Managing Police Service in the Community - Essay Example

Manage Police Service in the Community Name Institution Emerging trends in policing have made police accountability and their ability to deliver service inseparable. Police accountability refers to an expectation placed upon law enforcement institutions to act in an open, transparent, fair, legal and responsible manner in their duty of upholding the law and their day to day occupation in controlling crime. Police accountability presupposes equal treatment before the law to facilitate respect and adherence to the rule of law. It requires policemen and women to be servants and not masters as had been in most jurisdictions. The emphasis more is more on efficient service providence than on qualified bulling by enforcement agencies. In the past citizens were considered subordinate to police but today the situation is reverse .Accountability of law enforcement is assured by systems such as democratic elections, internal reviews as well as citizens and public reviews concerning the police service delivery. The Police service remains the fundamental unit that the public turns to in the event of disputes or occurrence of a crime. The measures undertaken by the law enforcement agencies in the country to ensure openness and accountability within the police force have ensured gains are made in service delivery by the police. Crime statistics seem to favour the departmental changes and reforms as crime levels have gone down. With avenues of corruption sealed, it has become quite difficult for rogue police officers to actualise corrupt transactions for fear of being scrutinized by unseen forces. Anonymous reports to police oversight bodies, superiors of the police or the Ombudsman within the various Australian states have contributed majorly to this. Anonymous tips have led to the arrest and arraignment in court for quite a number of police officers who cannot account for their actions towards the general citizenry. Public perception regarding Australian police has improved as a result of reforms on accountability. This is because of the involvement of the public in affairs of the police including police remuneration, disciplinary action and oversight. Compiled and written by Bruce Swanton, John Walker and Paul Wilson A study of how citizens view their police often provides a revealing glimpse of a nation's commitment to democracy, and respect for authority. The public believes police to be both polite and helpful. This is quite a tribute when one considers the largely regulatory role of police officers. The various items in this survey concerning police/public contacts in relation to stops and requests for assistance reveal mixed results and, importantly, indicate the considerable extent of police presence in contemporary society. Overall, there are grounds in these findings for both satisfaction and concern among police administrators. There is very strong public support for government actions regarding police reforms. The police to population ratio in Australia have increased by almost 30 per cent in the last 15 years. A new enforcement agency has been established in the form of the National Crime Authority. Such outmoded practices as promotion by seniority are giving way to advancement by merit. Public support for more police is tempered by the belief that significant proportions of the population in each State thought that the police spend too much time on minor offenders and too little responding to serious crime. One of the most significant findings from the survey was the overwhelming public support for more police. However, this view was tempered by the finding that significant proportions of the population in each state believe that the police spend too much time on minor offenders while ignoring serious crime. The public, it appears, is also discriminating and thoughtful where issues relating to police powers are considered. Most respondents believe police are unnecessarily hampered by restrictions on their power to arrest and question suspects. In some states campaigns waged by Police Associations and others to increase police powers were conducted during the time the survey was carried out. Though the effects of these campaigns were impossible to gauge through the present survey, it is salient to note that states where the campaign was active strongly supported extensions of police powers. On the other hand the Australian public was aware of possible consequences of such powers. For example, most respondents in all states believed that increased phone tapping powers would lead to serious threats to civil liberties. And, although supportive of police in many respects, citizens wanted to see police spend more time patrolling on foot rather than from cars and place increased emphasis on recruiting people from minority groups into the service. Although there were wide variations across jurisdiction in issues relating to police corruption and discrimination toward minority groups, there was widespread agreement concerning dissatisfaction with police involvement in domestic violence matters (Bruce Swanton, 1988). Policing as a profession has made quite a number of milestones as a result of police accountability. As a whole public perception of the police in Australia has a balanced reaction. There are those who think that the police are agents of the central and state governments who are meant to actualise their intentions and purposes. On the contrary there is a substantial number in the general public who applaud the police and enforcement agencies on their war against crime and their constant struggle to maintain peace order and security within the society. Public perception regarding Australian police has improved as a result of reforms on accountability. This is because of the involvement of the public in affairs of the police including police remuneration, disciplinary action and oversight. These civilian oversight agencies have been given on-going carriage or involvement in the police reform program in order to play an upbeat role in the management and prevention of corruption and misconduct within the police. Policing as a profession has made quite a number of milestones as a result of police accountability. The traditional knowledge on the law enforcement mechanisms was primarily based on brutality and corruption is now a thing of the past. It was rare to see highly educated folk seeking employment in the police force as it was considered a career for those perceived to be academic dwarfs and those who lacked better future prospects. The police service was the premier choice for individuals who sought to make a quick cent notwithstanding infractions on morality involved. As a result of regulation which has since chastised and cleaned up the law enforcement sector, many young educated Australians are considering taking up opportunities in the police service. Accountability has played a central role in organizing and formalizing roles in police departments. Creation of a code of ethics, reporting structures as well as suggestion boxes for public inclusion has created robust participation and interest by the public. Accountability demands high levels of integrity, efficiency, hard work and respect for human rights by officers. The need for accountability in actions by the police force as well as an increase of the resources allocated to them from the exchequer has as well led to the development of emerging professions in policing such as public relations and publicists, social media managers, auditors and forensic experts and many others. Civil litigation against unaccountable police officers should also be considered. To remedy this situation, and drawing on the lessons from the U.K legislative amendments and the reallocation of resources is necessary. Formal police training on various accountability matters have been institutionalised. Officers are also encouraged to attend classes in police administration and human rights to ensure