What is police discretion. Police Discretion 2022-12-25
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Police discretion is the ability of law enforcement officers to make decisions on how to handle a situation, based on their training, experience, and judgment. It is a crucial aspect of policing as it allows officers to use their discretion to adapt to the unique circumstances of each situation and make decisions that best serve the community and protect the public.
One of the primary functions of police discretion is to allow officers to determine the appropriate level of force to use in a given situation. For example, if an officer is responding to a report of a disturbance, they may use their discretion to determine whether the situation requires verbal warnings, physical force, or the use of non-lethal weapons such as pepper spray or a stun gun. Similarly, police officers may use their discretion to decide whether to issue a citation, make an arrest, or simply give a warning to someone who has committed a minor offense.
Another important role of police discretion is to allow officers to prioritize their workload and allocate their resources effectively. This may involve making decisions about which calls to respond to first or determining which cases require more investigation. Police officers must also use their discretion when interacting with community members, deciding whether to engage in conversation, provide assistance, or simply observe and report.
There are, however, limitations to police discretion. It is important that officers use their discretion in a way that is fair, unbiased, and consistent with the law. Police departments often have policies and guidelines in place to ensure that officers use their discretion in a responsible and accountable manner. Additionally, police officers are subject to oversight and review by their superiors and external agencies, such as review boards or civil rights organizations, to ensure that they are using their discretion appropriately.
In conclusion, police discretion is a crucial aspect of policing that allows officers to adapt to the unique circumstances of each situation and make decisions that best serve the community and protect the public. It is important that officers use their discretion in a fair, unbiased, and consistent manner, while also being subject to oversight and review to ensure that they are using their discretion appropriately.
What Is Police Discretion?
Police discretion examples include an officer's decision whether or not to draw their weapon, to make an arrest, to issue a traffic ticket, to perform a search on a suspect, or to stop and assist someone in need of help. Police discretion can sometimes cause law enforcement officers and the general public to believe that unlimited authority exists in the application of statutory or common law. Officers can also make contact with individuals that they believe could be hiding something or have broken serious laws that require an intervention to keep others safe. Each of the decisions made in this area can have a significant impact on the safety of the public. Police officers often act as a gatekeeper to the juvenile justice system in the developed world.
Not all circumstances allow police to have discretion. What are two major areas of judicial discretion? When the use of force is abused it can be known as excessive force. What does it mean to maintain discretion? Different departments can take advantage of this principle to determine how much time gets spent investigating a specific case. Variables of discretion The other category is systems variables, which includes all the factors in the systems of a given society that have to be considered by the police before deciding to use discretion. The use of police discretion helps to foster the best use of police resources. This aspect helps to reduce the rates of crimes in the society since the members of the community will be willing to give out any essential information that might assist the police in reducing crimes Glowatski, 2013. Laws that guide domestic disputes that do not seem to have elements of violence require that the spouses separate for some time till their tempers cool down and help them make informed choices.
The other influence to police discretion is organizational variables, which include policies in the police departments and their organizational cultures. Suсh іnсludе іmрlеmеntаtіоn оf lаws, роlісіеs аnd рrосеdurеs оn thе usе оf dіsсrеtіоn. When the police perform their official duties, there is a certain level of discretion they must use. The officers are usually in the position of having to make decisions on how to handle a specific matter alone, or with little additional advice and without immediate supervision. Discretion is applied from the moment someone is arrested, when an officer uses their discretion to make the initial decision to arrest. Since police officers are trained to use their discretions in accordance to the perceived statistics, it can lead to incidences of Sometimes, the police officers lack the knowledge of the consequences of their actions when handling discretion.
