Quiz 2 on Policing, police history, legal issues with policing, and police culture

Four main purposes of police

1. uphold law

2. bring lawbreakers to justice

3. prevent crime

4. maintain peace.

Mutual Pledge System

UK 870-900 AD system where villagers were mutually responsible for everyone else.

Tithing

A family group made up of 100 villagers in the mutual pledge system.

Bow Street Runners

Privatized, paid men organized by Henry Fielding to patrol and protect streets.

Sir Robert Peel

Wrote the Metropolitan Police Act and established 9 foundational policing principles.

August Vollmer

Pioneering police chief in Berkeley who promoted education, professionalism, and crime labs.

Three problems with early American policing

1. low pay

2. disrespect

3. ineffectiveness.

Line operations

Daily police work, field services, and field supervision.

Staff operations

Support roles and administrative operations within a police agency.

Weeks v. United States

Established the federal exclusionary rule for unlawfully obtained evidence.

Exclusionary rule

Rule stating unlawfully obtained evidence is inadmissible in court.

Mapp v. Ohio

Extended the exclusionary rule from federal courts to the states.

Good faith exception

Admits evidence if police acted fairly and relied on a mistaken warrant.

Inevitable discovery

Allows illegally seized evidence if it would have been found lawfully anyway.

Terry v. Ohio

Landmark case establishing the legal standard for stop and frisk.

Frisk legal standard

Requires reasonable suspicion rather than probable cause.

Probable cause

Facts leading a reasonable person to believe a crime was or is being committed.

Automobile exception

Cars can be searched without a warrant if probable cause exists.

Plain view

Officers can seize obvious criminal evidence if legally present in that location.

Search incident to lawful arrest

Allows searching an arrestee for weapons or to prevent evidence destruction.

Evanescent evidence

Evidence subject to immediate destruction or disappearance can be seized without a warrant.

Emergency aid

Warrant requirements are waived during public safety emergencies.

Miranda v. Arizona requirements

Warnings are required during custodial interrogations.

Public safety exception to Miranda

Imminent emergencies allow questioning without Miranda warnings.

Police sub-culture

Developed from perceptions and values forming a police officer's working environment.

Field training

New officers are trained by licensed officers in practical skills like car equipment, road flares, and first aid.

Police cynicism

Can develop from sub-cultures and sometimes spreads into field work.

Code of silence (Blue wall of silence)

The unwritten rule that police officers do not snitch on each other.

Skolnick's aspects of police personality

Jerome Skolnick identified three aspects of a working police personality:

1. danger

2. authority

3. isolation

Three styles of policing

1. Watchman style

2. legalistic style

3. service style.

Types of police corruption

1. case fixing

2. accepting gratuities

3. bribes or kickbacks

4. protecting illegal activities

5. theft, property crimes

6. denying civil rights

6. playing favorites

7. violent crimes

Nonfeasance

Failing to act when one has a legal responsibility to act.

Misfeasance in official misconduct

Performing a lawful act in an improper manner.

Malfeasance in official misconduct

Performing a wrongful or criminal act.

Rotten Apples theory

Asserts that corrupt officers bring unfavorable personality traits with them and removing them solves the problem.

Rotten Barrel theory

Asserts that corrupt officers are the product of their agency's working environment.

Ways to keep out bad apples

1. Comprehensive background checks

2. regularly scheduled in-service training

3. allocating resources for professionalism

Ways to clean the rotten barrel

1. Civilian review boards

2. fair promotion procedures based on qualifications

3. working towards national accreditation.

Racial profiling in policing

Police action predicated on the race, ethnicity, or nationality of a suspect rather than their behavior.

21st Century Task Force on Policing

A 2015 study commissioned by President Obama to examine all aspects of policing and create solutions for improvement.

Building trust and legitimacy

Adopting a guardian mindset rather than a warrior mindset within law enforcement culture.

Policy and oversight

Carrying out responsibilities according to established community-value policies with clear accountability.

Technology and social media

Using tools to build community trust and transparency under a defined policy framework.

Community policing

Working with neighborhood residents to co-produce public safety and promote human dignity.

Training and education

Expanded and more effective training required for a wider scope of responsibilities in a pluralistic society.

Officer wellness and safety

Critical for officers, their colleagues, agencies, and public safety.

Everyday dangers of police work

Includes foot and vehicle pursuits, calls for service, arrests, traffic control, duty equipment, biohazards, natural hazards, and job stress.

Causes of police stress

Includes safety threats, trauma exposure, public apathy, firearms presence, criminals, protecting lives, emotional control, fragmented work, rotating shifts, and lack of administrative support.

Common effects of police stress

1. Alcohol and/or drug abuse

2. family problems

3. psychological problems

4. ptsd

Benefits of college-educated police officers

1. Better problem solving

2. higher performance ratings

3. fewer sick days, less discipline

4. fewer excessive force complaints

Police use of force

The use of force by a police officer when interacting with a member of the public.

Deadly force

The intentional use of a firearm or other instrument resulting in a high probability of death.