these websites, it is not sufficient to stop the growing demand
and ease of access for sex with young women.34
Summary Like Chapter 12, this chapter has applied problem-oriented policing initiatives to issues and
problems that warrant special kinds of attention. Seven exhibits were provided, each show-
ing the efficacy of problem solving in addressing a particular problem.
Although we stated it in Chapter 12, it bears repeating that for each of the issues and
problems discussed, the success of problem-oriented policing strategies is highly depen-
dent on the police having laid the groundwork—doing the kinds of preparatory work
described in earlier chapters as well as having a firm grasp of and properly applying the
SARA process (discussed in Chapter 4).
Key Terms
Crisis Intervention Team (for
mental illness)
Diagnostic Center approach (for
human trafficking)
domestic violence
Family Justice Center concept
human trafficking
identity theft
mental illness
sanctuary city
T visa
undocumented immigrant
Review Questions
1. What is the nature and extent of the mental illness
problem vis-à-vis the criminal justice system, and
how can police programs such as CIT attempt to cope
with it?
2. How would you define, and what methods exist for
addressing, domestic violence?
3. What problems accompany immigration to the U.S.,
and what kinds of approaches are some police agen-
cies taking to attempt to address the problems?
4. What are some police agencies doing to address
human trafficking? How does the T Visa work to
address it?
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 362
▼
Notes
1. “In-Depth: The Washington Navy Yard Shooting,”
CBS News, 2013, http://www.cbsnews.com/feature/
washington-navy-yard-shooting/.
2. Agnes Radomski, “It’s Time for The NYPD to Stop
Treating Mentally Ill New Yorkers Like Criminals,”
The Nation, October 9, 2014, http://www.thenation.
c o m / a r t i c l e / 1 8 1 9 2 6 / i t s - t i m e - n y p d - s t o p -
treating-mentally-ill-new-yorkers-criminals#.
3. Kevin Johnson, “Memphis Program Offers Example
for Police and Mentally Ill,” USA Today, October 2,
2013, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/
2013/10/02/police-navy-yard-mental-illness-alexis-
shooting/2910763/.
4. Gary Cordner, “People with Mental Illness,” Center
for Problem-oriented Policing (2006), http://www.
popcenter.org/problems/mental_illness/print/.
5. Treatment Advocacy Center, The Treatment of
Persons with Mental Illness in Prisons and Jails: A
State Survey (abridged), April 8, 2014, p. 4, http://
t a c r e p o r t s . o r g / t r e a t m e n t - b e h i n d - b a r s /
executive-summary.
6. Sam P.K. Collins, “Introducing Mental Health
Courts,” ThinkProgress, April 10, 2015, http://
thinkprogress.org/health/2015/04/10/3645289/
mental-health-prison-report/; Note: “mental illness”
refers generally to diagnosable diseases of the brain
recognized in the American Psychiatric Association’s
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, such as schizo-
phrenia, psychosis, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffec-
tive disorder, for example.
7. “Deinstitutionalization: A Psychiatric Titanic,”
Frontline, May 10, 2005, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/
pages/frontline/shows/asylums/special/excerpt.html.
8. Rick Jervis, “Mental Disorders Keeps Thousands of
Homeless on Streets,” USA Today, August 27, 2014,
h t t p : / / w w w . u s a t o d a y . c o m / s t o r y / n e w s /
n a t i o n / 2 0 1 4 / 0 8 / 2 7 / m e n t a l - h e a l t h - h o m e l e s s -
series/14255283/.
9. Kevin Johnson, “Memphis Program Offers Example
for Police and Mentally Ill.”
10. Ibid.
11. Adapted from Christian Mason, Tod W. Burke, and
Stephen S. Owen, “Responding to Persons with
Mental Illness: Can Screening Checklists Aid Law
Enforcement?” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin
(February 2014), https://leb.fbi.gov/2014/february/
responding-to-persons-with-mental-illness-can-
screening-checklists-aid-law-enforcement.
12. For more information, see Amy C. Watson, Melissa
Schaefer Morabito, Jeffrey Draine, and Victor Ottati,
“Improving Police Response to Persons with Mental
Illness: A Multi-level Conceptualization of CIT,”
International Journal of Law and Psychiatry 31
(2008) 359–368.
13. Adapted from Gary Cordner, “People with Mental
Illness,” p. 2.
14. Ibid.
15. Police Executive Research Forum, “Police Improve
Response to Domestic Violence, But Abuse Often
Remains the ‘Hidden Crime’,” Subject to Debate 29
(1), January/February 2015, pp. 1–7. http://www.
policeforum.org/assets/docs/Subject_to_Debate/
Debate2015/debate_2015_janfeb.pdf.
16. Ibid.
17. The U.S. Supreme Court said, in a 7-2 decision, that
Gonzales could not sue the city and claim the police
Learn by Doing
1. The editorial board for a local newspaper has contacted
your criminal justice professor seeking a “Guest
Editorial” describing how the CIT concept works to
address mental illness. She asks you, as her
independent-study student, to prepare an outline explain-
ing this concept. What will your outline contain?
2. A state legislator has become very concerned with reports
that incidents of domestic violence have been increasing,
and contacts your police chief to see what is being done
about it locally. As the chief’s crime analyst, what will
you say can be done to cope with this problem?
3. The chairperson of your county commission recently
became an ID theft victim and asks the sheriff what
she can do to clear up the matter and restore her good
name. As the sheriff’s research analyst, you are asked
for input. What will you say?
4. You are assigned an essay question to describe the
measures police are taking to combat human traffick-
ing as well as approaches such as the T visa for assist-
ing victims. How will you respond?
CHAPTER 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems 363
▼
had violated her rights to due process. Furthermore,
it held she had no constitutionally protected interest
in the enforcement of the restraining order. The
opinion also established that the holder of a restraining
order is not entitled to any specific mandatory action
by the police; rather, restraining orders only provide
grounds for arresting the person restrained by order.
See: Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005).
18. Adapted from California Evidence-based
Clearinghouse for Child Welfare, “Welcome to the
San Diego Family Justice Center!” http://www.
sandiego.gov/sandiegofamilyjusticecenter/; also see
ibid., http://www.cebc4cw.org/program/san-diego-
family-justice-center/detailed.
19. Jerry Merkon, “U.S. illegal immigrant population
falls below 11 million, continuing nearly decade-
long decline, report says,” The Washington Post,
January 20, 2016, http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/
politics/us-illegal-immigrant-population-falls-
below-11-million-continuing-nearly-decade-long-
decline-report-says/ar-BBotC6q?li=BBnbcA1&ocid=
U357DHP.
20. Ibid.
21. Sara Kehaulani Goo, “What Americans want to do
about illegal immigration,” Pew Research Center,
August 24, 2015, http://www.pewresearch.org/
fact-tank/2015/08/24/what-americans-want-to-
do-about-illegal-immigration/.
22. National Immigration Forum, “Chiefs and Sheriffs
Oppose Immigration Enforcement Policies Under-
mining Community Policing,” July 20, 2015, https://
immigrationforum.org/blog/chiefs-and-sheriffs-
o p p o s e - i m m i g r a t i o n - e n f o r c e m e n t - p o l i c i e s -
undermining-community-policing/.
23. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community
Oriented Policing Services, “Basic Immigration
Enforcement Training,” http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/
default.asp?Item=2044.
24. Christine Mai-Duc, “Deportee accused of killing
Kathryn Steinle to stand trial on murder charge,”
Los Angeles Times, September 4, 2015, http://www.
latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-kathryn-steinle-
sf-shooting-murder-trial-20150904-story.html
25. Richard Wolf, “Supreme Court will rule on President
Obama’s immigration plan,” USA Today, January 20,
2016, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/
0 1 / 1 9 / s u p r e m e - c o u r t - o b a m a - i m m i g r a t i o n -
congress-deportation-illegal/78819216/.
26. Department of Homeland Security, “National Slav-
ery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month,”
January 7, 2013, http://www.dhs.gov/blog/2013/01/07/
national-slavery-and-human-trafficking-prevention-
month.
27. “U.N.: 2.4 million human trafficking victims,” USA
Today, March 4, 2012, http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/
n e w s / w o r l d / s t o r y / 2 0 1 2 - 0 4 - 0 3 / h u m a n -
trafficking-sex-UN/53982026/1.
28. Joy M. Braun, “Collaborations: The Key to Combat-
ing Human Trafficking,” The Police Chief 70
(December 2003), http://www.policechiefmagazine.
org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_
arch&article_id=173&issue_id=12200368–74.
29. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, “Victims
of Human Trafficking: T Nonimmigrant Status,” http://
www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/victims-human-
trafficking-other-crimes/victims-human-trafficking-
t-nonimmigrant-status.
30. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services,
Office of Refugee Resettlement, “Fact Sheet: Certifi-
cation for Adult Victims of Trafficking,” http://www.
acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/resource/fact-sheet-
certification-for-adult-victims-of-trafficking.
31. Office for Victims of Crime, “Human Trafficking Task
Force e-Guide,” http://ovc.ncjrs.gov/ humantrafficking/;
Also see Office of Justice Programs, Executive Refer-
ence Guide: Human Trafficking, August 2013, https://
www.ojpdiagnosticcenter.org/sites/ default/files/
spotlight/download/Manassas_ERG_090513_
508%5B1%5D.pdf.
32. Adapted from Katherine Darke Schmitt, “The Justice
Department’s Diagnostic Center Provides Technical
Assistance to Address Human Trafficking,” The Police
Chief 81 (July 2014), http://www. policechiefmagazine.
org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_
arch&article_id=3395&issue_id=72014.
33. Office of Justice Programs, “Diagnostic Center Pres-
ents Analysis of Sex Trafficking in Albert Lea, MN,”
n.d., https://www.ojpdiagnosticcenter.org/content/
diagnostic-center-presents-analysis-sex-trafficking-
albert-lea-mn.
34. Michelle Lillie, “Gang Involvement with
Human Trafficking,” November 18, 2013, http://
humantraffickingsearch.net/wp/gang-involvement-
with-human-trafficking/.
364
▼
14 Information Technologies Contributions and Caveats
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
As a result of reading this chapter, the student will be able to:
❶ Explain the rationale for the use of police information technologies and the types of functions they perform
❷ Describe the pros and cons of body-worn cameras
❸ Describe how data gathered from crime mapping, real-time crime centers, social media, and civic apps can be used to address crime and promote communication with the community
❹ Explain how information technology is used for traffic-related tasks
❺ Discuss factors essential to using police information technology effectively and the legal, moral, and practical considerations involved in its use
❻ Describe specific technologies and technology-related policies currently used in law enforcement
(Courtesy Federal Bureau of Investigation.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 365
▼
▶ Which IT Tools to Use? Consider the Type of Task Involved
One way to view what technologies can do for policing is to categorize police activities by
types of functions performed; such a classification was developed by Hoey,2 whose three
broadly defined areas were as follows:
1. Support functions, including communication, coordination, administrative, and
oversight functions, such as dispatch, personnel management, surveillance, and
“Everything we do is driven by data.”
Western Sheriff
Introduction
We might note at the outset that developing and including a chapter on police information technologies
(IT) for this (or any other) textbook is, inherently, a risky undertaking. Such factors as the ongoing
research and rapid development of hardware and software, databases, and computers; legislative and
federal court decisions (affecting their legality); the national economy; and even the social and political
acceptance of police technologies (as they affect individual right to privacy) can radically change and
render what is written today to soon be outdated.
However, with but few exceptions, such as the fields of medicine and military defense, nowhere is IT
developing more rapidly and posing more ethical and practical concerns than in policing. Therefore, we
must review many of today’s technologies and related issues, to include some of their legal, managerial,
and social aspects.
Although it sounds rather clichéd, since the Great Recession forced the funding spigots to contract for
most police agencies, departments have had to police smarter and more affordably. One obvious way to
do so is to use technology in more efficient ways. And while many police administrators may believe it
difficult to afford or justify new or existing technologies in this fiscal environment, it can also be argued
that it is certainly unwise to cut IT investments and staffing. IT can serve as a “force multiplier” and
give police agencies a distinct advantage in combating crime and disorder. As a RAND report noted, it
can improve the effectiveness of operations and generate cost savings.1 And as policing budgets begin
to increase and return to their pre-recession state, it would be wise to likewise increase the agency’s IT
capabilities to the extent possible.
This chapter begins by reviewing some means by which one can determine which IT tools to use for
different police functions. Next, we consider the rationale and application of technologies for police
in their problem-oriented policing efforts, and then review the contemporary issue of whether police
should be equipped with body-worn cameras. Following is an assessment of the major contributions
of crime mapping and real-time crime centers, and then we look at how social media and civic apps
are being used to address crime and disorder. Technologies that assist with various traffic-related
functions are then examined, followed by what must be done in order for IT to improve policing; a
number of legal, moral, and practical considerations involved with IT in policing. The status of sev-
eral selected technologies (i.e., addressing texting while driving, the safety of electronic control
devices, drones, facial recognition, fingerprinting, robots, and apps for crime-fighting) is covered at
chapter’s end.
A number of examples of IT applications are disseminated throughout the chapter in nine exhibits. The
chapter concludes with a summary, review questions, and several scenarios and activities that provide
opportunities for you to “learn by doing.”
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 366
▼
in- service training. Specific types of IT investments supporting these functions
include:
a. Administrative systems, including records management
b. Communications systems, including computer-aided dispatch (a software system
for call handling and dispatching, crime mapping, data reporting and analysis,
and so on) and in-car mobile data terminals
c. Surveillance systems, including CCTV and gunshot detection systems
2. Reactive policing functions, including responding to citizens’ calls for service (CFS),
responding to emergencies, and conducting investigations. Specific types of related IT
investments included systems intended to help law enforcement with criminal investi-
gations, such as an Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System terminal
3. Proactive policing functions, including intelligence-driven operations, such as hotspot
patrols, community-oriented engagement, and data sharing with other federal and
state agencies, businesses, and partner organizations.
These three categories reflect key differences in strategies. They also demonstrate that
before a police agency can realize any value from its IT investments, it must first under-
stand the kinds of activities those tools are intended to assist.
This is most readily seen with proactive policing techniques: for example, while
IT-based community interaction tools might be valuable for a department deeply involved
in community policing, an agency that either chooses or must only engage in reactive
answering of calls for service would find such an investment to be a waste of scarce
resources. Therefore, the preceding classification scheme allows agencies to separate
activities by the different potential effects of IT in terms of desired outcomes, and also to
determine whether benefits would even be expected from particular IT investments, given
departmental strategies and officer allocation decisions.3
▶ IT for Problem-Oriented Policing: A Conceptual Framework
Rationale for IT
The value of employing computers for community policing and problem-solving efforts
quickly became evident as soon as this philosophy began to surface. As one major city
police chief put it:
The use of high-technology equipment and applications is essential to the efficient practice
of community policing. Without high technology, officers would find it difficult to provide
the level and quality of services the community deserves. Computer-aided dispatching,
computers in patrol cars, automated fingerprinting systems, and online offense-reporting
systems are but a few examples of the pervasiveness of technology in agencies that practice
community policing.4
To do their jobs effectively, law enforcement professionals at all levels depend on
information. According to one estimate, “roughly 92% of an officer’s time is spent
acquiring, coalescing, or distributing information in one form or another.” More modern,
sophisticated policing approaches (e.g., CompStat, predictive policing, intelligence-led
policing, and Smart Policing) (discussed in Chapter 4) are even more information-
intensive and dependent. They involve not just information on crimes and perpetrators,
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 367
▼
but also data on community conditions, priorities, and other factors that could shape
crime prevention and responses.
A Primer: IT Systems for Acquiring Crime Information
Traditionally, users of police crime information and types of analysis could consult infor-
mation that was drawn from three sources5:
• Operations information systems: These include the police radio and records, the National Crime Information Center, mobile computers, cellular phones, and so on.
These were designed to supply police officers and detectives with raw data on such
topics as CFS, persons, property, and vehicles. Mobile computing allows officers to
work in a “mobile office,” to query local, state, and national databases; receive and
initiate computer-aided dispatching (CAD) events; view unit status; send e-mail;
prepare and file incident reports; issue citations; capture field interview informa-
tion; access department policies and procedures; research penal codes; and perform
many other functions. [CAD processes emergency CFS, manages officer-initiated
car stops, automates the call-taking and dispatching functions, and helps to priori-
tize CFS].
• Command and control systems: These include the preceding operations information system components plus 911, CAD, vehicle locator systems, and other equipment
designed to aid supervisors and middle managers in directing and controlling their
subordinates, especially patrol officers.
• Management information systems: MIS consists of various databases, such as officer productivity, citizen complaints, and inventory; designed to aid managers and execu-
tives in carrying out their administrative duties. [MIS captures, maintains, and ana-
lyzes all police agency and incident-related information and is vital for tracking and
managing criminal and noncriminal events, investigations, and personnel
information.]
