Key Terms 6 Flashcards
What is Ballistics?
The study of firearms, including the firing of the weapon and the flight of the bullet
What does the term Blue Curtain refer to?
A metaphorical term used to refer to the value placed on secrecy and the general mistrust of the outside world shared by many police officers
What is Body Armor?
Protective covering that is worn under a police officer’s clothing and designed to minimize injury from being hit by a fired bullet
Define Broken Windows Theory
Wilson and Kelling’s theory that a neighborhood in disrepair signals that criminal activity is tolerated in the area
What is Bureaucracy?
A hierarchally structured administrative organization that carries out specific functions
What is Burnout?
A mental state that occurs when a person suffers from exhaustion and has difficulty functioning normally as a result of overwork and stress
What is Citizen Oversight?
The process by which citizens review complaints brought against individual police officers or police departments
Define Civil Liability
The potential responsibility of police officers, police departments, or municipalities to defend themselves against civil lawsuits
What is a Civil Rights Violation?
Any interference with a citizen’s constitutional rights by a civil servant such as a police officer
What does Clearance Rate measure?
A comparison of the number of crimes cleared by arrest and prosecution with the number of crimes reported during any given time period
What is a Cold Case?
A criminal investigation that has not been solved after a certain amount of time
Define Cold Hit
The establishment of a connection between a suspect and a crime, often through the use of DNA evidence, in the absence of an ongoing criminal investigation
What is Community Policing?
A policing philosophy that emphasizes community support for and cooperation with the police in preventing crime
What does Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) do?
A method of dispatching police patrol units to the site of 911 emergencies with the assistance of a computer program
Define Conducted Energy Device (CED)
A less lethal weapon designed to disrupt a target’s central nervous system, by means of a charge of electrical energy
What is a Confidential Informant (CI)?
A human source for police who provides information concerning illegal activity in which he or she is involved
What is Crime Mapping?
Technology that allows crime analysts to identify trends and patterns of criminal behavior within a given area
What is Deadly Force?
Force applied by a police officer that is likely or intended to cause death
Define Delegation of Authority
The principles of command on which most police departments are based, in which personnel take orders from and are responsible to those in positions of power directly above them
What is a Detective?
The primary police investigator of crimes
Define Differential Response
A strategy for answering calls for service in which response time is adapted to the seriousness of the call
What is Directed Patrol?
A patrol strategy that is designed to focus on a specific time of criminal activity in a specific geographic area
What is DNA Fingerprinting?
The identification of a person based on a sample of her or his DNA, the genetic material found in the cells of all living things
Define Duty in the context of policing
The moral sense of a police officer that she or he should behave in a certain manner
What does Forensics involve?
The application of science to establish facts and evidence during the investigation of crimes
What are Hot Spots in law enforcement?
Concentrated areas of high criminal activity that draw a directed police response
Define Incident-Driven Policing
A reactive approach to policing that emphasizes a speedy response to calls for service
What is the Internal Affairs Unit (IAU)?
A division within a police department that receives and investigates complaints of wrongdoing by police officers
What is Noble Cause Corruption?
Knowing misconduct by a police officer with the goal of attaining what the officer believes is a ‘just’ result
Define Police Corruption
The abuse of authority by a law enforcement officer for personal gain
What is Police Subculture?
The values and perceptions that are shared by members of a police department and, to a certain extent, by all law enforcement agents
What is a Policy in policing?
A set of guiding principles designed to influence the behavior and decision making of police officers
What are Proactive Arrests?
Arrests that occur because of concerted efforts by law enforcement agencies to respond to a particular type of criminal or criminal behavior
Define Problem-Oriented Policing
A policing philosophy that requires police to identify potential criminal activity and develop strategies to prevent or respond to that activity
What does Professionalism in policing entail?
Adherence to a set of values that show a police officer to be of the highest moral character
What is Random Patrol?
A patrol strategy that relies on police officers monitoring a certain area with the goal of detecting crimes in progress or preventing crime due to their presence
Define Reactive Arrests
Arrests that come about as part of the ordinary routine of police patrol and responses to calls for service
What is Reasonable Force?
The degree of force that is appropriate to protect the police officer or other citizens and is not excessive
What is Response Time in policing?
The rapidity with which calls for service are answered
What is Reverse 911?
A mobile phone-based communications system that allows public officials to send outbound messages in the event of an emergency
Define Socialization in the context of policing
The process through which a police officer is taught the values and expected behaviors of the police subculture
What are Stressors in police work?
The aspects of police work and life that lead to feelings of stress
Define Trace Evidence
Evidence such as a fingerprint, blood, or hair found in small amounts at a crime scene
