Significant Changes in Police Role - Research Paper Example

Introduction 21st Century brought with it new changes and challenges in almost every area of life including businesses, governance, policing etc. Theway things use to happen and organizations being run in 20th century have completely changed during the first decade of this new century. Issues like international terrorism have become burning issues for the Police. The old model of policing has changed and the way the role of Police was perceived has changed too. Access to information, the changes in the way Police responded to the new situation, the pre-emptive strikes, immigration etc are some of the key issues which have created significant challenges for the police and other authorities. 9/11 was one of the events which changed many things and virtually shifted the existing paradigm for the security and policing methods. It not only exposed the vulnerabilities of the existing security and policing procedures but also provided an opportunity to look into the better ways to manage the risk and threat posed to the society by the negative elements. It is therefore critical to understand that the challenges and opportunities available to Police are unique in nature and need to be viewed from the perspective of the changes which have taken place since 9/11. The policing model and the resulting changes therefore need to be discussed in order to fully understand the practical origins of the challenges faced by the police during 21st century. This paper will therefore make an attempt to discuss the challenges faced by Police during 21st century while discussing the difference between the challenges faced by the Police in past. The Role of Police The original duty or the mission of Police, as outlined by Sir Robert Peel, is to prevent crime and disorder however, the overall sensitivity and the responsibilities of Policies have radically changed in the wake of current situation. The founder of modern model for Policing, Sir Robert Peel outlined the basic duty of police to ensure the safety of the general public and the preservation of peace within an increasingly pluralist society The police’s role is now not just limited to the prevention of crime at the community level however, it now also entails a broader scope for activities which are considered as essential for controlling and preventing terrorist activities. The traditional community policing model was based on gaining and developing the trust within the public to achieve the overall aim of public safety. This model therefore required a closer link with the community to continuously look for information and intelligence which cannot help to prevent the crime but also allow the police to track down those who committed the crimes. (Bayley and Shearing) The shift towards intelligence led policing from the traditional investigative and reactive policing approach and than to the more pro-active military like policing model has been due to the changing nature of crime. As mentioned above that with the war on terrorism and the change in the way society face internal and external threats, the role of policing and the approaches of policing have changed. The above changes in the way society now perceives the role of Police and other law enforcement agencies therefore suggest that Police may face significant challenges during 21st Century. Counter-terrorism One of the most important challenges to be faced by the Police during 21st century is the counter- terrorism and anti-terrorism. The events of 9/11 have changed the way security was generally perceived by the societies. The increasing threat to the life and property of innocent citizens and the State itself therefore necessitated that the traditional role of Police should change. Earlier the significant challenge faced by the Police was to keep the criminals in check while ensuring that the general environment of peace and harmony exists in society. However, the anti-terrorism has forced police to face the significant challenge of meeting the new requirements. (Cooley) Terrorism has emerged as a phenomenon where spotting the terrorists and preventing from conducting activities is relatively difficult. In order to overcome such deficiencies, it is important that police must use methods which can allow it to become more pro-active in nature. It is important to note that in the wake of this shift, Police has now adapted intelligence led policing model which also corresponds with the way military use to operate. This required that Police take pre-emptive actions and become more sophisticated and skilled in nature. The shift towards the intelligence led policing also posed a significant challenge for the Police to become effective part of the community. (Hodgson and Orban). Being part of the community may allow the Police to effectively extract the required information and become more effective in controlling the crime as well prevent it. Traditionally police did not maintain the closer ties with the society in order to prevent crimes and terrorist activities. However, the recent incidents required police to become pro-active in its liaison with the free society in order to ensure that valuable and meaningful information is extracted which could help to prevent the crime and safeguard the lives and properties of the individuals. Use of technology Though law enforcement agencies used the technology in order to control and prevent the crime however, the latest developments in technology have allowed Police to become more effective. Earlier police used the technology not to such a great extent however, the extensive use of CCTVs, monitoring through internet, mobile phone communication tracking are some of the new ways in which Police now need to operate. The extensive and skilled use of technology however, requires that the Police and its administration must be able to develop an effective human resource base which could use and implement new technologies in order to become more effective. This also means that the continuous training and development of the human resource base of the police should be a significant challenge. (Glenn). Keeping pace with the changes in the