Week #3+4 (test 1)

Question 1

What is the biological theoretical perspective

Answer 1

Somatotypes (sheldon) - body type determines criminality

Phrenology (Lombroso) - skull type

Neurocriminology - more current day - looks at brain scans to see if there’s something organic or biological at the root of criminology

*People mention biological theories all the time → “bad seed” “born that way” etc.

Question 2

What is the functionalist theoretical perspective?

Answer 2

Based on social contract theories
- anomie and norm erosion > emphasizes stable behaviours and cohesion > anomie leads to criminality?
- right realism > war on crime / hard approach (aligns with crime control theory!)

Question 3

What is the Interactionist theoretical perspective?

Answer 3

*how agents interact with structure > complex ideas of crime

Strain (Merton)

Labelling (Becker)

Question 4

What is the Control theoretical perspective?

Answer 4

*says that individuals commit crimes when their social bonds and self-control are weak
Attack ideas of deterrence

Not deterrence but mitigating selfishness (Hirschi)

Internalizing norms and morality (Tyler)

Question 5

What is the Pragmatic theoretical perspective?

Answer 5

*approaches that prioritize getting the job done over legal and philosophical questions

Rational choice theory > individuals make rational decisions to commit crimes by weighing the benefits and costs

Ecological approaches > how the physical environment influences crime

Question 5

What are the New Criminology theoretical perspectives?

Answer 5

(conflict/critical)

• focus on inequalities and imbalance, or deviance as political action in response to prevailing order
• Zemiology > study of social harms
• left realism > emphasis on victims and policy

Question 6

What are the Radical theoretical perspectives?

Answer 6

(political policing)

• police support financial interests and power (ex. pacify labour groups, surveillance, monopolize force, etc.)
• defunding movements

Question 7

What are some points to keep in mind when considering how we frame and view police work?

Answer 7

• maintain balance
• avoid taking the privileged perspective > take a humble approach - ask questions
• respect the complexity of systems and actors
• actors at different levels have varying control over the agenda or mandate, which are often competing

Question 8

What/when/where/why was the first police force? How did they view and define themselves at the time (Peel’s principles)?

Answer 8

First full-time police force formed in the UK in 1829 (Sir Robert Peel) > the Metropolitan police force London > formed in response to increasing fear of crime associated with the industrial revolution (but ppl were wary of the police having power)

• prevent crime and disorder
• police need public support/approval (legitimacy)
• cooperation depends on the reasonable use of force, as a last resort (force determines legitimacy)
• police are public and proactive
• police are separate from the judiciary (autonomous, apolitical)
• orderliness of society shows if police are being successful

*professionalization, standardized recruitment, training

Question 9

What was the 3-part mandate of early police forces in Canada?

Answer 9

• police conflicts between ethnic groups, and labour/employers
• maintain moral standards (drunkenness, gambling, etc.)
• apprehend criminals

Question 10

Explain how policing originated in Canada - what were early police forces heavily influenced by? How the RCMP came into being?

Answer 10

Prior to the 19th century, laws were enforced by community members

Quebec city employed constables by the mid-1600s > but as settlement increased and population grew, this wasn’t as effective

Early police forces were heavily influenced by patronage (transactional relationships where ppl could buy police’s preferential treatment) and politics

North-West Mounted Police (RCMP) formed in 1873 to maintain orderly settlement (formed more by an accident of history rather than part of a master plan)

After confederation (1867) RCMP contracted to police provinces and jurisdictions > intention was to eventually phase out the RCMP in the early 20th century and let provinces police themselves (thought this would be good for a growing population)
> RCMP didn’t have a great reputation > got bored out in rural areas and spent time in questionable ways

Question 11

What changed about policing in Canada after Confederation in 1867?

Answer 11

Before confederation, police forces were provincially led, until the RCMP were increasingly contracted to police these jurisdictions > except quebec, ontario, and parts of newfoundland

Question 12

What are examples of legislative frameworks that our current police operate under?

Answer 12

• Canadian charter of rights and freedoms - limit powers
• municipal and provincial legislation
• police acts, commissions, boards, etc. *have to know a lot of policy and are controlled by a huge regulatory body

Question 13

What is pluralization? What’s the other name for it? Are there risks to this?

Answer 13

The expansion of policing beyond the public sphere, to include parallel forces, private security, and parapolice (community constables with limited powers > includes the CP police service, CN police service, and some transit police)
> by-law officers, special constables, community safety officers, cadets, etc.

