The Law enforcement system is one of the major components within the Criminal Justice System. According to the National Center for Victims of Crime (2008), The Law enforcement system plays a critical key role within the Criminal Justice system, since “Law enforcement officers take reports for crimes that happen in the area, then the officers investigate crimes and both gather and protect evidence, officers may arrest offenders, give testimony during the court process, and conduct follow up investigations if needed.” In addition, in this essay I will be discussing about, the cause and effect of how the law enforcement system relates to unethical behavior, to police subcultures, and finally, corruption prevention programs. First of allUnethical behavior relates to the Law enforcement system, since according to Martin ( 2011), he states that Research into police corruption offers some understanding of the phenomenon in the hope of rooting out this behavior that serves to undermine the overall legitimacy of law enforcement. Theories on the role of society in law enforcement, the negative influence of an officer’s department, and a person’s own natural tendency to engage in unethical behavior have been offered as explanations of police corruption.”(Martin 2011) explains on how Police corruption is one of the largest unethical behaviors in our society today, and Police corruption still exists, because of the fact that many law enforcement agencies have avoided hiring candidates
In dealing largely with disorderly elements of the society, some people working in law enforcement may gradually develop an attitude or sense of authority over society, particularly under traditional reaction-based policing models; in some cases the police believe that they are above the law. In other cases, police corruption and misconduct may be explained by individuals and individual faults- behavioral, psychological, background factors, and so on.
In order for a Police agency to prevent and deter Police misconduct, there must be a definition to what actions and behaviors that the term will encompass. The term ‘police corruption’ has been used to describe many activities: bribery; violence and brutality; fabrication and destruction of evidence; racism; favoritism or nepotism. Many different scholars differ in their own examples of the definition. Before attempting to the question of whether a precise definition is possible, it is worth examining the range of activities that might be included within a broad discussion of corruption. In (Bayley and Perito, 2011), it is defined as police corruption is a contested phrase with narrow and broad meanings. Narrowly
The criminal justice system is composed of three parts – Police, Courts and Corrections – and all three work together to protect an individual’s rights and the rights of society to live without fear of being a victim of crime. According to merriam-webster.com, crime is defined as “an act that is forbidden or omission of a duty that is commanded by public law and that makes the offender liable to punishment by that law.” When all the three parts work together, it makes the criminal justice system function like a well tuned machine.
There are three significant issues concerning law enforcement, namely enacting the law, police discretion, and assessment of criminal behavior. Different entities create and enact laws that are specific for the societies those laws represent.
In a democratic country law enforcement officers are expected to undertake their duties with dignity and respect thus following both the rule of law and its procedure. Law enforcement officials whose duty is to enforce the law should abide by the law and should be accountable for both their decisions and consequences of it. But the main issue is – quis custodiet ipsos custodes – who controls the controllers? This critical issue is of importance because the history of policing is littered with scandals in which police officers broke the law and also in which the police organisation failed to detect the deviance (or colluded in it; or tried to deflect investigations by defensive opposition). I will be examining in this article police corruption and its prevention and I shall focus on three main aspects: definitions of corruption; the forms it takes in different societies; ways of preventing
Corruption within the New York Police Department is a quickly growing phenomenon; to an extent, this is largely due to the cop culture that encourages silence and draws the line at honesty. The good, honest officers are afraid to speak up against co-workers and in the process become corrupt themselves. When police departments were first established in the mid-nineteenth century, corruption quickly followed suit. It began with minor acts of misconduct and today deals with serious criminal activities. Scholars have noted that there is a strong correlation between the officers taking part in corrupt acts and officers wanting to fit in with the culture. In this paper, I argue that the deeper an officer in the New York police department gets into the police culture, the more likely it is that they become involved in narcotic corruption
Veronica and I decided that one of the best criminal justice issues to research would have to be police corruption because everyone has experienced some form of police corruption in their lives. Even if they do not know it, due to the fact that they do not have the education level to understand what police corruption is. From a legal perspective police corruption has to do with the violation of law by police officers. According to some articles it claims that police corruption has to do with deviant, improper, dishonest, unethical or criminal behavior by the police officer. The research question has to do with police corruption and where it comes from, by the standing point of the community. We feel that this issue is important because, without
The problems surrounding the criminal justice system range from a variety of issues in different areas of the system. But i believe they are all connected back to a societal problem, that has to do with a outdated philosophical notion “redemptive violence”. I will break down each aspect, which i find most troubling. I will cover problems between policing and peacekeeping, corrections options, and the issue of redemptive violence which is a major issue in the philosophy of the criminal justice system. These issues represent problems that have always been key topics when discussing problems of ethics in criminal justice. Policing and Peacekeeping are roles that have long been debated in usefulness to stopping crime. Corrections comes with the reality of incarceration having little chance of success but more likely a higher rate of recidivism. I well also touch on briefly the issues of attorney discretion. While the issue of redemptive violence ties them all in, As i well show this philosophy is the “root of all evil” in the issues facing the criminal justice system.
