Officer Code Of Silence Research Paper

Police Code of Silence When a new recruit joins a police force he is bursting with excitement and anticipation to fulfill all of the principles and standards that come with being a police officer: dedication, loyalty, trust and integrity. He has a high set of standards and a set of goals he wants to achieve as an officer of the law such as stopping crime, improving the moral of the neighborhoods and becoming a positive mentor to the youth of the community. He has a new sense of belonging; he is now a member of a team, a brotherhood, an official member of an elite club; he is an officer of the law. What this new officer will soon discover is that there is an unwritten law amongst his fellow officers; a law that does not bode well with his fresh sense of principles and standards. This law is called the Blue Wall of Silence. It is an expectation that an officer will overlook or not speak about the misconduct violations of another officer.
Why Officers Keep Silent One of the reasons a police officer might go against his own moral code is because of his internal dilemma of whether to be loyal to the officer code of conduct or to be loyal to his fellow officers who he has formed a friendship and a brotherly bond with. The dilemma might also be enforced when the corrupt officer is a supervisor or is superior in rank.
When an officer “snitches” on a fellow officer there may be a whole plethora of concerns that come from the corrupt officer’s indiscretions. Will he be fired? Will his family be affected? Will there be negative impact on the precinct? Will there be further legal actions taken? The officer that is snitching also has to fear harassment from his fellow officers. He has to worry if his fellow brothers will continue to have his back and support him in the line of duty if he rats out a fellow