they are compliant with legislative, moral and constitutional requirements. International requirements as a result of ratified treaties also need to be complied with. The renewed public interest has ensured that control of crime remains the primary role of law enforcement, and that this could only be achieved by giving them better training and techniques and ensuring they are accountable internally to their superiors and internal oversight as well as the public. Officers in law enforcement are required to serve and protect the public. Accountability assures that police actions are uniform, open and not discriminatory or abusive. Their actions shouldn’t also favour a party at the expense of others, Existing laws, procedures and codes of conduct for law enforcement should ensure due process and objectivity of police investigations. Police accountability therefore refers to internal accountability within law enforcement agencies as well as interactions with the public. Use of force against civilians is heavily proscribed in Australia as well as many other jurisdictions. In Australia policing duties are the responsibility of territories and the states as per the constitution. All police departments in Australia are headed by a Police Commissioner. The Capital; Victoria's police department is headed by a chief commissioner of police. Police exercise a degree of independence in operational matters. Judicial authorities believe that police should not be subjected to arbitrary interference by any person or institution. Statute and Common law have placed a degree of operational independence and discretion on police. For a long time now, Australian police have been subjected to civilian oversight. In some states, the Ombudsman is in charge of the oversight on police.in others a dedicated police oversight body undertakes the responsibility. The changing nature policing function is more about civilian involvement. The expansion of ‘mass private property’ has been a contributing factor. The owners or managers of the properties employ private police to patrol the properties (C, 2005). Citizens are actively encouraged to become involved. Civilian oversight bodies can publicly examine police decisions and actions. They act as a check and balance on abuse of police power. Governments are insisting on a coordinated approach to security issues. Australia needs to look into its police accountability challenges and gaps if it is to avoid drifting away towards a police state from a democratic policing model. Civil litigation in Australia is not fully utilised as a mechanism for police accountability. The victims of abuses by police officers do not have reasonable access to legal redress and compensation. The majority of cases, including those with cogent evidence, do not get to court. These civilian agencies have been given on-going carriage or involvement in the police reform program in order to play a proactive role in the management and prevention of corruption and misconduct within the police (Ransley, 2007). In 2009, the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations expressed concern at increased reports of law enforcement brutality against certain demographic groups in Australia. It is noteworthy that police investigated themselves in all complaints. A recommendation was made for Australia to ensure improvement on the administration of justice and its application of the rule of law. A judicially fair mechanism for handling police complaints is a fundamental element of democratic and accountable policing. The two components of justice need to be witnessed. Justice needs to be done. It must also be seen to be done. The preamble to the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials stresses that law enforcement agencies should be responsive and accountable as well as representative of the community in general. High standards must be demanded from the Australian Police force. Citizens should also acknowledge the importance and nature of the tasks which we expect them to perform. We should also bear in mind that they deserve support and encouragement. They should be ready to give credit where it is due as well as to criticize failure. Democratic reform is orientated towards meeting the needs of civilians and institutions in a democratic society. For policing purposes it should be` guided by principles of accountability, integrity, and respect for human rights, impartiality, fairness, non-discrimination and professionalism. The police need to be focused on understanding the needs of the general public. Freeing the police from politics and bureaucracy and supporting them in ensuring responsiveness to the needs of the broader public is an important feature of democratic reform. Democratic reform requires conformity to new norms as well as learning new and innovative methods of perfuming police duties. It is essential that reforms which support initiatives on human rights are integrated together with measures that assist police to acquire skills which will allow them to be efficient in the performance of their duties within the limits set by human rights standards. Police are rarely prosecuted or disciplined for ill-treating members of the public. Civil suits against the police have resulted in findings of gross police misconduct in considerable numbers of cases. The ability of civil litigation to have rulings against rogue police where other mechanisms intended for accountability fail, justifies making it available to victims of police abuses. It is important that the state ensures that police violators are disciplined, prosecuted or made to pay damages or compensation to victims. Victims also need assurances from the state that adequate measures have or shall be taken to reduce cases of future likelihood of such abuses. Civil litigation in Australia is an under-utilised mechanism for police accountability due to various barriers. As a result of these restrictions, the victims of injustices by law enforcement officers do not have reasonable access to legal redress and compensation in Australia. Many cases of injustice filed against law enforcement personnel, even the ones with cogent evidence do not get to be heard in court. This is mostly because policemen are in control of all mechanisms from arrest to prosecutorial level. These cases merely get to reach the inside of a court room. Australia therefore has a long way to go in meeting its obligations in international law to sufficiently compensate the abuse. The government needs to undertake comprehensive legislative amendments and also ensure reasonable resource allocation to bring Australia up to speed with global trends (Ransley, 2007). In conclusion, it is noteworthy to recognize the steps realized by law enforcement agencies and the government of Australia in police reforms. The consistent nature, albeit slow in which the state is delivering policy to ensure accountability of police within its ranks and to the public should be applauded. The citizens of Australia continue to enjoy democratic freedoms not limited by discretionary powers afforded to policing institutions by virtue of this exerted efforts and legal assurances. Police accountability is a fundamental gateway to ensuring progress in democratic jurisdictions such as Australia. References Edwards, C. (2005). Changing policing theories for 21st century societies (2nd Ed.). Annandale, NSW: Federation Press. Finnane, M. (1994). Police and government: histories of policing in Australia. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. Prenzler, T. (2009). Police corruption: preventing misconduct and maintaining integrity. Boca Raton: CRC Press. Ransley, J. A. (2007, August 1). Civil Litigation against Police in Australia: Exploring Its Extent, Nature and Implications for Accountability. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, 4, 23. Shabani, O. A. (2007). Multiculturalism and law: a critical debate. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. Read More