Policing is the act of providing security within a territory through enforcement of its laws or rules. In public policing, law enforcement agencies provide security not only through enforcing laws but also by responding to threats to public safety. Policing and criminal psychology overlap in that the focus of efforts within both fields is often the same people: individuals who come into conflict with the law for a variety of personal, interpersonal, mental health, and other reasons. After providing an overview of policing, this article discusses various aspects of policing, including police duties, powers, and strategies.
Policing Overview
The term police broadly refers to public and private actors whose primary responsibility is the provision of security. It used to be said that what makes public policing different from other groups, including private security, is that the public police occupy a unique position due to their ability to lawfully use force to execute their duties. As of 2017, this is no longer the case, as legislation in some U.S. states now permits citizens the use of lawful force to stop or prevent crimes, including the use of lethal force. What does continue to mark public policing as different from private forms of policing is an emphasis on democratic accountability. As public agencies, law enforcement officials are governed under legislation, which makes them accountable to the communities they serve. In contrast, private policing is largely a commercial enterprise, and many security companies operate within states with few regulations and little external oversight.
It is important to also note here a third category of policing: military policing. Military police are responsible for law enforcement under both state and federal codes, as well as military codes of justice. They operate under the military system of justice, which runs parallel to the regular criminal justice system with its own courts and court officials. While each of these branches of policing are worthy of discussion, the focus for the remainder of this article is on public policing and what is viewed as conventional law enforcement.
Principal Duties
The duties of police officers are set out in legislation. Because laws vary within and across countries, there may be some differences in terms of the principal functions of any given police agency; however, it is widely accepted that the main duties of a police officer include the following:
- preserving the peace and public safety
- preventing crimes and other offenses
- assisting victims of crime
- investigating crimes
- apprehending criminals
- laying charges or recommending charges to prosecutors
- participating in prosecutions
- executing warrants
While this list may seem fairly exhaustive, it does not include many other functions that police frequently assume within communities. As one of the few 24-hour public service providers, police officers often adopt a number of additional roles and tasks. For instance, police officers may be called upon to serve as street corner psychologists, listening empathetically to the personal or interpersonal problems of individuals in distress or with few social supports. One such example of this scenario occurred recently in the United Kingdom when police officers were dispatched to a 9-9-9 call (the UK version of a 9-1-1 emergency call) placed by two elderly citizens who were lonely and feeling isolated. Once assured that the couple were fine, the officers brewed some tea and stayed for a visit. Police also often take on tasks that are referred to as forms of social work, including helping people find shelter beds and responding to mental health calls to assist people in finding emergency health services.
Police Powers
As noted earlier, a fundamental component of the police role is the legal authority to use force to prevent or stop the commission of a crime. While this police power draws much media attention, it is only one of several legal powers invested in police for the purpose of fulfilling their duties. Other police powers include the powers of arrest, detention, and search and seizure as well as the ability of police to exercise discretion.
Police powers of arrest are generally set out in state or federal criminal statutes, which allow for two types of arrest: with and without a warrant. If a warrant of arrest has been issued for an individual, police are generally duty bound to immediately execute that warrant by taking the person into custody. There are, however, situations in which an individual can and will be arrested without a warrant. These vary by jurisdiction but typically include situations in which the individual is caught in the act of committing a serious offense. When the law or the circumstances of a crime do not require immediate arrest, police may appear before a judge or justice of the peace to ask for an arrest warrant to be issued.
Police officers also have the ability to place someone under temporary detention. Detentions occur when police are investigating a crime or possible crime and believe that an individual may be a witness or suspect required for questioning.
Police can also effect searches—of persons, places, and things—as well as seize items as evidence or to prevent the continuation of an offense. There are typically three ways in which police can effect a search and/or seizure: with a search warrant, upon an individual’s arrest, and with the person’s consent. In relation to the first option, a judge or justice of the peace has signed a search warrant or seizure order that directs police to a specific place to look for particular items believed to be associated with a crime. Police can also lawfully search an individual when the individual is arrested; in fact, this is a standard part of the arrest process. This search allows police to identify and inventory items that may be evidence of a crime, as well as reduce any safety risks associated with transporting someone who might be carrying weapons or drugs. The third method—with consent—simply involves police asking individuals if they can search the individuals or their belongings (“Can I have a look in your bag?”) and gaining a positive response.
