History of Policing - Essay Example

Essay: History of policing History of policing Population policing is an activity that has been done by governments for hundreds of years. Nevertheless, it was not until 1829 when Sir Robert Peel convinced the British Parliament to form the London Metropolitan police that policing assumed the professional outlook known currently. Frequently remembered as the founder and father of modern-day policing, Peel formed the Metropolitan Police on the basis of 9 principles that he came up with for law enforcement.

The nine fundamental principles are frequently known as “The Peelian Principles”. On a closer inspection of every of the Peelian principles, it is apparent that not only does a direct correlation to today’s policing exist, but also the 9 principles are frequently cited as being the primary foundation for present law enforcement organizations as well as community policing all over the world. This is also evidenced by the fact that several law enforcement agencies presently cite the Peelian Principles especially on their public websites as being their own principles.

Thus Peel’s Principles are applied by most policing units in the world. Thus the fundamental undertaking of majority of police organizations currently is symbolized as law enforcement and crime prevention. The most recognizable phrase today in most policing institutions is “protect and serve” which is a direct reflection of the first principle of Peel; “The basic mission for which the police exist is to prevent crime and disorder” (Thomas, 2011).The governments together with members of the police force are being taken to task for actions that the media has chosen to highlight.

Thus, the public today has got a bigger opportunity in reviewing as well as scrutinizing inefficient, illegal and inappropriate activity by police officers. Regrettably, the actions of a single government official or police officer can be very detrimental to a whole local government, police force or community. The second principle put forth by Peel states that, “The ability of the police to perform their duties is dependent upon public approval of police actions.”This principle is therefore more applicable today than in 1829 since the media of today are keen to focus on any doubtful governmental or law enforcement activities.

Thus in a bid to achieve public approval and assistance, community policing was then established. The 3rd Peel Principle is best illustrated by present-day technology as well as media developments that have allowed communities to be more enlightened of the governing laws in addition to the thinking behind them. The 3rd Peel Principle therefore refers to the need for public cooperation. The 4th Peel principle implies that the members of public are resistant to use of extreme force in addition to showing disapproval of the same.

This is best illustrated by the beating of Rodney King which sparked off riots, leading to assault, looting, arson, and murder of over 50 people. In addition, police officers are morally and ethically obligated to serve people without showing any impartiality on the basis of their finances, political orientation or race. Any slight deviation from this obligation leads to immediate media and public scrutiny. This therefore is a key application of Peelian 5th principle (Nazemi, 2012).In police force, use of physical force is hardly ever acceptable when dealing with the public except when the officer is acting in self-defence case.

Even when an officer is acting in self-defense, there is plenty of scrutiny by both the public and the media. This is a direct application of Peel’s 6th Principle. The 7th Principle of Peel is one of the most cited and is basically the fundamental foundation for the formation of the other 8 principles. Therefore there ought to be a working relationship with the public at all times (Nazemi, 2012).The 8th principle is applied by virtue of the law enforcement officers and police agencies not being part or party of the judicial system.

For instance, in the US, a person is presumed innocent until found guilty. In addition s/he is entitled to all the rights pertaining to their status even a jury trial. The Peelian 8th principle therefore reinforces this idea; Police should always direct their action strictly towards their functions and never appear to usurp the powers of the judiciary.”There are some law enforcement agents that generate quotas so as to issue tickets for speeding, seat belts and other traffic violations. Nevertheless, policing institutions have realized that issuing such tickets is detrimental to public due to blatant abuse of such laws and appears to be adverse to Peelian’s Principle 9 which states that; “The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with it.

”Presently, most police departments are determined to assess crime statistics more effectively and concentrate on aspects of preventing crime where most attention is required.Policing organizations have various functions and responsibilities at the state, local and federal level in the US. These functions fall under operational and responsibilities strategies. Whereas the federal government has some similarities with the local and state organizations; there are always differences in the roles played by federal employees.

A very good case of a federal agency is the Homeland Security, DEA and FBI. Thus, employees from any of these organizations are permitted to make an arrest in any county or state. Officers who are employed together with the highway patrols and state troopers are employed by state (Thomas, 2014Nevertheless, when an officer is employed at the state level s/he is not permitted to litter outside of the state. On the other hand, officers in the local levels are not authorized to arrest outside of the county or city that employs them.

Lastly, such relationships usually do have an effect on the US government. Police being the only 24/7 public service, with at times being the only government service in remote and rural areas is a great resource for the government.. Police departments rely so much on laws passed by the government and are also guided by the same code as well as dependence on the Federal laws. ReferencesDavid, T. (2011). Professionalism In Policing:An Introduction.

New York,NY: CengageCengage Brain .Sandra, N. (2012). Sir Roberts Nine Principles of Policing. Los Angeles Community Policing , np.