AKA Tiered Policing

Risk that you’re putting someone who doesn’t have proper training into a dangerous situation

Question 14

There are approximately ________ police officers in Canada - more than _____ of these are in Ontario and Quebec

Answer 14

70 000
1/2

Question 15

What are some divisions that are typically incorporated into urban and larger police services?

Answer 15

Patrol, investigative, support, administrative, HR, research/planning, intelligence, etc.

Question 16

What is a paramilitary structure?

Answer 16

Common in policing - communication based on rank and there’s a chain of command that you have to adhere to

Question 17

What are some examples of enforcement agencies other than police?

Answer 17

CBSA (border services), Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Communications Security Establishment (CSE)

Question 18

___% of the RCMP’s ________ personnel are involved in contract policing > where can they go?

Answer 18

60%

18000

contract policing = trained somewhere and then deployed somewhere else > can be Federal, provincial, municipal, and international

Question 19

What are some controversies / concerns with the RCMP?

Answer 19

Accountability concerns:
- fiscal > why are RCMP contracts so expensive for provinces?
- community standards and investment > no provincial police boards overseeing RCMP here - if you have a complaint you have to call Ottowa’s office and go through a whole thing

Controversies: ex. sexual harassment in the workplace etc.

High rate of vacant positions and can’t recruit fast enough

Broad range of policing: resources overextended? effectiveness of policing services is sometimes questioned

Question 20

What are some principles/responsibilities of police from the Law Commission of Canada

Answer 20

JUSTICE - peace/security, fair treatment

EQUAL entitlement to safety/security

ACCOUNTABILITY of police

EFFICIENT services (cost-effective)

Question 20

What is the First Nations Policing Program

Answer 20

FNPP (1992)

Allows indigenous community to negotiate agreements for local and autonomous police forces > include diverse funding models (local, provincial, federal)
- Overseen by reserve-based police commissions or by the local band council
- Generally have full powers to enforce on reserve lands the criminal code, federal and provincial statutes, and band by-laws
- Some argue they are set up to fail due to lack of funding

Question 21

What are the 3 traditional roles of police?

Answer 21

Crime control

Maintaining order

Crime prevention (collaboration)

Question 22

What is meant by “Core policing”

Answer 22

*Textbook definition > often referred to as quality of life policing - involves the police playing a multi-faceted role in the community including collaborative partnerships with the community

Core policing is the diversification of the role of police:
- growing technology = complex criminality
- declining funding for support agencies
- militarization of police
- mandated responsibilities (legislated) and assumed responsibilities (collaboration, education, mental health, etc.)

*Must be higher trained and have core cultural competencies
Training to interact with at-risk and vulnerable groups

Question 23

What is a possible conflict within the growing responsibilities, scope, and accountability of police?

Answer 23

- police and corrections are the only agencies that can use force > they have a direct impact on the rights and freedoms of citizens - police are expected to do way more than originally intended - In some ways police are paid to be inquisitive and get ahead of crime and seek it out → how can you be completely impartial and investigate at the same time - you have to be able to follow-up on suspicions (tension between these two things) > impartiality is in tension with powers and authority - Independent and supposed to be able to pursue things but there’s someone looking over your shoulder

Question 24

What kind of matters do the majority of police calls in rural areas involve?

Answer 24

More than half of calls involve non-criminal matters or 'complex' cases > ex. mental health, substance abuse, homelessness

Question 25

more than ___% of immigrant groups settle in urban areas (vancouver, montreal, toronto)

Answer 25

60%

Question 26

What percent of the police population is women? What is the 30 by 30 program?

Answer 26

23% having 30% women in their police services by 2030

Question 27

What is meant by super-diversity?

Answer 27

lots of immigration means white middle class is not necessarily the norm anymore

Question 28

What is Systemic Racism?

Answer 28

When the 'system' is based on racist beliefs - meaning that racism is operationalized through police, compelling actors to behave in a racist way policies and practices literally force even the non-racists to act in a racist way

Question 29

What is the relationship between the policy/system and the actors

Answer 29

Carefully constructed policy and systems intended to impose fair and equal treatment may be administered by unfair actors. Likewise, poorly constructed policy and systems may be mitigated by fair actors

Question 30

Does more police = less crime or feeling safer?

Answer 30

Some research indicates that properly resourced police agencies can reduce crime and fear, IF these resources are properly deployed and operations are 'intelligence led' However, NYC has a ton of police officers per capita, and less than 40% of New Yorkers feel safe > Saturation of police doesn't necessarily translate into feelings of safety

Question 31

What are some causes of the recruitment challenges?

