Chapter 4: Policing in a Modern Society
Basic Police Functions:
- Law enforcement
- Maintain order
- Community service
Quality control of police agencies primarily done through:
- Proper selection (hiring and
promotion)
- Training
- Supervision
- Discipline and enforcement
of clear policies and procedures
Education
Degree requirements:
· 16% of state police agencies
require 2-year degree
· 4% of state agencies require
4-year degree
· 9% of large municipal
agencies require a 2-year degree
· 2% of large municipal
agencies require 4-year degree
Most practitioners feel that college educated officers:
· communicate better (both orally and in writing)
· generate less complaints
· show more initiative
· act more professionally |
· are less likely to be disciplinary problems
· better decision makers
· have greater self confidence and self assurance
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However, 82% of departments felt college education was important in promotions.
Discretion
Discretion can be described as decision making by police within certain guidelines or parameters. Factors
influencing police discretion:
· Environment. An officer’s view of community
values influence discretion.
· Departmental influences. Policies, practices,
customs of the department influence discretion.
· Situational influences. Defendant’s demeanor,
witnesses, nature of the encounter, etc.
· Legal factors. Is crime serious?
· Extralegal factors. Class, race, age, gender.
Traffic Services
Traffic related enforcement comprises the largest amount of “officer
time” but is usually considered the least glamorous and is low on the department’s and community’s list
of priorities.
Persons killed in 2002 in US- 42,815 (1.5% increase over 2001 and highest since 1990)
Police Traffic Services:
- Traffic Enforcement
- Crash Investigation
- Traffic Direction and Control
- Traffic Ancillary Services
(education, engineering, etc.)
Pretext stop (or dual motive stop): Traffic violation is used as a pretext
to investigate other suspicious activity
Whren v. United States (1996): Traffic stop, and subsequent
search, is admissible if the reason for the stop was valid
Supreme Court held- “The temporary detention
of a motorist upon probable cause to believe that he has violated the traffic laws does not violate the Fourth Amendment's
prohibition against unreasonable seizures, even if a reasonable officer would not have stopped the motorist absent some additional
law enforcement objective.”
Mimms order:
Officers may order drivers to exit vehicle (Pennsylvania v. Mimms,
1977)
Racial profiling: any police-initiated action that relies on race, ethnicity, or national
origin rather than behavior
American policing is faced with the challenge- the widespread perception that police
are routinely guilty of racial bias. As a result, 24 states have passed legislation dealing with racial profiling. Much of
the legislation involves data collection.
The Fourth Amendment of the U. S. Constitution provides that:
“[t]he right of the people to be secure in their
persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall
issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and
the persons or things to be seized."
Stop and Frisk
Terry v. Ohio (1968): Supreme Court
held that a brief detention of persons to “investigate” and a “pat down” of their outer clothing for
weapons, based upon a reasonable suspicion they are involved in or about to become involved in a crime and are armed, is not
a violation of the Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.
Stop and Frisk:
- Officers briefly detain a suspicious person
Legal evidentiary standard- officer must have a reasonable suspicion that subject
involved or about to be involved in criminal activity
- Officers may conduct a “patdown” of
outer clothing for weapons
Legal evidentiary standard- officer must have reasonable suspicion that subject
is armed
Continuum of contacts or Evidence Continuum
More Evidence
Less Evidence |
é
ê |
Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (Conviction)
Probable Cause (Arrest)
Reasonable Suspicion (Terry Stop)
Mere Hunch |
May police apprehend and detain a person who flees police in a high crime area?
Yes, according to Illinois v. Wardlow (2000)
Plain View/Feel: Officer may seize evidence or contraband in plain view if
they have a legal right to be there. Use of flashlights is permitted. Police may seize contraband during a “frisk”
if it is immediately apparent to the officer the object is an illegal substance. Police may not manipulate object (Minnesota v. Dickerson, 1993). Luggage searches: Police may “look but not feel” when screening traveler
luggage.
Arrest
Arrest: The intentional act by a law enforcement officer to take a person into
custody for the purpose of charging him/her with a crime.
Ingredients:
1. Intention
2. Authority
3. Custody
4. Purpose
of charging with a crime
An officer may arrest when:
1. A crime was committed in the presence of an officer.
2. An arrest warrant is issued.
3. Probable cause exists to believe a person has committed a felony or other
crime established by law authorizing a probable cause arrest
Probable cause: Evidence required establishing reasonable grounds for believing
a crime has been committed and a particular person committed the crime.
Probable cause:
- For an arrest- More likely than not that the person
to be arrested has committed a crime
- For a search- More likely than not that a place
contains evidence of a crime, stolen property, or contraband
Brinegar v. United States
(1949):
- Evidence must be within officer’s knowledge
(before arrest or search)
- Evidence must be trustworthy
- Warrant a man of reasonable caution to believe
Probable cause may be based on what is-
- Observed
- Information obtained
Informant: A person who may provide useful information about a case but is
not a complainant, witness, victim, or suspect. Informants may be interested citizens or criminals interested in making deals.
Types of informants:
· Anonymous
informants: Identity is not known to the investigator. They are identified by code or number, e.g., as in Crimestoppers.
· Confidential
informants: Identity is known to the investigator. They wish to remain anonymous to the court and others.
· Reliable
confidential informants: Confidential informants whose credibility has been established and documented, e.g., information
lead to prior arrests, recovered property, etc.
Searches
Constitutional requirements for a legal search and seizure:
1.
Reasonableness (scope, justification, etc., are reasonable).
2.
Warrant
- Based on probable cause
(in affidavit)
- Supported by oath or affirmation
3.
