What is the Major Role of Police in Society - Assignment Example

A democratic police force fundamentally enforces the rule of law equally among the members of the society, rather than the rule of those persons in power or with power.Police community relations function as an adjunct or as an alternative to the centralized, bureaucratic model of policing, where neutrality and efficiency are valued (Police and Democracy, 2001, n.p.). Police members are encouraged to view themselves as part of the community and help in solving the problems of the community. Community policing emphasizes the social service and order maintenance role of the police.

The underlying assumption of police-community relations is that the police would be more effective in doing its duties by immersing itself in the concerns of the community and if it has the support of and inputs from the community.The justice system in the United States operates under two levels - the federal and state levels. The state justice system basically covers prosecutions of most law violations except those offenses that concern federal government employees, crimes committed across state lines and fraud involving the national government which is covered by the federal justice system.

In turn, the justice system is differentiated between the liabilities involved, whether it be criminal or civil. Criminal trials happen when the government prosecutes an individual for violating the rights and security of another individual or the society as a whole. Civil trials involve the settlement of disputes between two parties. In addition to the civilian courts, there is the military justice system which has jurisdiction over offenses committed by military members. There are also a number of Native American or American Indian justice systems which settles disputes between members of various American Indian tribes.

The police selection processes have a great impact on police-community relations as the system of recruitment and its purposes will affect how effective the police will be in gaining or maintaining support from the community. Recruitment of members of the police force (or the selection of the police chief for example that takes into consideration the situation of the community) would very much aid in the smooth maintenance of the police-community relationship. For example, if a community is composed mostly of black people, it makes sense to have a police force where its membership reflects the racial make-up of the community.

Similarly, recruitment if it has to take consideration of police-community relations, must first look into the recruitment of immediate members of the local community, rather from the outside of the community in question.