Analysis of Police Corruption - Research Paper Example

?Introduction Police corruption is mainly referred to as the abuse of the ity endowed to them for personal or organization benefits. In personal gain, the conduct may be conducted in favor of career advancement. Police corruption is divided into two categories depending on the participants; internal corruption which involves member of the police force and external which involves member(s) of the police force and the public. There are various reasons that make the officers to participate in corruption. Due to the powers the police is given by the law, it engagement in corrupt dealings usually tarnishes the image of the entire defense force and reduces public trust. This is not good for a county’s development socially, economically or politically. This paper seeks to give an in-depth analysis of corruption in the police force. Police Corruption The police department is constructed under the constitution and mandated to provide security and ensure all laws of the land are adhered. When the police are engaged in corrupt activities, they break their mandate. In responding to this, corrupt officers are arrested and charged in the court. This has been very effective in ensuring that the officers are responsible for all their actions. Through corruption, the police deny the citizens some rights like the right to protected by a law-enforcing agency. This is clearly stipulated in the constitution. In some corrupt police dealing, they collude with criminal for them to carry out their activities effectively. In covering up their activities, these officers may undertake arrest of innocent people. This raises questions as to where the security of the citizen could be upheld. This leads to reduced trust in the operations of the police offices. Since the citizens may lack sound background to bring forth their claims, various human rights groups have been on their rescue. They have made it possible for various reforms to be made which has gradually improved the interaction between the police and the citizens (Forst & Dempsey, 2011). Corruption is conducted in the police force in numerous ways. Bribery, which entails the exchange of a benefit between police officers, is the most common form of corruption. This is evident in traffic rules violation and illegal sale of drugs. Though this acts, the police officers propagate crimes rather than curbing it. In response to this, the root causes of the crime have been investigated and various strategies implemented. Since the public promote the vice through producing bribes, they should be educated on the possible repercussions that may befall on them once they are identified. Therefore, in ensuring that the vice is completely gotten rid of, proper coordination between various stakeholders is necessary. Causes of police corruption Lack of professionalism by police officers in the conduction of their activities is one of the main causes of the increase in corrupt activities. As a result, they are influenced politically and give room the conduction of corrupt dealings. In such instances, the leaders misuse their powers for personal gain at the expense of the public. This leaves the public more oppressed. To secure their activities, the leaders appoint or influence appointment of various persons who would cover their dealings. Due to the rewards given to the police official, thus corruption gets its way. In order to ensure that corruption resulting from such activities is gotten rid of, professionalism by all the police officers irrespective of their ranks should be upheld (Harris, 2003). The main reason for the continuous prevalence of corruption in the police force is due to the integration of various factors. Since most senior officers have so much in common with those they manage because they have risen up from the low levels, they use the secrecy in the force to execute their dealings. Moreover, organizational bureaucracy and corruption control methods in place still contribute to the propagation of corruption in the police force. Controlling Police Corruption Numerous ways have been implemented in striving to get corruption out of the police force. From the argument that police officers are involved in corrupt activities to raise more money to meet their daily needs, salaries have been increased with little success (Quah, 2011). It is evident that the well-off persons usually use the police for personal gain. In such instances, the police usually admit taking into consideration the benefits to be reaped in long run. Because little success has been achieved in fighting corruption through using this method, more need to be done. Powerful political and other leaders have argued lack of sufficient knowledge by police officers to the root cause of their misuse. As a result, the police are used as tools for accessing certain personal benefits. In addressing this problem, more training that is intensive is conducted on police recruits in their training colleges while serving officers attend various seminars. Through this method, some improvements have been achieved although continuous upgrading is necessary as various factors affecting police operations keep on changing according to the technological advancement. Moreover, incentives to education have been provided to police officers to ensure that they increase their knowledge. This is mainly because if police officers were successful in fighting corruption, then human interaction would be greatly improved and the government operation would be smooth and transparent. One of the reasons for increased corruption has been due to the presence of ineffective rules. This has brought forth the necessity for continuous improvement of the laws to ensure that sanity prevails in the operations of the officers. By the use of the ineffective laws, various loopholes for corruption were created. This was taken advantage of by some of the well-informed persons for their personal gain. Since the police do not make laws and regulation, the role played by the parliaments in ensuring that effective laws are put into place cannot be neglected (Kappeler & Gaines, 2011). In order to ensure that the laws are successful in getting rid of the vice, firm and elaborate strategies need to be implemented. Conclusion The corruption in the police force has been prevalent for a long period. This is mainly because they are given some powers by the constitution that they sometimes misuse. In ensuring that the crime is gotten rod off, various strategies such as increasing their salary, training, and formulation of new laws have been conducted. Despite this, combined effort between various stakeholders is necessary. References Forst, L. & Dempsey, J. (2011). An Introduction to Policing. Stanford, Connecticut, USA: Cengage Learning. Harris, G. (2003). Corruption: How to Deal With Its Impact on Business and Society. New York: The Americas Group. Kappeler, V. & Gaines, L. (2011). Policing in America. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. Quah, J. (2011). Curbing Corruption in Asian Countries: An Impossible Dream? Bradford, West Yorkshire, England: Emerald Group Publishing. Read More