Mid-term ethics

Professional courtesy

the practice of not ticketing an officer who is stopped for speeding or for other driving violations

gratuities

Items of value received by an individual because of his or her role or position rather than because of a personal relationship with the giver

Values

Judgements of desirability, worth, or importance

Intelligence

Must be reasonable suspicion that the target is involved in criminal activity

Noble cause corruption

- Ends justifies the means; The "end" of crime fighting justifies "means" that might be illegal, unethical and/or against rules or regulations

Ethics of Virtue

the ethical system that bases ethics largely upon character and possession of virtues

Ethics of Care

the ethical system that defines good as meeting the needs of others and preserving and enriching relationships

Substantive Justice

2 philosophies = retributive and utilitarian

Kohlberg moral stage theory

3 levels( egoistic, fitting into society, transcending society); 2 stages per level; hierarchical in nature

community policing

A model of law enforcement that creates partnerships with the community and addresses underlying problems rather than simply enforcing the law

Social Contract

A voluntary agreement among individuals to secure their rights and welfare in exchange for government protection

Blue Curtain of Secrecy a.k.a. Code of Silence

Absolute loyalty to other officers even if it means not coming forward to expose a wrongdoer. Police protect one another as the concept goes.

Acts that may be judged as ethical/unethical involve 4 elements

Act, only human act, free will, affect others

Ethics

Discipline of determining good and evil and defining moral duties. Refers to study and analysis of what constitutes good and bad conduct.

Ethical issues vs ethical dilemma

Ethical issues- any idea we can sit down and debate all night. Ethical Dilemma- Requires a choice. They are not the same

Asset forfeiture

Government seizures of cash, cars, homes, and other property used for criminal activity- not entitled to a lawyer

Immanuel Kant

Greatest German philosopher of Enlightenment-separated science and morality into separate branches of knowledge-science could describe nature, it could not provide a guide for morality.

Utilitarianism

Greatest good for the greatest number

Law Enforcement Code of Ethics

IACP- International association chief police- code of ethics for police officers

police accountability

Police accountability involves holding both individual police officers, as well as law enforcement agencies responsible for effectively delivering basic services of crime control and maintaining order, while treating individuals fairly and within the bounds of law.- gypsy

Discretion in criminal investigations: Proactive Investigations v. Reactive Investigations

Proactive investigations- officers initiate investigations rather than simply respond to crimes. Reactive investigations- police investigations the crime has already occurred and police sift through clues and evidence to determine the perpetrator. Must be objective and ignore assumptions.

Ethical Formalism

The ethical system espoused by Kant that focuses on duty; holds that the only thing truly good is a good will, and that what is good is that which conforms to the categorical imperative.- absolutist system

egoism

The ethical system that defines the pursuit of self-interest as a moral good.

Natural Law

The idea that principles of morals and rights are inherent in nature and not human-made; such laws are discovered by reason but exist apart from humankind.

race, ethnicity, and justice

The issue of race permeates the criminal justice system, with discussions concerning the disproportional representation of Blacks in certain crime categories, racial profiling by police, lack of access to competent attorneys, and disparate sentencing.

internal affairs model

They are viewed as ineffective

Confidential Informants v. Undercover Officers

Two separate types of people- "Informants" (civilians) assist police by providing information about criminal activity. "Undercover" officers observe or even participate in illegal activities in order to learn information and ultimately catch criminals.

Leadership and ethical organization

Unethical, not doing things correctly

Entrapment

When an otherwise innocent person commits an illegal act because of police encouragement or enticement

Jeremey Bentham

a British economist and philosopher who advocated for utilitarianism

corruption

acting on opportunities, created by one's authority, for personal gain at the expense of the public one is authorized to serve

Supererogatories

actions that are commendable but not required in order for a person to be considered moral

confirmatory bias

fixating on a preconceived notion and ignoring other possibilities, such as in regard to a specific suspect during a police investigation

Three approaches to moral development

biological factors, learning theory, and Kohlberg's theory

Reducing police corruption

bodycams and videos, integrity testing, improved screening, education training, early warning

restorative justice

concerned with meeting the needs of all concerned (particularly victims); crime is viewed as natural human error to be dealt with by the community

Police

crime fighter or public servant; combination of the two

Two dangers in CJ

cynicism and burnout- often lead to unethical acts.

Most ethical dilemmas derive from

discretion

Procedural Justice

due process procedural steps designed to eliminate error in any governmental deprivation

graft

exploitation of one's role for illegal financial benefit

Justice

fairness, equality, and impartiality

Biological factors

genetics; gender; brain injuries

Possible weakening of the subculture attributed to

increasing diversity of police recruit, police union, and civil litigation and bodycams

Consent decrees

legal agreement between the justice department and police department whereby the police dept. agrees to perform specific activity and submit monitoring to ensure to avoid a lawsuit

Interrogations and false confessions

lying during an interrogations is perfectly ethical and the vulnerability of juveniles and those disabled may lead to false confessions. one researchers estimate that about 5% of confessions are false, leading to false convictions.

Learning theory

modeling; reinforcement

Religion

most often used ethical system

civil obedience

not done in a violent way

Procedural protections of due process may include-

notice of charges, neutral hearing body, right of cross-examination, right to present evidence, representation by counsel, statement of findings and appeal.

racial profiling

occurs when a police officer makes a traffic stop based primarily on race or ethnicity. A "pretext" stop refers to the practice of police officers using some minor traffic offense to stop an individual and in the course of the stop, look for other evidence or wrongdoing, specifically by a search, usually couched as a "consent" search

Morals

principles of right and work. Refers to what is judged as good conduct.

Duties

required behaviors or actions, that is, the responsibilities that are attached to a specific role

Albert Bandura

social psychologist; developed social learning theory and the idea of modeling.

Discretion

the authority to make a decision between two or more choices

Deontological Systems

the study of duty or moral obligation emphasizing the intent of the actor as the element of morality

Wrongful convictions/innocence project

there is no greater injustice than an innocent person being convicted of a crime and spending years in prison, or, worse, being executed

authority

unquestionable entitlement to obeyed that comes from fulfilling

Ethical systems

we use them subconsciously, guidelines/principles by which one makes moral decisions; use multiple systems