Chapter 7: Policing America: Issues and Ethics

Psychological qualities recommended for police officers?

- Motivation for a police career. - Normal self-assertiveness. - Emotional stability under stress. - Sensitivity toward minority groups and social deviates. - Collaborative leadership skills. - A mature relationship with social authority. - Flexibility. - Integrity and honesty. - An active and outgoing nature

The use of deadly force is not justifiable under this section unless:

- The arrest is for a felony. - The person effecting the arrest is authorized to act as a peace officer or is assisting a person whom he believes to be authorized to act as a peace officer. - The actor believes that the force employed creates no substantial risk of injury to innocent persons. - The actor believes that: (a) The crime for which the arrest is made involved conduct including the use or threatened use of deadly force. (b) There is substantial risk that the person to be arrested will cause death or serious bodily harm if his or her apprehension is delayed.

Which of the following qualities are necessary to be a good police officer?

- emotional maturity and stability - ability to deal with minorities

When is it justified for a police officer to use deadly force?

- if the crime for which the arrest is being made involves the risk of death or serious bodily harm - if the crime for which the arrest is being made involves an act of felony

Which of the following steps might a police department use to make sure that a candidate is able to meet such demands as running after suspects or climbing over walls?

- medical examination - physical ability tests

In the context of psychological testing, which of the following factors are critical to the ability to perform police work? (Check all that apply.)

- mental health - emotional stability

Which of the following are examples of organizational change that might help police officers better manage their stress?

- offering a more flexible work schedule - acquiring more protective equipment

Copicide

A form of suicide in which a person gets fatally shot after intentionally provoking police officers.

Excessive force

A measure of coercion beyond that necessary to control participants in a conflict.

Police policies and discipline

A police department should develop rigid policies that cover the wide range of activities that corruption comprises. Drug testing of officers, particularly those in narcotics-sensitive positions, may be necessary although unpopular. Policies mean nothing unless they are enforced. Discipline should be imposed, and prosecutions should go forward when officers are found guilty of violating established policies and laws.

Full enforcement

A practice in which the police make an arrest for every violation of law that comes to their attention.

Tech prep (technical preparation)

A program in which area community colleges and high schools team up to offer 6 to 9 hours of college law enforcement courses in the eleventh and twelfth grades, as well as one or two training certifications, such as police dispatcher or local corrections officer. Students who graduate are eligible for police employment at age 18

Merit system

A system of employment whereby an independent civil service commission, in cooperation with the city personnel section and the police department, sets employment qualifications, performance standards, and discipline procedures

Merit system

A system of employment whereby an independent civil service commission, in cooperation with the city personnel section and the police department, sets employment qualifications, performance standards, and discipline procedures.

Bribery

Accepting cash or gifts in exchange for nonenforcement of the law.

Mooching

Accepting free food, drinks, and admission to entertainment.

Court review and oversight

Criminal prosecutions or civil liability suits deriving from police corruption cases can be very costly to a police agency. Such visible forms of oversight often result in adverse media coverage, civil liability awards, and higher insurance rates—all of which should encourage police agencies to control corruption.

Chiseling

Demanding discounts, free admission, and free food.

Favoritism

Giving breaks on law enforcement, such as for traffic violations committed by families and friends of the police.

Uniform enforcement of the law

If a police agency makes it clear that no group of citizens, no matter what their affiliation with the police department, is going to receive special treatment from the police department, the incentive for offering bribes and other forms of corruption will be minimized. This process starts with clear policies and procedures and must be backed up with discipline, when necessary.

Perjury

Lying for other officers apprehended in illegal activity.

grass eaters

Officers who occasionally engage in illegal and unethical activities, such as accepting small favors, gifts, or money for ignoring violations of the law during the course of their duties.

Premeditated theft

Planned burglaries and thefts.

Public safety officers

Police department employees who perform many police services but do not have arrest powers

Outside review and special prosecutor

Police leadership and police labor associations heavily resist any kind of outside review of their actions. However, both the Christopher Commission and the Knapp Commission are examples of outside reviews that brought about improvements in the agencies they investigated. Special prosecutors are recommended in serious cases to relieve the police and the government of any accusations of a whitewash.

High moral standards

Selecting and maintaining officers with high moral standards is a step in the right direction. Some police agencies in the United States still hire convicted felons to do police work. In-depth academy and in-service training on ethical issues that officers are likely to face would prepare officers for the compromises they may be asked to make later in their careers.

shakedown

Taking items from the scene of a theft or a burglary the officer is investigating.

shopping

Taking small, inexpensive items from a crime scene or an unsecured business or home.

Proactive internal affairs unit

The internal affairs investigations unit of a police department should ferret out illegal and unethical activity. Any internal affairs unit that waits for complaints probably is not going to receive many of them. First-line supervisors should know whether their subordinates are engaging in unethical and illegal violations of department rules and state laws. They should also be held responsible for the actions of their subordinates.

Internal affairs investigation unit

The police unit that ferrets out illegal and unethical activity engaged in by the police.

Selective enforcement

The practice of relying on the judgment of the police leadership and rank-and-file officers to decide which laws to enforce.

Extortion

The threat of enforcement and arrest if a bribe is not given

Three I's of police selection

Three qualities of the American police officer that seem to be of paramount importance: intelligence, integrity, and interaction skills

Prejudice

Unequal enforcement of the law with respect to racial and ethnic minorities.

Which of the following statements accurately describes the public attitude toward the police?

Whites tend to regard police more highly than do blacks or other persons of color

Copicide occurs when

a person is fatally shot after deliberately provoking the police

Many people believe that police agencies would have a higher professional status if they were to receive

accreditation

Which of the following steps would a police department use to eliminate candidates with a history of criminal activity or drug use?

background investigation

In many places, police department recruitment efforts are guided by ___________ regulations.

civil service

According to data in 2013, the average level of education achieved by police officers is

high school diploma

A police unit that uncovers illegal and unethical activity within a police department is the ________ ________ investigations unit.

internal affairs

Public safety officers are employees who perform many police service functions except

making arrests

meat eaters

officer who actively seek ways to make money illegally while on duty

When it comes to selecting a law enforcement executive, one of the most important decisions is to whether to allow

people outside the agency to apply

Public safety officers

police department employees who perform many police service functions but do not have arrest powers

When a police department stops and interrogates minorities in numbers much greater than their representation in the population, that department is engaging in the illegal practice of ____________ ___________.

racial profiling

College academics

schools where students pursue a program that integrates an associate's degree curriculum in law enforcement or criminal justice with the state's required peace officer training

Two teenagers are caught vandalizing a school. One, the son of a well-known doctor, is sent home with his parents and a warning. The other, the son of a man with a criminal record, is taken to the jail for questioning. What factor most influenced the different exercise of discretion in their cases?

socioeconomic status

Discretion

the exercise of individual judgment, instead of formal rules, in making decisions

Job stress

the harmful physical and emotional outcomes that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker

Racial profiling

the stopping and/or detaining of individuals by law enforcement officers based solely on race

What is the main reason police officers must use force on their job?

to apprehend people who do not want to be arrested