Police use of force is governed by law, which limits the ability of police to use physical force to only those situations in which they need to carry out a duty (e.g., effecting an arrest, preserving the peace) or to protect themselves or others from risk of harm. Both police training and law emphasize that force used must be reasonable under the circumstances.
Discretion is the ability of police officers to choose between different available options—such as whether to issue a ticket to a speeder or to let the speeder off with a warning. Although discretion is not an official police power in the same sense as the power of arrest—that is, governed by law—it is a power and one that is vital to the functioning of the criminal justice system. Simply put, if police did not exercise discretion, the volume of tickets issued and cases processed through the juvenile and adult criminal justice systems would overwhelm the police, courts, and jails within a short period of time. There are, however, limits on police discretion. This article has already mentioned one such limit: the existence of an arrest warrant. Other limits on discretion include policies established by police organizations (ticket all speeders). The effects of local culture and situational factors can also play a role in influencing officer decision-making. For example, in a particular community in which nearly one quarter of the population had an active addiction, police routinely confiscated drugs and drug paraphernalia but rarely arrested drug offenders for possession. Similar practices in another community may be highly frowned upon by lawmakers and community members alike.
Varieties of Public Policing: Patrol, Investigation, and Specialized Units
Generally speaking, policing tasks and roles can be divided into one of three functions within police organizations: patrol, investigation, and specialized units. Of these, patrol is the one most frequently encountered by the public in real life. Patrol officers, sometimes referred to as the frontline, are individuals tasked with responding to calls for service, engaging in preventive crime efforts, and otherwise patrolling the streets. Patrol officers can be deployed in cars, on foot (referred to as walking a beat), and on bicycles and motorcycles. Patrol officers are viewed within their organizations as generalists, meaning they must deal with a wide variety of different types of people, events, and issues.
Although the public is more likely to see patrol officers performing their duties, media attention is overwhelmingly focused on police investigators. Police investigators are experienced patrol officers who have received specialized training in one or more areas of police investigation. Although investigation unit names and makeup vary by police organization, this work typically covers the investigation of crimes such as homicide, sexual offenses, robbery, financial crimes, among others.
Given the diverse nature of policing, officers are frequently called upon to take on a number of tasks outside of regular patrol or investigative work. As a result, many police organizations also contain specialized units that perform very specific functions. Included in this group are armed response teams, internal affairs investigators, marine patrol, dog and mounted patrol squads, gang units, among others.
Policing Strategies
Since the 1990s, a number of policing strategies have been developed, most primarily oriented toward helping police more effectively and efficiently respond to crime within local communities. This section takes a brief look at three popular strategies: community policing, intelligence-led policing, and evidence-based policing.
Developed largely through 1980s and 1990s, community policing is a model of policing built on increasing a sense of co-ownership of problems linked to crime and disorder within local communities. The police are no longer solely responsible for crime, and community members are no longer passive consumers; instead, members of both groups work together to identify problems and codevelop solutions. A wide range of programs and practices operate under the banner of community policing. These include community–police meetings, community police stations, local foot patrols, block watch groups, and police outreach programs.
Historically, much of policing has been reactive, relying on people to call the police to report a crime, and frontline officers spending much of their time going from call to call. In the 1990s, recognition of the limitations of this approach led a number of groups to call for a new model in which intelligence—that is, analyzed data collected from various sources—would help guide police operations. Police still respond to calls; however, under intelligence-led policing models, police also identify crime hot spots—places with high volumes of crime and disorder—and proactively target them.
One of the newer policing strategies is evidence-based policing. Whereas other models are largely centered on offering specific solutions to frontline crime and disorder problems, evidence-based policing is a broader approach that focuses on the question of what works to reduce crime and increase the effectiveness and efficiency of police work. Rather than encouraging one method or route to solving crime, evidence-based policing practitioners advocate for police decision-making based on sound scientific research.
References:
- Dunham, R. G., & Alpert, G. P. (2015). Critical issues in policing (7th ed.). Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.
- Kappeler, V. E. (Ed.). (2006). The police and society (3rd ed.). Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.
- Newburn, T. (Ed.). (2004). Policing: Key readings. Cullompton, UK: Willan.
- Reisig, M. D., & Kane, R. J. (2014). The Oxford handbook of police and policing. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
- Ross, J. I. (2011). Policing issues: Challenges and controversies. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett.