Police Corruptiom
Police Corruption
Police Corruption in policing is viewed as the misuse of authority by a police officer acting officially to fulfill their personal needs or wants. There are two distinct elements of corruption; misuse of authority and personal attainment. The police officer stands at the top of the criminal justice system in a nation where crime rates are high and where the demands for illegal goods and services are widespread. These conditions create a situation in which the police officer is confronted with opportunity to accept a large number of favors or grants.
The occupational subculture of policing is a major factor in both creating police corruption, by initiating officers into corrupt activities, and sustaining it, by covering up corrupt activities by other officers. Police corruption is a complex phenomenon, which does not readily submit to simple analysis. It is a problem that has and will continue to affect us all, whether we are civilians or law enforcement officers. Since its beginnings, many aspects of policing have changed; however, one aspect that has remained relatively unchanged is the existence of corruption. Police corruption has increased dramatically with the illegal cocaine trade, and the officer acting alone or in-groups to steal money from dealer and/or distribute cocaine themselves. The career of corruption begins with passively accepting minor gratuities that gradually begin to involve more serious violation of the laws, involving larger amounts of money and officers initiating corrupt acts. It can be said that power inevitably tends to corrupt, and it is yet to be recognized that, while there is no reason to presume that police officers as individuals are any less fallible than other members of society, people are often shocked and outraged when officers are exposed violating the law. There deviance elicits a special feeling of betrayal. The danger of police corruption could invert the formal goals of the organization and may lead
Police Corruption in policing is viewed as the misuse of authority by a police officer acting officially to fulfill their personal needs or wants. There are two distinct elements of corruption; misuse of authority and personal attainment. The police officer stands at the top of the criminal justice system in a nation where crime rates are high and where the demands for illegal goods and services are widespread. These conditions create a situation in which the police officer is confronted with opportunity to accept a large number of favors or grants.
The occupational subculture of policing is a major factor in both creating police corruption, by initiating officers into corrupt activities, and sustaining it, by covering up corrupt activities by other officers. Police corruption is a complex phenomenon, which does not readily submit to simple analysis. It is a problem that has and will continue to affect us all, whether we are civilians or law enforcement officers. Since its beginnings, many aspects of policing have changed; however, one aspect that has remained relatively unchanged is the existence of corruption. Police corruption has increased dramatically with the illegal cocaine trade, and the officer acting alone or in-groups to steal money from dealer and/or distribute cocaine themselves. The career of corruption begins with passively accepting minor gratuities that gradually begin to involve more serious violation of the laws, involving larger amounts of money and officers initiating corrupt acts. It can be said that power inevitably tends to corrupt, and it is yet to be recognized that, while there is no reason to presume that police officers as individuals are any less fallible than other members of society, people are often shocked and outraged when officers are exposed violating the law. There deviance elicits a special feeling of betrayal. The danger of police corruption could invert the formal goals of the organization and may lead
Cited: Bearing the Badge of Mistrust. The Washington Post, p.11. Dantzer, Mark L. (1995). Confessions of Corruption. The New York Times, P.8, James, George (1993, Nov. 17). Commission Findings. New York Post, P. 28 Walker, J.T. (1992). Deviance & Police. Ohio: Anderson Publishing Co. Castaneda, Ruben (1993, Jan. 18). Officials Say Police Corruption is Hard To Stop. The New York times, p.3. Sherman, Lawrence (1978). The police in America, p.243-263, chp. 10, Walker, Samuel (1999). Understanding Today’s Police. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc. James, George (1993, Mar. 29). Why Good Cops Go Bad. Newsweek, p.18. Carter, David L. (1986).