Historical Milestones of American Policing - Essay Example

History of American Policing Many people have never come to wonder about the where policing started. To be more specific, in the United s of America, the start of policing came forth from the English settlers who tried to enforce authority over the people. But it wasn’t quite long before the real Americans tried to change it because it wasn’t so appropriate to the environment of the land where it is being enforced (Morris, 1999, page xxxi-xxxvi). In 1801, it was the city of Boston who acknowledged paying watchmen to do patrolling from 10:00pm until the next day, specifically sunrise and that was paid for fifty cents per evening. The city of Detroit in the same year decided to have the first group of civilian people to be already considered as officers. Then finally in 1804, there was already the existence of mobile patrol to be used by the officers (Morris, 1999, page xxxi-xxxvi). It was in the year 1844 when in New York, the first police department was modeled together with Peel law officials. These American watchmen were expected to roam around the city as silent as they could and they had to stand up straight and listen to intently. They were also required to guard the weather conditions along with the street lamps. Each time they had to do their job, they had to say the statement “The police department and the police force, has the power and it is their duty at all times of the day and night to protect the life and property, prevent crime, detect and arrest offenders, and preserve the public peace and enforce all laws, ordinances and provisions of the administrative code over which the police department has jurisdiction.” This is the start of their oath of protection for the people of America (Morris, 1999, page xxxi-xxxvi). But aside from the short summary of how policing came to America, as stated above, there are still a lot of happenings that should be considered as one tries to study the existence of police officers, the department and their duty to people. Little details must also be considered as part of its history. One of these important information that needs to be acknowledged is the office of the sheriff being very ancient. The history of the office can be related to the institution of the king’s reeves whose main purpose is to guard over the king’s possessions and even interests in the nineteenth century. At the end of the century, the guard has already owned or acquired for himself power for judgment and finances. For the same reason, his position got elevated to being a shire and no longer just an official of the town. He was also called the shire-reeve. After the Anglo-Saxon period, he became the head of the shire which brought forth the coming of a higher position exactly after the Norman Conquest (Morris, 1999, page xxxi-xxxvi). Bearing the responsibility for financial and judicial protection, what became a threat was the personal influence of the known landowners who themselves are the sheriffs. It was added by the numerous oppressions to the King’s subjects. During that time, abuse of power became visible already. It should be remembered that the original purpose of the shire-reeves’ existence is to protect the interest of the king. The struggle to stop the early form of corruption was long, it even took centuries to do such. The goal of the struggle was mainly to stop if not to lessen the said corruption (Morris, 1999, page xxxi-xxxvi). It is not a wonder why abuse of power became visible for these first police. More than just bearing the responsibility of maintaining peace and stopping disorder, hew was also tasked to head the military forces of the shire. This happened during the office of the lord lieutenant’s development during the 16th century. At that time, the things that they do were already like what they presently do in the cities. They receive writs, summon the juries, and execute judgments, which made a big deal out of his position (History of Policing 2001). While in America, by the time the office of the sheriff was introduced, it was part of the county organization. Sheriffs were appointed usually by the governor and during the year 1705, the office in Pennsylvania became elective. Soon after, many states did the same process for getting the officers into the position. There is also the known constitution of 1954 which is about the increasing of term of the Sheriffs making it a total of four years of service. Prior to this, it was only two years. The Sheriff’s responsibility usually covers the county with less than 10,000 people (History of Policing 2001). Cynthia Morris and Bryan Villa (1999) in their book “The Role of Police in American Society: A Documentary History,” said that social, political, economic, demographic, philosophical and ideological changes already happened in North America, that was before US was identified to be a separate country. It was the time when the common trend was the thing known as English exploration. They added that almost ten percent of England’s population flew to the US to settle. Those who tried to settle in the US were “driven” by beliefs like the Protestant Reformation. It can be remembered that part of US history is the original dominance of pain, Portugal and France and the advantage of the English way of settling is that they usually send the whole of the family to the land they plan to settle like a form of reservation. In this way, they don’t have to be pressured of the growing population. Not long before the eastern seaboard was dominated in the middle of 1700s. With the English’s dominance over the place, policing institutions became the next of the agenda. Moving on, the eighteenth century families or colonies were like clouds that spread so fast. Pennsylvania for example had a big population of 80,000 from the original 4,000 counting sixty years. It didn’t stop growing though. Morris and Vila stretched out that the size of the colonies