Criminal Justice Ethics (for Henry)

Identify the ethical and legal issues presented in this scenario. The issues in this scenario would be that the officers take things for free. One of the things that an officer is taught in the academy is that, that is one thing they do not do. By doing this they put themselves in a position for trouble, and with this knowledge the store owner thought he could get by and should not be held accountable for running the red light.

When did criminal justice professionals begin to seriously examine ethics and police officer misconduct? This started back in the late 18 hundreds when a group of police chiefs got together and formed a code of ethics, this code was to ensure that they provide fair and confidential service within the person’s constitutional rights.

How do you think this situation would have been handled 50 years ago? 25 years ago? 10 years ago? Fifty years ago I think that because of the freebies, the older officer would have told the rookie to just overlook the fact that the store owner ran the red light. Twenty-five years ago I believe that the senior officer would have told the rookie he would take care of this problem and would give the store owner a chat and let it go with a warning. However, ten years ago and now I do not believe the store owner would have gotten by with it.

What factors do you think contributed to the evolution of criminal justice ethics throughout recent history? Years ago the police was somewhat a private force but as years have went by the police force has become a public and because of this boundaries had to be set.

Which of these ethical and legal issues do you feel are the most important? I feel that if the officers were not taking the freebies from the store owner then I do not believe that he would not have been apt to ask the senior officer for the favor. You can be friends with the people of the stores that you may frequent when on duty, however do not take freebies for then the people think you owe them one and should not be held accountable for the laws they may break. What would you do in this situation? Why? Even though the store owner appreciates the officers that come into the store and gives freebies, I think still would have written him the ticket. Yes, I may have gotten some heat from my co-workers, but it was his choice on the freebies but that does not give him the right to break the law, to the point of recklessness. The store owner got off lucky that running the red light did not hurt anyone.

Remember to place yourself in the deputy chief's shoes when determining how you would handle this situation. I think I would have to start putting distance between the store owner and myself. Those two wrongs do not make a right and when I did go into his store I would insist on paying for my items. If you were to ticket the store owner, how do you think the other officers might respond to your actions? The other officers may not like what I done but they would just have to get over it. He made the choice to hand out freebies but that does not give him the right to break the law. I would stop taking the freebies but still go in to let him know that I was still going to do my job.

How would you address their responses? Yes we have a code; and in that code personal is personal and business is business, however wrong it may be on taking freebies some places still insist on it, just because they give a freebie that does not give them permission to break the law to the point of possibly hurting someone.

Reference: Banks, C, (2013), Criminal Justice Ethics: Theory and Practice, Third Edition, Retrieved from http://wow.coursesmart.com/9781412998567/?CSTenantKey=coloradotech&spid=

From: Margaret