Community policing and problem solving requires adjustments to each of the three
types of information systems described earlier. For example, rather than obtaining raw
crime data, front-line problem-solving officers require more geographically based
information, more information about problems (not just isolated incidents), and more
in-depth analysis products. Furthermore, MIS needs to focus less on efficient incident
handling and accountability for each minute of an officer’s time, and more on effective
problem solving.
In addition, problem-oriented policing requires at least three other general types of
police information systems6:
• Geographic information systems: Crime data must be related to locations that result in maps and other products pertinent to identifying and analyzing geographically
based problems.
• Problem-solving information systems: Databases and systems must capture information about completed and ongoing problem-solving efforts in order to aid officers
and citizens in identifying, analyzing, and responding to substantive problems
in communities.
• External information systems: Officers must be able to obtain data and information from other organizations and from the public, which also aid those entities in obtaining
information from the public.
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 368
▼
▶ The Cry Heard ‘Round The Country: “Wear Body Cameras!” ’
Body-worn cameras were discussed briefly in Chapter 4. Here we examine them in more
detail, in terms of potential assets and liabilities.
Two national ramifications of the recent rash of controversial police shootings across
the United States (also discussed in Chapter 4) have been an examination of police meth-
ods and an emphasis on greater police transparency—both of which include a cry for
police body-worn cameras (BWC). With people often recording on their cellphones what
appear to be questionable cases of police use of force, many politicians and activists argue
that all officers should be compelled to use BWC.
As is often the case with the implementation of new criminal justice policies and pro-
cedures, however, “the devil is in the details.” Putting such a practice into effect carries a
number of hidden issues and problems (see, e.g., Exhibit 14-1).
Indeed, according to Cindy Shain, Director of the Southern Police Institute, University
of Louisville, the following issues accompany police use of body-worn cameras and must
be addressed8:
1. Legal issues (privacy): Certainly many kinds of potentially sensitive images can be
captured, of both citizens and police. Should videos be made that are publicly embar-
rassing, such as people who are being arrested or are intoxicated? Would videos be
made of strip searches and interviews of suspects? What about innocent child vic-
tims, witnesses, confidential informants, and bystanders? People who are suspects
but not yet charged with a crime? What about officers’ reasonable right to privacy,
such as during bathroom or lunch breaks or in private conversations? Finally, who
should be allowed to view the videos?9
2. Storage and related costs: As one expert put it, the “800-pound gorilla in the room”
with BWC is that, unless state laws are changed, the ability of, and cost for, police to
dedicate personnel and equipment to store, redact, and provide videos for all open
records requests (to include those by defense attorneys) would be extremely chal-
lenging if not impossible. If recording is to be continual during a shift, many hours of
editing might be required. Therefore, body cameras can carry tremendous costs—not
only from the equipment itself but also from the time required to store and edit the
videos. A related issue is that Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests are often
from individuals or companies wishing to post police activity on YouTube and sell
advertising space.10
3. Personnel considerations: Relating to the preceding cost considerations is the
added—possibly exorbitant—cost of increased staffing to handle all the evidence,
exhibit 14-1
Even in the face of national cry for police body-worn
cameras, in late 2015 the federal U.S. Customs and
Border Protection agency decided against requiring its
agents to wear them. After a yearlong internal study,
administrators said a full-scale deployment on every
person is not necessary. They argue that the cameras
will not work for agents in the brush, only lasting a few
months before they became gummed up with dirt; also
noted was the cost: wide-scale deployment of the cam-
eras would cost tens of millions of dollars.7
BORDER AGENTS OPT NOT TO WEAR BODY CAMERAS
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 369
▼
▲ A national ramification of the recent rash of controversial police shootings
across the U.S. has been a cry for police body-worn cameras. (Courtesy Win
McNamee/Staff/Getty Images News/Getty Images.)
exhibit 14-2
The Seattle, Washington, police were severely chal-
lenged in an effort to equip officers with BWC. Public-
disclosure requests were made for all body-cam videos
since police began using them—to include a request by
a private citizen for every 911 dispatch on which
Seattle police officers were sent, all videos from patrol-
car cameras, all of the reports that officers write, and
the details of all computer searches by officers for per-
sons’ names, addresses, or license plate numbers—
were expected to financially cripple the city and force
the demise of the plan.12
Washington state law allowed such requests, and in
one such case requesting all emails received and sent
by city employees, the city would have spent $110 m illion
in salary and 1,376 years’ time to respond.13
While public officials object to such demands,
some people argue that they should not complain that
the “sky is falling” concerning such requests, and
that public officials can accommodate such large
requests by delivering materials in installments and
collecting copy fees with each release to make sure
the requester is serious. It is also argued that city offi-
cials sometimes exaggerate the time and technical
requirements required to produce records, and look
for horror stories to persuade legislators of the need
to change the law.
POLICE BODY CAMERAS WANTED (OR NOT?): SEATTLE’S EXPERIENCE
redaction, preparing evidence for court, open records requests, and so on. See
Exhibit 14-2.
4. Policies and procedures concerning the equipment: Directives must be estab-
lished and include protocols concerning, at minimum, where the cameras will be
worn (e.g., hat, sunglasses, chest); who will maintain, charge, and issue new
cameras; training to be provided on when to activate and deactivate cameras;
where data will be stored and safeguarded; how to protect and document the
chain of custody; and the process for releasing recorded data to the public
(including redaction processes).11
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 370
▼
▲ A radar beam’s width is about 210’ at 1,000 ft., but a laser beam is only about
3’ wide at that distance. Therefore, the laser gun can isolate and pinpoint a vehi-
cle’s speed at great distances, be used for tailgating and other types of enforce-
ment, and provide chain of video evidence as well as vehicle make and
model, license plate number, and driver’s facial characteristics. (Courtesy Laser
Technology, Inc.)
5. Community acceptance/understanding/involvement in decision making: certainly
for all of the foregoing legal, financial, and other reasons, it is important to begin the
conversation about BWC early with elected leaders, community members, and with
the police union.
▶ Crime Mapping
Geography has a major influence on crime. Combining geographic data with police
report data and then displaying the information on a map is an effective way to analyze
where, how, and why crime occurs. The features and characteristics of cityscapes and
rural landscapes can make it easier or more difficult for crime to occur. The placement
of alleys, buildings, and open spaces, for example, affects the likelihood that a criminal
will strike.
Community policing and problem solving thus looks to simultaneously address the
relationship between people and their environments—particularly those places with
social ills that cause real problems. Geographic analysis can help to reveal crime pat-
terns in places, such as examining where past victims and offenders lived and where
crimes occurred.14
With Geographic Information Systems (GIS), analysts map where crime occurs, com-
bine the resulting visual display with other geographic data (such as location of schools,
parks, and industrial complexes), analyze and investigate the causes of crime, and develop
responses. Recent advances in statistical analysis make it possible to add more geographic
and social dimensions to the analysis.15
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 371
▼
Computerized crime mapping combines geographic information from global
positioning satellites with crime statistics gathered by the department’s computer-
assisted dispatching (CAD) system and demographic data provided by private companies
or the U.S. Census Bureau. The result is a picture that combines disparate sets of data for
a whole new perspective on crime. Maps can thus paint a picture for crime analysts, who
in turn inform officers where they need to focus their patrols.
Maps of crimes can also be overlaid with maps or layers of causative data: unemploy-
ment rates in the areas of high crime, locations of abandoned houses, population density,
reports of drug activity, or geographic features (such as alleys, canals, or open fields) that
might be contributing factors. Furthermore, the hardware and software are now available
to nearly all police agencies for a few thousand dollars.
The National Institute of Justice’s Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety (MAPS)
program supports research that helps agencies use GIS to enhance public safety. [See, e.g.,
NIJ’s “Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety,” at: http://www.nij.gov/topics/technology/
maps/pages/welcome.aspx.]16
▶ Real-Time Crime Centers
Related to crime mapping and analysis is another relatively new approach, the real-time
crime center (RTCC), which has the purpose of using technologies to reduce officers’ reli-
ance on paper reports and nonintegrated databases to identify crime patterns. By collecting
vast amounts of crime-related data—arrest records, mug shots, and warrant information—
and providing it rapidly to officers and investigators in the field, these facilities can help in
investigations and protect officer safety. Soon, RTCCs may become as ubiquitous as
CompStat and other such strategies.
Essentially, with RTCC police use a new information hub containing many years
of voice, video, and crime data, which is translated into actionable intelligence that
shows criminal activity unfolding in real time. Resembling a “mission control” center,
it allows crime analysts and commanders to track the police calls as they are occurring
citywide. The RTCC allows staff to notice patterns and spikes in certain activity so
commanders can deploy patrol officers and detectives where they are most needed at
any given time.17
Seattle, Washington, Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole called RTCC “agile policing,”
combining the work of police officers and crime analysts so as to adapt to the changes in
the city’s criminal activity.18 The initiative can also include daily morning meetings
among neighboring police agencies to share information on what anomalies or spikes
they are observing. Commanders and crime analysts look at a dashboard illuminating a
large screen on the wall that shows how many calls police are responding to, the priority
level of each call, the nature of the calls, and where on a city map each call is coming
from. The information is drawn from 911 dispatch calls, crime data, radio traffic and
vehicle information data and allows the staff to visualize the call data so commanders
can make operational decisions on how to deploy officers. Agencies hope this practice
will allow police to halt crime sprees as they happen and stop crimes and incidents
before they become more serious.19
Patrol officers and detectives receive information from the RTTC via radio and the
computers in their cars. The crime center consolidates the agency’s Criminal Intelligence
Section, Data Driven Policing Section, and Crime Analysis detectives into a new
Intelligence and Analysts Section.20
Exhibit 14-3 describes how the New York and Houston police departments established
and use RTCC.
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 372
▼
▶ Applying Social Media
Lessons from Boston’s Marathon Bombing
In April 15, 2013, during Boston’s annual marathon, two bombs exploded near the finish
line, killing three people and injuring more than 260 others. What ensued were an extraor-
dinary manhunt and massive use of social media by law enforcement to keep the media
and frightened citizens accurately informed about what was going on via its official
Twitter account. In sum, the practice was very simple and yet effective.24
Today, some police agencies employ full-time personnel who are in charge of social
media and to direct public relations through the various channels—Twitter, Facebook,
YouTube—in a real-time manner. The scope of social media continues to grow, with
social media also allowing police to have two-way conversations with the community, to
include receiving messages from citizens about crime and disorder (including anonymous
tips). It can also be used to conduct virtual “ride-alongs,” with live-tweeting during an
entire shift from an officer’s patrol car. This gives the public a view of what police do and
what is going on.25
Police agencies now commonly use social media for investigations, to include evi-
dence collection (people bragging about their actions on social media sites); location of
suspects (investigators “friend” suspects and track their locations); and criminal network
investigations (again, gangs are prone to boast about their actions on social media sites). A
good example of this use is the Albuquerque, New Mexico, Police Department, which
works with private security partners to monitor tweets containing certain keywords, in
order to intercept messages from rival gangs; in one instance, police prevented gangs from
causing disruptions at a major amusement park.26
exhibit 14-3
The New York Police Department’s RTCC system,
launched in 2005 (and recently expanded to include
robberies, rapes, missing persons, and other serious
crimes beyond homicides and shootings), can comb
through 120 million criminal complaints, arrests,
and 911 call records dating back a decade; 5 million
criminal records and parole files maintained by
the state; and more than 31 million records of crime
committed nationwide. RTCC also made it possible
for officers to receive photographs of individuals
via handheld devices, and the technology to trans-
mit photographs to the police car laptops also
became available.22
For 15 years, Houston police officers lacked the
ability to regularly and quickly employ databases
containing huge volumes of crime and related infor-
mation. Another challenge was to make the data
accessible in real-time. Working with a private con-
cern, HPD developed a RTCC that makes critical
information—derived from crime, jail booking, pro-
bation, and other databases—immediately available
to officers responding to calls. Now, when a call
comes in, integration technologies feed the incident
information to the RTCC crime analysts. A report is
run, pulling related historical information from the
various law enforcement databases. Analysts then
cross-reference that information with the details of
emergency calls. Additional data on persons, vehi-
cles, and property is pulled from internal officers’
notes, as well as external government databases. All
this information can then be communicated to the
responding officers while enroute to the crime scene.
For example, officers sent to a domestic violence inci-
dent will know if the husband is a repeat offender, has
spent time in prison for similar crimes, or is a permit-
ted to carry a concealed weapon—all of which will
impact the way the officer responds.23
NEW YORK AND HOUSTON SET UP REAL-TIME CRIME CENTER21
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 373
▼
A Concern: When Police Use Facebook
A Brooklyn police officer arrested a burglary gang by adding gang members as friends on
Facebook. The officer tracked the gang members to their location, where the young men
were photographed committing a burglary, and then arrested them.
For years, social media have been used to track criminal networks. Police methods are
becoming more sophisticated; however, by combining social media, databases, and net-
work analysis tools, police can keep track of gang activities. They not only see the status
updates of youths, but also view photos to determine who might be a witness in a particular
case. Bystanders (potential witnesses) can also be identified from background photos that
are posted, and a time-stamped photo can be relevant in an investigation. Social media also
helps by identifying suspects who were friends or associates of other suspects in a crime;
all of them can be brought in to be interviewed and possibly convicted of crimes.
Some teens’ families complain that their kids are being unfairly labeled as criminal
affiliates because of their social media connections. There have been cases where the
description of a shooter was given ambiguously, for example, as “a tall light-skinned black
man in a hoodie,” leading to an arrest and being labeled in a database as a gang member or
affiliate. Also, two siblings, one who is law-abiding and the other a criminal, can be lumped
together because of their computer’s social connections, entered into a database of suspected
criminals, and be viewed as criminals.
▶ Civic Apps for Crime-Fighting
In 2011, the City of Chicago released to the public a large amount of city data for public
consumption, including up-to-date crime incident data. This release of data into the public
realm helped citizens to merge data with the police, bringing together the needs of safe
communities with law enforcement’s efforts to fight crime and improve public safety.
“Hacking” has understandably become a dirty word for most Americans and govern-
ments; however, in this context, hacking is actually a positive approach to problem solv-
ing. Here, however, civic hacking for the public’s benefit is defined as:
hands-on, citizen-driven action which produces civic innovation—it could be contributing
code to an open-source civic app . . . or conducting a workshop with city officials to discuss
how new policy could improve a neighborhood.27
In 2013, Chicago city officials sponsored a “safe communities” hackathon, where partici-
pants were to use new methods to query crimes, wanted lists, and mug shots, as well as graf-
fiti problems, vacant building code violations, and even police beat boundaries. The result
was a wave of apps that Chicagoans could use to track crime and improve public safety. The
success of this crime hackathon spawned other such practices, some of which included con-
tests for the best civic app. One of the winners was a mobile app that allows an injured or lost
person to send out a distress notice to anyone designated as a recipient. A second companion
app sends out continuous updates on the location of the individual in trouble.28
In Redlands, California, city officials have worked with a software firm to create an app
that serves as a first step toward an eventual 311 call center for residents to report problems
and complaints. In Philadelphia, the city’s mobile messaging platform for public safety
helps police access difficult-to-reach population groups, lets neighbors know to secure their
doors if their block is getting targeted for burglaries, and reports on someone’s parole.
Moreover, the Virginia State Police launched a crime reporting app that is a suspicious-
activity reporting tool to connect individuals, police agencies, and regional fusion centers,
and collects and analyzes intelligence on criminals and terrorists. Citizens are encouraged
to report suspicious photography, vehicles, or people in places that just look out of place.29
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 374
▼
▶ IT for Traffic-Related Tasks
GPS and 3D Tech for Crash Investigations
A multicar traffic crash can turn a street or highway into a parking lot for many hours,
sometimes even days. The police must collect evidence relating to the collision, including
measurements and sketches of the scene, vehicle and body positions, skid marks, street or
highway elevations, intersections, and curves. These tasks typically involve a measuring
wheel, steel tape, pad, and pencil. The cost of traffic delays—especially for commercial
truck operators—is substantial.
Some police agencies have begun using GPS to determine such details as vehicle
location and damage, elevation, grade, radii of curves, and critical speed. A transmitter
takes a series of “shots” to find the exact locations and measurements of collision details
like skid marks, area of impact, and debris. That information is then downloaded into the
system and the coordinates are plotted on an aerial shot of the intersection or roadway.