was doubling in every twenty five years. This can be blamed to a high birth rates and low mortality. In addition to this, many people kept coming to America as well (Morris, 1999, page 2). The patterns of immigration also changed from the year 1700 and 1755. They never stopped coming and the one thing that affected the population that made a great difference was that many of the immigrants were poor, beggars and even convicts. These people mostly were Scottish, Irish, slaves from Africa or German refugees. They were not like the ordinary English men who belonged to the working or middle class (Morris, 1999, page 2). It was the time when crimes like robbery, rape, murder and burglary spread like disease. Unlike the contemporary American society, crime was lesser and that perhaps was due to the big hold on the idea of religiousness and the settlement or colonies were small. That somehow provided a sort of control to the different setters. Like what was expected, as the population grew, and as people became less isolated, the problem of controlling crimes got worse. In the year 1630’s, there was also the danger from the threats of the Indians and unlawful activities in the seacoast areas. The presence of foreign enemies came to its existence as well. Having such problems, many people decided to create or start creating and implementing laws to protect their place, their lives and their belongings (Morris, 1999, page 2). The so-called villages like Boston, New York, Charles Town and Philadelphia had included during the middle of seventeenth century the articles containing provisions that would give people night watchers and constables who are expected to maintain peace and order, safety of the masses, and to finally, will keep the law at hand. In other counties, those that were larger and had more people, they appointed sheriffs by the power of the governors. The pattern of governing was followed to what was mentioned a while ago as English shire-reeves because they were the ones tasked to collect taxes, follow up legal issues, and catch criminals (Morris, 1999, page 3). The version of England’s shire-reeves in the United States was “constables”. Their service was usually free and they were described to be the untrained officials who were elected to do the duty of keeping the place safe and peaceful. Aside from doing night watch, they also provide punishments to the criminals who did unlawful acts. And unlike the modern age, these constables were not benefiting from getting such duties. Since most of them were tradesmen, their businesses got affected because the task given to them was time-consuming and sometimes, they also had to spend their own money to do their duties. They even got hurt while making arrests. All these negative effects brought about the giving of a minimal incentive given to the constables. This situation if it will be compared to the present is very much the opposite. Right now, what is associated with the policemen is not just power but also wealth (Morris, 1999, page 4). But then again, these constables were identified as the chief of the colonial law enforcement in the eighteenth century. Since the tendency of the population is to grow, the need for bigger number of constables also grew. But who would ant to work in a low-paying job that could even cause one’s life? This became the problem during that time. There was a hard time looking for good individuals who would engage themselves in the dangerous job at a low price. Because of these, people with personal agenda came into the scene. They worked as constables with a plan of gaining from the position’s advantages. The also use the position to earn money. The name of a constable became unattractive to many therefore there came a decline of the kind of lives being lived by many of the people. The increase of crimes continued and the night watchers became drunkards who ignored their responsibilities for the people (Morris, 1999, page 4). The business with problems of the northern area became different with that of the South. The people from the south managed to have an economy that relied on intensive human labor such as planting of crops, sugar, rice and tobacco. The product and the labor were both cheap therefore workers who were mostly slaves also had to endure the consequences. The population of slaves grew because of the need to maintain big areas of plantation. In the year 1740s, the population of South Carolina was composed of mostly slaves. In reaction to this growth, the whites had the idea of the possibility of revolt. Then came the 19th century where the big cities were able to device a way to control the population of the workers. There came the term they called “slave patrols,” the police version during that time in the South (Morris, 1999, page 4). The slave patrols and the sheriffs were not the only existing form of rural police that controlled the bad guys of the South colonies. Since the government was not able to protect some citizens in the big areas or cities, a group of citizens was formed to enforce the law. They were called the “Regulators.” They were the ones who run after the lawless creatures that had been destroying the peace and order in South Carolina. It wasn’t long before the group or the Regulators separated and again, the criminals went amok again. And since the Regulators were gone, another group arose from the messed up rural areas. It was called the Moderators. More than just stopping crime, the Moderators also had the purpose of controlling the bad dealings made by some of the Regulators while they were reigning. These basically were the movements of the so-called policing in the United States. In many parts of the country, the same reasons, such as preventing crimes and promoting peace were the cause of creating an authority or the police, constables, night watchers etc. “The first and perhaps most famous, night watch in America was established in Boston on April 12, 