Legal Issues Facing Law Enforcement - Research Paper Example

Legal Issues Facing Law Enforcement The police enforce the law and play a crucial role in the administration of criminal justice. The police derive their powers from the community. They have extensive and extraordinary powers to fulfill their responsibility, and they can detain persons on mere suspicion. The police are empowered to kill criminals if the situation warrants. However, they are required to exercise their powers judiciously. In general, most police officers perform their duties with the utmost dedication and within the limits of the power bestowed upon them (ACLU - NJ, 2009). Unfortunately, there are a few police officers who willfully operate beyond their powers. The reputation and credibility of the police force is tarnished these unscrupulous officers. It is to be borne in mind that the malafide actions of even a single officer can cause community distrust, and mar the credibility of the entire organization (ACLU - NJ, 2009). The decisions taken by police personnel are crucial in the enforcement of criminal law, and eventually for the perpetuation of justice. Police are the first line to intervene in the criminal justice system. Consequently, the decisions taken by them reduce the choices available to prosecutors, judges, juries, probation officers, and parole boards. Therefore, the police possess the power to determine the application of the provisions of the criminal justice system to various incidents (Bell, Policing Hatred: Law Enforcement, Civil Rights, and Hate Crime, 2004. p. 2). There is significantly greater empowerment of the police in hate crimes. These crimes are accorded a different treatment by the police and the charges differ from that of other crimes. Such crimes have very high or low visibility, and some of the hate crimes transpire under enormous public scrutiny (Bell, Policing Hatred: Law Enforcement, Civil Rights, and Hate Crime, 2004. p. 3). Police officers often abuse citizens verbally and psychologically. Citizens feel extremely hurt by the verbal abuse of police officers, who operate under the protection provided by their unquestioned powers. It is the unfortunate lot of citizens to accept such verbal abuse. On many occasion, police officers use profanity in their verbal assaults, in order to belittle and denigrate citizens (Peak, 2009. p. 118). It cannot be gainsaid that police officers breach the constitutional rights of citizens, by their reprehensible acts verbal abuse and profanity. The other activities that violate the civil rights of citizens include false arrest, unjustified detention and harassment. All these activities violate the fundamental rights of citizens. Legal abuse is commonly committed by police officers, by commencing intentional search, arresting the victim on false criminal charges and obfuscating the true nature of a search (Peak, 2009. p. 118). In the US, the state and federal governments provide wide ranging powers to law enforcement officers, security guards, prosecutors, and judges. These officials have been empowered to this great extent, so that they can enforce the law and guarantee justice. Some of these powers are the detention and arrest of suspects, search and seizure of property, and the framing of criminal charges. The courts have been empowered to make rulings; and the police can employ lethal force, under certain circumstances. It is essential that such power is not abused, because the misuse of this power harms democracy (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Color of law is the authority provided to a law enforcement official by some local, state or federal agency. Any official, who employs this authority to prevent individuals from enforcing the rights provided to them by the US Constitution or any US law, is deemed to have committed a federal crime. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigates abuses under the color of law, by officials acting within and beyond the ambit of their endorsed authority (Federal Bureau of Investigation). In addition, the FBI investigates off – duty conduct, wherein perpetrators had asserted their official status, in some manner. The FBI investigated around 1,100 cases of color abuse, in the year 2005. These cases can be categorized as the excessive use of force, sexual assaults, false arrest and invention of evidence, dispossession of property, and failure to protect from harm (Federal Bureau of Investigation). The Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution provides a right to individuals against unreasonable searches and seizures. Police officials acting under color of law are permitted to detain and search individuals, and to seize their property, under certain mitigating circumstances. An abuse of the power happens, if an individual is detained illegally and unreasonably. Furthermore, an abuse of power transpires if law enforcement officials illegally confiscate a person’s property (Federal Bureau of Investigation). The color of law statute is infringed if individuals are arrested on false charges. It is illegal for police officials to fabricate evidence against individuals. Similarly, depriving a person of the right of due process and unreasonable seizure; and depriving an individual of property by the unauthorized use of official power are violations of the color of law statute (Federal Bureau of Investigation). The Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution guarantees individuals with the right to due process. The use of cruel and unusual punishment has been proscribed by the Eight Amendment. The rights of an individual are violated if officials use excessive force during the arrest or detention of