The details are then superimposed on the aerial shot, thus re-creating the collision scene
to scale.30 The system consists of a base station, data collector, tripod, and prism (which
▲ A sign of the future? The TruPoint 300 is a small, lightweight, and compact laser mea-
surement tool that can assist police in crash and crime scene investigations. It offers an
alternative to traditional (human measurement with wheel and tape) as well as bulky and
very expensive survey equipment. (Courtesy Laser Technology, Inc.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 375
▼
reflects an infrared laser beam back to the tripod-mounted base station). With this device,
officers can get measurements in an hour or so at major traffic collision scenes, push a
button, and have lines drawn for them to scale; this process enables officers to get
40 p ercent more measurements in about 40 percent less time, allowing the traffic flow to
resume much more quickly. This system is also being used at major crime scenes, such
as murders.31
Exhibit 14-4 describes another recent development with traffic crash investigations:
use of 3D technology.
IT with High-Speed Pursuits
To reduce the need for dangerous high-speed car pursuits, police are able to deploy a
GPS tracking tag onto a vehicle attempting to flee. The system uses a dual-barreled,
compressed-air launcher installed in the grille of a police car that is equipped with
two GPS tracking tags. When the officer needs to avoid pursuit of a suspect vehicle,
the system is activated and deploys one of the GPS tracking tags by using either the
exhibit 14-4
The Reno, Nevada, Police Department (RPD) recently
became the first in the state to use new technology that
will significantly cut time spent on major traffic colli-
sions. Whenever a crash involves serious injury or
death, the RPD’s major crash investigation team is
called out to investigate. Using a $65,000 grant, the
agency is training officers to use 3D accident recon-
struction equipment. The equipment consists of spin-
ning mirrors that rotate on a tripod and laser in several
directions, picking up colors and data points of its sur-
roundings. In about 40 minutes’ time, officers can col-
lect more than 2 million points that generate a
three-dimensional picture that looks at the scene of the
crash from the viewpoint of a witness. The system dra-
matically decreases the time required to process a
scene and minimizes street closure time during an
investigation. The 3D system is used exclusively with
the traffic division, but it has potential to be used for
crime scenes and tactical training in the future.32
Indeed, in the United Kingdom this technology is also
used in homicides and at crime scenes to calculate bullet
trajectories, human height, and blood splatter patterns.33
Source: From Reno Police First to Use hi-tech 3D Mapping
Equipment, Published by News4, Police Join 3D Technology
Revolution with Crime Scene Scanner by Charlotte Gill, Published
by The New Economy.
USE OF 3D TECHNOLOGY FOR TRAFFIC CRASHES
Courtesy StarChase, LLC
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 376
▼
interior control panel or the remote key fob. Each tag is tipped with a proprietary
adhesive. Once the suspect’s car is tagged, the GPS module relays the car’s coordi-
nates, direction, and speed every three to five seconds to police dispatchers. This
allows the officer to drop back and coordinate the event in a more controlled manner.
The tag is generally not heard and does not require a warrant because the officer has
probable cause and exigent circumstances exist (i.e., a clear, imminent potential for
damage and risk to people or property). The tag is not meant for long-term monitor-
ing. This technology provides near real-time critical intelligence and situational
awareness for police response, and also removes the adrenaline factor from high-risk
vehicle interdictions.34
In another traffic-related development, one automobile manufacturer has a line of
police cruisers that tracks officers themselves, thus detecting when they violate the rules of
the road while on patrol. The system collects data about the officers’ driving habits, includ-
ing when the siren and lights are activated, driving speed compared to the limit, sudden
braking, acceleration, spin-outs, and anti-lock brake engagement. The system is justified
on grounds that, from a business standpoint, these are expensive vehicles with expensive
employees driving them on patrol.35
▶ What Must Be Done for New IT to Improve Policing?
While new developments in technology have given law enforcement organizations poten-
tially important tools, such developments will have a minimal impact unless police manag-
ers pay closer attention to how they are deployed and used at every level of their
organizations. A study conducted by researchers at the Center for Evidence-Based Crime
Policy at George Mason University, the Police Executive Research Forum, and Southern
Illinois University, published in December 2015, focused on how police agencies can and
should be using IT tools.
The report noted that evaluations of police technologies must focus on their effec-
tiveness in reducing crime or improving service to citizens. The study noted that tech-
nological advances do not always produce straightforward improvements in
communication, cooperation, productivity, job satisfaction, or officers’ effectiveness in
reducing crime and serving citizens. Furthermore, desired effects from technology,
Courtesy StarChase, LLC
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 377
▼
such as improving clearance rates and reducing crime, may take considerable time to
materialize as agencies adapt to new technologies and refine their uses over time.36
Perhaps more fundamentally, police may fail to make optimal use of technologies
for addressing crime or achieving other aims such as improving their legitimacy with
the community.
One key finding is that, because many officers tend to frame policing in terms of
reactive response to calls for service, arrests for crimes, and adherence to agency poli-
cies, they emphasize using technologies to achieve these goals. For example, officers
often use IT to locate persons of interest and check the call history of a location, rather
than for more strategic, proactive tasks such as identifying hot spots or doing preventive
problem solving.37
The study also recommended using a broad base of participation in the technology
planning and implementation process by various personnel who will be affected by the
technology; providing ample opportunities for pilot testing and refining early versions of a
technology; and ensuring proper levels of training for new technologies.38
▶ Other Caveats: Legal, Moral, Practical Considerations
If students of criminal justice are looking to the courts for clear-cut guidance in the use of
new technologies, particularly in the area of privacy rights, they will likely come away
wanting: the law seems to be “all over the place” regarding this subject.
As examples, a U.S. District Judge in Wisconsin ruled that it was reasonable for
Drug Enforcement Administration agents to enter a rural property without permission or
a warrant to install multiple “covert digital surveillance cameras” in hopes of uncovering
evidence of 30 to 40 marijuana plants (using the reasoning that the drugs were being
grown in “open fields” and thus could be searched without warrants because they are not
covered by the Fourth Amendment).39 However, the United States held in 2012 that
police attaching a GPS device to a suspect’s vehicle without a search warrant violates the
Fourth Amendment.40
Police use of new technologies thus possesses a wide range of unresolved issues in
terms of legality. First, many IT tools are so new that the courts have not had time to rule
on their constitutionality. Furthermore, in some jurisdictions different state and federal
courts have handed down conflicting rulings. This means that police are often experiment-
ing with little or no guidance from the courts about the constitutionality of their actions. In
the near future, many of these constitutional questions (many of which will involve citi-
zens’ right to privacy) will be taken up by lower courts and eventually reach the U.S.
Supreme Court.41 Meanwhile, police leadership is free to test different technologies that
appear to be the most useful and cost-effective.42
Another touchy IT issue concerns the matter of legitimacy in the eyes of the communi-
ties as they regard privacy issues. Even within a given city or county, people in different
neighborhoods or regions may differ in their opinions about how to balance privacy con-
cerns and crime-fighting.
There are a number of legislative issues that must be decided as well; oftentimes, the
laws governing their use were written decades ago and do not reflect current realities. For
example, most wiretap laws were written in the era of land-line telephones, and many
Freedom of Information laws were intended to govern the release of written documents,
not video footage from police cameras.43
Exhibit 14-5 describes a legal conundrum that exists with regard to the use of license
plate readers.
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 378
▼
exhibit 14-5
License plate readers (also known as Automatic License
Plate Recognition, or ALPR) are a surveillance technol-
ogy that can be mounted to patrol cars and capture
license plate numbers during an entire patrol shift.
When a suspect’s license plate number is read, audible
and visual alarms alert the officer. To demonstrate its
power, in two months’ time the Denver police depart-
ment processed 835,000 license plate images, which
led to 17,000 hits for warrants, stolen vehicles, and
other violations.
For obvious reasons, this technology is rapidly
becoming popular as a tool. However, for many people
ALPR has far too little regulation against invasion of
privacy. For example, the American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU) argues that ALPRs collect a lot of data
that is sometimes pooled into regional sharing systems;
as a result, enormous databases of innocent motorists’
location information are rapidly growing. This
information is often retained for years, or even
indefinitely, with few or no restrictions to protect
privacy rights. While not calling for a complete ban,
the ACLU believes that as ALPR technology spreads,
legislation and law enforcement agency policies should
be adopted that will respect personal privacy and
prevent the government from tracking our movements
on a massive scale.44
Conversely, a Utah law prohibiting the use of such
automated high speed cameras to photograph license
plates is being challenged in a lawsuit filed in federal
court by two ALPR manufacturing firms. According to
the lawsuit, The Utah Automatic License Plate Reader
System Act infringes on constitutionally protected
speech of the First Amendment. It is also argued that
license plates are public by nature and contain no sen-
sitive or private information. Five states have already
enacted legislation that is identical or similar to the
Utah act.45
In related litigation, in what appeared to be the first
legal challenge by a private individual, in May 2015 a
Virginia man sued the Fairfax County (Virginia) Police
Department for collecting images of his license plate
and storing them in its massive database. After learn-
ing that his license plate had been scanned by an ALPR
twice in the previous year and stored in a police data-
base, he opted to sue.46
According to the RAND Corporation, because the
use of ALPR is legal in most states, it is unlikely that
any lawsuit attacking their use would result in civil
liability; however, because of their privacy implica-
tions, it is recommended that agencies establish clear
policies regarding data retention and access to help
address some of the privacy concerns.47
LAWSUITS ARGUING FOR, AGAINST LICENSE PLATE READERS
▲ Police now find available a variety of technologies, such as this automated license-plate reader mounted on the front of the
vehicle that is connected to the in-car computer and read thousands of license plates in searching for wanted vehicles.
(Courtesy B Christopher/Alamy Stock Photo; Mikael Karlsson/Alamy Stock Photo.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 379
▼
Career Profile Name: Grant Humerickhouse
Position: Police officer
City, State: Madison, Wisconsin
College attended: Michigan
State University
Major: Criminal justice
Year hired: 2006
Please give a brief description of your job.
My department is very progressive in its diversity and with
problem-oriented policing. Therefore, I must be comfort-
able with technology: I am expected to master computer-
aided dispatching, mobile data computers, and mobile
audio and video recordings, to name a few applications.
During my second year in patrol, I had an opportunity to
be part of a community policing team, working with prop-
erty managers and owners who wanted their property to
be safe—and with college students who wanted to have
parties and stay out late. Finding the balance was not only
good for me as a young officer but challenging and excit-
ing from a problem-oriented policing standpoint.
What appealed to you most about the occupation?
While I was in college, an Introduction to Criminal Jus-
tice course instructor told many tales about high-speed
pursuits, gory homicide scenes, and arrests during his
career. This fueled my dreams of driving fast, catching
bad guys, and experiencing something new each day.
I wanted to talk to all types of people, learn their prob-
lems and help them, assist victims, be the voice for the
oppressed, and work for justice.
How would you describe the interview process?
The application process was grueling. I was asked to
admit things very few people in my life knew about
and to discuss every person I had ever lived with,
every place I had worked, every boss, every co-
worker, every phone number, and the list was endless.
What is a typical day like?
There is nothing predictable and nothing ordinary
about policing. Although rewarding, fulfilling, and
challenging, it is extremely difficult for officers emo-
tionally, mentally, and physically. I have learned that I
am not omniscient, omnipotent, or able to solve every
problem. I remember my first suicide investigation, my
first child abuse case, my first car crash, the first time
a bad guy got away—including the colors, sounds,
and feelings.
What qualities and characteristics are most helpful
for this position?
Policing should not be a choice but a calling. The
unpredictable hours, missed holidays, graveyard
shifts, and tears are offset by the rewards. Know your
limitations, and always tell the truth; integrity is your
professional life.
What career advice would you give someone in
college beginning their criminal justice studies?
Talk to people about the job, go on a ride-along, explore
the myriad different paths that law enforcement has to
offer. Talk to your family about your career choice; you
are going to have to lean on them after a bad day. Be
honest and forthright about your drug use, traffic tickets,
and every other dirty little secret the department asks
you to admit.
▶ Selected Technologies and Policies to Watch for
Next we consider what seems to be the current state of selected IT tools for police.
Addressing Texting While Driving
At any given time during the day, approximately 660,000 drivers are attempting to use their
phones while behind the wheel of an automobile. About one-third of those drivers admit they
are sending text messages, which has led to dire outcomes: the National Safety Council reports
that nearly 330,000 injuries occur each year from accidents caused by texting while driving.48
The states are cracking down on this behavior. According to the Governors Highway
Safety Association:
• Drivers are prohibited in fourteen states and the District of Columbia from using hand-held cell phones while driving. In all of these states, the police may cite a driver
for using a hand-held cell phone without any other traffic offense taking place.
• Forty-six states and D.C. ban text messaging for all drivers.49
(Courtesy Grant Humerickhouse.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 380
▼
Technology will soon be in use for catching driving texters. A manufacturing firm is
developing a radar gun that can pick up radio frequencies that identify texting drivers.50
Technology also exists to distinguish between texting and calling—which is an important
distinction given that in some states, as indicated earlier, talking on the phone and driving
by adult drivers is not prohibited.
As might be expected, however, there are legal obstacles the radar detection device has
to overcome: some people might fear that such technology might be able to determine the
content of their texts as well as the mere fact that they are texting.
Electronic Control Devices: Safe—or Not?
A 2007 study by the Wake Forest University School of Medicine—touted as “the first
large, independent study to review” the overall risk and severity of injuries from electronic
control devices (ECDs)—reported that 99.7 percent of nearly 1,000 cases of such uses
resulted in only mild injuries, such as scrapes and bruises, or no injuries at all; only three
subjects (0.3 percent) suffered injuries severe enough to need hospitalization.51
A more recent (2015) examination of ECDs reported different findings, however.
When the Berkeley, California, city council was asked to allow its officers to carry and use
ECDs, the body turned to the Stanford Law School’s Criminal Justice Center for a study of
the effectiveness and safety of ECDs. The resulting report questioned the ability of ECDs
to minimize the use of lethal force by officers.52
Stanford’s researchers examined more than 150 studies concerning the use of ECDs,
and determined that many of the claims concerning their safety and ability to reduce con-
frontations were not as clear-cut as has been widely accepted or portrayed. More specifi-
cally, the weapons have been found to be safe when used in the right circumstances, but
they are most frequently used outside of those parameters, including when subjects are
under the influence of drugs or alcohol or have mental or physical handicaps. Furthermore,
they found that while ECDs do generally reduce injuries to officers, it is unclear whether
▲ Electronic control devices have been found to be safe when used in the right
circumstances; however, while they do generally reduce injuries to officers,
research indicates that there is no clear evidence that their use reduces lethal
force, and that their benefits are easily overstated. (Courtesy Stephen Coburn/ Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 381
▼
the same can be said for suspects. In all, the researchers found limited evidence that their
use reduces lethal force, and that their benefits are often overstated.
Rules and Restriction on Drones
Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, are proliferating; indeed, nearly 300,000 drone own-
ers registered their small aircraft during the initial 30 days after the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) introduced an online registration system in December 2015, for a
mere $5 fee.53 For the first time in U.S. history, in order for children to play with the new
drone received as a Christmas or birthday gift, the “toy” must first be registered with an
agency of the federal government.54
Given that, drones are rapidly beginning to cause a number of problems—such as the
(apparently intoxicated) operator whose drone crashed onto the White House lawn in early
201555 as well as legal challenges; in the latter regard, some attorneys are already becom-
ing specialized in drone law (see, e.g., Drone.law.pro and Dronelaw.com).
State-legislated rules for, and restrictions over drones have become necessary (see
Exhibit 14-6); accordingly, in February 2015 President Barack Obama issued an executive
▲ U.S. Border Patrol agents in the Southwest are increasingly seeing drones
being used to smuggle drugs. Commonly between 2 to 4 feet wide, the
drones drop the drugs, which are later picked up by smugglers north of the
border. (Courtesy U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.)
exhibit 14-6
In July 2013, Oregon enacted legislation limiting the
police use of drones to prevent mass and/or suspicion-
less surveillance. The law prohibits the use of drones
by law enforcement except in the following
circumstances:
• A warrant specifically authorizing the use of a drone
• Exigent circumstances that make it unreasonable for law enforcement to first get a warrant
• Consent
• Search and rescue
• Assisting an individual in a life-or-death emergency
• State of emergency declared by governor
• Reconstruction of a crime scene
• Makes clear that information gathered via drones in violation of this act will not be admissible in
court nor used as reasonable suspicion or proba-
ble cause
• Requires law enforcement to register their drones with the Oregon Department of Aviation and pro-
vide an annual report detailing the frequency and
purpose of use during the previous year
AN EXAMPLE OF A STATE-LEVEL DRONE SURVEILLANCE LAW58
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 382
▼
memorandum concerning how federal agencies will use drones of all sizes. During that
same month, the FAA promulgated rules allowing small commercial drones weighing up
to 55 pounds and flown within sight of their remote pilots during daylight hours. The air-
craft must stay below 500 feet in the air and fly less than 100 mph. People flying drones
would need to be at least 17 years old, pass an aeronautics test, and be vetted by the
Transportation Security Administration.56
Finally, as a possible harbinger of things to come, in early 2016 a bill was introduced
in the California legislature that would require drone hobbyists to: obtain a physical or
electronic license plate for identification purposes; pay a small insurance fee at the time of
purchase for any future damage or injury associated with the drone; and have some drones
be equipped with GPS and emergency shutoff capabilities. The goal is to make drones
identifiable and owners financially responsible in the event of injuries, improper handling,
or property damage.57
These actions represent major progress in integrating drones into U.S. airspace—which
is especially needed because the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International
projects the industry will create 70,000 jobs with $13.6 billion in economic activity imme-
diately after drones fully share the skies with other aircraft. The FAA has been granting
certificates for drone flight to police departments for years.59
In addition to their potential uses for patrolling the borders (see Exhibit 14-7), drones
would seem to be tailor-made for seeking out and surveilling persons who are planning or
involved in terroristic activities. However, this use of drones has become controversial, as
evidenced by the debate over whether the Central Intelligence Agency should be able to
target American citizens whose behavior conforms to a particular profile and are working
with al-Qaeda. Congressional hearings in early 2013 on this question would indicate that
politicians and Americans are very suspicious of such uses of drones in this country as we
have used them in Pakistan and other countries.62
You Decide: Police Use of Drones
More local law enforcement agencies are using drones and fewer than half the states have
passed privacy legislation regulating how such agencies can use drones. Some observers
describe this relative lawless time in which drone technology is emerging as a “wild west”
for law enforcement. Consider the following questions, and defend your answers:
• Do you support police use of drones for surveillance purposes involving serious offenses? If so, for what crime-related purposes?
