That word is “discretion.” Police officers are given the right and opportunity to act according to their discretion in stopping people, arresting them and using force to bring about an arrest. ensure the integrity of our platform while keeping your private information safe. If you are the copyright owner of this paper and no longer wish to have your work published on IvyPanda. Police discretion is a constant consideration within Police services. IvyPanda. The police see (or learn of) someone doing somet… It is seen by many to be both an essential part of policing as well as a constant source of issues. That choice is extended by the law and it is to be exercised on one’s own discretion. Unless police officers could use the discretion options, they would be obliged to redirect every violation to the courtroom for further consideration. Dempsey and Forst’s (2015) assumption, that a consistent value system is the most effective regulator of police discretion, correlates with Kristen Ziman’s view on the problem. Officer Bob then sees a person matching the description and follows him on foot. Thus, police officers can manage priorities and identify which violations need to be curtailed most urgently. Our Authors Write a Custom Essay For Only $13.90/page! In very low-level misdemeanor prosecutions, the substantive criminal law that generates the punishment is largely irrelevant. Officer Bob pulls the car over and requests the driver’s license and registration. For instance, the officer could misinterpret a statute and make an erroneous arrest. Environmental Aspects of Metal Extraction. Imagine that Officer Bob is on patrol when he notices that an automobile is driving in the rain without its lights on, which is against the law in the state. “[N]obody should die because police officers are more interested in absolute dominance than professional, moral and tactical discretion,” Moskos wrote. How about order essay here? Consider New York City today. See Feeley, supra note 9, at 199; Bowers, supra note 10, at 86; Bowers, supra note 6, at 1119; Natapoff, supra note 4, at 1328; Stuntz, supranote 11, at 2568. In a loose sense, discretion can be defined as a freedom of choice. My general argument is that, while the more extreme examples of proactive policing such as the policy of stopping large groups of the general population for questioning and searches based upon thin or even nonexistent legal pretexts may be in retreat, the more broadly ... POLiCE DISCRETION police. POLICE DISCRETION - EXAMPLES / SCENARIOSMy personal approach in addressing police corruption is to focus on good decision making. Officer Bob decides simply to warn the driver in this instance. In a loose sense, discretion can be defined as a freedom of choice. Their key aim resides in ensuring unity in the police officer’s conduct and its compliance with the relevant legislation. According to McGregor (Kleinig,1996), discretion can only be interpreted as those decisions that are made with lawful authority rather than decisions made for illegal reasons. Two examples of abusing police discretion are when racial profiling is used to arrest or make a case, and when there is a set policy within the department but the officers on the street make decisions that are not consistent with this policy. It can be, therefore, assumed that the described factors might be, likewise, applied not only to the police context but the entire justice system. Let’s look at some examples of when a police officer must use his or her discretion. Free Advantages and Disadvantages of Police Discretion Essay Sample Police discretion is defined as the freedom to choose how to respond to a given situation depending on the circumstances. In the meantime, Ziman (2011) believes that this approach hurts the police officers’ performance – the neglected conflicts and violations emerge into serious crimes. The lack of clarity makes police officers take up the responsibility for the law interpretation and its enforcement. Since discretion implies the ability to choose between different alternatives, it is rational to suggest that some factors impact decision-making. As a result, some controlling tools seem to be essential to prevent discretion misuse within the justice system. The characteristics of a crime, or the gravity of the violation, are another impact factor that should be pointed out. All the actors of the justice system, including judges, prosecutors, and parole boards, exercise discretion, to a larger or smaller extent, while performing decision-making. Thus, personal prejudices play an important role even though they do not imply high professional competence. July 31, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/police-discretion-definition-examples-and-rationality/. Conversely, critics of police discretion argue that such discretion can result in the misinterpretation of statutes and the abuse of the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches. We utilize security vendors that protect and As a recent development in criminal justice scholarship, researchers have begun to focus on the level of discretion that police officers have in enforcing the law. Before deciding whether a certain action should be pursued against a suspect, the police take into account many factors, at least in theory. It, likewise, reveals the ambiguity of the discretion phenomenon: discretion is essential as it ensures a regular functioning of the justice system; in the meantime, it should be regulated by moral principles and values to imply positive outcomes. Police discretion Police discretion can be defined as actions undertaken by law enforcers in which they exercise their individual judgment in order to determine the best course of action (Gaines & Kappeler, 2003). These policies feature a set of norms and guidelines defining how police officers are supposed to act under certain conditions. "Police' Discretion: Definition, Examples and Rationality." Police Officers’ Decision Making and Discretion: Forming Suspicion and Making a Stop Abstract Most police activity occurs in private, away from the public=s view. IvyPanda. In a domestic disturbance, the police officer has to use his discretion based upon the situation before him. 1. "Police' Discretion: Definition, Examples and Rationality." To begin, there is the risk that the police officer might misinterpret a statute when performing his duties. What are the Duties of the Traffic Officer? Another factor that plays an important role in shaping the discretion character is the context of violation. Thus, Dempsey and Forst (2015) describe this notion as “the availability of a choice of options or actions one can take in a situation” (p. 143). A police officer’s discretion not to arrest represents the triumph of common sense over the excesses and ‘unwisdom’ of legislators. Retrieved from https://ivypanda.com/essays/police-discretion-definition-examples-and-rationality/. The authors make a reservation that the active exercising of discretion within the police environment does not always result in positive outcomes. Police discretion is the power or authority that is given to a police officer to act officially in a manner that appears to be just and proper under the presented circumstances. Officer Bob pulls the car over and requests the driver’s license and registration. IvyPanda. Let’s look at some examples of when a police officer must use his or her discretion. Additionally, there are those who argue that the use of police discretion can potentially result in a violation of one’s Fourth Amendment rights. Determine whether the use in each action is reasonable or an abuse of power. Some of these cases include: domestic violence, public intoxication, trespassing, disorderly conduct, traffic enforcement, hate crimes, mentally ill, use of force, and prostitution. There are various reasons why the use of police discretion is a positive aspect of a police officer’s position. Likewise, the existence of two alternatives, such as reducing or dropping charges, in the prosecutors’ decision-making, is also the illustration of discretion exercising. Individual judgment, in this case, becomes the main mechanism of the functioning of the criminal justice system (Dempsey & Forst, 2015). Despite the ambiguous character of the discretion outcomes, there is a series of reasons that explain the need for its exercising. Dr. Kelling takes a special interest in the use of discretion to exercise the core police authority, enforcement of the law. Create a list of ten actions during which an officer might use discretion and why. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must. However, regarding body-worn cameras, we believe there is a hazard in giving police officers broad discretionary powers. While administrators are often bound by bureaucratic regulations, law enforcement professionals at lower levels of the organization possess great leeway in the manner in which they perform their jobs. the more personal the relationship, the more variable the use of discretion - family issue may not be as bad as it seems, spouse may not end up pressing charges relationship between police and … He wants to understand better why officers make arrests in some circumstances and not others, especially when they are dealing with Officer discretion is a powerful, basic tool in policing. In this case, police are given discretion, or freedom to decide, on the job to make decisions, but there is a ‘thin blue line’ that the police cannot cross or they will be in violation of the law. We will write a custom Essay on Police’ Discretion: Definition, Examples and Rationality specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page. Hence, for instance, a judge’s choice between imprisonment and probation implies discretion. I have no idea about what police officers do besdies serve and protect please can someone help me. In other words, the statute may indicate that a certain act is illegal; the police officer can then expeditiously make an arrest based upon his interpretation. Thus, they refer to the example of Seattle police officers’ applying excessive physical force to impaired people. Furthermore, the use of discretion helps to foster police and judicial economy. The latter believes that unless a police officer relies on the moral will in the decision-making, he or she will always apply discretion to choose the most convenient alternative. Thus, Ziman (2011) refers to the example of police officers’ responding to citizens’ complaints. The following are the types of decisions that might require a police officer to use his own discretion; this is not an exhaustive list, it is just illustrative to give you a sense of when an officer can use his own discretion. "Police' Discretion: Definition, Examples and Rationality." An introduction to policing [Bookshelf library version]. Thus, Dempsey and Forst (2015) describe this notion as “the availability of a choice of options or actions one can take in a situation” (p. 143). Consequently, the police officer must decide on his own in the particular moment what to do. July 31, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/police-discretion-definition-examples-and-rationality/. Parole boards, in their turn, are enabled to exercise discretion when deciding whether defendants should serve the assigned sentence completely or they be potentially paroled from prison. Urinating in public is the example I always gave new officers. Dempsey, J. S., & Forst, L. S. (2015). Now let’s look at another example. A couple examples of police discretion would be an officer witnesses a car driving down a street doing approximately 30 miles over the speed limit. In other words, police officers are sure to adjust their actions to the general framework that their chief sets. This essay on Police’ Discretion: Definition, Examples and Rationality was written and submitted by your fellow student. This is IvyPanda's free database of academic paper samples. Officer Bob sees the person assault a passerby and must now use his discretion to decide whether he will intervene and possibly draw and use his weapon, or call for back up assistance. This view on the problem is convincing as it provides some insights into the practical application of discretion in a real-life context. The officer follows the car and it continues to go 30 miles over the speed limit. Therefore, it might be concluded that discretion is important as it allows for aligning legislation with its practical enforcement. Mr. Nevertheless, a large percentage of police officers base their decisions on such factors as race, gender, and manners of violators or victims. police have asserted authority in many ways, often having nothing to do with arrest. Whether a police department has a legalistic, watchman, or service style is a matter of how discretion is controlled and structured. When discretion goes up, crime goes down. However, police are not always supposed to … Technologies LLC, a company registered in Wyoming, USA. IvyPanda. Another controlling method is the implementation of different performance monitoring techniques that allow supervisors and managers to track the cases of discretion misuse and eliminate improper employee behavior at the early stages. Many times, a police officer is alone when performing his work, so situations arise where discretion must come into play. In order to perform their duties, police must make determinations, which are quick and use their best judgment.