Criminal Justice

Walker began the text with the notion that police were in a state of “National Crisis” and in need of new strategies to improve public trust and legitimacy. At the end of our journey, Walker identifies a number of recent “best practices” in policing as the foundation for a “New Conversation” about police reform. He presents a “roadmap for the future” of police reform around principles, policies, and practices. These three terms are identified as necessary to achieve professional, respectful, and lawful policing.

For this essay, select one practice from each of Walker’s three areas–principles, policies, and practice–and discuss how each may impact the future of police accountability and reform. Provide the reader an in-depth, comprehensive analysis of each best practice. Consider the strengths and weaknesses of each of the three practices. Will the practice have limited success as many of the past or will the practice endure the challenges of an undetermined future?

Make sure to include examples from agencies in your discussion.

ANSWER

Police Accountability and Reform

Introduction

Law enforcement agencies are expected to perform diverse tasks that demand high levels of accountability. Thus, lack of accountability within the force results in unlawful acts by police officers. Often such situations make law enforcement officers vulnerable to executing their duties outside their remit. As a result, police reform interventions are required to restore and strengthen integrity within the systems, especially in post-conflict environments. Efforts to attain accountability in police reforms should focus on three key areas including principles, policies, and practices. This paper will discuss practices within three areas; principles, policies, and practices, that are deemed essential in revolutionizing the police force.

Principles: Police-Community Partnership

Amid the changing societal environments, law enforcement agencies are expected to consider the importance of maintaining good relationships with the community. Police officers have the ability to alter the way they are perceived by citizens. Often, law enforcement agencies establish relations with the community due to temporary crises. However, such measures fail to promote lasting police-community relationships. According to Jannetta & Lachman, (2011), more than five million American adults are under community supervision. However, law enforcement agencies lack enough resources to address such issues, limiting their capacity to optimize their services to the citizens and the state in general. In addition, the incarceration of offenders is negatively affected by limited resources.

The US Dept of Justice, Community Relations Service, & United States of America (2003) suggest that involving the community in police operations can help in determining appropriate strategies to solve problems. In this case, a partnership between the police and the community can facilitate the agency’s success in conducting supervisory duties. Police and supervision officers are expected to supervise individuals on probation. In this case, police officers are compelled to devote their time to monitoring people on probation. Studies show that parolees and probationers with access to stable housing, and employment have higher chances of success (Jannetta & Lachman, 2011). On the other hand, law enforcement officers are relieved of the duty to constantly monitor such individuals, thus directing their attention to high-risk parolees and probationers.

A police-community partnership can discourage parolees and probationers from engaging in unlawful activities, forcing them to adopt accepted behaviors in society (La Vigne et al. 2006). In most cases, individuals under supervision may resume their former behaviors such as drug abuse, theft, or burglary. In such circumstances, a collaboration between the community and the police can help in preventing the escalation of dangerous behaviors. For instance, the community can share key information with law enforcement officers about parolees and probationers. The collaborative approach can help the police in discovering problematic practices, thus gaining an opportunity for a timely response. Parolees and probationers placed in such situations may divert their behaviors towards more positive practices that ensure public safety.

Fundamentally, clear communications between the police and the community determine the success of the partnership. In this case, the police are required to maintain open channels for citizens to share critical information concerning public safety. Despite the numerous benefits of police-community partnership, some citizens may act to fulfill their personal interests. As a result, such individuals may provide misleading information to harm the targeted parolees or probationers. Paroles and probations are designed to allow offenders to reform their behaviors and adopt new practices that conform with the state’s laws (Jannetta & Lachman, 2011). However, the partnership between the police and the community can interfere with such goals, as individuals may temporarily alter their behaviors because they are being watched. In this case, parolees and probationers may minimize their criminal behaviors to suit the interests of the community. However, such parolees and probationers may resume their initial behaviors at the end of the supervision.

Policies: Handling Citizen Complaints

Today, citizens’ complaints concerning the police, particularly in the use of excessive force have been prevalent in the United States. In this case, appropriate policies and procedures for receiving and addressing such issues are needed within the force to foster accountability. In the United States, most citizens’ complaints are centered on aspects of race and ethnicity. Given the nature of such complaints, it is imperative for investigators to obtain accurate data. This measure is essential in minimizing unfounded complaints by citizens. However, some cases may intensify the situation, introducing politics within the agency. In this case, police departments should set systems for addressing citizen complaints.

Often, police departments fail to address complaints about police misconduct by attempting to justify their actions. In this case, citizens may feel discouraged to engage in future interviews regarding their complaints. However, police departments should take a proactive measure to maintain trust within the community. An effective method for ensuring accountability in such cases is to establish policies that include an internal review and sanctions for accused officers (Osse, 2016). In some cases, a lack of trust by the citizens can negatively impact the internal review process. As such, the most appropriate measure is to grant citizens an opportunity to participate in the review procedures. Thus, government officials should focus on appointing citizens to join a civilian review board, responsible for overseeing complaints about police brutality.

Essentially, the main reason for such boards is to supplement the subsequent reviews conducted by the police department. A key procedure in this arrangement is that the civilian review board recommends appropriate actions to the disciplinary department (Attard, 2010). However, the success of such measures is based on whether the disciplinary officers accept the recommendations. A significant benefit of the procedure is that the police department is expected to provide a comprehensive explanation regarding its decision to decline the report. The review board can therefore promote police accountability, by requiring police agencies to disclose essential information about the complaints and the implemented actions (Terrill & Ingram, 2016). A major drawback of establishing a civilian review is the likelihood of biased members and lack of fairness. As a result, the chosen review board may act in the interest of the citizens without relevant considerations. In addition, the external review board can recommend actions that may negatively affect the work of law enforcement officers.

While the civilian review may make recommendations, the final actions are undertaken by the police disciplinary department. Thus, the department may fail to implement the recommendations, thus degrading their image within the community. The review board members may lack adequate knowledge about police work. This deficiency can be detrimental to the agency, as they would be forced to disclose private data to the civilians (Osse, 2016). The accidental release of police data can have an impact on their operations, as it may negatively affect trust among the citizens.

Practices: Recruitment and Selection

Recruiting new officers in the force can help in addressing issues of accountability, as it paves the way for reforms. Currently, the United States is comprised of citizens from different races and ethnicities. In addition, immigration has led to a collection of different cultures in the country. Thus, agencies should target to promote representation in all aspects within the force (Osse, 2016). A major conflict in police recruitment arises in setting the minimum requirements for choosing candidates. However, it is imperative for law enforcement agencies to consider the nature of the communities they serve. In this case, police recruitment departments should focus on ensuring equality in their selection.

Despite the physical and educational requirements needed to apply for police jobs, recruitment agencies should consider other factors to resolve issues of violence between the community and the police. In 2019, the United States population by race consisted of 250.2 million whites, 44.08 million African Americans, 4.19 American Indians, and Alaska Natives, and 19.5 million people of Asian origin (Statista, 2021). Given the diversity of the American population, agencies should direct their attention towards the ratio of their employees. For instance, the recruited candidates should originate from all races. Police shootings targeting minorities have created tensions between police and the community. In this case, efforts to restore public trust should be focused on recruiting a more diverse workforce.

According to statistics from the U.S Bureau of Justice, the percentage of minorities within the police force has increased from 14.6 in 1987, to the current 27.3 (Stateline, 2016). The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has been reluctant in recruiting a diverse workforce. The most recent reports published in 2019 indicate the agency’s workforce consisting of 74.4% whites (Buble, 2020). Notably, police agencies that embrace diversity are able to increase public trust, as the community perceives them as reflecting the current society.

Employees from diverse backgrounds benefit the agencies by introducing new ideas on handling the members of the community (Flavin, 2018). As police officers from minority groups understand their background and experiences, they are more likely to succeed in executing high-risk tasks involving minority groups. Also, the community may view police shootings differently if one of their members is involved, as they possess a certain degree of trust in the officers. Based on the situation, a police officer from a minority group can make appropriate choices to promote public safety in their community. A major drawback of this strategy is that citizens may misuse the relationship between police officers of their ethnicity by engaging in criminal activities. However, such occurrences can be resolved by training police officers on addressing issues in diverse environments.

Conclusion

In summary, the paper has addressed different factors that can revolutionize the police force to promote accountability, while promoting public trust. An important aspect discussed in the paper is the idea that police agencies can alter their public image through various practices. Police-community partnerships can help police officers supervising parolees and probationers. In this case, clear communications are deemed important in sharing relevant information about unlawful behaviors within society. The paper also discusses proper handling of citizen complaints as an essential aspect in maintaining trust within the community. A civilian review board can help in conducting external investigations involving the use of deadly force by the police.

A major drawback of this strategy is that some citizens may be motivated by self-interest. Finally, the paper discusses recruitment and selection as one of the practices that can promote police accountability and reform. First, recruiting police officers from minority groups provides an agency with cultural diversity. As a result, such members help in rebuilding trust within the communities comprised of minority groups. In addition, the practice creates a good image for the police departments, as citizens perceive them as inclusive. Overall, the paper has offered a comprehensive analysis of the principles, policies, and practices recommended by Walker.

References

Attard, B. (2010). Oversight of law enforcement is beneficial and needed-both inside and out. Pace L. Rev., 30, 1548. https://digitalcommons.pace.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1755&context=plr

Buble, C. (2020). FBI Has Failed to Move the Needle on Diversity Over the Past Decade, Despite Efforts of Recent Directors. Government Executive. https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2020/02/fbi-has-failed-move-needle-diversity-over-past-decade-despite-efforts-recent-directors/163127/

Flavin, B. (2018). Police Officers Explain Why Diversity in Law Enforcement Matters. Justice Studies Blog. https://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/justice-studies/blog/diversity-in-law-enforcement/

Jannetta, J., & Lachman, P. (2011). Promoting partnerships between police and community supervision agencies. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/27396/412362-Promoting-Partnerships-between-Police-and-Community-Supervision-Agencies.PDF

La Vigne, N. G., Solomon, A. L., Beckman, K. A., Dedel, K., & Center, J. P. (2006). Prisoner Reentry and Community Policing. https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/50716/411061-Prisoner-Reentry-and-Community-Policing.PDF

Osse, A. (2016). Handbook on police accountability, oversight, and integrity. https://www.unodc.org/pdf/criminal_justice/Handbook_on_police_Accountability_Oversight_and_Integrity.pdf

Stateline, J. (2016). Can diverse police departments ease community tension?. PBS. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/can-diverse-police-departments-ease-community-tension

Statista, (2021). Resident population of the United States by race from 2000 to 2019. https://www.statista.com/statistics/183489/population-of-the-us-by-ethnicity-since-2000/

Terrill, W., & Ingram, J. R. (2016). Citizen complaints against the police: An eight-city examination. Police Quarterly, 19(2), 150-179. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1098611115613320

US Dept of Justice, Community Relations Service, & United States of America. (2003). Principles of Good Policing: Avoiding Violence Between Police and Citizens (Revised September 2003). https://www.justice.gov/archive/crs/pubs/principlesofgoodpolicingfinal092003.pdf