Ethical Approaches of the Police and Human Rights Act - Essay Example

Impact of Human Rights Act of 1998 on Police Decision Making Policing approaches have faced many challenges as to the conduction of their services according to certain values held by their own department and the communities in which they operate. The Human Rights Act of 1998 brought the European convention on human rights under the law of the UK, making it unlawful for an authority to act in ways that violate any of the rights granted by the convention (Warwickshire Police Force 2014, n.pag.). In this case, the police officers count under the public authority because of their role involved in the service of the public. Thus, this Act places liability on the police officers to act in responsible ways that are consistent with the Convention rights as they now have a legal obligation to do so. The Act guides the police force in following certain fundamental human rights while performing their duties and also provides a foundation for a human rights approach to policing. Hence, following the Human Rights Act of 1998, many changes in policing have been made that lend themselves to the development of a humanitarian approach to policing. This paper will examine the operations of the police force before and after the establishment of the Human Rights Act 1998 and will also consider certain law cases. After the enactment of the Human Rights Act of 1998 and its subsequent incorporation into the UK law, the Act has been made part of the police force at organizational level and as part of the daily practices of the police (Bullock and Johnson 2011). Several articles of the act deal with the rights of the criminal who possesses the right to fair hearing and protection from punishment (Lee 2012, p. 3). Among many others, the prominent rights also include respect for one’s private life, freedom of association, and freedom from any discriminatory acts (UK Legislation 2014, n.pag.). While the Human Rights Act impacted policing and their attitude towards criminals, according to the Department for Constitutional Affairs (2006), the Act did not impact the police force’s ability to counter crimes or the criminal law of UK (p. 1). The only legal change has been in the legislation for counter terrorism laws that present challenges associated with the Court rather than the Act itself. However, the Act is important when considering the human rights approach employed by the police force as part of their duties. Several notable cases including the Osman v UK case, although controversial before the European Court of Human Rights, have had important implications on policing. The Osman case which dealt with life, safety, and protection subsequently involved with the murder of Mr Ali Osman after having security threats from Paget-Lewis provided several applicatory practices for the police force working on similar cases. According to a report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (2009, p. 29), the case had a lasting impact on policing and how culture acts is incorporated into safety and the protection of citizen’s lives. While there indeed has been a significant change since the incorporation of the Human Rights Act of 1998 into the UK law, there has been little change in terms of criminal laws or the practice of the ‘rights’ provided by the Act. Apparently, several articles of the Act lay out the rights and liberties of the citizens however Bullock and Johnson (2011) have argued that the Act has been more of a theoretical work rather than a practical one as demonstrated by the passive consideration of human rights. In their paper, they have argued that the Act has been institutionalized into the police department and rather than having the intended effect, that is the welfare of the citizens, it has resulted in mere conformance to the laws than respect for human rights. Among the many approaches outlined by the United Nations (2002, p. 3), there is an approach that focuses on sensitizing the training police officers however not to violent behavior. This, to some extent, shows that being sensitized is central to a police officer’s job. Contrary to this, however, the findings presented by Bullock and Johnson (2011) show little evidence of police officers showing respect for human rights. While the Act has been established to provide more rights and freedom to the citizens of UK, the reality seems to speak against the notion of having fundamental liberties. The Malone v UK case is also a notable case pertaining to the breach of the right of Mr Malone under Article 8 whereby the government departments have been alleged as having tapped and “metered” Mr Malone’s phone lines (Sixth Form Law 2008, n.pag.). The case also presented an ethical dilemma for the police force and the court of human rights as it involved the interception of phone conversations of suspects involved in allegedly criminal activities. The result was a dismissal of the plaintiff, Mr Malone’s case with the cost (“The Malone Case” 1999). Nevertheless, the case provided a useful insight into how policing may involve the breach of some rights given by the Human Rights Act 1998 although the police force has the legal obligation to obey the Act. The case also showed how the police force itself faces a dilemma where the ability to intercept a suspected criminal or activity may breach certain human rights. Hence, the Human Rights Act 1998 has provided a basis for a humanitarian approach to policing and while the Act has granted several freedoms to the citizens, some of the debatable cases present a challenge for the applicability of the Act. Ethical policing is another approach to policing where the acts and practices of the police force is guided by a code of ethics that provides a framework for their duties and responsibilities. The College of Policing (2013) is one institution involved in developing accepted standard of policing behaviors that do not surpass the expected behaviors. However, it is also important to note that the development of an ethical declaration or the implementation of a code of ethics does not necessarily make anyone good or bad. Thus, there is a need to closely consider the different approaches as well the situations to provide a composite approach to policing. Bibliography 1. Bullock, K. and Johnson, P. 2011. The impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on policing in England and Wales. British Journal of Criminology, 52 (3), pp. 630-650. 2. College of Policing. 2013. College of Policing: Code of Ethics. [online] Available at: http://www.college.police.uk/en/20972.htm [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 3. Department For Constitutional Affairs. 2006. Review of the Implementation of the Human Rights Act. [e-book] http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http:/www.dca.gov.uk/peoples-rights/human-rights/pdf/full_review.pdf [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 4. Equality And Human Rights Commision. 2009. Evaluating the impact of selected cases under the Human Rights Act on public services provision. [e-book] http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/uploaded_files/evaluating_the_impact_of_selected_cases_under_the_human_rights_act_on_public_services_provision.pdf [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 5. Lee, A. 2012. The Benefits of a Human Rights Approach to Policing. [e-book] http://www.hrla.org.uk/Human%20Rights%20Act%20and%20Policing_Presentation%20given%20on%2023%20April%202012.pdf [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 6. Sixth Form Law. 2008. Malone v UK. [online] Available at: http://sixthformlaw.info/06_misc/cases/malone_v_uk.htm [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 7. The Law Reports. 1999. The Malone Case. [online] Available at: http://www.leeds.ac.uk/law/hamlyn/malone-case.htm [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 8. UK Legislation. 2014. Human Rights Act 1998. [online] Available at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/42/contents [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 9. United Nations. 2002. [e-book] Human Rights and Law Enforcement. Geneva: United Nations. http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/training5Add2en.pdf [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. 10. Warwickshire Police Force. 2014. Warwickshire Police Force - Human Rights Act. [online] Available at: http://www.warwickshire.police.uk/EDHRfolder/Policingourcommunities/HumanRightsActfolder [Accessed: 18 Mar 2014]. Read More