Posted: August 1st, 2023

Police Misconduct

Police Misconduct
Your Name
Your Institution

Police Misconduct
Introduction
As much as the Police departments are supposed to offer safety to communities, it is only reasonable to remember that the individuals who make up the force are human and capable of mistakes. If not careful, a whole department could fall short of ethical leadership and decision making. Police officers sometimes need to be policed since many troubling departments need reforms. More than often, there are cases of officers inflicting abuse on the same community they are supposed to protect. With the increased number of video recording devices, more than enough evidence is being uploaded and shared on media concerning police brutality. Law enforcement officers are regularly being accused of bias, racism, discrimination and use of excessive force. This paper discusses all the things that are wrong with select police departments, the conditions underlying these issues, and possible remedies to aid in reforms for the sake of going back to original objectives of the police force.
When looking at issues of policing the police, there are two instances that stand out in this paper. These include the Ferguson police department and the New Orleans Police Department during the wake of Katrina (Frontline, 2011). Possibly, understanding these two scenarios could give enlightenment on why police misconduct happens and how to resolve/reform such a department. It is quite saddening when a pillar of refuge could turn into an inflictor of harm. Most of the examples will focus on how a community runs to law enforcement in search of help and turns out to be victims of abuse. The need to keep in mind the aims of the Department of Homeland Security (D.H.S.) is essential as the problems and reforms for police departments are considered. Since 9/11, Americans have claimed that “Never Again!” will terrorism take over. But, it is ironical when security departments inflict terror on Americans who are relying on them. Hopefully, an in-depth analysis of troubled police departments will aid in looking for means to reform security departments and offer safety to the people of America.
Problems in Ferguson
The investigation of the Ferguson Police Department alongside cases of misconduct in other departments such as New Orleans PD gives more insight on police misconduct. Ferguson PD’s survey took place in September 2014 and was able to reveal violations of the First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments of the constitution. Due to several Acts, the investigation was possible and legal. These Acts included: the Safe Streets Act (Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, 42 U.S. C §3789d), the Title VI Act (Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §2000d), and the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 42 U.S. C §14141. The investigation included no bias since various people were interviewed regardless of their job group, position, sex, or race. The diverse participants included all city officials, statistical experts, and officers, defendants in court, neighborhood associations, and community members (justice.gov, 2015). These investigations do not take place to tarnish the image of police departments but rather to identify misconduct and ways to remedy occurring problems. Most people who shared their experience with police officers embraced the diversity of their community and only hoped to strengthen their law enforcement practices. The issue of police misconduct reforms is a venture that takes a holistic approach considering all aspects of the affected community.
Two major problems were identified when conducting the Ferguson PD investigation:
– Racial Bias
– Police Mistrust
To understand the problems at Ferguson, one has to take a closer look at both sides of the issue – the community as well as the department. The police officers portrayed racial bias while the community portrayed lack of mistrust in policing. On the subject of race, the investigation revealed that the police, alongside their courts, inflicted more harm on minorities, especially African Americans. The department’s law enforcement strategies involved a lot of stereotyping, where black people were likely to be victimized. Through the years 2012-2014, a high percentage of vehicle stops, arrests and citations comprised of African Americans. More than 85% of the interactions were people of African descent (justice.gov, 2015). Surprisingly, out of the vehicles pulled over and searched, there was a 26% high chance of finding contraband in a white person’s car. Despite these statistics, the Ferguson PD had more stop and searched records of black people as opposed to whites. There were also gruesome records whereby African Americans portrayed the highest number of incidents where excessive use of force was used. There was a disturbing 90% chance of a canine bite record used against an African American during an altercation with Ferguson police officers. The vast disparities showed that there was a clear bias against African Americans since the difference against other races was quite noticeable.
Due to such treatment of minorities, it is no doubt that the Ferguson PD was likely to face trust issues. Police misconduct causes a rift between the department and the community since the people in the surrounding perceive officers to be against them. There was an incident in 2014 where Michael Brown was shot dead by a police officer resulting in a definite lack of trust from African Americans. Due to such violent actions against the community, the legitimacy of the police is put in question (justice.goc, 2015). Places like Ferguson are likely to exhibit unequal perceptions in a society where some people feel comfortable with the current law enforcement department, while others feel unsafe. This is clearly not an objective of the police department since their duty is to make the whole community feel safe. After the Michael Brown incident, there was not only a rift between the police and the community but also among the community. Therefore, Ferguson PD, through their poor law enforcement practices, welcomed another problem to their operations. With such rifts in the community, individuals are less likely to cooperate with the police. This makes it difficult to enforce the work of the law within an area that is distancing itself.