individuals. Under the right to due process, persons accused of crime are entitled to receive a fair trial and the concerned officials must allow such persons to exercise their right (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Moreover, the accused should not be punished without having been subjected to a fair trial. In addition, it is incumbent upon the law enforcement officials to safeguard the public from harm. The public depends on the law enforcement officials for their safety, and failure to discharge this duty, violates the color of law statute (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Whilst making arrests, maintaining order, and protecting life from harm, enforcement officials are permitted to use as much force as the situation warrants. The employed force ranges from the mere physical presence of the police officer to the use of force with fatal consequences. If the force utilized is found to be intentionally or unreasonably excessive, then a violation of federal law takes place (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Sexual assault by officers under color of law, generally takes place in prisons and during patrolling. Officers can force individuals to provide sexual gratification by using their position of authority. The threat held out for non compliance is that of official action (Federal Bureau of Investigation). Suicide by Cop is a strategy adopted by an individual, in order to be killed by a police officer. In this situation, an individual provokes a fatal reaction from the officer. The modus operandi adopted is to make the police officer believe that the perpetrator aims to cause grievous harm or death. The response by the police officer, will usually lead to the death of the perpetrator. The basic aim of this strategy is to effect suicide at the hands of the police officer. Researchers have concluded that incidents of suicide by cop are on the increase (Conner, 2007). In the Suicide by Cop method, an individual deliberately acts in a dangerous manner towards a law enforcing official. The intention is to provoke the official to shoot the provocative individual. In most of these situations, the police officers cannot determine if their adversary intends to kill them. On many an occasion, an empty gun is pointed at the police officer. The objective behind this threatening act is to provoke the police officer to fatally shoot that person (Caruso). Many police officers have suffered from emotional and mental disorders after having been involved in such encounters. Some officers have even reported to have suffered from post traumatic stress disorders. In some cases, the persons who had engaged in suicide by cop, had left written explanations for their behavior; and a few others had even written letters of apology to the police officers (Caruso). There is a very dangerous perspective associated with such incidents; at times, individuals carry loaded guns and attempt to kill as many police officers as possible, before being done to death. It becomes very difficult if not impossible for a police officer to ascertain, whether the adversary carries a loaded gun or an empty gun. Suicide by cop causes severe psychological trauma to police officers (Caruso). The Emergency Medicine Journal published the results of a national survey that dealt with the suspected use of excessive force by the police. Most of the responding physicians, in this survey, believed that there were a significant number of patients who had been subjected to police brutality. These physicians had not reported these incidents to the authorities, as they were not required to do so by the law (Johnson, 2009). This survey was conducted among 315 physicians. According to H. Range Hutson, author and assistant professor of emergency medicine at Harvard, this survey was the first of its kind in the area of police brutality and the use of excessive force by the police (Johnson, 2009). Many of these patients had reported that they had been subjected to excessive force by the police, which had resulted in injuries. A majority of the doctors reported that the injuries to these patients had been caused by fists and feet. These findings were strongly opposed by national police groups, who contended that it was incorrect on part of the doctors to report that the injuries had been caused due to the use of excessive force, when they had not witnessed the alleged encounters (Johnson, 2009). According to Hutson, doctors are required to intimate the authorities about suspected cases of child or elderly abuse. However, there is no requirement to report cases of suspected use of excessive force by police. Analysts of criminal justice are of the opinion that this survey constituted an invaluable source of information regarding police brutality. It is indispensable to develop guidelines for resolving the issue of incidents of police brutality, and it is the considered opinion of this survey that national emergency medicine groups and the police should develop these guidelines (Johnson, 2009). One particular research study disclosed that there was a direct relationship between adverse life events and claims of having made false confessions to the police. A significant number of the respondents, who had claimed to have made false confessions to the police, stated that they had experienced serious adverse life events. On the other hand, non false confessors had not experienced such serious adverse life events. Agnew’s general strain theory provides an interpretation of these results (Gudjonsson, Sigurdsson, Asgeirsdottir, & Sigfusdottir, June 2007. p. 274). Many suspects felt that they were subjecting themselves to frustration and avoidance, if they