• Should police be allowed to use drones for Fourth Amendment (searches and seizures) types of operations if legal conditions have been met?
• Do you endorse using drones for lower-level functions, such as catching traffic speeders?
• Would you be in favor of arming the drones with bullets or tear gas?
• Should drones be used, without prior consent from U.S. courts or other oversight body, to kill persons whose “profile” indicates they pose a dangerous threat to security?
Facial Recognition: Progress and Protest
Facial recognition software is being rapidly adopted by police across the country. The soft-
ware can identify 16,000 points on a person’s face—determining the distance between the
eyes or the shape of the lips, for instance—and comparing them with thousands of similar
points in police booking or other photos at a rate of more than one million faces a second.
However, as with several of the IT tools discussed earlier, this technology is being often
used with few guidelines and little oversight; thus, questions regarding privacy and con-
cerns about potential misuse arise.
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 383
▼
For example, when Aaron Harvey was stopped by San Diego police while driving, an
officer searched his car and also took his photograph; it was run through the software to try
to confirm his identity and determine whether he had a criminal record. In another case, a
retired San Diego firefighter was ordered to sit on a curb while police took his photo and
ran it through the software, and then used a cotton swab to collect a DNA sample from
inside his cheek. At the time, SDPD did not require police officers to file a report when
using the facial recognition technology but not making an arrest.
exhibit 14-7
The U.S. government now patrols nearly half the Mexican
border by drones in areas where there are no agents, cam-
era towers, ground sensors, or fences. It plans to expand
the strategy to the Canadian border. Predator B drones
sweep remote mountains, canyons, and rivers with a high-
resolution video camera and return within three days for
another video in the same spot. The two videos are then
overlaid for analysts who use sophisticated software to
identify tiny changes, such as the tracks of immigrants
who entered the country illegally or a drug-trafficker’s
vehicle. The government has operated about 10,000 drone
flights under the strategy, known internally as “change
detection,” since it began in March 2013.60
Another border-related development concerns 52
planned Integrated Fixed Towers at the Southwest
border in Arizona. The solar-powered towers are
about 80 feet tall, with radar and day-and-night cam-
eras that send real-time video footage to a Border
Patrol command post. The system includes a combina-
tion of ground sensors, long-range night-vision scopes
mounted on trucks, binoculars, and fixed towers with
radar, all of which is expected to be fully operational
by fiscal 2020. First, however, the system must win
approval from Congress, who are determined to avoid
the mismanagement and cost overruns that were affili-
ated with similar previous programs.
Border Patrol officials emphasize that the cameras
will not spy on nearby homeowners; as one official put
it, “Our priority is not to look in people’s windows or
backyards to see what they are barbecuing.”61
DRONES AND CAMERAS AT THE BORDERS
▲ Video cameras are now used at many locations to monitor borders, traffic, and crime hotspots.
(Courtesy OPgrapher/Shutterstock.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 384
▼
Rather, it was viewed as a pilot program, and thus the department did not have a written
policy regulating facial recognition software.
Concerns are that officers are collecting a lot of information that could impact a lot of
completely innocent people, and there is very little oversight of the equipment. Indeed,
police in Boston tested facial recognition technology but decided not to adopt it, saying it
crossed an ethical line.
However, the Federal Bureau of Investigation believes in the future of facial recogni-
tion systems, continuing its $1 billion program known as Next Generation Identification
(NGI), begun in 2008 and now allowing police agencies to search more than 20 million
images available in its database, in addition to fingerprints, for their investigations.63
In a related vein, in Chapter 12, we discussed some of the activities and technologies
police are employing in waging the war on foreign and domestic terrorism; Exhibit 14-8
shows how one state’s office of homeland security—that of Kentucky—is using IT in an
effort to encourage its citizens to recognize and report suspicious activity.
Fingerprinting: Expanding Tech and Databases
The FBI’s Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System, or IAFIS, is the largest
criminal fingerprint database in the world, housing the fingerprints and criminal histories
for more than 70 million subjects in its criminal master file. Included in its criminal data-
base are fingerprints from 73,000 known and suspected terrorists processed by the United
States or by international law enforcement agencies.65
In this same connection, a biometrics finger reader exists that allows end users the abil-
ity to simultaneously capture a fingerprint and finger vein pattern with a single scan and
offers sophisticated liveness detection to prevent forgery and spoofing has achieved FBI
PIV certification. It is viewed by the industry as a key characteristic to provide assurance
and peace of mind to end users, with the goal of delivering a more sophisticated fingerprint
scanner that delivers optimal security, reliability, and accuracy with advanced finger imag-
ing and modern “liveness” detection to alleviate spoofing and fraud.66
exhibit 14-8
Kentucky probably is not the first place one would
expect to see terrorist-related behavior, but instances of
domestic terrorism remind us that criminal activities are
not exclusive to highly populated cities or states. With
vigilance in mind, the Kentucky Office of Homeland
Security (KOHS) “Eye on Kentucky” website explains
how citizens may anonymously report suspicious crim-
inal or terrorist activity that they see or hear.
As shown on the screenshot, citizens are also
informed of the activities of the fusion center (to com-
pile, blend, analyze, and disseminate criminal intelli-
gence and other information), community resources,
available grant funding for city and county alert systems
and other equipment, and other state and federal (e.g.,
American Red Cross, Department of Homeland
Security) resources that are available. Also explained
are the National Incident Command System and means
by which residents may prepare a “kit” for surviving
natural and manmade disasters.64
KENTUCKY’S HOMELAND SECURITY EFFORTS
hair
glasses type
scars/ marks
complexion/ facial hair
tattoos
weight shoes
trousers
shirt
coat
neckwear
hat
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 385
▼
This same technology has been integrated into the latest smartphones, which include a
touch fingerprint sensor. Denver, Colorado, police use this technology, and initial results
are that the technology works with 99 percent accuracy, providing verification in less than
30 seconds, and identifying gang members, car thieves, and sex offenders.67
Uses of Robots
Robots are playing an increasingly important role in our lives. Consider: the patrol officer’s
vehicle was at least partially assembled by robots, people have robot vacuum cleaners in
their homes, NASA’s probes are interplanetary robots, and of course the police are finding
many uses of the big and small varieties.68 Robots are now fitted with odor sensors, video
capability (including night vision), and a camera for photographing crime scenes; an ECD;
and even the ability to engage in two-way communications.69
One of the most notable uses of robots was after James Eagan Holmes committed one
of the worst mass shootings in American history, killing 12 people and wounding 58 at an
Aurora, Colorado, movie theater in July 2012. Being informed that his apartment was
booby-trapped, police officers and bomb-squad experts sent in a bomb-removal robot to
disarm a tripwire guarding the apartment’s front door. The robot then neutralized potential
explosive devices, incendiary devices, and fuel found near the door70. And, in July 2016 a
robot armed with C-4 plastic explosives was used to neutralize a sniper who had ambushed
and fatally shot five police officers and wounded nine others in Dallas, Texas.
The largest robot in the police arsenal is one used by the Los Angeles police; at 39,000
pounds, the remote-controlled vehicle can be used to lift cars and tear into buildings.
With a hydraulic arm extending up to 50 feet and equipped with a claw, a forklift, or a
bucket, the $1 million robot can be used for both barricade and bomb incidents. Another
large robot is a vehicle that carries a shield capable of protecting 12 officers and can be
used for breaching.
▲ Biometrics has been used to authenticate individual identities and determine who someone
is. In the future, however, the FBI’s Biometric Center of Excellence hopes to harness more ben-
efits of this technology. (Courtesy Federal Bureau of Investigations.)
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 386
▼
Submersible drones can now operate under water at depths of up to 330 feet. Equipped
with a wide-angle camera, they are used by police to make fixed lawn mower-style sweeps
of wide areas for body and evidence recovery.
3D Apps for Crime-Fighting—As Well As Following/Recording Police
Solving Cold Cases71 South San Francisco’s Police Department (SSFPD) faced a challenge. The department was asked to re-open a cold case known as the Gypsy Hill
murders, which involved five homicides in multiple Bay Area locations. SSFPD was
tasked with spearheading a multi-jurisdictional task force that included four cities as well
as the FBI, and to canvass four widely dispersed neighborhoods in three separate cities.
Because of the large scope of this investigation, SSFPD needed a sophisticated tool. A
senior member of the force approached the city’s IT department and asked them to help
SSFPD develop a tool that would allow them to visualize reports from the field, to expedite
the collection and coordination of the investigation. A desktop app was created to track
where officers in the field had visited. Key information such as time of contact, officer on
site and, most importantly, status of contact could then be entered. An interactive map was
automatically updated, and once displayed on a large screen at headquarters, an entire
room of officers could visually follow the investigation. Task force officers were able to
record the results of the visits they made to hundreds of properties. Not only did this help
command staff quickly organize the areas to visit, but it also allowed managers to asses in
real time which properties should be revisited and which to target for further follow-up.
This allowed same-day property revisits even by different shifts of officers.
Eventually, the Gypsy Hill killer was identified as Rodney Halbower, who had spent
most of his life in prison. In January 2015, Halbower was charged with two of the murders
when DNA evidence was believed to link him to the crimes.
Apps Track Police Although apps used with smartphones carry many benefits for police (see Exhibit 14-9), there are possible drawbacks. For example, county sheriffs in
the state of Washington are campaigning to pressure Google Inc. to turn off a feature on
its Waze traffic software that warns drivers when police are nearby. They say the mobile
app could put officers’ lives in danger from would-be police killers who can find where
their targets are parked. Using a combination of GPS navigation and social networking,
users turn to the free service for real-time traffic guidance and warnings about nearby
congestion, car accidents, speed traps or traffic cameras, construction zones, potholes,
stalled vehicles or unsafe weather conditions.72 Police are concerned that attacks against
exhibit 14-9
A smartphone and tablet app now is capable of mak-
ing facial composites from witness descriptions. The
officer chooses the various facial features from a
sliding menu that appears below the main screen.
Each feature can be moved and re-sized individually,
and the completed composite looks like a pencil
sketch. Once complete, the composite is saved
as an image file and can be printed or emailed
as necessary.
Inexpensive apps are also available for people who
work complicated schedules, so users can look in the
future, when they will be on-or off-duty, or flag comp
time, vacation, training, or court appearances.74
Another app is a report-writing aid, where users
enter information such as times, dates, locations,
names, notes, and so on into fields, and the app orga-
nizes them by case. The file can then be emailed as a
PDF or just stored in “the cloud.”75
HELPFUL SMARTPHONE APPS FOR POLICE
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 387
▼
them will certainly occur. Because police generally operate in public spaces, they can eas-
ily become targets—or a criminal wanting to rob a bank could use the software to see
where police are (and are not).
Recording Police Encounters The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico has unveiled the Mobile Justice New Mexico app, a tool that lets New Mexicans use their
smart phones to record police or Border Patrol encounters and file reports of law enforce-
ment misconduct. The app is available for free download in both English and Spanish
in ten state-ACLU affiliates and the Washington, D.C. area. The ACLU argues that U.S.
Customs and Border Protection agents employ discriminatory policing and troubling pat-
tern of excessive use of force, and that the app is one way that New Mexicans can hold
agents responsible for abuse and misconduct.73
Key Terms
apps
Automatic License Plate Recognition
biometrics
body-worn cameras
command and control systems
community policing and problem
solving
computer-aided dispatch (CAD)
crime mapping
drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles
electronic control devices
facial recognition
fingerprinting systems
Geographic information systems
information technology
Management information systems
Operations information systems
proactive policing functions
Problem-solving information
systems
reactive policing functions
real-time crime center
robots
smartphones
social media
support functions
texting
Summary This chapter demonstrated why properly planning, acquiring, and utilizing IT is an essential
prerequisite to effective policing. Since computers first came to the field in the 1970s, their
use and potential for crime-fighting has grown exponentially, and it would seem that their
application is only limited by the budgets and creativity of police managers. Certainly just a
few years ago, one could not have conceived of police technologies that could engage in
addressing crime and disorder to the extent they are today. And, as amounts of data and
numbers of available databases continue to increase, the police will only become more
astute in addressing crime and disorder. Soon, the real-time crime centers, discussed in this
chapter, may be as commonplace as computers in patrol cars and officers with smartphones.
Certainly IT, along with the ability of all police personnel to use their creativity in its practi-
cal application, make this a most exciting time to be employed in the law enforcement field.
Review Questions
1. How do police determine which technologies are
most helpful by types of functions performed?
2. Why and how is IT highly suited for problem-
oriented policing?
3. What are some of the promises and pitfalls involved
with equipping police with body-worn cameras?
4. What are some of the purposes and practical applica-
tions of crime mapping? Real-time crime centers?
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 388
▼
Learn by Doing
1. You are in the Research and Analysis unit of your
police organization. Your chief executive has tasked
you with bringing your agency into “the next decade”
by examining technologies that should be acquired.
Using information and descriptions of the technolo-
gies presented in this chapter, select and prioritize five
new technologies (either extant or in development)
that you believe your agency should minimally
acquire and use, justifying each in terms of its crime-
fighting capabilities.
2. You are preparing a guest lecture at the regional police
academy on the subject of police technologies now in
use. One of the academy instructors calls you and
says the class seems to be very interested in the
applications for BWC, drones, and robots. Prepare a
response.
3. Assume that a major motorcycle rally of approxi-
mately 50,000 bikers is coming to your jurisdiction
soon. These rallies are known to be frequented by
opposing gang members, which has resulted in vio-
lence in other cities. Your police chief executive has
tasked you with taking the lead on the planning efforts
so that your agency might be prepared and staffed for
the bikers’ arrival. Accordingly, what kinds of infor-
mation would you want to obtain, databases would
you consult, outside agencies would you contact, and
technology would you employ in order to develop a
strategy for policing this large gathering?
Notes
1. Brian A. Jackson, Victoria A. Greenfield, Andrew
R. Morral, and John S. Hollywood, Police
Department Investments in Information Technology
Systems (Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation,
2014), p. 2.
2. Quoted in Jackson et al., Police Department
Investments in Information Technology Systems, p. 7.
3. Ibid., p. 9.
4. Lee Brown, quote in Seaskate, Inc., “The Evolution
and Development of Police Technology,” http://
www.police-technology.net/id59.html#.
5. Terence Dunworth, Gary Cordner, Jack Greene,
Timothy Bynum, Scott Decker, Thomas Rich,
Shawn Ward, Vince Webb, Information Systems
Technology Enhancement Project (ISTEP)
(Washington, D.C.: Abt Associates and Office of
Community Oriented Policing Services, 2000),
p. 15.
6. Ibid.
7. Molly Hennessy-Fiske, “Nation’s Largest Law
Enforcement Agency Nixes Body Cameras,”
Government Technology, November 13, 2015,
http://www.govtech.com/public-safety/Nations-
Largest-Law-Enforcement-Agency-Nixes-Body-
Cameras.html.
8. Cindy Shain, personal communication, October 11,
2015.
9. Adapted from Darren Smith, Police Departments
Consider Discontinuing Use of Body Cameras Due
To Expense Of Public Disclosure Requirements,
J o n a t h a n Tu r l ey, h t t p : / / j o n a t h a n t u r l ey. org/
2 0 1 4 / 1 1 / 2 2 / p o l i c e - d e p a r t m e n t s - c o n s i d e r -
discontinuing-use-of-body-cameras-due-to-expense-
of-public-disclosure-requirements.
