Deontological Theory Of Criminal Justice Ethics

Law enforcement officers are criminal justice professionals whose duties involve ensure public safety and enforcement of laws. Within the criminal justice system law enforcement detectives performs investigative duties such as gathering facts and collecting evidence. The initial information provided to detectives is the most critical factor in solving a crime. Therefore, it is inherently important that the detectives follow all department rules and demonstrate sound judgment when making decisions. The criminal justice ethics tutorial examines the ethical dilemmas detectives may face where the right choices can be difficult because of the costs involved. And after reviewing the tutorial on criminal justice ethics, the detective’s failure to comply with department policies and rules was the determining factor in deciding to report the incident to my supervisor. To help justify by decision, I viewed the situation from a deontological perspective. Deontologists argue that sometimes people have a moral duty to perform certain actions
regardless of the consequences. In this scenario, the detective was aware that the departmental policy required videotaping interviews and those teen (minor) suspects are entitled have a parent present. The detective had a duty to treat all people impartial in accordance of the law. Also, it should have been taken into account that the victim is unable to identify her attackers, therefore it was in poor judgment for the detective bypass the rules because he feels the teens are “guilty as sin” on the basis of their past records. He ignored these facts, thus making his actions unethical and immoral. Because of that, I think morally alerting my supervisor was the best choice in this situation. Some of the hardest decisions a professional will be faced with will be a test of your loyalty to your colleagues and superiors.
Even if the behavior is illegal, it’s difficult to challenge authority. Within the criminal justice system individuals feel compelled to offer personal loyalty to coworkers and as a result violate the law and the public good. There are no organization rules that require such behavior but the organizational culture has invariably taught that loyalty is so important the violating such a commandment is a cardinal sin. Although the detective choosing to deviate from the organizational culture and alert his supervisor it was the best decision because it could potentially prevent the criminal case against the teen suspects from being compromised. Also, the “innocent” detective not telling the truth in an attempt to protect his coworker could find himself facing serious or career-ending
discipline. In conclusion, the detectives in the scenario both faced different challenges to do what is right and moral. The desire to achieve an outcome that would give them public vindication clouded one detective’s perspective. However, the “innocent” detective looked past the cases publicity and conducted himself in a good moral manner by alerting his supervisor of the misconduct.