made false confessions. Nevertheless, some of the respondents were habitual liars, and had accordingly stated the falsehood when declaring that they had made false confessions, providing details about their backgrounds and while describing incidents of victimization in the past (Gudjonsson, Sigurdsson, Asgeirsdottir, & Sigfusdottir, June 2007. p. 274). Law enforcement officers face traumatic events in their profession. They face such unexpected and sudden events, everyday. These incidents are not normal, and not surprisingly, they have deep physical, emotional, and psychological effects on law enforcement officers. These effects are felt by even the most experienced and competent officers. The capacity to withstand such traumatic events depends on past experience with trauma, and the ability to develop new strategies to cope with stress. It also depends on the support networks, such as family members and friends; and recognition of the risk inherent in ignoring post incident stress (Cross & Ashley, October 2004. pp. 24-25). A traumatic event invariably causes emotional disturbance and mental agony to any normal person. This takes place, even if an officer has previous experience with such incidents. Any attempt at ignoring or suppressing the emotional aftermath of a traumatic event results in serious short term and long term consequences. Unfortunately, some police officers have resorted to substance abuse, in order to deal with the terrible feelings generated by such incidents (Cross & Ashley, October 2004. pp. 24-25). However, substance abuse is not resorted to by every police officer. Research studies indicate that police officers in high – risk environments, are prone to abuse drugs, in order to cope up with stress and trauma. Consequently, administrators in the field of law enforcement must comprehend the response to trauma and stress, the correlation between substance abuse and trauma, and the strategies required for treatment and intervention to assist enforcement officials to endure the rigors associated with their vocation (Cross & Ashley, October 2004. pp. 24-25). The traditional police model draws inspiration from paramilitarism, which entails rank based authority, command and control. The organizational structure in this model is rigid, and incapable of adapting itself to the challenges that arise in a changing environment. Therefore, policing is restricted to a reactive initiative that is incapable of developing and sustaining intimate working relations with the community, in order to control crime (Murray, September 2005. p. 359). However, community policing is a much better option, because it focuses on the prevention of crime. A transition to community policing from operational policing has been fraught with difficulties and pitfalls; because there is a proclivity to promote an action oriented approach, rather than soft policing, which is considered to be the hallmark of community policing (Murray, September 2005. p. 359). The different stages involved in the use of force by the police have been developing over a period of sixty years. These stages are officer presence verbal direction, touch control, empty hand tactics and chemical agents, hand held impact weapons, and lethal force. Police have to implement the use of force reasonably. However, the police authorities are apprehensive that it is not possible to employ these stages in a sequential manner (Peak, 2010. p.119). It has been impressed upon the police that force continuums cannot be described in such simplistic phases. Therefore, the question arises, what is the extent of the force that the police can reasonably or justifiably exert on suspects. Despite the accompaniment of agency policies with such continuums, the latter have invariably proved to be confusing to police personnel (Peak, 2010. p. 119). The community granted extraordinary powers to police officers. Therefore, the latter must be accountable for their actions to the community. There should be a system of investigation to hold officers responsible for their misconduct and abuse of power. Moreover, mechanisms should be enforced that punish misconduct and abuse of power. This is possible, only when there is an adequate and fair complaint process against incidents of abuse of power (ACLU - NJ, 2009). Under the law, police departments must accept public complaints, round the clock. The law requires police departments to receive complaints from the public. In addition, police agencies are also required to accept complaints from anonymous sources, regarding the abuse of power. After the receipt of these complaints, the police agencies must commence the investigation process (ACLU - NJ, 2009). Moreover, the law encourages citizens to resort to the courts if the police department fails to accept or investigate complaints against its officers. Citizens may hesitate to lodge complaints, on account of fear of being victimized by the department. This is the precise cause for the non – reporting of a large number of incidents of misconduct and abuse of power by the police (ACLU - NJ, 2009). To circumvent this undesirable state of affairs, there should be a number of options to file complaints against the police. Of late, the courts have resorted to initiating action against police agencies, whenever there are complaints of serious misconduct of police officers. Consequently, the courts issue consent decrees against the police agencies. However, only a few departments have fulfilled the requirements of law and made their internal affairs accessible to the public (ACLU - NJ, 2009). The law encourages the police to receive complaints from anonymous sources and start make investigations on their basis. Although, the