Police corruption can also be explained by the lack of protection and security police feel they have. They also feel like they are being disrespected by individuals in society, which is why they rely on the subculture for protection and support (Skolnick, 1966). The police subculture has created a lot of secrecy within the organization, which contributes to police misconduct. Police officers will often ignore another police officer’s corrupt actions in order to maintain a good reputation within the subculture (Tator & Henry, 2006). For example, 84% of police officers have directly witnessed another officer using more force than necessary out on the streets (US Department of Justice, 2017). However, instead of reporting the acts of others, 52%
This research paper discusses the issues of people who suffer from mental illness being placed in jails instead of receiving the necessary treatment they need. The number of inmates serving time in jail or prison who suffer from mental illness continues to rise. In 2015 the Bureau of Justice reported that sixty five percent of state prisoners and fourth five percent of federal prisoners suffered from mental conditions such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Individuals who suffer from these problems require special mental health treatment for their needs to be met. Many of our prisons and jails lack the necessary resources to care for these inmates and because of that inmates who do not receive the treatment they need are at a higher risk of becoming a repeat offender. Despite the research and findings that show that the criminal justice system is unable to deal with issues dealing with the mentally ill there has been limited solutions put in place. Given the challenges the criminal justice system faces it is important to address the problem and come up with better solutions. This research paper will discuss the various techniques and solutions that scholars have propped and their effect on the issue of mentally ill criminals and how the criminal justice system should approach the problem.
The criminal justice system plays an important role in this society, it is meant to protect and serve. This “system” is also meant to maintain the peace and enforce the laws set by the government. However, the criminal justice system is not even close to perfect. It has many flaws, some of which are: police brutality, death penalty, mass incarceration, gun violence, and especially wrongful convictions. A majority of the flaws that the system has can be easily fixed and can be set straight. For example, the issue of wrongful convictions has been relevant for quite some time and has the potential to decrease its probability of occurring by focusing on the importance of scientific evidence, rid of faulty witness testimonies, and make sure that the lack of evidence and/or government misconduct, if applicable, does not determine the outcome of the case.
In order to keep a safe society, it is important to establish a nation with
Police corruption has been an issue that has left a lasting blemish on communities and society. Police corruption usually derives a lack of respect officer(s) feel that either the city does not care about them or they are not paid enough for their duties. Throughout this essay I will give you a better understanding on the issue that is police corruption by using terminology from the book such as the “rotten apple theory”, “blue wall of silence” and “deviant subculture”. With corruption this affects the view we have on police and it is up to us not fall into the trap of negativity and create a better society for the future.
or she did not nee to record it. If the Government do succeed in the
Some argue that corrupt police officers are simply the product of a corrupt culture of the agency they work for. These officers are socially introduced to a number of informal rules when they begin employment. This process and these rules serve two main purposes. First, this process is designed to minimize the chances of external or internal controls being mobilized to address the behaviors and, secondly, to keep corrupt activities at a level that is acceptable and likely undetectable. The rule most often referred to in this connection, is the “Code of Silence.” Officers are socialized into not cooperating with investigations regarding fellow officers. Whether or not the officer participates in corrupt activities for financial gain, an officer’s adherence to the “Code of Silence” places them squarely amongst the corrupt of the profession (Price, 1972).