Police Corruption and Its Prevention - Essay Example

Police Corruption Corruption can be defined as lack of honesty and integrity. Corruption is directly susceptible to bribery and usually individuals use their positions for dishonest gains. Corruption is a worldwide problem and effects many countries from the east and west. Corruption serves as a source of easy money and it is a virus for all the working individuals. This virus has affected the police force also and is ruining their capability to work efficiently. Corruption has led the police force to the abuse of their authority. They tend to misuse their power for wrongful acts such as extortion, bribery and theft. Many studies and researches have been conducted to get to the root of this problem. Studies have revealed that poverty, illiteracy, greed and poor management are the leading causes of poverty. It is human nature to desire for more than what you have already. Hence to fight corruption, there is a need to fight self-desires. Solutions to fight corruptions include good management, formation of anti-corruption laws, abidance of the laws and police officers can be given rewards for good work. The best solution is to give guidance and encouragement to police officers. They need to understand that they have been given a respectable authority in the society and they should use it for good purposes, and not misuse it. They should understand that the law is equal for everyone. Police Corruption Corruption is a leading problem which has affected the efficacy of the police force. It is a nationwide issue that has been going on for years. It is not only a problem prevalent on the American soil but it is a problem which affects many countries across the globe. Corruption causes officers to sway from their path of honesty. Corrupt officers tend to abuse their power and rights for wrongful acts and they tend to put their selfish needs above serving people. It is important to understand that corruption in the police forces is not an individual sin. It is teamwork. It involves junior and senior officers. Hence, blaming an individual for corruption is a mistake. This issue can be dealt with easily with suppressive measures if the core problem is found (Punch, 2000). The core defect lies in the police organization itself. A reality check for the police organization is that the recurring hazards and misconducts occurring are due to the leaks in the police’s system itself. Effective measure can be taken to eradicate these flaws. This would include measures that would provoke integrity and honesty into the police officers. Measures that can be taken to avoid corruption are strict leadership, well organized strategies, and fully resourced internal plans, active techniques of investigations and lastly a check and balance on the standard of work. It is also essential for the police officers to understand the difference between good and bad. They need to distinguish between negative and positive acts. Police officers need to be taught in training that they serve as a lifeline for the community, and it is necessary for them to build a bridge of trust with the people. Corruption and other forms of dishonesty undermine the authenticity of the law. A clean and honest police officer is a sign that the community is a good place to live (Punch, 2000). Since the advent of law the criminal is always punished and questioned. The police force is never questioned on the increase of police crimes. The police officers are not ordered to abide the law. People of a society are forced to think that the police who swear to live by the law will enforce it on themselves too, but this is a faux. A certain check is required to enforce the fact that the torch bearers of law and justice should also live by the law themselves. The consequences arise when there is no check on these controllers of law. The biggest issue is as to who will control these controllers. This is a critical issue which the police have faced for a long time. In the past even if the police were questioned on the increasing corruption and on breaking the law, they would lie about it. The police officers forge the investigations going on against them or they would cover the true facts. This attitude of the police causes a further downfall of their efficacy (Punch, 2000). The extent to which corruption affects the infrastructure is very severe. Evidence leads to the conclusion that the preventive measures against corruption are weak in nature. Due to these weak measures corruption has slowly crept into the police’s system. A weak check and balance also points out the small corruptions rather than the grand corruptions. Hence it is necessary to carry out regular surveys which would point out where the actual glitch lies. Surveys should be taken in various countries so the problems can be understood on a vast scale. Bribes are the core reason for the initiation of corruption hence it is important for every country to strengthen their infrastructure. A strong infrastructure will lead to a strong and honest police force (Kenny, 2009). Various models have also been set forward by writers that explain the reasons of corruption in the police force. Becker’s model of crime explains the collusion between a police officer and a criminal at the expense of police department (Bowles and Garoupa 1997). Weakening of the power leads to an increase in corruption. The failure of the models point out that the casual and easy going behavior of police officers has led to the increase in