law recognizes that investigating complaints from secret sources is difficult; all the same, it insists that the police investigate such complaints. The reason behind anonymous complaints could be that the reporting individual may wish to remain unidentified, while furnishing information about the misconduct of police officers (ACLU - NJ, 2009). Complaints from anonymous sources are crucial to the internal affairs of police departments. Sometimes, police officers file complaints, anonymously, against the wrongdoing of their colleagues or their higher authorities. Individuals who wish to remain unidentified can lodge such anonymous complaints, against the misconduct of a police officer. The complainant may feel secure, due to anonymity, from being victimized by police officers at a later date (ACLU - NJ, 2009). It was revealed in a survey that citizens face a number of difficulties, while filing complaints about the misconduct or wrongdoings of a police officer, with the police department. To prevent such difficulties, the police departments have to implement citizen friendly complaint procedures. Furthermore, adequate training has to be provided to the officers, so that they receive such complaints and investigate their content (ACLU - NJ, 2009). After making the necessary investigation, these departments must information regarding the action taken against the police personnel, to the complainants. The Attorney General must take the necessary initiatives to implement strategies that render the internal affairs processes accessible to the public. The former must also ensure that public servants work within the limits of established frameworks and legal guidelines. No law enforcement officer should inflict harm on a citizen through the abuse of power bestowed on them by the community (ACLU - NJ, 2009). The decision to pursue vehicles constitutes a major challenge to law enforcement officers. They have to take such decisions quickly and without allowing the suspect to escape. Police officers cannot predict the consequences of vehicular pursuits made by them. Public safety is seriously endangered during pursuit. To mitigate the danger, police officers may at times decide against a pursuit (Vehicular Pusuit, 2001). Such officers should not be condemned for not having engaged in vehicular pursuit. There should be serious consideration of the circumstances that demand the commencement of a pursuit. Police officers should be allowed to take decisions, on the basis of the risk involved and this should be independent of the gravity of the situation (Vehicular Pusuit, 2001). Police officers often engage in the hot pursuit of offenders on highways and at traffic points. These police vehicular pursuits cause accidents to other vehicles or bystanders. Therefore, innocent third parties may receive grievous injuries or may even be killed. There should be restrictive policies to prevent the accidents caused by police vehicular pursuits (Blaricom, 2003). Moreover, police officers should maintain a balance between the safety of innocent people and the apprehension of suspects. It is essential for police authorities to train their officers, in respect of launching pursuits. There should be close monitoring of police officers engaged in pursuits, and the loss of innocent life in vehicular pursuits, is to be condemned universally (Blaricom, 2003). Police officers who adopt this policy, in the larger interests of public safety, should be supported by their higher authorities. The decision of a police officer, regarding the engagement or otherwise of pursuit, should not be subjected to further review. This risk policy protects the safety of the public, as well as the police officers who commence the pursuit (Vehicular Pusuit, 2001). Law enforcement officers should maintain a proper balance between the protection of the innocent life and the enforcement of the law. Such officers face a variety of situations; and they should possess the discretion to engage in vehicular pursuit, while upholding the community risk policy (Vehicular Pusuit, 2001). The police administration has been seized with vehicular pursuits, which frequently involve the use of force by the police. There is considerable risk involved in police pursuits and the litigations ensuing from such activity indicate that the outcome of such pursuit is generally serious or fatal. It is indeed cause for concern that vehicular pursuits result in the death of hundreds of people very year (Peak, 2009. p. 124). A sizeable number of these deaths are those of innocent bystanders or involve minor traffic violations. Whilst strengthening several chase policies of the police, the US Supreme Court has also made the police accountable for its activities. As things stand, the chief executive officer of any law enforcement agency has been held accountable for making certain that proper policies and procedures are in place (Peak, 2009. p. 124). Another illegal activity, commonly employed by the police, is the unnecessary harassment of criminals to extract information. Similarly, making monetary gains by troubling citizens comes under the violation of rights. Police supervisors and managers have to prevent the occurrence of such legal abuse and breach of civil rights of citizens (Peak, 2009. p. 118). It has been observed that police officers are frequently supported by their supervisors, while conducting arrests. These supervisors should monitor the activities of the police officers serving under them and should analyze the decisions of the officers, while arresting citizens. There should be substantial grounds for making an arrest, and not information that had been fabricated. It is essential for police officers