Answer 31

- low prestige, distrust, etc. - recruit demands (balance, control, flexibility) - history and experience - geography - training models - reputation of systemic racism?

Question 32

What can high vacancy rates produce?

Answer 32

- targeted recruitment (ex. Doing training in the north so people don’t have to travel 9 hours to the city) - reduced qualifications or adjusting basic (required) vs. preferred qualifications > *will lowering standards too much just cause more attrition and ppl dropping out later?

Question 33

What were some of the RCMP required qualifications from 1946?

Answer 33

- British or Canadian subject - single - history of good conduct - good physical condition - between 18-30 years old - minimum grade 8 education - taller than 5'8 - between 165 and 210 lb - 5yr minimum service

Question 34

Explain the aspects of classroom training and operational training

Answer 34

Classroom: imparts basic skills, inoculates against stress (exposes you to war stories and the everyday stressors of police work), while introducing hyper-vigilance (being aware of everything around you all the time) - cynicism, suspicion - paramilitary structures, 'us vs them' - group identity/solidarity, loyalty, trust, secrecy Operational: may conflict with the classroom (but field training officer is meant to transfer classroom info over to the field) - maintain continuity with the classroom, while offering important corrections - may or may not increase cynicism, respect for process, and application of learned skills - inducts the recruit into a police subculture while developing the working personality (attitude and behaviour attributes) of the officer > this may be opposed to community and interagency collaboration (distrust - defining friends + enemies, new boundaries and stigmas) > might impose social (private) commitments **oftentimes the field training is about inducting the officer into the subculture of the police department

Question 35

Describe a toxic subcultre

Answer 35

Refers to subcultures that become contaminated with chronic mistreatment of staff based on non-conformity

Question 36

Explain the mental health state of police officers

Answer 36

They are disproportionately affected by mental health issues - 3-5x higher than the general population Shiftwork, traumatic exposure, and fatigue often affect work-life balance and lead to occupation stress (non-physical) injuries

Question 37

Contrast the social contract perspective of police with the radical perspective

Answer 37

social contract: POLITICALLY NEUTRAL Views police as a politically neutral force that acts primarily to enforce the law and protect the public > Citizens voluntarily surrender some of their power and rights and delegate them to the state and to the police force radical: CAN NEVER BE POLITICALLY NEUTRAL Views the police as an instrument used by governments and powerful interests to suppress dissent, stifle protest, and help maintain the status quo > police support government who supports the ruling class which means they can never by politically neutral > Examples in history of the police being used by the government to pacify the canadian west so that it could be settled and developed, to break strikes and suppress protests, and to monitor the activities of citizens deemed to be a threat

Question 38

What is political policing? examples?

Answer 38

secretive police investigative activities and surveillance of persons and groups deemed to be a threat to the stability and status quo of the state ex. - RCMP instrumental in removing indigenous children from their homes and taking them to residential schools - Big role in breaking union strikes - 9/11 accelerated police surveillance

Question 39

Core demand of the defund police movement?

Answer 39

Core demand is to reallocate funds, power, equipment, and the use of force away from agents of the state and instead to community-centred forms of safety

Question 40

4 levels of contemporary Canadian policing

Answer 40

federal, principle, municipal, and indigenous

Question 41

What are some international peacekeeping activities?

Answer 41

Technical advisers and they might instruct local police forces in new policing strategies - concerns > Used for political purposes? Lack of pre-deployment training?

Question 42

What would a liberal democracy say we need to do with policing?

Answer 42

says we need to separate the powers of police and government

Question 43

What are some required (basic) qualifications and preferred qualifications of current day police recruitment?

Answer 43

Basic qualifications: Canadian citizenship, age 19, physical fitness, grade 12 education, no prior criminal convictions or pending charges, must exhibit common sense and good judgment Preferred qualifications: Knowledge of Second language or culture Related volunteer experience Post-secondary education Work-life experience

Question 44

What is the working personality of the police?

Answer 44

Used to explain how the police view their role and the world around them > Many view policing as a career and a way of life, rather than a 9-5 Us vs. them mentality Blue light syndrome - emphasize the high-risk, high-action component of police work blue wall of silence > it’s just us, we can only trust the people in this room can lead to really unhealthy home-life and work-life balance

Question 45

What is the principle of accountability?

Answer 45

The idea that police agencies are subject to review and that formal complaint channels are available > police have to be open to internal (professional standards units, HR/performance reviews) and external scrutiny (civilian led, professionally led, or mixed models)

Question 46

What is an inquest?