10. Richard N. Holden, “The Technology Cycle and
Contemporary Policing,” paper presented at the
5. How can social media and civic apps be used to
address crime and disorder?
6. How are technologies assisting with various traffic-
related functions?
7. What must be done in terms of planning and applica-
tion in order for IT to improve policing?
8. How would you describe some of the legal, moral, and
practical considerations involved with IT in policing?
9. How can technologies assist for addressing texting
while driving?
10. What do studies indicate concerning the safety of
electronic control devices?
11. What is the legal and practical status of drones,
facial recognition, fingerprinting, robots, and apps
for crime-fighting?
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 389
▼
annual meeting of the Academy of Criminal Justice
Sciences, March 5, 2015, Orlando, Florida.
11. Bureau of Justice Assistance, “Body Worn Camera
Toolkit: Training,” https://www.bja.gov/bwc/Topics-
Training.html.
12. Jennifer Sullivan, “Man Drops Massive Records
Requests, Will Help Seattle Police with Video
Technology,” Seattle Times, November 20, 2014,
h t t p : / / w w w. s e a t t l e t i m e s . c o m / s e a t t l e - n ew s /
man-drops-massive-records-requests-will-help-
seattle- police-with-video-technology/.
13. Ibid.; concerning a study of costs for the Bend,
Oregon, police department, see Claire Withycombe,
“Police in Oregon: On-Body Cameras May Be Too
Costly,” Seattle Times, July 12, 2015, http://www.
s e a t t l e t i m e s . c o m / s e a t t l e - n e w s / p o l i c e - i n -
oregon-on-body-cameras-may-be-too-costly/.
14. National Institute of Justice, “Mapping and Analysis
for Public Safety,” May 22, 2013, http://www.nij.
gov/topics/technology/maps/pages/welcome.aspx.
15. Ibid.
16. In addition, a full catalog of NIJ mapping tools and
databases is available at: http://www.nij.gov/topics/
technology/pages/software-tools.aspx#maps; also see
NIJ’s “MAPS: How Mapping Helps Reduce Crime
and Improve Public Safety,” http://www.nij.gov/
topics/technology/maps/Pages/reduce-crime.aspx.
17. Lynsi Burton, “New SPD ‘crime center’ shows city’s
activity unfolding in real time,” Seattlepi.com,
October 7, 2015, http://www.seattlepi.com/local/
crime/article/New-SPD-crime-center-shows-city-s-
activity-6556969.php.
18. Quoted in ibid.
19. Ibid.
20. Ibid.
21. Information Builders, “Houston Police Department
Creates Real-Time Crime Center,” n.d., http://www.
informationbuilders.com/applications/houston.
22. Joseph D’Amico, “Stopping Crime in Real Time,”
The Police Chief, November 2015, http://www.
p o l i c e c h i e f m a g a z i n e . o r g / m a g a z i n e / i n d e x .
cfm?fuseaction=display&article_id=995&issue_
id=92006.
23. Ibid.
24. Tod Newcombe, “Social Media: Big Lessons from
the Boston Marathon Bombing,” Government
Technology (September 24, 2014); see also Edward
F. Davis III, Alejandro A. Alves and David Alan
Sklansky, Social Media and Police Leadership:
Lessons from Boston (Washington, D.C.: National
Institute of Justice, 2014).
25. Ibid.
26. Ibid.
27. Jake Levitas, “Defining Civic Hacking,” Code for
America, June 7, 2013, http://www.codeforamerica.
org/blog/2013/06/07/defining-civic-hacking/.
28. Tod Newcombe, “Civic Apps: Can They Help Fight
Crime?” Government Technology (September 25,
2014), http://www.govtech.com/public-safety/Civic-
Apps-Can-They-Help-Fight-Crime.html.
29. Ibid.
30. Alison Bath, “Accident Scene Investigation Is High
Tech,” Reno Gazette-Journal (Sparks Today sec-
tion), November 18, 2003, p. 4.
31. Bill McGarigle, “Electronic Mapping Speeds Crime
and Traffic Investigations,” Government Technology
9 (February 1996): 20–21.
32. “Reno police first to use hi-tech 3D mapping equip-
ment,” January 8, 2016, News4, http://www.
mynews4.com/news/local/story/Reno-police-first-
t o - u s e - h i - t e c h - 3 D - m a p p i n g / I 0 S O r G u v j E Wo -
izwOHQgeg.cspx.
33. Charlotte Gill, “Police join 3D technology revolution
with crime scene scanner,” The New Economy, June
27, 2014, http://www.faro.com/news-events/news/
2 0 1 4 / 0 7 / 0 3 / p o l i c e - j o i n - 3 d - t e c h n o l o g y -
revolution-with-crime-scene-scanner.
34. See StarChase LLC, “About Starchase,” http://www.
starchase.com/about.php.
35. Giuseppe Macri, “Ford’s New Police Cruisers Track
Cops When They Break Traffic Laws,” The Daily
Caller, November 5, 2014, http://dailycaller.com/
2 0 1 4 / 1 1 / 0 5 / f o r d s - n ew - p o li c e - c r u i s e r s - t r a c k -
cops-when-they-break-traffic-laws/.
36. Christopher S. Koper, Cynthia Lum, James J.
Willis, Daniel J. Woods, and Julie Hibdon,
Realizing the Potential of Tech in Policing: A
Multisite Study of the Social, Organizational, and
Behavioral Aspects of Implementing Policing
Technologies (Fairfax, VA: George Mason
University, Center for Evidence-Based Crime
Policy, December 2015), p. 3, http://cebcp.org/wp-
c o n t e n t / t e c h n o l o g y / I m p a c t T e c h n o l o g y
FinalReport.pdf.
37. Ibid., p. 4.
38. Ibid.
39. Declan McCullagh, “Court OKs warrantless use of
hidden surveillance cameras,” CNET, October 30,
2 0 1 2 , h t t p : / / w w w. c n e t . c o m / n ew s / c o u r t - oks-
w a r r a n t l e s s - u s e - o f - h i d d e n - s u r v e i l l a n c e -
cameras/.
40. U.S. v. Jones, 565 U.S. ___, 132 S. Ct. 945, (2012).
41. Police Executive Research Forum, Constitutional
Policing as a Cornerstone of Community Policing
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 390
▼
(Washington, D.C.: Office of Community Oriented
Policing Services, 2015), p. 29, http://ric-zai-inc.com/
Publications/cops-p324-pub.pdf.
42. Ibid., p. 30.
43. Ibid., p. 31.
44. American Civil Liberties Union, “Automatic License
Plate Readers,” 2015, https://www.aclu.org/issues/
p r i v a c y - t e c h n o l o g y / l o c a t i o n - t r a c k i n g /
automatic-license-plate-readers.
45. B. Shockley, “Lawsuit Challenges State of Utah Ban
on License Plate Readers as Unconstitutional
Censorship of Photography and Violation of 1st
Amendment,” Vigilant Solutions, February 13, 2014,
h t t p : / / v i g i l a n t s o l u t i o n s . c o m / p r e s s /
drn_vigilant_utah_lpr_federal_lawsuit.
46. Kim Zetter, “Virginia Man Sues Police Over License
Plate Database,” Wired, May 6, 2015, http://www.
wired.com/2015/05/virginia-man-sues-police-
license-plate-database/.
47. Keith Gierlack, Shara Williams, Tom LaTourrette,
James M. Anderson, Lauren A. Mayer, and Johanna
Zmud, License Plate Readers for Law Enforcement:
Opportunities and Obstacles (Santa Monica, CA:
RAND Corporation, 2014), p. 46, https://www.ncjrs.
gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/247283.pdf.
48. “Shocking Statistics That Will Make You Think
Twice About Grabbing Your Phone,” Edgar Snyder &
Associates, n.d., https://www.edgarsnyder.com/
car-accident/cause-of-accident/cell-phone/cell-
phone-statistics.html.
49. See Governors Highway Safety Association,
“Distracted Driving Laws,” January 2016, http://www.
ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html.
50. Chris Matyszczyk, “Police radar gun that shows if
you’re texting?” CNET, September 17, 2014, http://
www.cnet.com/news/police-radar-gun-that-shows-
if-youre-texting.
51. Katherine Paddock, “Study Suggests Taser Use by
U.S. Police Is Safe,” Medical News Today, October 9,
2007, http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/
84955.php.
52. Colleen Curry, “Tasers Might Not Reduce Lethal
Force Incidents or Injuries to Suspects After All,”
October 15, 2015, Vice News, https://news.vice.com/
a r t i c l e / t a s e r s - m i g h t - n o t - r e d u c e - l e t h a l -
force-incidents-or-injuries-to-suspects-after-all.
53. James Eng, “FAA Says Nearly 300,000 Drone
Owners Have Registered in First 30 Days,”
NBCNews.com, January 22, 2016, http://www.
n b c n e w s . c o m / t e c h / t e c h - n e w s / f a a - s a y s -
nearly-300-000-drone-owners-have-registered-
first-n502201.
54. Dronelaw.com, “The FAA’s Drone Registration
Requirement: A Brief Review,” http://dronelaw.com/.
55. “Operator of Drone That Crashed at White House
Won’t Face Charges,” NBCNews.com, March 18,
2015, http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/
operator-drone-crashed-white-house-wont-face-
charges-n325931.
56. Bart Jansen, “FAA Unveils Drone Rules; Obama
Orders Policy for Agencies,” USA Today, February 16,
2015, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/
02/15/faa-drone-rule/23440469/.
57. Eyragon Eidam, “7 Tech Policy Issues to Watch in
2016,” Government Technology, February 3, 2016,
http://www.govtech.com/state/7-Tech-Policy-Issues-
to-Watch-in-2016.html?utm_medium=email&utm_
s o u r c e = A c t - O n + S o f t w a r e & u t m _ c o n t e n t =
email&utm_campaign=7%20Tech%20Policy%
20Issues%20to%20Watch%20in%202016%2C%
2 0 G u i d e l i n e s % 2 0 f o r % 2 0 E a s i n g % 2 0 t h e %
2 0 C o s t % 2 0 a n d % 2 0 B u r d e n % 2 0 o f % 2 0 D a t a %
20Storage&utm_term=7%20Tech%20Policy%
20Issues%20to%20Watch%20in%202016.
58. Oregon Drone Law, Electronic Privacy Information
Center, “State Drone and UAV Policy,” State of
Oregon, 2015, https://epic.org/state-policy/drones/.
59. Ibid.
60. “Drones Replace Boots on Ground at Mexico Border:
AP Sources,” NBC News, November 13, 2014,
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/immigration-
b o r d e r- c r i s i s / d r o n e s - r e p l a c e - b o o t s - g r o u n d -
mexico-border-ap-sources-n247556.
61. Perla Trevizo, “Border Patrol Doubles Down on
High-Tech Security,” December 28, 2015,
Government Technology, http://www.govtech.com/
public-safety/Border-Patrol-Doubles-Down-on-
High-Tech-Security.html.
62. See NBC News, “Justice Department memo reveals
legal case for drone strikes on Americans,” February 4,
2013, http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/
2013/02/04/16843014-justice-department-memo-
r e v e a l s - l e g a l - c a s e - f o r - d r o n e - s t r i k e s - o n -
americans?lite.
63. Dustin Voltz, “FBI’s Facial-Recognition Technology
Has Achieved ‘Full Operational Capability’,” The
National Journal, January 14, 2016, http://www.
n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l . c o m / s / 4 0 1 2 0 / f b i s - f a c i a l -
r e c o g n i t i o n - t e c h n o l o g y - h a s - a c h i e v e d - f u l l -
operational-capability; also see the Federal Bureau
of Investigation’s “Biometric Center for Excellence”
website, at: https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/
f i n g e r p r i n t s _ b i o m e t r i c s / b i o m e t r i c -
center-of-excellence; it explores and advances the
CHAPTER 14 Information Technologies 391
▼
use of new and enhanced biometric technologies and
capabilities in the areas of facial recognition, palm
prints, iris scans, voice recognition, fingerprinting,
DNA, and emerging biometrics.
64. Adapted from Kentucky Office of Homeland
Security, “Eye on Kentucky,” http://homelandsecurity.
ky.gov/Pages/Eye-on-Kentucky.aspx.
65. Federal Bureau of Investigation, “Integrated
Automated Fingerprint Identification System,”
https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/fingerprints_
biometrics/iafis/iafis.
66. John Trader, “M2-FuseID™ “Smart” Biometric
Finger Reader Achieves FBI Personal Identity
Verification (PIV) Certification,” M2SYS Blog On
Biometric Technology, July 15, 2014, http://blog.
m 2 s y s . c o m / s c a n n i n g - a n d - e f f i c i e n c y / m 2 -
fuseid-smart-finger-reader-achieves-fbi-personal-
identity-verification-piv-certification/.
67. Stephen Mayhew, “Fingerprint Tech integrated into
latest smartphones,” BiometricUpdate.com, January 8,
2016, http://www.biometricupdate.com/tag/fingerprint-
technology.
68. David Griffith, “Police Robots on Land and Sea,”
Police, December 28, 2015, http://www.policemag.
com/channel/technology/articles/2015/12/police-
robots-on-land-and-sea.aspx.
69. Brian Huber, “Wis. Police Get Robo-Cop’s Help,”
PoliceOne.com, November 14, 2006, www.
p o l i c e o n e . c o m / p o l i c e - t e c h n o l o g y / r o b o t s /
articles/1190983 (accessed March 5, 2013).
70. John Ingold, “James Holmes faces 142 counts,
including 24 of first-degree murder,” The Denver
Post, July 30, 2012, http://www.denverpost.com/
breakingnews/ci_21191265/hearing-underway-
man-suspected-killing-12-aurora-theater.
71. Justine Brown, “App Helps Police Manage ‘Gypsy
Hill’ Cold Case Murder Investigation,” Government
Technology, August 6, 2015, http://www.govtech.
com/applications/App-Helps-Police-Manage-
Gypsy-Hill-Cold-Case-Murder-Investigation.html.
72. “Sheriffs push Google to disable police-tracker from
popular traffic smartphone app Waze,” Fox Business,
January 26, 2015, http://www.foxbusiness.com/
features/2015/01/26/sheriffs-push-google-to-disable-
police-tracker-from-popular-traffic-smartphone.html.
73. “Want to Record Police-Citizen Interactions? There’s
an App for That,” Government Technology,
November 16, 2015, http://www.govtech.com/
applications/Want-to-Record-Police-Citizen-
Interactions-Theres-an-App-for-That.html.
74. Tim Dees, “4 helpful police smartphone apps for
Android,” PoliceOne.com, December 12, 2014,
https://www.policeone.com/police-products/police-
t e c h n o l o g y / a r t i c l e s / 6 6 4 5 0 2 3 - 4 - h e l p f u l -
police-smartphone-apps-for-Android/.