There were four problematic approaches that defined the work of Ferguson police. The first involved unlawful policing. The second was reinforcing harm to stereotypes. Third, the lack of accountability. And lastly, neglecting community engagement. The first two problems have been discussed above, but accountability and community engagement are other problems that shaped the image of Ferguson PD. The department clearly neglected the guidelines required to run policing ethically. There was little or no follow-ups for the racial biases, which made the community feel neglected. The lack of accountability contributed to increased racial cases since there were no consequences for those who violated the constitution. The views of the community being served as well were neglected, which gave rise to corporation problems. These same problems were seen in the New Orleans Police Department case where officers were involved in covering up homicide cases and neglect of the community (Frontline, 2011). During the wake of the Katrina, the Danziger Bridge Shootings saw two people dead and four others wounded. Surprisingly, the NOPD neglected the plea of Henry Glover’s relatives as they begged them to help him. Instead, the officers assaulted the relatives. These are cases of troubled police departments who have lost focus on their objectives and lack proper ethical decision making.
Conditions that gave rise to those problems
The conditions that give rise to these problems lay in the practices of the police department from a sociological, psychological, and organizational perspective. According to Robert Worden (1995), these are fields that after evaluation, show why police departments succumb to misconduct. The sociological aspect focusses on police-citizen encounters. Who are the police likely to encounter during their patrols? Which race is likely to be flagged down? The more the interactions with one group, the likely the chances of incidents or misunderstandings. Take, for example, the city of Newark that was plagued with a series of police brutality towards black residents (Frontline, 2016). The events of 2014 in Newark made the whole nation question the practices of the police. Gangs and drugs ran the violence in Newark but how the police were responding to the violence raised eyebrows concerning their strategies. While the police department struggled to maintain peace, they focused more on the streets of black people and conducted their activities in what was termed as “not normal”. Worden’s research continues to show that minorities are likely to be picked on as is the sociological norm of most police departments. This led to African Americans being apprehended as compared to white people. Hence, the mistrust in police due to their bias.
While analyzing the factors behind police misconduct, it is vital to avoid neglecting individual evaluations. Another condition that gives rise to disturbing police departments is the psychological perspective of officers. This brings focus to the personality trait of officers that the department may not have much control over. It is due to psychological factors that sociological conditions emanate. The case of NOPD is a god example of psychological issues since the captain commanded his department to carry out martial law despite it being abolished years ago. At that moment, there was miscommunication and disagreements within the department. The captain felt that martial law was the only way to “take back the town”. That right, there is a depiction of a psychological factor that contributed to police misconduct under unethical leadership. The fact that there were those who agreed with the captain and those who did not is more evidence that the perspectives of different officers differ. The lack of a cohesive perspective within the force is a worrying issue that should be analyzed to avoid further confusion. Such disagreements within the NOPD saw the police department inflict more harm to the people of New Orleans right after the Katrina calamity. The same goes for officers who participate in stereotyping. Understanding the psychological makeup of an officer aids in knowing their personality hence analyzing the possible risks they may pose.
The police department as an organization is the biggest condition giving rise to racial and trust problems. The organization in which officers work contribute highly to their behaviours. This should be the major focus when dealing with reforms as it’s within the organization that operations, training, ethics and leadership are shaped. It is clear that Ferguson PD had poor organization based on their practices. Just as the Newark PD focused on taking control of the streets from gangs and drug dealers, the Ferguson PD was no different. The NOPD was also motivated to reclaim their town from looters, which shows the uncontrollable hunger for power when police departments lack proper organization. Ferguson PD was more motivated to enforce their municipal code aggressively and increase generated revenue without considering community cooperation and trust. But Law enforcement as a whole also fails some of their agencies. The police department in Newark was described as underfunded, overstretched, and under fire for the way they do things. The case is no different in New Orleans after Katrina since the local police realized they were on their own and had to enforce the law with making do. The hierarchical organization in the law enforcement department needs to consider how to support their agencies in times of need to avoid irrational psychological and sociological choices.