Answer 46

When a coroner calls for an investigation into a more specific circumstance of an incident like a death in custody - can be called whenever there is suspicion with the body

Question 47

What is a critique of the formal oversight committees that often investigate police?

Answer 47

They are often former police officers themselves > may also lack diversity > some places have gone to pure civilian oversight - can be harder to complete investigations because they don’t have the background context

Question 48

What are the intentions of body-worn cameras as an informal police oversight and what are some of the unintended consequences?

Answer 48

Intention: to increase accountability and transparency of police encounters Cons: - increased hesitation of police and civilians > no one likes to be recorded so offenders might hesitate to confess or comply > also some argue the severity of force increases because police wait too long to get involved physically - police bypassing incidents because they don't want to get involved and be watched - interpretation > video doesn’t give the full picture all the time - higher cost

Question 49

What are some examples of limits that The Charter puts on police powers

Answer 49

- repeated opportunity to have counsel - no arbitrary detention - warrant requirements - rules about police deception - disclosure requirements > ex. how much info going to attorneys?

Question 50

Police exercise selective and situated enforcements, within limits, and subject to... ?

Answer 50

- seriousness of the incident - justification / objective grounds - policy demands (ex. zero tolerance - Police officers used to have to arrest whenever there was domestic violent incident)

Question 51

Explain the significance of Typifications What is another phrase for this?

Answer 51

They are patterns of behaviour that you come to recognize and you know exactly what they are when you see them --> ex. cake with candles on it > you know it's a birthday > You get used to a certain pattern of behaviour and you fill in the blank → aka gut or intuition > Police officers develop another layer of this - recognizing what criminal behaviour looks like and making decisions based on that > greatly influences police discretion > When typifications are disrupted it’s very disruptive > Typifications are the theoretical foundations behind systemic racism and profiling and things like that AKA Recipes (recipe knowledge) > pragmatic competence in completing routine performances

Question 52

What is Procedural Justice Policing? What are they key principles? What does bias-free policing require?

Answer 52

It intends to override the typifications that can control and determine police interactions principles: - respect (disposition) - participation - exchange of information - neutrality and consistent application of law - trust and genuine concern for wellbeing *bias-free policing requires officers to base their decisions on reasonable suspicion and probable grounds vs. stereotypes

Question 53

What is overpolicing / pretext policing?

Answer 53

Disproportionate focus or intrusive measures ex. pull car over and tell them taillight is out and use that as a pretext to search car and become more invasive - often based on typifications

Question 54

What to remember when determining whether to use force? What are the 5 increasing steps of using force?

Answer 54

Remember to do continuous assessment and the principle of one plus one 1. Presence 2. Dialogue 3. Empty/Open hand 4. Compliance/Weapon 5. Lethal

Question 55

Why is it important to take into account resident and available population when evaluating use of force?

Answer 55

It can balance out use of force data and account for disparities between neighbourhoods for example resident pop. = all who live in an area available pop. = those available for contact with police

Question 56

What kind of force during police encounters is most common?

Answer 56

- weapon display - physical handling - intermediate force options > less-lethal (ex. OC spray, stun guns, etc.)

Question 57

How many deadly encounters are there with police every yr in Canada?

Answer 57

less than 10 cases per year

Question 58

What is Entrapment?

Answer 58

When pressure or trickery is used by police to compel a crime (beyond opportunity), which would not have occurred otherwise > this cannot be random, requires reasonable suspicion and other rules

Question 59

What is a Mr. Big technique?

Answer 59

A fabricated scenario that requires confession to a crime - usually in exchange for a perceived benefit (ex. money, membership, etc.) - like police setting up their own fake organized crime

Question 60

What might result from a warrant for arrest other than actual arrest?

Answer 60

- promise to appear - undertaking > conditions based on release - have to live here, can’t drink, do this, etc. - summons

Question 61

When are arrest warrants not required?

Answer 61

- if the subject is caught in the act or has committed an indictable offence - preventing an offence - establishing identity with suspicion > participation, witnessing, etc. - securing evidence

Question 62

What are bench warrants?

Answer 62

(Warrant of Committal) - may be issued if there is a failure to appear, not meeting conditions, etc. ex. Ordering officer to go and get you if you didn’t show up to court

Question 63

Define rotten apple, rotten barrel, and rotten orchard?

Answer 63

apple = individual misconduct barrel = group misconduct orchard = organizational misconduct