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Police Officers And Their Image Of A Police Officer

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Police officers were implemented into society to be protectors of the public and to serve the community whenever they were in need of help or justice. They are here to enforce the “laws of the land” and to keep society safe from any harm. The police are suppose to be our “unsung heroes.” With this knowledge, citizens should respect these individuals and trust the officers to implement justice and protection. However, not all citizens respect the law enforcement or trust them. Many would like to see police officers like this, but there are a lot that happens in society that make’s one rethink their image of a police officer. There are many people in the community that have negaitve attitudes towards the police and see them as corrupt or brutal (Brown & Benedict, 2002, p. 551). The individuals that are unfavorable towards the police are those from a low social statues, minorities like blacks, from areas of high crime, single or divorced or widowed individuals, and especially juveniles. Juveniles that have had high contact with officers, minorities, tolerance to illegal behavior, and low socioeconomic group status believe that they are treated unfairly, targeted by the police, and believe that they were wrongly accused (Janeksela, 1999, p. 314). Juvenile attitudes toward the police is an important issue to examine because these children are the next generation and outline the perception of authority to future generations and a negative attitude towards police can lead the youth

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