1631. Initially a military guard consisting of an officer and six men, it was changed on February 27, 1636, to a citizen-staffed watch in which every able-bodied man of the town was required to take a turn or hire a substitute. For many years the Boston night watch was maintained during the summer months only, but in 1653 the town leaders hired a "bellman" to make the rounds at night during the winter months. Other colonial towns soon established night watches of their own. For example, in 1652 the Dutch town of Nieuw Amsterdam (New York) created a citizens "rattel wacht," in which citizens assigned to specific watch posts would use rattles to communicate with each other and summon assistance if needed (The Role of Police in American Society: A Documentary History 1999, page 6).” This only tells us that each county, each place or area along with its people has its way to curb crimes on its own. It may be temporary but still the idea is that an authority will always try to come out of a group to initiate such effort. Most of the times, it can be found in the identity of our police officers. Let’s also try to have one place in the United States as an example. The City of Gainesville for example which was incorporated in on April 15, 1869 had its name in honor of General Edmund Pandleton Gaines can be said to have a military history along with its police department. We can take this as an example because the police department’s history was quite fascinating as it started with just 3 members including the Chief. It was only in 1908 when this department purchased its first police car that was a model T. Ford. Not bad for a beginner. In 1928, the first uniform came to existence as initiated by Chief Edward D. Vestel. He was also the same person who started the first filing system on all the individuals being arrested. The year 1935 was another good year because the said department had built its first radio transmitter headed by Chief W.B. Cahoon. During that time, they already have 10 officers (Gainesville Police Department 1910-1920). The headquarters of the Gainesville Police Department only had a few rooms which was located in a basement of an old City Hall which after many years was relocated in 721 NW 6th Street. Along with this improvement, they were also able to buy new cars and even motorcycles. One of the years that should be remembered was the year 1970 when it accepted woman police in its department. She was employed under the time of Chief Joiner who was not only the distinguished leading police officer of the Department but also the longest-serving officer who stayed in the department for 25 years (Gainesville Police Department 1910-1920). The start of community-oriented service began in 1985 headed by Chief Wayland Clifton Jr. It means that these men not only focused on fighting with criminals but also with helping the communities in their ways and means to survive. Soon, their duties were getting bigger when the fire dispatch responsibility was also given to them. As expected, it somehow decreased the immediacy response of 911. With the robust leadership of Chief Clifton, the Gainesvill Police Department had employed 240 officers in his period of service. He was then recognized in 1993 as the main recipient of Weabber Seavey Award. That was also due to the crime prevention ways which other police department adopted for their crime prevention measures as well (Gainesville Police Department 1910-1920). American policing and its history is just short and simple. It is mainly the fruit of Americans’ effort to curb crimes in different places. It existed long way back and until now it can be said to be developing. The past and the present kind of policing are not so different. They both are needed in the community, and yes, American police officers and their service to its people whether in the past or present, it will always be as noble as the hearts of the officers who serve each individual. Below is an excerpt from the book by Harlan Hahn and Judson L. Jeffries entitled “Urban America and Its Police: From the Postcolonial Era through the Turbulent 1960s,” a simple message that would exactly describe American police and their job in the US. “In the investigation of major crimes, the police sometimes faced an unusual dilemma. Law enforcements prospects of apprehending criminals often depended upon the reports and cooperation of witnesses or victims. Yet the police were taught to assume a posture of suspicion toward and to maintain their distance from all persons. Police officers traditionally regarded themselves “the thin blue line” separating civilized groups from unruly elements that threatened to devastate society. In their everyday routines, however, they were not always in opposition to the general public; nor did they occupy a position exclusively on the other side. A panoramic view of police behavior would probably have revealed a more nuanced picture than some of their harshest critics would have predicted. Many observers also have noted that law enforcement officers sometimes approached incidents without much force, even in situations where they could have reacted more strongly. As a major repository of coercive power in a democratic form of government, the public may have frequently wanted police agencies to assert authority and to back up that authority with force if necessary. Hence the role of the police in exerting authority, maintaining order, and providing protection often overshadowed their service activities. And yet the performance of services could have been essential to secure the trust and cooperation police departments needed to fulfill their other responsibilities.” SOURCES Cohen, H., & Feldberg M. 1991. Power and Restraint: The Moral Dimension of Police Work.Westport CT: Praeger. Gainesville Police Department. 1910-1920. Retrieved August 26, 2007 from Gainesville Police Department. Background Investigation Waiver Packet. Retrieved August 26, 2007 from Read More