Part 2 Flashcards
the police act
outlines exactly what the police are supposed to do and they all must abide by it (federal legislation that can be adapted differently in each provinces)
social contract
- the police is a politically neutral force that acts primarily to enforce the law and protect the public
- use force as necessary to maintain order and maximize collective good by maintaining a safe and workable society
radical perspective
- the police are an instrument used by governments/people/organizations/institutions in power to serve their own interest, suppress others/dissent and maintain status quo
political policing
secretive police investigative activities and surveillance of person and groups deemed to be a threat to the stability and status quo of the state
4 levels of policing
- RCMP
- provincial police
- municipal police
- indigenous police
RCMP
- federal policing
- international peacekeeping
- contract policing
provincial police
- enforce the criminal code
- enforce provincial legislation
- only 3 of them
municipal police
- provincial statutes and some federal
- municipal bylaws
- EPS
indigenous police
- multi-faceted role
- band bylaws
- uphold cultural values as well as part of the criminal code and provincial and federal statutes
operational patrol
- patrol division
- canine units
- traffic control
- bolo’s
investigative
specialized units for after the crime has occured (homicide, drugs, major crimes)
support services
- information
- report/filing
- communication centre
- victim/community services
administrative
- civilian officers
- finance
- payroll
police standards
- outline roles and responsibilities
- employee conduct
boards and commissions
- decide matters regarding some police personnel and budgets
- separate from the police department and overseeing it from afar
basic qualifications to become an officer
minimum requirements for candidates applying for employment in policing
preferred qualifications to become an officer
requirements that increase the competitiveness of applicants seeking employment in policing
features of policing
- authority
- use of force
authority
legally mandated authority over regular citizens
use of force
- legally mandated and required to use force when they need too
- expectation to be able to use force
primary roles of police
- crime control
- order maintenance
- crime prevention
crime control
- police presence
- responding to and investigating crime
order maintenance
- prevent and control disruptive behaviour
crime prevention
- cameras
- police presence
- building positive relationships within the community
complexity of the police role
- diversifying contexts and communities
- responding and preventing crime
- new technology
- divergent roles within the role of an officer
diversifying contexts
- changes in our social structure
- can negatively impact the way people look at the police if social issues are not being dealt with swiftly and appropriately
responding and preventing
- effective implementation and solutions
- e.g. poor response to broken window splicing for targeting marginalized communities
effect of new technology
- criminals are using new-age technology to advance crime so you expect the police to keep up and adapt to new technologies
divergent roles
- e.g. poor responding to mental health crisis
policing subculture
- there is a distinctive subculture that exists within police departments
- pros and cons to this
- built on the notion of solidarity (us vs. them)
challenges of police work
- occupational challenges (lack of leadership)
- departmental challenges (staffing issues, lack of resources)
- mental and physical challenges (damaging situations, physically demanding)
- traumatic incidents (witness traumatic things)
- impacts (leaving work at the door)
principle of accountability
actions of officers and services are subject to review and there are formula channels that individuals can use to lodge complaints against the police
ways of police accountability
- civilian oversight: civilian review boards
- ERC: external review committee
- CRCC: civilian review and complaints committee
- SIU: special investigation units
- ethics boards and provisions
typifications
constructs based on a patrol officer’s experience that devote what is typical about people and events routinely encountered
recipes for action
actions typically taken by patrol officers in various kinds of encounter situations
pre-text policing
police stops or searches for a minor reason that are used for more intrusive intervention
over-policing
disproportionate police focus on a racialized population or neighbourhood
four principles of “use of force”
- police must exercise force in performing their duty if authorized to do so
- must act on reasonable grounds (subjective)
- they should only use as much force as necessary (“as necessary” is arbitrary)
- they are responsible for any over-excessive use of force
one plus one
police officers have the authority to use one higher level of force than that with which they are confronted
5 types of force
- officer presence
- dialogue
- empty hands
- compliance tools
- lethal force
officer presence
mere presence of an officer may alter behavior of the participants at an altercation, thereby enabling control of the situation
dialogue
verbal and non-verbal communication skills may resolve the conflict and result in voluntary compliance
empty hands
physical force is used to gain control
compliance tools
equipment or weapons are used to gain control
lethal force
the situation requires complete incapacitation of the subject in order to gain control, and lethal force is the only option available to reduce lethal threat
entrapment
- a person ends up committing an offence that he or she would not otherwise have committed, largely as a result of pressure or cunning on the part of the police
- creates situational crimes
- proactive and cost-efficient
- prevents victimless offences
Mr. Big stings
- involves undercover officers making contact with crime suspects
- effective at obtaining confessions and apprehending offenders
- not predictable situations
- element of deceit (this person is sent on the basis of deceit)
- could lead to false confessions
search and seizure
- search people and places and to seize evidence
- collection of evidence and information on suspects
- debate about reasonable searches (wasting resources)
- cost upwards of $10,000
power to detain and arrest
- an arrest can be made to prevent a crime from being committed, to terminate a breach of the peace, or to compel an accused person to attend trial.
- must not make an arrest of he/she has no “reasonable grounds”
- must believe on “reasonable grounds” that an arrest is “necessary in the public interest”
when can officers make an arrest without a warrant
- they have caught a person in the act of committing an offence
- they believe, on reasonable grounds, that a person has committed an indictable offence
- they believe, on reasonable grounds, that a person is about to commit an indictable offence.
detention
occurs when a police officer “assumes control over the movement of a person by a demand or direction that may have significant legal consequence and that prevents or impedes access to counsel”
3 common complaints against police
- abuse of authority
- attitudes of officers
- quality of service provided