Particularity (specificity)
· Specify
places to be searched
· Specify
persons/things to be seized
Procedures for obtaining search warrants vary by locality, but generally, search warrant may be issued
under these circumstances:
- Property was stolen or embezzled
- Possession of the property is a crime
- Property is in possession of someone with intent
to commit a crime
- Property was used in committing a crime
- Items tend to show a crime was committed or that
a specific person committed a crime
Exceptions to the search warrant requirement:
1. Arrest warrant
execution: Police may search a suspect’s home to execute an arrest warrant. Officers may make a limited protective sweep
of the home, if necessary (Maryland v. Buie, 1990)
2. Frisks:
Police may conduct a “patdown” of persons they reasonable suspect is armed and dangerous. This is a protective
search for weapons, only. (Terry v. Ohio)
3. Search Incidental
to Arrest: Police may search a person they have arrested for weapons and evidence and area under immediate control (“wing
span”) (Chimel
v. California, 1969)
4.
Automobile Exception: Police may search a vehicle without a warrant if they have probable cause to believe the
automobile contains evidence of a crime (Carroll v. United States, 1925 and United States v. Ross, 1982) Although the courts have been lenient in allowing warrantless
searches of automobiles, it is advisable to obtain a warrant when an automobile is no longer mobile or is in the custody of
the police (e.g., impounded).
5. Consent:
Police may search when consent is given voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently.
6. Plain View/Feel:
Officer may seize evidence or contraband in plain view if they have a legal right to be there. Use of flashlights is permitted.
Police may seize contraband during a “frisk” if it is immediately apparent to the officer the object is an illegal
substance. Police may not manipulate object (Minnesota v. Dickerson, 1993). Luggage
searches: Police may “look but not feel” when screening traveler luggage.
7. Abandoned
property: Property abandoned, including items thrown away in a pursuit, may be searched without a warrant.
8. Open fields:
Open fields may be searched without a warrant even if they are posted with “No Trespassing” signs. However, curtilage
is protected and may not be searched without a warrant.
9. Inventory:
Police may conduct inventory searches of property seized if it is a standard procedure of the department
10. Exigent
circumstances: Emergency exists and there is no time to obtain a warrant. Examples- danger to life, escape, destruction/removal
of evidence
Police technology: Wiretapping, electronic surveillance, thermal imaging, etc., considered a search and
a warrant is required.
Trash cans searches. Trash left in containers on public property (alley) may
be searched without a warrant. Containers left in curtilage may not be searched. Curtilage is that private area around a house
not normally open to the public.
K-9 searches: Courts have held that “dog-sniffs” of inanimate objects or public locations are
not searches. Dog sniff of a person “generally considered a search”.
Exclusionary Rule
Exclusionary rule: Illegally seized evidence (i.e., evidence seized in violation
of the Constitution) is inadmissible in court.
Weeks v. United States (1914): Evidence seized without a warrant
by federal agents was inadmissible in federal court.
Mapp v. Ohio
(1961) applied the exclusionary rule the states.
United
States v. Leon (1984): Provided a good faith exception to the
exclusionary rule.
Rationale for exclusionary rule: deters police from illegally collecting evidence
if it will not be used in court.
Interrogations
Interview: The planned questioning of a witness, victim (primary and secondary), informant, or other person
for the purpose of gaining information about a crime or incident.
Interrogation: The process of gaining a confession or admission
Admission- contains some incriminating information about a crime but falls short of a confession
Confession- Complete (or near complete) information supporting the elements of a crime
Sixth Amendment: Provides right to counsel. The court held in Escobedo v. Illinois (1964) that persons have the right to counsel during police interrogations.
Fifth Amendment provides: no person “shall be compelled in any criminal
case to be a witness against himself”. It also provides protection against double jeopardy and the right to due process
of law.
Miranda v. Arizona (1966): U. S. Supreme Court case requiring
that persons in custody must waive their rights prior to an interrogation.
Custody: deprivation of freedom of action in any significant way
Rights include:
1. The right
to remain silent.
2. The right
to be told that anything said can and will be used in court.
3. The right
to consult with an attorney prior to answering any questions and the right to have an attorney present during interrogation.
4. The right
to counsel. If the suspect cannot afford an attorney, the court will appoint one.
It is common practice for the officer to ask the suspect if he or she understands
the rights as they have been explained. If the answer is yes, then the officer may ask if the subject wishes to talk with
the officer. At this point, the alternatives open to the suspect are four:
· The suspect may choose
to remain silent.
· The suspect may request
counsel.
· The suspect may indicate
a desire not to talk with the investigators.
· The suspect may waive
his or her rights and agree to talk with police without the benefit of counsel.
Waiver of rights must be:
- Voluntary
- Knowingly
- Intelligently
Structure of Police Agencies
Basic police agency structure/functions:
· Patrol
· Investigative
· Support
Patrol
Purposes of Patrol:
· Deter crime by maintaining a visible
presence.
· Maintain order.
· Respond quickly to violations, disturbances,
emergencies.
· Identify and apprehend law violators. |
· Aid individuals and care for those
who cannot help themselves.
· Facilitate movement of traffic and
people.
· Create a feeling of security.
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Majority of patrol activity is maintaining order or peacekeeping, e.g., handling
disturbances.
Investigations
Phases of the investigation:
- Preliminary investigation
(crime scene investigation, initial interviews, etc)
- Follow-up investigation
(follow up on leads, conduct surveillance, research records, etc)
Investigative divisions are generally organized into sections such as vice,
drugs, homicide, robbery, burglary, auto theft, or sex crimes (depending on the size/need of the department).
Support Services
· Personnel
· Internal affairs
· Budgeting and finance
· Records and communication
· Training |
· Community relations
· Crime prevention
· Laboratory
· Planning and research
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