Police Ethics- chapter 1, Introduction Flashcards
Name of authors and Universities they teach at
Douglas Perez, Plattsburgh State Univ
J Alan Moore, Lyndon State College
When Police look the other way, overlook or overemphasize certain types of crimes
Decriminalized
Justice prevails when people under similiar circumstances are treated n an equal and fair manner before the law
Justice as process
Justice prevails when people receive from the law what they deserve to receive
Justice as substance
refers to the problem-solving methods utilized among professionals
collegial
Philosophy of modern professional policing
Community Oriented Policing
CSI Affect
media unrealistic images to the public of the police, how they operate, and what they are capable of accomplishing
Police invoked justice on the streets, often invoking excessive force
curbside-justice
Idea that some police officers will break procedural law in order to enforce substantive law; done in the name of getting the job done
Dirty Harry problem
discretionary decision making
choosing beween options, especially when deciding how to invoke the law
Judgements of moral obligation; a term used for ethical systems that identify a person intentions as the center of moral gravity
deontology
That which makes a person’s life worthwhile, happy, sustaining, defined uniquely by each individual for themselves’ “pursuit of happiness”, as defined by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence
the good
Justice defined as equal treatment
justice as process
justice as what a person deserves
justice as substance
police behaving as if they are foreigners, repressing american citizens
occupying army
noble cause corruption
Dirty Harry-like behavior,; involves police officers breaking procedural law in order to enforce substantive law
defined variously, but in this context the police taking a place among doctors, lawyers etc
professionalism
practice of professionals setting up standards of conduct for their own profession and then holding their peers accountable to same
self-disciplining
practice of professionals developing and applying their own standards to their endeavor- standards involving minimum educational standards, licensing requirements, training practices and so forth
self-regulation
the position that design or ultimate purpose is a principle that organizes growth or development; overall purpose of a thing or action that guides its development toward a particular end
teleology
“You treat everyone the same, kid. Your civil to everyone and cordial to no one. Everyone deserves some amount of respect, but no one deserves courtesty..That’s Kilvinsky’s Law.”
Veteran officer Kilvinsky, speaking to a rookie in move “The New Centurions
Ours is a country of law and of constitutional principles, the sole purpose of which is to create a society where everybody is free to pursue what he or she, individually believes is ?
The good in life- that is, in his or her own life
Pursuit of happiness in the declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson- reference to “the good in life” by “pursuit of happines in the Declaration of Indep
“Good” in life
it is a life that is personally satisfying and meaningful to the individual and is the driving movtivation of everyone
What provides the environment within which the pursuit of the good (happiness) is possible.
Justice
Two concepts to consider regarding Justice
Fairness
justice
greek notion that it is the kind of balance that exists when “each is given his or her due
consider justice to be the Greek notion
streets of america must be ruled by laws that are applied
fairly
what determines the effects the legal system will have on the lives of individual citizens
when officers decide on a day to day basis where to focus their attention, whom to arrest and when to use force
by avoiding the dictates of the law in this and a thousand other ways, the police can create the impression that police practices are
arbitrary, preferential or biased.
such impression promote cynicism amoung citizens and alienate them from the criminal justice system.
curbside justice, “the exercise of absolute police power”
1966 in spain, dictator generalissimo Francisco was in power.
How officers use discretion is of absolute importance to who?
communities, criminal justice system, and America herself.
Two definitions of Justice
- justice as process-Justice prevails when people are treated in an equal and fair manner before law
- justice as substance-Justice prevails when people receive from the law what they deserve to receive
Decision of the police define justice in both of the senses that
justice as fairness
justice in terms of distribution
Police ethics are not and cannot be considered something seperate from
police competence
philosophy
the idea of maintaining a critical frame of mind, a discerning judgment
Socrates called philosolphy
the examined life.
A philosophic perspective is ?
the effort to see clearly, to see the reality of situations.
discussions about morality have been discussed for more than how many years?
two thousand years
Nationalwide survey found that state regulations require an average of how many hrs of ethics training in an entire police academy expereince
three and one-half hours
Being a professional officer is?
police officer who possesses and exhibits good character
Why should a police officer study ethics?
A clear ethic anchors the officer in the good of the community. Without that ethic, the officer is rudderless and lacks personal direction.
it is the officers ethical outlook, revolving around his or her personal character, that
over time promotes respect for the police and trust in the police officer
standard definition of a profession cited by sociologists is
an occupation that involves the practitioner in academic experience of substantial sophistication
Several elements are endemic to the professional
self regulation
solve problems in a collegial way
self disciplining
Dirty Harry problem
considered to be the centrally most important element of police misconduct in todays world.
Dirty Harry’s problem involved
supposedly noble cause of attempting to get the job done.
police to become involved in Dirty Harry-vigalante justice has been labeled
CSI effect.
What has become the most difficult type of misconduct to deter in contemporary American policing.
Dirty Harry problem
another way of labeling the Dirty Harry problem or CSI effect is
noble cause corruption
Ethical frame of reference that has been created specifically for the police prof
an ethic to live by
One of the most studied ethical frames of reference
ethical formalism
German philosopher whose ethic, the Categorical Imperative
Immanuel Kant
Categorical Imperative
a nonreligious version of the New Testament’s “Golden Rule” (Jesus said, Do unto others as you would have them do unto you
Kant’s ethic is what philosophers call
Deontological perspective- a person has a duty to be reasonable.
deontological perspective
a term that indicates that a person has a duty to be reasonable. Kant maintains that the individual can only be held accoutable for that over which he has immediate control and in our condeuct the only thing we absolutely control is our intention
what is the defining trait that makes us human
Reason
human beings stand under a genetic or inborn obligation to
live reasonably.
For Kant, what is the chief enemy of morality
arbitrariness
action that would be applicable to everyone in a similiar situation can be called reasonalbe and not self centered or arbitrary. Kant called this
categorical imperative
Second school of thought is
Utilitarianism
best known modern version of which is called utilitarianiism involves attempting to calculate the impact upon others of ones actions at any given moment.
teleological
This Books Central Arguement
Ethics and competence are directly linked and inseparable. Both are largely determined by the individual police officers character
Good ethical conduct is determined primarily by what a person already is before he or she enrolls in police academy. Comes from a persons character and upbringing. That is, an ?
“ethically disposed” personality trait.
To be a competent police officer is to be an _____ police officer. It is impossible to achieve the former without achieving the latter.
ethical
The critical factor in police competence is ____ ___
ethical judgement
