Police Activities, Operation & Challenges

Vocabulary flashcards covering police operations, organizational ranks, styles of policing, use of force, civilianization, and police subculture.

Police Militarization

Occurs when police services use military equipment, tactics, and training as regular methods to police civilians.

Police Subculture

A set of informal rules and expectations that shape police attitudes, values, and behaviours.

Operations

A primary police allocation function consisting of patrol, traffic enforcement, criminal investigation, and crime prevention.

Administration

A police allocation function that handles day-to-day operations, human resources (HR), budgeting, and professional standards.

Auxiliary Services

A police allocation area responsible for communications (calls for service), preserving evidence, keeping records, and detention.

Paramilitary Organizations

Services organized along military lines, having a chain of command where lines of authority are clearly defined by the organization.

Chain of Command

The lines of authority in a police organization, which are clearly defined based on rank and range from a constable to the chief or commissioner.

Sworn Officers

Police officers who hold the legal authority to arrest and use force, as opposed to peace officers who have less legal authority.

Patrol

The backbone of policing involving $\frac{2}{3}$ of officers, responsible for responding to 911 calls and providing backup to officers or other organizations.

Detectives

Plain-clothed officers who investigate serious crimes such as sexual assault and homicide, representing 15% of all officers in many municipalities.

Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT)

Also known as emergency response teams, a group of officers who receive specialized training and access to military-style weapons to confront armed or dangerous suspects.

Executive Protection

Protection provided by federal and provincial police officers to the Prime Minister, Governor General, provincial premiers, mayors of large cities, and visiting government officials.

School Resource Officers

Officers placed on a part- or full-time basis in schools to provide security, teach classes, act as positive role models, and build positive relationships.

Legalistic Style

A policing style that emphasizes professionalism, strict law enforcement with high public contact, measuring productivity by high numbers of arrests or tickets, and using less discretion.

Watchmen Style

A policing style focused on order maintenance and reducing anti-social behaviour, with an emphasis on community involvement, concern for the effects of wrongdoing over the wrongdoer, and using discretion to maintain peace.

Service Style

A policing style prioritizing public satisfaction and responsiveness to community needs, informal dispute resolution, close alignment with community policing, and prioritizing serious crime investigations.

Patrol Zone

A defined area within a community to which officers are assigned to patrol.

Section 25 of Criminal Code

Guidelines governing police use of force, dictating that officers must use only as much force as necessary to control a situation.

Civilianization

The employment of civilian personnel in police organizations.

Administrative Support Staff

Civilian personnel in police organizations fulfilling management, professional, and clerical roles, such as dispatchers, HR personnel, and crime analysts.

Uniformed Officials

Civilian personnel with less enforcement power than sworn officers, including cadets, special constables, security officers, and bylaw officers.

Private Policing

Social control efforts carried out by individuals who are not government employees but are hired to provide security or policing services.

Solidarity

A key trait of police subculture characterized by loyalty to other police officers above all others.

Authoritarianism

A trait in police subculture defined by a belief in, and willingness to exercise, coercive power over others.

Suspicion

A factor in police subculture defined as a mistrust of others formed by negative contact with non-officers.

Conservative Outlook

A perspective in police subculture caused by the moralistic and negative nature of police work.

Prejudicial Attitudes

A tendency within police subculture to pre-judge others using stereotypes based on an officer's values and work experience.