Exam 2 Study Guide: Policing and Criminal Justice

Sheriff

The chief law enforcement officer in a county.

Watch system

In medieval England, groups of men who organized in church parishes to guard at night against disturbances and breaches of the peace under the direction of the local constable.

"Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?"

"Who is watching the watchmen?" who is overseeing the police.

Constable

In early English towns, an appointed peacekeeper who organized citizens for protection and supervised the night watch.

Metropolitan Police Act and Sir Robert Peel

legislation that established the first organized police force in London.

Tythings

In medieval England, ten families pledged to help each other and provide mutual aid.

Shire reeve

In early England, the chief law enforcement official in a county, forerunner of today's sheriff.

Vigilantes

In the old west, members of a vigilance committee or posse called upon to capture cattle thieves or other felons.

Early Police Agencies (Boston PD, 1838)

Boston PD was the first formal U.S police department.

Characteristics of the early police agencies

Political, Primitive, Little training, No education in law, Minimum supervision, Unlimited discretion.

1st departments with uniforms, NYPD

Made the police more organized and formal.

Slave patrols

People charged with recapturing escaped slaves.

Wickersham Commission

Created by President Hoover, formed to study the police and the criminal justice system.

International Association of Chiefs of Police

Effort to professionalize the police and unionize them.

Policing in the 1960s

U.S. Supreme Court decisions designed to control police operations and procedures.

Growing tension between police and public

Growing crime rate.

Policing in the 1970s

The Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA) devoted a significant portion of its funds to police agencies.

Policing in the 1980s

Police unions began to grow; end of LEAA; police-community relations still a major problem.

Policing in the 1990s

Rodney King prompted an era of reform; beginning of community policing.

Community policing

Tactic to integrate police into the community to improve relations and reduce crime.

Policing since 09/11/2001

Anti-terrorism became the focus of police agencies.

Patriot Act

Gave money to police to fight terrorism.

The Agencies of Law Enforcement

Federal: Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I), State: State troopers, County: Sheriff Departments, Local: City Police.

US Dept. of Justice

Legal arm of the federal government headed by the attorney general.

FBI

Gathers crime statistics, and is over the violations of federal law.

ATF

Controls sales of untaxed liquor and cigarettes, and illegal gun activities.

DEA

In charge of controlling illegal drug use.

US Marshals

Judicial and witness security, and fugitive apprehension and operations.

National Crime Information Center (NCIC)

a computerized database that stores criminal justice information and is used by law enforcement and criminal justice agencies

Technology

DNA, crime mapping, fingerprint scans, etc.

Time-in-rank system

A lot of times, in order to move up, you have to start at the bottom.

Patrol functions

Deter crime, maintain public order, respond quickly, identify and apprehend law violators, provide aid, facilitate the movement.

Proactive policing

Police strategy to prevent crime before it happens.

Broken windows policing

Visible signs of crime will lead to more crime in a neighborhood.

Investigative functions

work closely with patrol officers to gather Evidence, analyze data, Survey the area

Vice squads

Police units assigned to enforce morality-based laws, such as those addressing prostitution, gambling, and pornography.

Cold Case Units

Responsible for the oversight and investigation of unresolved homicides and long-term missing persons.

Community-oriented policing

Tactic to integrate police into the community to improve relations and reduce crime.

Intelligence-led policing

The collection and analysis of information to generate an 'intelligence end product' designed to inform police decision making at both the tactical and the strategic level.

National Criminal Intelligence Sharing Plan

A formal intelligence-sharing initiative that identifies the security and intelligence-sharing needs recognized in the wake of 9/11.

Fusion centers

A networking system set up post 9/11, to exchange information and intelligence.

Education stats

Lack of education causes police to be less effective.

Benefits of police with higher education

Write better, less violent instances, more professional.

Minorities in policing and minority stats

Efforts are being made to attract minority police officers; minority officers help gain the trust of the minority community.

Race and Ethnicity Stats

Very predominantly white officers: 70% white, 11% black, 12% Hispanic.

Women in policing stats

Roughly 15% of police are women.

"Blue curtain"

The secretive, insulated police culture that isolates officers from the rest of society.

Police personality

Dogmatic, authoritarian, suspicious, cynical.

Police styles

Crime fighter, social agent, law enforcer, watchman.

Police discretion

The use of personal decision making and choice in carrying out operations in the criminal justice system.

Low visibility decision making

Decision making by police that is not subject to administrative review.

Factors influencing discretion

Severity of the offense, the relationship between the parties involved, peer factors, environmental factors, overload hypothesis, departmental factors, suspect behavior and characteristics, officer characteristics.

Problems of Policing

Job stress, maintaining social and family relationships, police fatigue.

Police Corruption

Consists of exercising legitimate discretion for improper reasons or using illegal means to achieve approved goals.

Knapp Commission

Investigative commission that looked into alleged police corruption in NYC in the 1970s.

Meat eater vs. grass eater

Meat eater: aggressively misuse police power for personal gain; grass eater: accept payoffs when their everyday duties place them in a position to be solicited by the public.

Mollen Commission

An investigative unit set up to inquire into police corruption in NYC in the 1990s.

Accountability System

A system that makes police supervisors responsible for the behavior of the officers in their command.

Use of Force Continuum

Levels showing the acceptable use of force given the extent of the suspect's behavior.

Stats on officers killed in 2018

55 in 2018 and increasing over the last 3 years.

Stats on officers assaulted

Increased from 53,000 in 2018 to 79,000 in 2023.

Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) and its agencies

•  created in 2001 to reshape and reorganize federal agencies

• in charge of preventing terrorist attacks in the U.S, and aiding in recovery from attacks that do occur