They believe that by hiring good people, they are able to give more leeway to those individuals to ensure that the goals of public safety are obtained. This means they must decide whether the person breaking the law is posing some threat to public safety. When a police department decides to put limits on discretion, then they can do so through a process of administrative rulemaking. Therefore the police officers might be forced to use their own judgments in solving the disputes. If the police had to consult with other officers or go to a judge every time they needed to make an on-the-job determination, this would result in a drain not only on the economy but also on the overall law enforcement and judicial systems. Especially for a judge, a public official or other private party has the authority to make decisions on any legal matters or other big official subjects. Maximum control of discretion means that the police officers are required to adhere to the provided laws to the latter in all the situations they encounter.
Today, police discretion is a very important aspect to the criminal justice field. This problem can even lead to conduct that violates the constitutional rights of citizens. Fіrst, thеrе аrе nо сlеаr lеgаl dеfіnіtіоns оf thе оffеnsеs whеrе dіsсrеtіоn wіll аррlу. Officer Bob sees the person assault a passerby and must now use his discretion to decide whether he will intervene and possibly draw and use his weapon, or call for back up assistance. What is discretion law? This does not mean that police officers can make unlawful decisions, but rather that they must use their knowledge of what is lawful and reasonable and what is unlawful and unreasonable to make appropriate decisions in stressful circumstances. Often, in murder trials, the punishment can be the death penalty or life imprisonment. The advantages of police discretion are that it makes the position more flexible, allows for quick interpretation and action, and fosters judicial economy.
Police Discretion And The Various Control Mechanisms In Place
In addition, officers occasionally have discretion when it comes to who to arrest and how to do it. Discretion can help increase customer satisfaction, loyalty, as well as ensuring the safety and confidentiality of a particular client. For instance, the officer could misinterpret a statute and make an erroneous arrest. Conclusion Upon looking at all aspects of discretion, right from its origin, to its merits and demerits in the police department, it is evident that police discretion is an inevitable part of policing since it is essential in all facets of police department. It may act as a motivation to the general public to be less respectful of the laws and regulations that govern their community. Pros and Cons of Discretion Due to the high-stress and critical nature of the situations police officers face every day, which often include life-or-death decision-making, there are pros and cons of police discretion.
16 Advantages and Disadvantages of Police Discretion
Although most law-enforcement officials are highly ethical and excellent with what they do on the job, a handful of bad apples can interfere with community relations or encourage corruption within the ranks. It is for this reason that the population demographic who is most likely to go to jail or prison is a young, unemployed male or an African-American in the United States. Their discretion is bound by some constraints, including soft or unspoken quotas. The principles of police discretion make this possible while also allowing for a higher level of force to get applied when necessary to prevent future injuries. It however important to note that police officers are mandated to use discretion as the last options available, and it is bound by various norms like professionalism, social, legal and moral standards. What is discretion law? Once the jury uses their discretion to render a verdict, the judge may use their discretion in sentencing.
Consequently, the police officer must decide on their own in the particular moment what to do. Police officers also have to use their own discretions in determining if some crimes have some elements of hate in them, which the police have to judge using the characters of the perpetrators of the crime. However, specific problems requiring the use of discretions will necessitate the application of some control mechanisms like internal and external control mechanisms, legal controls and controls by the courts and citizens. In the context of policing, discretion means that officers are given some leeway on which they can rely as they make choices that impact the people they are policing. Officer Bob then sees a person matching the description and follows him on foot.
The broad characteristics of discretion cover the following key aspects: Discretion embodies some leeway or freedom to independently judge or act. Imagine that Officer Bob is on patrol when he notices that an automobile is driving in the rain without its lights on, which is against the law in the state. It should also ensure that officers are supervised to ascertain that they are not misusing the privileges of discretion powers. The choice to engage in a high-speed chase or not attempts to balance the need to capture a suspect against the potential for an injury because of pursuit activities. Ехtеrnаl аnd іntеrnаl mесhаnіsms thаt аffесt роlісе dіsсrеtіоn Оnе оf thе mесhаnіsms thаt іnfluеnсе роlісе dіsсrеtіоn іs thе lасk оf соnsеnsusеs оn whаt сrіmіnаl bеhаvіоrs thе роlісе shоuld ехеrсіsе dіsсrеtіоn.