Possible responses and remedies
So the big question is on policing the police. How are reforms implemented in a force that is supposed to oversee safety in the community such as the Ferguson Police Departments? It is important to note that police departments are like any organization, and they are subject to failure unless they have strategies to lead them in the right direction. Possible responses include enforcement of mission vision statements, adherence to employment and policy laws, and implementation of code of ethics to manage risks. Police misconduct is an internal organizational issue that should be addressed using the suggested applications. These strategies will focus on the sociological, psychological and organizational aspects that are underlying causes of the racial and community mistrust.
Mission vision statements are essential to any organization, be it large or small. The Law Enforcement Department should insist on its agencies to uphold set missions and visions to guide their organization. There are issues with adherence to relevant employment laws and policies that lead officers to violate the constitution. These guidelines are supposed to address issues such as hiring, training, and retention of officers. Officers chosen by any law enforcement agency are supposed to be vetted to check whether they match up to the requirements criteria (Gaines & Kappeler, 2011). Furthermore, officers are supposed to undergo proper training before being released to the field.
Officers have to portray ethical behaviour through all their activities to maintain their retention at any department. Thomas Baker (2011), in his book Police Ethics: Crisis in Law Enforcement, discusses the issue of employment policies and the challenges of peer group influence. He claims that the socialization process during police employment stresses loyalty, mutual assistance, and danger. Peer groups are likely to rationalize ethical or unethical behaviour when they are together. This explains the results of the officers in the incident mentioned above. If the witness had not recorded the turn of events, the Blue Code of Silence would have buried the misconduct. Scenarios such as the ones in Ferguson, Newark and New Orleans may lead law enforcers to become lawbreakers instead of lawmakers.
To address ethical issues for the sake of reinforcing organizational ideologies, the necessary steps need to consider the “who,” “how,” and “why” of leadership ethics (Lawton et al., 2014). These three categories help in creating a broken down procedural approach to understand leadership in an ethical manner. Who ethical leaders are, focuses on the desired organizational virtues, integrity, and authenticity. How leaders execute their relations focuses on internal excellence – their profession- and the external goods surrounding them, such as money or fame. Ethical leaders need intelligence while making decisions regarding the mentioned fields. Lastly, why leaders perform their tasks, and their outcomes are necessary considerations to determine if they are working for their gain or that of the organization. This framework can be used to evaluate leaders before and during duty to identify areas that need reinforcement or immediate mitigation (Lawton et al., 2014). The ‘how,’ ‘who,’ and ‘why’ framework is a decisive step by continuous step framework that can be used at any point to crosscheck employment and policy laws.
Risk is an everyday situation that every organization should be prepared to face. Law enforcement should be ready to identify, mitigate, and recover for potential threats that may occur. There is a need for enterprises to have step by step measures that enhance and develop the ethics of the organization as well as leadership. There is a criterion that can be used to evaluate the ethical leadership in an organization. Some of the requirements involve the use of leader power and influence, handling stakeholder interests, integrity as a leader, and development of follower skills. Implementation of these strategies is likely to strengthen the risk management of any department and help them stick to their strategy once reforms are in place.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the level of police misconduct in Ferguson indicated the need for police reforms to address officer misconduct. It is unreasonable to continue running a police department that is not in good terms with the community. Policing the police is a holistic issue that has faced the Law Enforcement Department in America. Cases of Police officers diverting from their objectives in times of crisis have been portrayed in New Orleans and Newark since the police felt undermined by the community. However, the reaction of officers at such times should always remain constitutional. That is why the persistence on ethics, risk management and policy laws is necessary. Reforms can only happen under the constant reminder of legal statutes and organizational objectives. Police misconduct is an issue that arises once regular training and evaluations are ignored. Officers need to be accountable and observe their duty according to the set missions and visions of policing.

References
Barker, T. (2011). Police ethics: Crisis in law enforcement. Charles C Thomas Publisher.
Frontline. (2011). An on-air and online investigation into questionable police shootings by the New Orleans Police Department in the wake of Katrina. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/law-disorder/
Frontline. (2016). Policing the Police. Retrieved from https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/policing-the-police/
Justice.gov. (2015). Investigation of the Ferguson Police Department. Retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/ferguson_police_department_report.pdf
Gaines, L. K., & Kappeler, V. E. (2011). Policing in America. Routledge.
Lawton, Alan & Gabriunas, Iliana. (2014). Developing a Framework for Ethical Leadership. Journal of Business Ethics. 130. 10.1007/s10551-014-2244-2.
Worden, Robert. (1995). The‘Causes’ of Police Brutality: Theory and Evidence on Police Use of Force.

Order | Check Discount

Tags: Masters Essays, PSY Papers, PSYC, Psychology Assignment, Psychology Dissertations