Criminal Justice Organization and Management: The Paramilitary Model Adopted by Police Organizations Introduction

The paramilitary model provides a degree of discipline and training to police officers that they might not otherwise obtain. The paramilitary model not only gives law enforcement officers the knowledge and skills regarding how to use force in an effective manner, it also gives police a type of professionalism that helps them to be more organized and opposed to corrupting influences (Potter, 2013). I believe that the paramilitary model adopted by police organizations is effective in some ways but has its limitations in others. For that reason, I think that it should be balanced out by a model of policing that takes into account the fact that police are not engaged in a military campaign against an enemy but are actually working among civilians in communities and are there to serve and protect them. Because police are routinely interacting with communities, there is also a need for them to apply a community-oriented model of policing so that they are not constantly applying military principles and militaristic examples of force on members of the community who would rather see a more open, supportive, and communicative relationship develop between law enforcement and community members.

Why the Paramilitary Model Can Help

Military training and discipline can bring a level of professionalism to a law enforcement organization that helps officers to take their role seriously, maturely and with great care and commitment for what they are meant to be doing. The paramilitary model is rooted in a type of hierarchical order or chain of command in which the decisions are made by leaders at the top (Cruickshank, 2013). Individual officers, like soldiers in the field, are meant to follow orders and if they do not follow orders, they are relieved of duty or disciplined so that they learn from their mistake. The focus and emphasis is on obeying the chain of command, which means that police departments must have very good leaders capable of making good decisions and training their officers to follow commands in the line of duty.

The paramilitary model can also help officers to feel more confident, united, and aligned on the same page, as there is less of sense of individualism and more of a sense of serving a greater ideal, which is defined by the organization at the top. The model insists that officers reflect the values and principles of the organization in all their actions, because every officer under this model is viewed as the face of the organization and the respectability of the organization is what matters most. If an officer dares to put a blemish on the organization...

In this model, values and principles are ingrained into the thinking of the officers so that they manifest these values in their everyday lives.
Finally, the paramilitary model gives officers access to greater weapons and tools so that they are safer and more forceful when the time comes for action. Because the world is an increasingly dangerous place where terrorists and others may be armed and on the prowl, police have to be able to respond in a way that is even more forceful and capable of diminishing and neutralizing the threat. The paramilitary model option provides exactly this kind of support.

Why the Paramilitary Model is Limited

Not every community is a war zone nor do its members want to feel like they are in one. When they see their local officers driving around in Humvees that were used in Iraq, they can feel uncomfortable or offended that they should be put on a level with a third world country as they their own streets were being patrolled by an occupying force. This type of projection of power and force can undermine community law enforcement relations and cause tension, fear, and hatred to grow in communities. The paramilitary model is thus not a sufficient or appropriate model for every law enforcement department in every community.

Another limitation is that fact that law enforcement is not the same as soldiering in the military. Police officers have to constantly be making judgment calls and using their own discretion when they are on duty. There is no other way to go about the job: they have to be prepared to respond on a minute by minute basis. While protocol should always be followed, there will be many times where a situation does not quite clearly fit into any one sort of situation on which protocol has been provided. In cases like these, officers have to be able to look at what is presented to them and make a decision in the moment. There is not always sufficient time or even the possibility of radioing back to headquarters, explaining the situation to the chief and awaiting a response. Police chiefs do not even want that kind of authority usually: typically they want to train officers to make decisions on their own—albeit the right ones based on their training, the values and principles of the organization, and the need at the time. Officers have to feel empowered and able to make a call independently. Paramilitary training can make them feel empowered because they have the ability to use force to overcome threats—but in terms of de-escalating a situation, or knowing what to do in…