Mr. Vidaure
Law 1-2
September, 17th, 2014
The History of Law Enforcement “The police is the public, and the public is the police.” ~Sir Robert Peel
Modern policing has come a long way from the cave dwellers. Even though they had no idea they were enforcing laws they did so by keeping their caves safe from intruders. There has been many contribution to law enforcement since it has begun. These contributions range from the Magna Carta all the way to the Civil War. In addition, these contributions changes law enforcement for the benefits of the people they protect. Law enforcement is any system by which some members of society act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, rehabilitation or punishing people who violate the laws governing a specific area. To begin with, the creation of the Magna Carta, The twelve tablets, and Hammurabi’s code influenced the creation of our modern day Constitution. The Magna Carta was the first document imposed upon the King of England by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their rights. There are similarities between the Magna Carta and our Constitution. For example the Fifth Amendment and the section of the Magna Carta where it mentions that no free man shall be imprisoned except with a lawful judgment from his peers. The code of Hammurabi were the first written laws that became to be enforced in ancient time. Without the Magna Carte there wouldn’t have been laws here in North America as early as there was. In continuation, Sir Robert Peel was the founding father of modern policing. Mr.Peel efforts in making a difference resulted in the creation of the London Metropolitan police, the first modern police department. All thanks to Mr.Peel we have peace officers: his main goal with the London police was to prevent crime from happening. He created a system where the police would provide coverage across large designated beat areas, the police officers also had to be available to the public day and night. The people thought twice before they committed a crime due to the strong police presence in their communities. Sir Robert Peel also created several principles the London Metropolitan Police had to follow in order to be taken as legitimate organization. These principles included: the police must be under government control, have a military-like organizational structure, a central headquarters that was easy access to the public. In addition, Mr.Peel made sure that all his workers were well train and prepared before they actually were allowed to go out to protect the public. They
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