technology through adaptation of new technology as well as training and developing the police officers to use such new technology effectively therefore will be one of the priorities of the police. Diversity and Minority Affairs International cities have become multi-ethnic in nature owing to the fact people migrating from different cultures and countries have now become part of the cultures prevailing in large cities. As such immigrants and their children have also gained the citizenship rights to live in these countries with equal rights. It has been however, become a challenge for the police to ensure that it is represented by every community in order to ensure that the elements of biasness is reduced. It has been particularly critical in UK and US where it is believed that Police and other law enforcement agencies particularly target some communities in terms of terrorism as well as other crimes. Such aspects of dealing therefore can politicize the role of police and as such it can become a significant challenge for the Police to create an impression of impartiality and unbiasness. (Dempsey and Forst) Another related issue is the representation of the minorities within the police force itself to ensure that the police as an organization are well represented. Labeling theory outlines that individuals belonging to certain communities can become criminals without a conscious effort on their part. As such it therefore becomes important for the Police force to ensure that it has the representation of different communities so that the real reasons behind the crime could be understood. This is relatively new challenge as historically police has remained focused on hiring from single community whereas the current challenges require that diversity in the work force should be on the priority list. Community Policing Community Policing is considered as a new phenomenon and most of the Police organizations in Western countries are following this model. This is a new phenomenon and has not yet fully evolved thus making it more difficult for the Police to fully adapt it. (Miller, Hess and Orthmann). As the name suggests, community policing requires an effective coordination and communication between communities as well as the Police therefore it is important that police must develop its capabilities to better coordinate. It is also critical that in order to maintain order and security, Police should be able to spot and highlight those elements from within the society which can actually help police to become effective in their effort for bringing in order and security. To make public safety a community responsibility it is therefore important that Police should take up community policing from a holistic view. (Palmiotto) Organizational Structure Historically, the structure of police as an organization has been based on the command and control system. This system is based on paramilitary nature of organization which requires that a definite command and control system is in place. This traditional view therefore made police organization as a centrally controlled organization with unity of command. Such organizations however, are viewed as organizations which are not willing to bring in a change and wish to maintain a sort of status quo in both the internal as well as external environment of the organization. Historically, the policing model has been based on these assumptions and therefore all subsequent organization was made to comply with this model. Today’s environment however, is a relatively different and more volatile environment requiring that the organizations become learning in nature. (Osborne and Gaebler). Such aspect of the organizations therefore requires that police, as an organization also may face a significant challenge of organizing itself on new footings. This would mean that new set of organizational changes need to be introduced in order to make Police as a learning and adaptable organization which works according to the current environment. Meeting the expectations of the current environment therefore can become a significant challenge for the police to meet. This would also require that new hiring methods as well as new operational details have to be formulated in order to ensure that police as an organization can also equip itself with the new changes. Conclusion One of the significant challenges to be faced by the police in 21st century is to effectively respond to the terrorism. In order to do this, police has to develop its capabilities to use technology for maximum use. Managing diversity will be another important and significant challenge for the police to tackle as diversity within organization as well as police’s treatment of different communities can become important. It is also critical to note that community policing can also evolve as an important challenge because Police will be required to work with the community more effectively. This would mean becoming more pro-active in managing police’s relationship with any community in which it is willing to work. Bibliography Bayley, , David H and , Clifford D Shearing. "The Future of Policing." Law and Society Review 30.3 (1996): 6-15. Cooley, Dennis. Re-imagining policing in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2005. Dempsey, John S. and Linda S. Forst. An Introduction to Policing. London: Cengage Learning, 2007. Glenn, Russell W. Training the 21st century police officer:redefining police professionalism for the Los Angeles Police Department, Issue 1745. Washington: Rand Corporation, 2003. Hodgson, James Fredrick and Catherine Orban. Public policing in the 21st century:issues and dilemmas in the U.S. and Canada. New York: Criminal Justice Press, 2005. Miller, Linda S., Kären M. Hess and Christine Hess Orthmann. Community Policing :Partnerships for Problem Solving. London: Cengage Learning, 2010. Osborne, David and Ted Gaebler. Reinventing Government: How the Entrepreneurial Spirit is Transforming the Public Sector,. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co, 1992. Palmiotto, Michael. Community policing:a policing strategy for the 21st century. New York: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2000. Read More