to treat all the citizens alike, without any discrimination based on race, gender or social status. Similarly, the arrest procedures should not be discriminatory (Peak, 2009. p. 118). The unjustifiable and inexplicable behavior of the police had caused untold harm to even unarmed citizens. Whether the country is a developed nation or a developing state; there has been a proliferation of unjustified searches, illegal detentions, physical abuse, dishonesty and the unwarranted use of force that had fatal consequences. There is significant discrimination against the minorities in the US. For instance, vehicles driven by blacks are stopped to a greater extent that those driven by other communities. Moreover, blacks are arrested and sentenced at a much greater frequency than other ethnic groups in the US (Schweizer). The extent of physical abuse by the police against the minorities resulted in the enactment of the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act. With this piece of legislation, the Attorney General of the US was mandated to annually publish details regarding the use of excessive force by the police (Schweizer). The civil rights of the citizens are routinely abused by the police in the US. Some of the reasons are the absence of accountability, insufficient screening and training of police and the reluctance of police officers to provide evidence against their colleagues (Schweizer). It has been recommended that police abuse can be reduced significantly, by implementing a system of civilian review of complaints lodged against police personnel, better civilian control over the police and employing police officers after performing a more thorough scrutiny (Schweizer). Working in shifts, overtime and at night are indispensable for the police force. Various studies have shown that if prescribed schedules are not adhered to and if job related stress is not dealt with appropriately; then working in shifts results in insufficient sleep, increased inactivity and fatigue. There is general agreement that persistent stress, results in mistakes and leads to injuries and accidents. The fundamental duty of the police is to ensure public safety. Ensuring public safety is an onerous task. The effective safeguarding of public safety does not entail the travesty of civil liberties. It is incumbent upon police agencies to respect the rights of individuals, in the process of enforcing the law. Police personnel should be rendered accountable for their actions, to the community. In addition, policies and systems that make police officers responsible for their actions should be implemented, especially when there are allegations of misconduct by these officers. It is the responsibility of law enforcement agencies to protect the rights of individuals. It is also their duty to prevent any violation of those rights. The community provides power to law enforcement agencies, and the latter are accountable to the community. The community review system monitors and analyses police conduct. This system has been implemented by some of the cities. This review system assesses law enforcement and deals with complaints against law enforcement agencies. Maintenance of the peace and security of the community entails the balancing of the welfare of the police and the rights of citizens. Despite enjoying certain additional powers, a police officer is also a member of the community. No police officer should exceed the powers bestowed upon him by the law, and at the same time he should not behave in a manner that compromises his safety. List of References ACLU - NJ. (2009, June). The Crisis Inside Police Internal Affairs. Retrieved September 30, 2009, from A Report of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersy: http://www.aclu-nj.org/downloads/060409IA2.pdf Bell, J. (2004). Policing Hatred: Law Enforcement, Civil Rights, and Hate Crime. NYU Press, ISBN 0814798985, 9780814798980. Blaricom, D. V. (2003). Control of Police Vehicular Pursuit. Retrieved September 30, 2009, from http://www.policedriving.com/article44.htm Caruso, K. (n.d.). Suicide by Cop. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from Suicide.org: http://www.suicide.org/suicide-by-cop.html Conner, M. (2007, January 17). Suicide By Cop. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from http://www.oregoncounseling.org/ArticlesPapers/Documents/SuicideByCop.htm Cross, C. L., & Ashley, L. (October 2004). Police Trauma and Addiction. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin , Vol. 73, Issue 10, pp. 24 – 32. Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.). Color of Law. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/civilrights/color.htm Gudjonsson, G. H., Sigurdsson, J. F., Asgeirsdottir, B. B., & Sigfusdottir, I. D. (June 2007. p. 274). Custodial interrogation: What are the background factors associated with claims of false confession to police? Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology , Vol. 18, Issue 2, pp. 266 – 275. Johnson, K. (2009, January 7). ER survey finds suspected police abuse. Murray, J. (September 2005). Policing Terrorism: A Threat to Community Policing or Just a Shift in Priorities? Police Practice & Research , Vol. 6, Issue 4, pp. 347 – 361. Peak, K. J. (2009). Justice administration: Police, courts and corrections management. Prentice Hall. Schweizer, H. O. (n.d.). Police Abuse: A Pathological Response to Fighting a War They Did Not Start and Cannot Win. Retrieved October 1, 2009, from police studies: http://www.police-studies.com/papers/abuse.pdf Vehicular Pusuit. (2001). Retrieved September 30, 2009, from New Jersey Police Vehicular Pursuit Policy: http://www.state.nj.us/lps/dcj/agguide/vehpurs_2001.pdf Read More