75. Ibid.
392
▼
INDEX
A Absolute ethics, 214
Academy training
professional demeanor and uniform, 47–48
sixth sense (suspicious nature), 49–51
training nature and topics, 45–47
Accountability
Brady officer matter, 223–224
civilian review boards, 231–232
constitutional rights, limitations on, 219–223
discipline, 226–231
ethics, 213–215
force, police use of, 205–210
legitimacy of police, 204–205
police corruption, 216–219
police shootings, 210–213
social networking, 224–226
Accreditation, 311
ACLU. See American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
ADORE. See Automated Daily Observation Report and
Evaluation (ADORE)
Affidavit, 178
AFL. See American Federation of Labor (AFL)
African-American police officers, 62
Agricultural laws, 279
Alcoholic beverage laws, 279
Alcoholism and drug abuse, 223
Alpert, Geoffrey, 53
ALPR. See Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR)
America
constables in, 5
coroners in, 5–6
frontier of, 19–21
justice of peace (JP), 6–7
legacies of colonial period, 8–10
policing in, 14–16
policing in colonial, 8
Political Era (1840s to 1930s), 16–22
American Civil Liberties Union
(ACLU), 378, 387
American Federation of Labor (AFL), 155
Ancillary investigative, training, and
reporting services, 270
Anthropometry, 125
Appearance of patrol police, 79
Apps, for police tracking, 386
Arbitration, 157
Argersinger v. Hamlin, 195
Arms
and armor for patrol duty, 78–79
carrying of, 17
Arrests, 177–180
and case preparation, 130
court cases, 179–180
with warrant, 178
warrantless, 178–179
Arther, Richard, 43
Assessment center, 44–45
Attitude
of citizen, 87
of patrol officer, 87
Automated Daily Observation Report
and Evaluation (ADORE), 52
Automatic License Plate Recognition
(ALPR), 378
Autopsy, 133
B Baldwin, James, 100
Basic Immigration Enforcement Training program, 356
Bayley, David, 56, 78
Bean, Roy, 7
Beat assignment, 74–75
Beat culture, 71
Bertillon system, 125
Bicycle patrol officers, 84
Big-city police, 22
Bike patrols, 84–85
Bill of Rights, 27
Binding-arbitration model, 156
Biometrics, 384
Bioterrorism, 328
Bivens tort, 242
Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the
Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 242
Black, Donald, 57
Black crime, 28
Blue-coat crime, 217
Body cameras, 104
Body-worn cameras (BWC), 213, 240, 368–370
Bonsignore v. New York, 245
Boston Police Department (BPD), 232
INDEX 393
▼
Bouza, Anthony, 79
Bowman, Theron L., 300
Bow Street Runners, 10
Brady v. Maryland, 224
Brandon v. Allen, 247–248
Breed v. Jones, 197
Bribery, 217
Brigham City v. Stuart, 183
Broderick, John, 54
Brutality of police, 209–210
Bureaucracies
defined, 288
principles of, 288–289
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,
273–274
Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), 115
Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), 46, 100
Burkholder v. City of Los Angeles, 245
BWC. See Body-worn cameras (BWC)
C CAD. See Computer-aided dispatching (CAD)
CALEA. See Commission on Accreditation for Law
Enforcement Agencies (CALEA)
California Personality Inventory (CPI), 41
Calls for service (CFS) analysis, 106, 107
Cameron, Will, 111
Captains, role of, 303
Carmelo v. Miller, 245
Carpenter, Bruce, 37
Carroll v. United States, 188
Case preparation, 130
CBT. See Computer-based training (CBT)
CCIRI. See Cold Case Investigative Research Institute
(CCIRI)
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 276, 327
Chain of command, 290–291
Chapman, Samuel G., 246
Character investigation, 42
Chesser, Zachary, 328
Chief of police
defined, 297
power and expectations of, 307
role of, 297–298
Chimel v. California, 184
Chiseling, 217
Chronic stress, 151
CIA. See Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
CIT. See Crisis Intervention Training/Team (CIT)
Civilianization, 310–311
Civilian review boards, 231–232
Civil liability
basic terms and concepts, 240–243
lawsuits, nature of, 239–240
liability of police supervisors, 247–248
potential liability, areas of, 248–254
qualified immunity for police, 254
section 1983 litigation, 243–247
Civil rights movement, 27–28
Coast Guard, 263
Cocaine, 320–321
Code of silence, 218–219
CODIS software. See Combined DNA Index System
(CODIS) software
Cold case, 141
Cold Case Investigative Research Institute (CCIRI), 141
Collective bargaining, 156–159
Collision, traffic, 90
Colquhoun, Patrick, 9, 10
Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) software, 137
Command and control systems, 367
Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement
Agencies (CALEA), 311
Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training
(POST), 46
Communication
barriers, 296
grapevine, 295
horizontal, 295
organizational, 289–290, 294–296
process, elements of, 290
types of, 295
upward, 295
written, 295–296
Communication skills, 55
Communications specialists, 91
Community Era (1980s to present),
14, 29–31
Community-oriented policing approach, 116
Community policing, 356
background, 99–101
basic principles of, 104–110
CompStat (comparative or computer
statistics), 109
crime prevention, 110–113
police responses to violence, 101–103
problem identification, 106
problem-oriented policing, 104–108
and problem solving at work, 113–115
programs, 332
role of, 104
Smart Policing, 115–117
strategy formulation, 108–109
street officer, role of, 109
transparency and trust building, 103–104
Community policing and problem solving, 367
INDEX 394
▼
Complaints
causes of, 227
determination, 228
disciplinary measures, appeal of, 229
disposition, 228–229
formal complaint form, 228
investigative process, 227
origin, 227
receipt, 227
referral, 227
types of, 227
CompStat (comparative or computer statistics), 109
Computer-aided dispatching (CAD), 107, 367
Computer-based training (CBT), 50
Computer evidence, 252
Computerized crime mapping, 107
Confessions, 192–193
Confidential informants, 142–143
Consent once removed doctrine, 254
Consolidated policing, 310
Consolidation of police forces, 281
Constable, 5
Constitutional rights of officers, limitations on
freedom of speech, 219–220
misuse of firearms, 222
moonlighting, 222
religious practices, 221
residency requirements, 221
searches and seizures, 220
self-incrimination, 220
sexual misconduct, 221
Constitutional torts, 241
Continuing Investigation, 129
Contract services, 163
Controlled Substances Act (CSA), 325
Coolidge, Calvin, 25
Cop crunch, 38
Coroner, 5–6
Coroners for criminal investigation, 133
Corruption
police. See Police corruption
in police, 18–19
politics and, 18–19
Counseling, 229
County of Sacramento v. Lewis, 252
County sheriff's departments, 296
Courage, 56
Court cases
and arrests, 180
and searches and seizures, 183
CPTED. See Crime prevention through environmental
design (CPTED)
Crank, John, 78
Crash investigations, information technology and, 374–375
Creativity, 55
Crime-analysis information, 112
Crime fighter image of police, 25
Crime mapping, 370–371
Crime prevention, 13, 110–113
CPTED and, 111–112
repeat victimization, 112–113
Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED),
111–112
Crime scene, 124–125
Criminal activities, 308
Criminal investigation
about crime scene, 124–125
arrest and case preparation, 130
cold case, 141
criminalistics, origins of, 125–129
criminal justice system, 129–130
criminal profiling and psycholinguistics, 139–140
CSI effect, 142
detectives, 130–132
DNA analysis, 134–139
forensic science, 122–124, 129
investigative stages and activities, 129–130
investigative tools, 142–144
medical examiners and coroners, contributions of, 133
nonhuman detectives (dogs), 141–142
polygraph, uses of, 134
social networking sites, using, 140
undercover work, 132–133
Criminal investigation (CI) division, 276
Criminalistics
contributions of August Vollmer, 128–129
defined, 123
firearms identification, 128
Locard's exchange principle, 128
origin of, 125
personal identification, 125–127
Criminal justice system, 129–130, 152
arrest and case preparation, 130
investigative stages and activities, 129–130
Criminal law, 86
Criminal profiling and psycholinguistics, 139–140
Criminal prosecutions for police misconduct, 247
Crisis Intervention Training/Team (CIT), 349–351
CSA. See Controlled Substances Act (CSA)
CSI effect, 142
Customs and Border Protection (CBP), 263
Custos pacis, 6
Cybercrime
defined, 333
extent of victimization, 333–334
identify theft, 336–338
INDEX 395
▼
tactics, 334–335
training, 334–335
types, 334–335
CyberScience Laboratory (CSL), 335
D Dactylography, 125
Dalton Gang, 21
Day shift, 73
DEA. See Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
Democratic National Convention, 27
Demotion, 231
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analysis
Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) software, 137
discovery and analysis types, 134–136
expansion, 138
familial DNA, 138–139
postconviction testing, 138
property crimes, solving, 137–138
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 262–267,
329–330
Department of Justice (DOJ), 267
Deployment of patrol officers, 71
Designer drugs, 325
Detectives, 22, 130–132
Diagnostic Center, 360
Dirty Harry problem, 214
Discretion, 56
Discretionary authority, 88
defined, 86
determinants of, 87
myth of, 86
pros, cons, politics of, 88
use of, 86
Dispatchers, 91–92
Computer-aided dispatching (CAD), 367
Dispositions, categories of, 229
Disraeli, Benjamin, 99
Distress, 150
Distrust, police, 231
DNA analysis. See Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
analysis
Documented oral counseling, 230
Domestic terrorism, 330
Domestic violence, 351–353
legal aspects, 352
Double effect, principle of, 214
Dress code, enforcing, 81–82
Drinking
and alcoholism, 154
in park, 86
Drivers, 91
Driving under influence (DUI), 91, 192
Driving while black or brown (DWBB), 100
Drones, 381–382
at borders, 383
DRRM. See Dynamic resistance response
model (DRRM)
Drug abuse, 154, 223
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA),
274, 323
Drugs
cocaine, 320–321
enforcement and reduction, 325–326
heroin, 323–324
marijuana, 319–320
methamphetamine, 323
synthetic, 324–325
war on, 319–326
Drug screening, 44
Duncan v. Barnes, 245
Dunham, Roger, 53
Duty of care, 249
Dynamic resistance response model
(DRRM), 207, 208
E EAP. See Employee assistance program (EAP)
Early identification and intervention
system (EIIS), 213
Early intervention system (EIS), 212
ECD. See Electronic control device (ECD)
Ego, 56
EIS. See Early intervention system (EIS)
Electronic control device (ECD), 82, 248, 380–381
Electronic surveillance, 191
Employee assistance program (EAP), 153–154
Enforcers, 54
England
colonial systems of policing in, 7–10
constable in, 5
coroner in, 5–6
justice of peace (JP), 6–7
police reform in, 10–14
sheriff in, 3–5
Enthusiasm of entry-level police officers, 55
Entrapment, 194
Escobedo v. Illinois, 192, 195
Ethics, police, 213–215
Eustress, 150
Evans, William, 208
Evening shift, 73
Exclusionary rule, 175–177
modifications of, 176
Exigent circumstances, 178
External corruption, 217
INDEX 396
▼
F FAA. See Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
Facebook, 372, 373
Facial recognition software, 382–384
Fact-finding, 157, 227, 246
Failure to protect, 251
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 158
False arrest suits, 241
Familial DNA, 138–139
Family Justice Center Concept, 353
Favoritism, 217
FBI. See Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 381
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 25, 44, 207,
269–273, 281, 308
on juvenile offenses, 338
and terrorism, 330
Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, 162
Federal Drug Quality and Security Act, 2013, 323
Federal law enforcement agencies. See also
State agencies
with arrest and firearms authority, 261–262
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,
273–274
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 276
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 262–267,
329–330
Department of Justice (DOJ), 267
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), 274
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), 269–273
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC),
277–278
Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 276–277
U.S. Marshals Service, 274–275
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), 266,
277–278, 308
Federal marshals, 21
Feedback, 295
Female police officers. See Women
Fielding, Henry, 9, 10
Fielding, John, 9, 10
Field training officer (FTO) program, 51–52
Fifth Amendment. See also Fourth Amendment; Sixth
Amendment
about, 191–192
confessions, 192–193
entrapment, 194
interrogation, 193–194
Miranda warning, 192–194
self-incrimination, 220
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, 161
Financial Crimes Task Force, Southwestern Pennsylvania,
337
Fingerprinting systems, 366
Fingerprints, 126, 384–385
Firearms
identification, 128
skills, 47
First-line supervisors,
304–305
tasks of, 305
Fish and game laws, 279
FLSA. See Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Focus of investigation, 130
FOIA. See Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
Force, police use of, 17
brutality of police, 209–210
legal restrictions, 206
legitimate purposes, 205–206
mass demonstrations, responses to, 208
use-of-force continuums, 206–207
Forensic science. See also Criminal investigation
cold case squad creation, 141
and criminal justice system, 129
defined, 122
social networking sites, using, 140
Fourth Amendment. See also Fifth Amendment; Sixth
Amendment
arrests, 177–180
electronic surveillance, 191
exclusionary rule, 175–177
lineup, police, 191
probable cause, 175
searches and seizures, 180–190, 230
Frankpledge, 7
Fraternal orders of police (FOP), 155
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 368
Free speeches, 219–220
FTO program. See Field training officer
(FTO) program
Fusion centers, 330
G Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.)
Program, 339, 340
Gangs
defined, 338
involvement in human trafficking, 362
overview, 338
Garrity v. New Jersey, 220–221
Gault, Gerald, 197
General knowledge test, 39–41
Geographic Information Systems (GIS),
367, 370
Gideon v. Wainwright, 195
Gilliam v. Falbo, 245
INDEX 397
▼
Global Positioning System (GPS), 91, 189
and 3D Tech for Crash Investigations,
374–375
tracking tags, 375–376
Goldstein, Herman, 56
Good Driver Recognition Program, 90
Grapevine, 295
Graveyard shift, 73
Grievance filing, 155
Grievances, 157
Guardian mindset, 103
Gunfights, 21
H Habeas corpus, defined, 177
Hacking, 373
Harris v. United States, 188
Haygood v. City of Detroit, 245
Henry, Edward, 126
Heroin, 323–324
HIDTA program. See High Intensity Drug Trafficking
Areas (HIDTA) program
Higher education for police, 159–160
rationales for and against, 160–161
High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA)
program, 326
High-speed car pursuits, 375–376
Hobbs Act, 219
Homegrown violent extremist (HVE), 327
Homeland Security Information Network (HSIN), 329
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), 263
Homeostasis, 151
Hoover,, Herbert, 25
Hoover, J. Edgar, 25, 129, 269
Horizontal communication, 295
Human trafficking
defined, 358
Diagnostic Center and, 360
gangs involvement in, 362
modern-day slavery, 358
“T” visa and, 359–360
Humerickhouse, Grant, 379
Hurdle process, 39
HVE. See Homegrown violent extremist (HVE)
I ICE. See Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
Idealists, 54
Identify theft, 336–338
police response strategy,
336–338
victims, 336
Illegal immigration, 354
undocumented aliens, 354–356
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), 263
Impasse resolution, 157
Indoctrination, 295
Information
on corpus delicti (body of the crime), 124
on modus operandi (method of operation), 124
Information technology (IT)
for acquiring crime information, 367–368
body-worn cameras, 368–370
civic apps for crime-fighting, 373
crime mapping, 370–371
drones, 381–382
electronic control devices, 380–381
facial recognition software, 382–384
fingerprinting, 384–385
high-speed car pursuits, 375–376
for problem-oriented policing, 366–368
rationale for, 366–367
real-time crime centers, 371–372
robots, 385
social media, 372–373
tools, 366, 379–387
Information technology for crime
management, 109
In loco parentis, 196
In-service training, 53
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism
Prevention Act, 164
Intentional torts, 241
Internal corruption, 217
Internal Revenue Service (IRS), 276–277
International Association of Chiefs of Police
(IACP), 226
International terrorism, 330
INTERPOL, 267
Interrogation, 143–144, 193–196
Interviews, 40, 42, 143–144
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), 327
IT. See Information technology (IT)
J James, Jesse, 21
Jennings v. City of Detroit, 244
Job actions, 158
Job instruction communication, 295
Job rationale communication, 295
Johnson, Jeh, 328
Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF), 331
Jones Case, 127
Joseph v. State of Alaska, 250
JTTF. See Joint Terrorism Task Forces (JTTF)
Justice of the peace (JP), 6–7
Justifiable homicides, 211
INDEX 398
▼
Juvenile
offenses, 338
rights, 196
Juvenile delinquency, 197
K Kansas City Preventive Patrol Experiment,
68, 69
Katz v. United States, 191
Kelley v. Johnson, 80
Kentucky v. King, 184
Kerner Commission, 100
Keystone Kops, 22
Kin police, 7
Knapp Commission, 216
Knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA), 281
Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, 243
L Labor relations. See also Stress
collective bargaining, 156–159
defined, 154
police officers’ rights, 154–155
unionization, 155–156
Land use information, 112
Law Enforcement Code of Ethics
(LECE), 215
Law Enforcement Education Program (LEEP), 160
Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act
of 2004
(H.R. 218), 79
Lefkowitz, Joel, 37
Legal aspects, patrol police, 80
Legalistic style, 58
Legal restrictions on police use of
force, 206
Legislative measures, 325
Legitimacy, 204
Less-lethal tools and technologies, 248
Letters of reprimand, 230
Liability of police supervisors, 247–248
Lieutenants, role of, 303
Life without parole (LWOP) sentences, 197
Lineups, 191
Local law enforcement, 21
Local police, role of, 356–357
Locard, Edmond, 128
Locard’s exchange principle, 128
Lone wolf terrorist, 328
Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), 25,
26, 240
Lynch, Ronald, 301
M Management information systems (MIS), 367
Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety (MAPS)
program, 371
Mapping and offense reports, 107
Mapp v. Ohio, 176, 185
Marijuana, conflicting federal and state laws,
319–320
Marijuana legalization, 319
debate concerning, 321
foreign venues supporting, 320
Martin, Trayvon, 198
Marx, Gary, 133
Maryland v. Shatzer, 192
Maryland v. Wilson, 187
Mass demonstrations, responses to, 208
Mayne, Richard, 11
McClelland v. Facteau, 247
McKeiver v. Pennsylvania, 197
McLay, Cameron, 208
Mediation, 157
Medical examinations and drug screening, 44
Medical examiners, 133
Menlo Park, California, Police Department
(MPPD), 81
Mental illness, 347
Mentally ill population
coping with, 347–351
issues associated with, 349
Methamphetamine, 323
Metropolitan Police Act of 1829, 11
Michigan v. Fisher, 183
Middle managers, 303
Military Commissions Act, 331
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI),
37, 41
Minorities as law enforcement officers, 61–62
Mintzberg, Henry, 301
Mintzberg model
decision-maker role, 302–303
defined, 301
informational role, 301–302
interpersonal role, 301
Miranda v. Arizona, 192, 193
Miranda warning, 192–194
MIS. See Management information
systems (MIS)
Misuse of Firearms, 222
MMPI. See Minnesota Multiphasic Personality
Inventory (MMPI)
Monell v. Department of Social Services, 243–244
Monroe v. Pape, 243
INDEX 399
▼
Mooching, 217
Moonlighting, 222
Morell, Michael, 327
Motorcycle patrol officers, 84
MS-13 (Mara Salvatrucha), 339
Muir, William K., 55
Municipal police departments, 296
Murray v. City of Chicago, 245
N Nashville Police Department, 208
National Advisory Commission on Civil
Disorders, 100
National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice
Standards and Goals, 160
National Commission on Law Observance and
Enforcement, 26
National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), 331
National Crime Commission in 1925, 25
National Crime Information Center (NCIC), 129, 270
National Database on death by police, 211–212