corruption. The easy flowing behavior of the police officers has allowed corruption and dishonesty to enter the police system. With passing time the topic of police corruption is gaining popularity. The freedom of the media has led to this topic being a topic of discussion. The media has brought this topic in front of the eyes of the people. Now the surveys that are conducted lead to the conclusion that police officers are corrupt and dishonest. People of the society do not trust the police force after the reports on increasing corruption in their ranks. Every day the newspapers are filled with news about police officers being involved in various wrongful acts. Officers make easy money by getting involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking, kidnappings, car hijacking, business scams and theft. The officers aid the criminals and earn large amounts of money in return. With this attitude of the police people of the society have become firm believers that police force is filled with corrupt individuals who are dishonest. They misuse their powers to aid criminals and to fill their pockets with black money (Sayed and Bruce 1998). Some leverage should be given to the honest police officers who are being labelled dishonest to the acts of corrupt officers. People also need to differentiate between what acts can be labelled corrupt and which cannot. People need to clear the vagueness and confusion that misconduct done by police officers is not always a sign of corruption. A minor act of negligence by an officer cannot be labelled as corruption or dishonesty. Furthermore bad behavior and incompetence cannot be called corruption. Hence it is a must to understand the difference between honesty and dishonesty (Sayed and Bruce 1998). Corruption may include abuse of power. It may include misuse of authority leading to acts of corruption. Committing an act of crime under the shadow of law is labelled as corruption but on the other hand using the law for insignificant private gain is not corruption. Usually when the police force is brought under scrutiny, to avoid further problems and disgrace they sway the investigations being conducted. These steps need to be eradicated to avoid further problems. If this is not done the flaws of the police force will definitely surface and this will lead to the people not believing in the policing system (Perry, 2001). Corruption can serve to be addictive. Once an individual gets used to it they tend to do acts of corruption on regular basis. It is important to understand the reasons behind corruption and dishonesty. The biggest cause leading to corruption is poverty. Poverty is a disease, and it plays with the minds of people. Needs lead to corruption of an individual. Greed makes people do weird things, and one of those many things is dishonesty. Police officers forget their sole purpose of serving the community due to addiction of black money (Perry, 2001). Illiteracy also leads to police officers committing acts of corruption. In many African countries education is not a must for an individual to get a job in the police force. An illiterate person does not understand their true obligation towards their job. Due to this they take their occupation for granted and to engage in criminal acts or aid criminals. Greediness is also an attribute which is leading to the downfall of the police force. The officers are not happy with what they have. They want more and more. This bad behavior is hitting the police force strongly and is a reason people do not trust the capability of the police force. Lastly, the biggest problem leading to corruption in the police force is weak management. A weak leader who does not have control of their subordinates will be a cause of corruption. The lack of anti-corruptions laws also lead to increase in acts of corruption within a department. A strong management will eradicate these problems (Perry, 2001). Solutions and preventive measures should be taken to eliminate these temporary problems. The police department can be corruption free with the aid of a few measures. Firstly, anti-corruption laws and corruption control units should be formed. It should be must for the officers to abide the laws. Also officers can be given assignment moves, in which they are assigned to move from areas where corruption is a risk. Higher authorities should also set rewards for those officers who perform their duties honestly and faithfully. This might act as a ray of hope for the officers who are at risk of being involved in corruption. The most preventive measure is an encouraging talk with the officers. It should be explained to them they are posted on a highly respectable position and the condition of the society is dependent on their attitude. They should be encouraged to set a high standard of living by leading a noble profession (Perry, 2001). References Bowles, R., & Garoupa, N. (1997). Casual police corruption and the economics of crime. International Review of Law and Economics, 17, 1, 75-87. Kenny, C. (2009). Measuring corruption in infrastructure: Evidence from transition and developing countries. Journal of Development Studies, 45, 3, 314-332 Perry, F. L. (2001). Repairing Broken Windows: Preventing Corruption Within Our Ranks. Fbi Law Enforcement Bulletin, 70, 2. Punch, M. (2000). Police Corruption and its Prevention. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 8, 3, 301-324. Sayed, T., & Bruce, D. (1998). Police Corruption: Towards a Working Definition. African Security Review, 7, 1, 3-14. Read More