National Incident Management System (NIMS),
331–332
National Institute of Justice (NIJ), 52
Mapping and Analysis for Public Safety (MAPS)
program, 371
National Organization of Black Law Enforcement
Executives (NOBLE), 62
National police force, 281
National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab, 223
Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative, 329
Natural access control, 111
Natural surveillance, 111
NCTC. See National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC)
Negative stress, 150
Negligence by police officers, 241, 246
Negligent supervision, 247
Negotiations, 156
Neophyte officers, 49
Neophyte police officers, 91
New York City Police Department (NYPD), 38
New York Electronic Crimes Task Force
(NYECTF), 335
Next Generation Identification (NGI), 384
NGI. See Next Generation Identification (NGI)
Niederhoffer, Arthur, 51
Night (or graveyard) shift, 73
NIMS. See National Incident Management System (NIMS)
Noble cause corruption, 214, 215
Nonhuman detectives (dogs), 141–142
Nowicki, Dennis, 55
NYECTF. See New York Electronic Crimes Task Force
(NYECTF)
O Obama, Barack, 381
Occupational hazards of patrol officer, 75–76
Offense, seriousness of, 87
Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), 360
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
(OJJDP), 339
Officers of Law
constable, 5
coroner, 5–6
justice of the peace (JP), 6–7
sheriff, 3–5
Olivas, Dan, 216
Olmstead v. United States, 191
O’Neill, Francis, 20
Operation Peacekeeper, 341
Operations information systems, 367
Optimists, 55
Organizations
as bureaucracies, 288–289
chain of command, 290–291
communication, 289–290, 294–296
defined, 287–288
police agencies as, 290–296
policies and procedures, 294
span of control, 292, 294
structure, 291–292
unity of command, 292
OVC. See Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)
P Packer, Herbert, 215
Paddleboards, patrol duty on, 85
Parens patriae, 196
Parker, William H., 25, 26–27
Patrol function
arms and armor for duty, 78–79
beat assignment, 74–75
discretionary use of police authority, 87–89
Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004
(H.R. 218), 79
occupational hazards, 75–76
officers on display, 79–82
overview, 68–71
on paddleboards, 85
purposes and nature of, 71–73
shift assignment, 73–74
suicide by cop, 76–78
traffic, 89–91
vehicle for, 82–85
Patrol lifeline, 91–92
Patrol uniform, 48
INDEX 400
▼
Patrol vehicle, 82–85
Peace Officer Bill of Rights, 155
Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST), 46
Pearson v. Callahan, 254
Peel, Robert, 11–14
PERF. See Police Executive Research Forum (PERF)
Perjury, 217
Personal identification, 125–127
Personal interview, 40–41
Personnel complaint, 227
Persons in Custody, 250
Physical agility, 41
Physical evidence, 124
Pinkerton National Detective Agency, 20
Plainclothes officers, 216
Poe, Edgar Allan, 16
Police body cameras, 104
Police chief and county sheriffs,
297–300
Police–community relations, 28, 29
Police corruption
code of silence, 218–219
history, 216–217
investigation and prosecution, 219
types and causes, 217–218
Police cynicism, 54
Police discretion, 88
Police distrust, 231
Police dogs, 141–142
Police encounters, recording, 387
Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), 351
Police firearms regulations, 222
Police personality development, 53–55
Police shootings, 210–213
Police supervisors, liability of, 247–248
Police training officer (PTO) program, 52
Police uniform, 17
Police use of force. See Force, police use of
Policies and procedures, 294
Policing
in colonial America, 8
community era, 29–31
community programs, 332
consolidated, 310
criminal activity, 308
defined, 306
in England, 7
formal entry into, 45–51
full-time, 14
functions, 58
information technology and. See Information
technology (IT)
political era, 14–22
principles of, 13
reform era, 22–28
reform in England, 10–14
roles, functions, styles of, 56–59
in small and rural jurisdictions, 307–308
styles, 58–59
unique duties, 308
in United States, 14–15
Policing eras
community era, 30
political era, 14–22
reform era, 22–28
Political Era (1840s to 1930s), 14
American frontier, 19–21
early issues and traditions, 17
Peel’s model, 16–17
political influence, entrenchment of, 21–22
politics and corruption, 18–19
reform, attempts at, 17–18
Politics, 305–306
and corruption, 18–19
eliminating, 306
Polygraph
examination, 43–44, 155
uses of, 134
Popow v. City of Margate, 246
Positive stress, 150
Posse comitatus, 5
Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, 331
Postacademy field training
field training officer (FTO) program,
51–52
in-service training, 53
police training officer (PTO) program, 52
technology in training, 52–53
Postconviction DNA testing, 138
Posting information about police shootings, 212
Potential liability, areas of
computer evidence, 252
duty of care, 249
failure to protect, 251
less-lethal tools and technologies, 248
vehicle pursuits, 251–252
Powell v. Alabama, 195
Prejudice, 217
Preliminary investigation, 129
Premeditated theft, 217
Prescription drug abuse, 322–323
President’s Commission on Law Enforcement
and the Administration of Justice, 160
President’s Crime Commission, 28–29
Preston v. United States, 188
Prior v. Woods, 245
INDEX 401
▼
Private police
at forefront, 165
nature of, 162
regulation, legislating, 164–165
types of, 163–164
Proactive policing functions, 366
Problem-analysis triangle, 107
Problem identification, 106
Problem-oriented policing, 104–108
IT for, 366–368
Problem-solving information systems, 367
Procedures and practice, communication type, 295
Professional era of policing, 22. See
Reform Era (1930s to 1980s)
Professionalism, 25
Profiling, 139
Property crimes, solving, 137–138
Proprietary services, 163
Proximate cause, 249–250
Psycholinguistics
about, 139
criminal profiling and, 139–140
Psychological aspects of patrol police, 80–81
Psychological profiling, 139
Psychological tests, 39–41
PTO program. See Police training
officer (PTO) program
Public employees, due process
requirements, 226
Public safety organizations, 279
Public trust, maintenance of, 226
Q Qualifications of applicants, 36–38
Qualified immunity for police, 254
R Raza, Susan, 37
Reactive policing functions, 366
Reagan, Lisa, 108
Realists, 54
Real-time crime center (RTCC), 371–372
Reconstruction of crime, 129–130
Recruiting and hiring
academy training, 45–51
assessment center, 45–46
character investigation, 42
hurdle process, 39
medical examinations and drug screening, 44
minorities as police officers, 61–62
personal interview, 42
physical agility, 41
polygraph examinations, 43
postacademy field training, 51–53
problems and successes, 38–39
qualified applicants, 36–38
roles, functions, styles of policing, 56–60
women as officers and chief executives, 59–61
working personality, 53–56
written examinations, 39–41
Reform Era (1930s to 1980s), 14
August Vollmer, era of, 22–25
civil rights movement, 27–28
crime fighter image of police, 25
political patronage in, 22
Wickersham Commission, 26–27
William H. Parker in, 26–27
Reform era of policing, 22
Reichel, Phillip, 15
Relative ethics, 214
Religious practices, 221
Repeat alarm calls, 107
Repeat victimization, 112–113
Republicanism, 9
Resident information, 112
Resources, stretching, 309–310
civilianization, 310–311
consolidated policing, 310
Respondeat superior, 242
Rights of police officers, 154–155
Right to counsel, 195
Right to representation, 155
Robots, 385
Rogers, Mary Cecilia, 16
Role conflicts, 57
Roles, police, 56–57
Romero, Renee, 123
Roosevelt, Theodore, 18
Roper v. Simmons, 197
Rowan, Charles, 11
RTCC. See Real-time crime center (RTCC)
Rule of law, defined, 173
Rural Policing Institute (RPI), 308
S Safe facilities, 250
Safety Zone, 339
Sager v. City of Woodland Park, 246
Sanction, type of, 229–230
Sanctuary cities, 357
San Diego, California, Police Department (SDPD), 213
San Diego Family Justice Center (SDFJC), 353
Saucier v. Katz, 254
Scalia, Antonin, 189
Scanning, analysis, response, assessment (SARA), 106, 114
Scanning, purpose of, 106
INDEX 402
▼
Schneckloth v. Bustamonte, 190
Scott, Dred, 16
Scott v. Sanford, 16
SDFJC. See San Diego Family Justice
Center (SDFJC)
Searches and seizure
of automobiles carried out under special
conditions, 187
with consent, 190
during field interrogation, 185
Fourth Amendment, 180–190
incidental to lawful arrest, 184
Secret Service, 266
Section 1983 litigation
criminal prosecutions for police misconduct, 247
history and escalation, 243–244
police actions leading to, 244–247
Seizures of evidence in plain view, 189
Self-defense skills, 47
Self-motivation, 55
Serial murderers, 139
Service style, 58
Sex trafficking, 362. See also Human trafficking
Sexual misconduct, 221
Shakedown, 217
Sheriff, 3–5
Sheriffs, 298–300
Shift assignment, 73–74
Shire reeve, 3
Sixth Amendment
interrogation, 195–196
right to counsel, 195
Sixth sense (suspicious nature), 49–51
Skolnick, Jerome, 53, 56, 78
Slave codes, 15
Slave patrols, 15–16
Smartphones, 386
Smart Policing
origin, 115
strategies and tactics, 116–117
Social media, 332, 372–373
Social networking sites, 140,
224–226
Soukup, Pat, 309
Southern Slave Patrols, 15–16
South v. Maryland, 249
Sovereign immunity, 242
Span of control, 292, 294
Special conservators of peace (SCOP), 164
Special relationships, 249
Special weapons and tactics (SWAT), 46, 279
Stability of officers, 41
Stamper, Norm, 306
Stand your ground law, 197–198
Stare decisis, 241
State agencies. See also Federal law enforcement
agencies
special-purpose, 279–281
state police and law enforcement agencies,
278–279
State bureaus of investigation (SBI), 279
State police and law enforcement agencies,
278–279
State v. Smith, 195
Steffens, Lincoln, 307
Stengel v. Belcher, 245
Stoddard, Ellwyn, 217
Stop-and-frisk searches, 185
Street officer, role of, 109
Stress
chronic, 151
criminal justice system, 152
effects of, 153
employee assistance programs,
153–154
nature of, 150–151
organizational and administrative
practices, 152
public, 152
sources of, 151–153
stressors intrinsic to police work, 152–153
traumatic, 151
Stressors, police work and, 152–153
Suicide by cop, 76–78
Supervisors, 212
Support functions, 366
Suspect, identification of, 124
Suspension, 230
Sustainable misconduct, 229
SWAT. See Special weapons and
tactics (SWAT)
Swing (or evening) shift, 73
Synthetic Drug Abuse Prevention Act, 325
Synthetic drugs, 324–325
T Tammanyites, 18
Taylor, Frederick, 22
Team policing, 29
Team policing, 29
Technology. See Information technology (IT)
Technology in field training, 52–53
Television programs on criminal
investigations, 142
Tenacity, 56
Tennessee v. Garner, 206, 222
INDEX 403
▼
Termination, 231
Territorial reinforcement, 111
Terrorism
bioterrorism, 328
defined, 326–327
domestic, 330
homegrown violent extremist, 327
international, 330
as international problem, 327
lone wolf, 328
Military Commissions Act, 331
police approaches and methods,
329–330
types, 327
USA PATRIOT Act, 331
Terry, W. Clinton, 72
Terry v. Ohio, 185
Texting, while driving, 379–380
Thirst for knowledge, 56
3D apps for crime-fighting, 386–387
Tithings, 3, 7
Tools for investigation
confidential informants, 142–143
interviews and interrogations, 143–144
Tools for patrol vehicle, 82
Tort liability, 241
Tracking tags, GPS, 375–376
Traffic control. See also Patrol function
pursuit of hit-and-run drivers, 91
traffic crash investigation, 90
traffic laws, enforcement of, 89–90
Traffic-related tasks, IT for, 374–376
Training
academy, 45–57
field, postacademy, 51–53
in-service, 53
modifications in, 101
nature, 45–47
sixth sense (suspicious nature), developing,
49–51
technology in, 52–53
topics, 45–47
uniform in, 47–48
Train robbers, 21
Traits of good officers, 55–56
Transfer, 231
Transparency and trust building,
103–104
Transportation Security Administration
(TSA), 263
Traumatic stress, 151
Truncheon, 12
Twitter, 372
U Undercover work
patrol duties, return to, 133
problem with role, 132–133
Uniform
in academy training, 47–48
manufacturers, 80
of patrol officers, 79–80
in training, 46
Uniform Crime Reports (UCR), 272
Unionization, 155–156
United States Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS), 263
United States v. Robinson, 184
Unity of command, 292
Unmanned aerial vehicles, 381–382
Upward communication, 295
U.S. Marshals Service, 274–275
USA PATRIOT Act, 331
Use-of-force continuums, 206–207
V Vehicle pursuits, 210, 251–252
Vicarious liability, 242
Video cameras, at borders, 383
Violence
domestic, 351–353
police responses to, 101–103
Violent crimes and house visits, 102
Virtual reality, 50–51
Vollmer, August, 22–25, 26, 128
Vote of confidence, 158
W Wardens, 8
War on drugs, 319–326
Warrant, arrest with, 178
Warrantless arrests, 178–179
Warrantless searches, 184
Watchman style, 58
Weber, Max, 288
Wells, Kenneth, 129, 132
West Case, 127
Westley, William A., 53, 150
Weston, Paul, 129, 132
Wickersham Commission, 26–27
Wild, Jonathan, 7
Wilson, James Q., 58
Wilson v. Arkansas, 180
Women
advantages of female officers, 59–61
as officers and chief executives, 59
INDEX 404
▼
Working personality
police personality development, 53–55
traits of good officers, 55–56
Work slowdowns, 158
Work speedup, 158
Work stoppages, 158
Written communication, 295–296
Written examinations for recruitment,
39–41
Written notice, 155
Wrongful death, 245
Y YouTube, 372
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Brief Contents
- Contents
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- About the Authors
- Part 1 Foundations: Development of American Policing and Police Officers�������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Chapter 1 History: From English Origins to the United States�������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- English and Colonial Officers of the Law�����������������������������������������������
- Sheriff��������������
- Constable����������������
- Coroner��������������
- Justice of the Peace���������������������������
- The Old English and Colonial Systems of Policing�������������������������������������������������������
- Old English Traditions�����������������������������
- Policing in Colonial America�����������������������������������
- Legacies of the Colonial Period��������������������������������������
- Police Reform in England�������������������������������
- Policing Comes to the United States������������������������������������������
- Southern Slave Patrols�����������������������������
- The Political Era: 1840s to 1930s����������������������������������������
- Imitating Peel���������������������
- Early Issues and Traditions����������������������������������
- Attempts at Reform in Difficult Times��������������������������������������������
- Increased Politics and Corruption����������������������������������������
- Meanwhile, on the American Frontier . . .������������������������������������������������
- The Entrenchment of Political Influence����������������������������������������������
- The Reform Era: 1930s to 1980s�������������������������������������
- Attempts to Thwart Political Patronage���������������������������������������������
- The Era of August Vollmer��������������������������������
- The Crime Fighter Image������������������������������
- The Wickersham Commission��������������������������������
- Police as the “Thin Blue Line”: William H. Parker��������������������������������������������������������
- 1960s and 1970s: The Struggle for Civil Rights�����������������������������������������������������
- A Retreat from the Professional Model��������������������������������������������
- Coming Full Circle to Peel: President’s Crime Commission and Beyond��������������������������������������������������������������������������
- The Community Era: 1980s to Present������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 2 Preparing for the Street: Recruitment, Training, and Socialization�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- First Things First: Recruiting Qualified Applicants����������������������������������������������������������
- Wanted: Those Who Walk on Water��������������������������������������
- Recruiting Problems and Successes����������������������������������������
- Testing��������������
- Hurdle Process���������������������
- Written Examinations: General Knowledge and Psychological Tests����������������������������������������������������������������������
- Physical Agility�����������������������
- Personal Interview�������������������������
- Character Investigation������������������������������
- Polygraph Examination����������������������������
- Medical Examination and Drug Screening���������������������������������������������
- Assessment Center������������������������
- Formal Entry into Policing: Academy Training���������������������������������������������������
- Training Nature and Topics���������������������������������
- New Demeanor and Uniform�������������������������������
- Suspicion: The “Sixth Sense”�����������������������������������
- Postacademy Field Training���������������������������������
- Field Training Officer (FTO) Program�������������������������������������������
- Police Training Officer (PTO) Program��������������������������������������������
- New Technology���������������������
- In-Service Training��������������������������
- Working Personality: Having the “Right Stuff”����������������������������������������������������
- Developing a Police Personality��������������������������������������
- What Traits Make a Good Cop?�����������������������������������
- Roles, Functions, and Styles of Policing�����������������������������������������������
- Definition and Knowledge of the Police Role��������������������������������������������������
- Role Conflicts���������������������
- Policing Functions and Styles������������������������������������
- Which Role, Function, and Style Prevail?�����������������������������������������������
- Breaking Through Glass Ceilings: Women and Minorities������������������������������������������������������������
- Women as Officers and Chief Executives���������������������������������������������
- Advantages�����������������
- Minorities as Law Enforcement Officers���������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 3 On Patrol: Methods and Menaces�����������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Studies of the Patrol Function: An Overview��������������������������������������������������
- Patrol as Work: Culture of the Beat������������������������������������������
- Purposes and Nature of Patrol������������������������������������
- Patrol Work as a Function of Shift Assignment����������������������������������������������������
- Influence of an Assigned Beat������������������������������������
- Where Danger Lurks: Occupational Hazards of Patrol���������������������������������������������������������
- At Their Peril���������������������
- Suicide by Cop���������������������
- Arms and Armor for Duty������������������������������
- H.R. 218���������������
- Officers on Display: Appearance, Uniforms, and Dress Codes�����������������������������������������������������������������
- Legal Aspects��������������������
- Psychological Aspects����������������������������
- Instituting (and Enforcing) a Dress Code�����������������������������������������������
- The Officer’s “Rolling Office”�������������������������������������
- A Sanctuary������������������
- Patrolling on Two Wheels�������������������������������
- Discretionary Use of Police Authority��������������������������������������������
- Myth of Full Enforcement�������������������������������
- Attempts to Define Discretion������������������������������������
- Determinants of Officer Discretion�����������������������������������������
- Pros, Cons, and Politics of Discretionary Authority����������������������������������������������������������
- A Related Function: Traffic����������������������������������
- Enforcement of Traffic Laws: Triumph and Trouble�������������������������������������������������������
- Traffic Crash Investigation����������������������������������
- Pursuit of the “Phantom” Driver��������������������������������������
- The Patrol Lifeline: Dispatchers and Communications����������������������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Part 2 Practices and Challenges��������������������������������������
- Chapter 4 Community Policing: “Guardians,” or “Soldiers”?����������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Lessons from History and Ferguson����������������������������������������
- A Brief Reflection�������������������������
- Police Responses to Violence: Modifications in Tactics, Training, and Equipment��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- How to Achieve Harmony, Justice, and Policy?���������������������������������������������������
- Transparency and Trust Building: Opportunities and Challenges��������������������������������������������������������������������
- A Change in Mindset��������������������������
- Calls for Police Body Cameras������������������������������������
- Basic Principles of Community Policing���������������������������������������������
- A Redefined Role�����������������������
- A Necessary Extension: Problem-Oriented Policing�������������������������������������������������������
- The Problem-Solving Process: SARA����������������������������������������
- Scanning: Problem Identification���������������������������������������
- Analysis: Heart of Problem Solving�����������������������������������������
- Response: Formulation of Tailor-Made Strategies������������������������������������������������������
- Assessment: Evaluation of Overall Effectiveness������������������������������������������������������
- A Broader Role for the Street Officer��������������������������������������������
- CompStat: Utilizing Information Technology to Manage Crime�����������������������������������������������������������������
- Crime Prevention�����������������������
- Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design����������������������������������������������������
- Repeat Victimization���������������������������
- Community Policing and Problem Solving at Work�����������������������������������������������������
- An Emerging Paradigm: Smart Policing�������������������������������������������
- Origins��������������
- How It Works: An Array of Strategies and Tactics�������������������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 5 Criminal Investigation: The Science of Sleuthing�����������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Scope of Forensic Science and Criminalistics���������������������������������������������������
- Definitions of Terms���������������������������
- A Word About Crime Scenes��������������������������������
- Origins of Criminalistics��������������������������������
- Personal Identification: Anthropometry and Dactylography���������������������������������������������������������������
- Locard’s Exchange Principle����������������������������������
- Firearms Identification������������������������������
- Contributions of August Vollmer and Others�������������������������������������������������
- Forensic Science and the Criminal Justice System�������������������������������������������������������
- Investigative Stages and Activities������������������������������������������
- Arrest and Case Preparation����������������������������������
- Detectives: Qualities, Myths, and Attributes���������������������������������������������������
- Officers Who “Disappear”: Working Undercover���������������������������������������������������
- Problems with the Role�����������������������������
- Return to Patrol Duties������������������������������
- Contributions of Medical Examiners and Coroners������������������������������������������������������
- Uses of the Polygraph����������������������������
- DNA Analysis�������������������
- Discovery and Types of Analyses��������������������������������������
- CODIS������������
- DNA Policy Nightmare: Solving Property Crimes����������������������������������������������������
- Postconviction DNA Tests: The Supreme Court Speaks���������������������������������������������������������
- A Wider Net: New Law Expands DNA Gathering�������������������������������������������������
- Familial DNA�������������������
- Criminal Profiling and Psycholinguistics�����������������������������������������������
- Developing Areas in Forensic Science and Investigation�������������������������������������������������������������
- Using Social Networking Sites������������������������������������
- No Stone Unturned: Cold Cases������������������������������������
- Use of “Nonhuman Detectives”: Dogs�����������������������������������������
- Is There a “CSI Effect”?�������������������������������
- Investigative Tools: Informants, Interviews, and Interrogations����������������������������������������������������������������������
- Use of Confidential Informants�������������������������������������
- Conducting Interviews and Interrogations�����������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 6 Personnel Issues and Practices: Stress, Labor Relations, Higher Education, and Private Police��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- The Silent Epidemic: Stress����������������������������������
- Nature and Types of Stress���������������������������������
- Sources of Stress������������������������
- Effects of Stress������������������������
- Employee Assistance Programs�����������������������������������
- Labor Relations: Officers’ Rights, Unionization, and Collective Bargaining���������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- The Continuing Discussion: Higher Education��������������������������������������������������
- Lagging Behind���������������������
- An Enduring Controversy������������������������������
- Rationales For and Against Higher Education for Police�������������������������������������������������������������
- On Guard: The Private Police�����������������������������������
- Nature and Types�����������������������
- Attempts to Legislate Regulation���������������������������������������
- An Organization at the Forefront���������������������������������������
- A Sidebar Note: Arrival of the Millennials�������������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Part 3 Adhering to Law, Ethical Principles, and Public Expectations��������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Chapter 7 Rule of Law: Expounding the Constitution���������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Fourth Amendment�����������������������
- Probable Cause���������������������
- Exclusionary Rule������������������������
- Arrests��������������
- Searches and Seizures����������������������������
- Electronic Surveillance������������������������������
- Lineups��������������
- Fifth Amendment����������������������
- Decisions Supporting Miranda: Confessions������������������������������������������������
- Decisions Modifying Miranda: Interrogations��������������������������������������������������
- Entrapment�����������������
- Sixth Amendment����������������������
- Right to Counsel�����������������������
- What Constitutes an Interrogation?�����������������������������������������
- Juvenile Rights����������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 8 Accountability: Use of Force, Ethics, Corruption, and Discipline���������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- First Things First: The Constitution as “Boss” and Police Legitimacy���������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Police Use of Force, Generally�������������������������������������
- Legitimate Purposes��������������������������
- Legal Restrictions�������������������������
- Which Type and How Much? Use-of-Force Continuums�������������������������������������������������������
- Another “Lesson Learned”: Responding to Mass Demonstrations������������������������������������������������������������������
- Police Brutality�����������������������
- Vehicle Pursuits�����������������������
- Police Shootings: Conundrum and Controversy��������������������������������������������������
- America’s Angst����������������������
- Wanted: A National Database����������������������������������
- Posting Information about Police Shootings�������������������������������������������������
- The Early Intervention System: Identifying Problem Employees�������������������������������������������������������������������
- Police Ethics��������������������
- A Scenario�����������������
- Definitions and Types of Problems����������������������������������������
- Police Corruption������������������������
- History: A Long-Standing “Plague”����������������������������������������
- Types and Causes�����������������������
- Code of Silence����������������������
- Investigation and Prosecution������������������������������������
- Limitations on Officers’ Constitutional Rights�����������������������������������������������������
- Alcohol and Drug Abuse�����������������������������
- Brady Material���������������������
- Social Networking: Issues and Policy Guidance����������������������������������������������������
- Disciplinary Policies and Practices������������������������������������������
- Maintenance of Public Trust����������������������������������
- Due Process Requirements�������������������������������
- Complaints�����������������
- Level of Discipline and Type of Sanction�����������������������������������������������
- Civilian Review Boards: A Blessing or a Curse?�����������������������������������������������������
- Extent and Rationale���������������������������
- Police Distrust����������������������
- In Sum . . .�������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 9 Civil Liability: Failing the Public Trust����������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Incidence, Expense, Benefits, and Nature of Lawsuits�����������������������������������������������������������
- Basic Terms and Concepts�������������������������������
- Section 1983 Litigation������������������������������
- History and Escalation�����������������������������
- Police Actions Leading to Section 1983 Liability�������������������������������������������������������
- Criminal Prosecutions for Police Misconduct��������������������������������������������������
- Liability of Police Supervisors��������������������������������������
- Other Areas of Potential Liability�����������������������������������������
- Less-Lethal Tools and Technologies�����������������������������������������
- Duty of Care�������������������
- Failure to Protect�������������������������
- Vehicle Pursuits�����������������������
- Computer Evidence������������������������
- Qualified Immunity for Police������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Part 4 Agency Organization and Administration����������������������������������������������������
- Chapter 10 Federal and State Agencies: Protecting Our Borders and Freedoms���������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Federal Law Enforcement Agencies with Arrest and Firearms Authority��������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Department of Homeland Security��������������������������������������
- Department of Justice����������������������������
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)��������������������������������������������
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)�����������������������������������������������������������������
- Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)��������������������������������������������
- U.S. Marshals Service (USMS)�����������������������������������
- Other Federal Agencies�����������������������������
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)����������������������������������������
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS)�������������������������������������
- Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC)������������������������������������������������������
- State Agencies���������������������
- State Police and Law Enforcement Agencies: General Types���������������������������������������������������������������
- Other Special-Purpose State Agencies�������������������������������������������
- Why No Single, Consolidated Police Force?������������������������������������������������
- Career Considerations����������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 11 Municipal and County Agencies: Organization, Administration, and Roles����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Organizations, Generally�������������������������������
- What Are Organizations?������������������������������
- Organizations as Bureaucracies: In Principle and Perception������������������������������������������������������������������
- Organizational Communication�����������������������������������
- Police Agencies as Organizations���������������������������������������
- Chain of Command�����������������������
- Organizational Structure�������������������������������
- Unity of Command and Span of Control�������������������������������������������
- Organizational Policies and Procedures���������������������������������������������
- Communication Within Police Organizations������������������������������������������������
- Barriers to Effective Communication������������������������������������������
- Local Agencies���������������������
- Police Departments and Sheriff’s Offices: A Comparison�������������������������������������������������������������
- Executive Officers: Police Chief and County Sheriff����������������������������������������������������������
- Mintzberg Model of Chief Executive Officers��������������������������������������������������
- Interpersonal Role�������������������������
- Informational Role�������������������������
- Decision-Maker Role��������������������������
- Middle Managers: Captains and Lieutenants������������������������������������������������
- First-Line Supervisors�����������������������������
- Ten Tasks����������������
- Police and Politics��������������������������
- Good Politics, Bad Politics����������������������������������
- Police Executive Relations and Expectations��������������������������������������������������
- Policing in Small and Rural Jurisdictions������������������������������������������������
- Fewer People, Greater Needs����������������������������������
- Unique Duties��������������������
- Criminal Activity������������������������
- Ways to Stretch Resources��������������������������������
- Consolidated Policing����������������������������
- Civilianization����������������������
- Agency Accreditation���������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Part 5 Best Practices: Addressing Special Populations, Using Specialized Equipment�����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Chapter 12 Policing Criminal Organizations: The Changing War on Drugs, Terrorism, Cybercriminals, and Gangs������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- The Changing War on Drugs��������������������������������
- Marijuana: Conflicting Federal and State Laws����������������������������������������������������
- Other Controlled Drugs�����������������������������
- What Works: “Pulling Levers”�����������������������������������
- High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program����������������������������������������������������
- The Many Faces of Terrorism����������������������������������
- Definitions and Types����������������������������
- An International Problem�������������������������������
- New Worries: Homegrown Violent Extremists and the Lone Wolf Terrorist����������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Bioterrorism�������������������
- Police Approaches and Methods������������������������������������
- Also in Law Enforcement’s Toolkit: Legislation, Planning, and Social Media���������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Cybercriminals���������������������
- Not Only in Film: Extent of Victimization������������������������������������������������
- Types, Tactics, and Training�����������������������������������
- Identify Theft���������������������
- Nature and Victim/Police Responses�����������������������������������������
- Toward an Effective Response Strategy��������������������������������������������
- Addressing Youth Gangs: “Pulling Levers”�����������������������������������������������
- Juvenile Offending Today�������������������������������
- Gang Overview��������������������
- What Works?������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 13 Policing Special Populations and Problems: Mental Illness, Domestic Violence, Immigrants, and Human Trafficking���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Coping with the Mentally Ill Population����������������������������������������������
- When the Problem Becomes Lethal��������������������������������������
- Front-End, Back-End Issues���������������������������������
- What Can Police Do? The Success of CIT���������������������������������������������
- Domestic Violence������������������������
- Dangers and Approaches�����������������������������
- Immigration to the Land of Opportunity���������������������������������������������
- The Changing Numbers, Faces of Undocumented Immigrants in the United States����������������������������������������������������������������������������������
- The Role of Local Police�������������������������������
- Human Trafficking������������������������
- “Modern Day Slavery” for Victims���������������������������������������
- What Works? Collaboration is Key���������������������������������������
- The T Visa�����������������
- The Office of Victims of Crime�������������������������������������
- Additional Efforts: The Diagnostic Center������������������������������������������������
- Gang Involvement�����������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Chapter 14 Information Technologies: Contributions and Caveats���������������������������������������������������������������������
- Learning Objectives��������������������������
- Introduction�������������������
- Which IT Tools to Use? Consider the Type of Task Involved����������������������������������������������������������������
- IT for Problem-Oriented Policing: A Conceptual Framework���������������������������������������������������������������
- Rationale for IT�����������������������
- A Primer: IT Systems for Acquiring Crime Information�����������������������������������������������������������
- The Cry Heard ‘Round The Country: “Wear Body Cameras!”’��������������������������������������������������������������
- Crime Mapping��������������������
- Real-Time Crime Centers������������������������������
- Applying Social Media����������������������������
- Lessons from Boston’s Marathon Bombing���������������������������������������������
- A Concern: When Police Use Facebook������������������������������������������
- Civic Apps for Crime-Fighting������������������������������������
- IT for Traffic-Related Tasks�����������������������������������
- GPS and 3D Tech for Crash Investigations�����������������������������������������������
- IT with High-Speed Pursuits����������������������������������
- What Must Be Done for New IT to Improve Policing?��������������������������������������������������������
- Other Caveats: Legal, Moral, Practical Considerations������������������������������������������������������������
- Selected Technologies and Policies to Watch for������������������������������������������������������
- Addressing Texting While Driving���������������������������������������
- Electronic Control Devices: Safe—or Not?�����������������������������������������������
- Rules and Restriction on Drones��������������������������������������
- You Decide: Police Use of Drones���������������������������������������
- Facial Recognition: Progress and Protest�����������������������������������������������
- Fingerprinting: Expanding Tech and Databases���������������������������������������������������
- Uses of Robots���������������������
- 3D Apps for Crime-Fighting—As Well As Following/Recording Police�����������������������������������������������������������������������
- Summary��������������
- Key Terms����������������
- Review Questions�����������������������
- Learn by Doing���������������������
- Notes������������
- Index������������
- A
- B
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- Q
- R
- S
- T
- U
- V
- W
- Y
