¶ … policing in 18th and 19th century England and that of the colonies during that period
Policing in England was very similar to that practiced in the colonies. Both England and the colonies practiced what was referred to as 'kin policing', where citizens were taken as their brothers' keeper and were thus responsible for crime control in their communities. At first, the policing role was practiced by individual citizens who volunteered to keep watch and ensure that law and order was upheld in the community. This, however, proved ineffective, and was replaced with the frankpledge system, where the role of policing was still carried out by citizens, but rather than have individual volunteers, young men would form groups of ten and elect the group leader, known as the sheriff. The group members would carry out policing activities, and the sheriff was responsible for overseeing the smooth flow of the same. Differently from the colonies, however, where law-enforcement was not the sheriff's primary duty; sheriffs in England had law-enforcement as their top-most responsibility, and others such as tax collection as only secondary duties
2. What did Sir Robert Peel think about ethics and policing?
Peel felt that the citizen-led structure of policing was ineffective as it did not allow for effective coordination of law-enforcement activities. He opined that there was need to have a policing system that focused primarily on crime-prevention, and where the members had a legitimate responsibility. Peel expressed that the policing system needed to be guided by a code of ethics that ensured that officers carried out their law-enforcement activities in an ethical manner, and could be held accountable by a central authority. In this regard, he proposed that the policing function be placed under government control, with a central headquarters that was easily accessible and a military-like structure. Further, he proposed that officers receive the requisite training to be able to conduct their duties effectively, and have a standard attire for easy identification.
3. What was the Alderman style of policing?
This is a style of policing where each ward acts as a separate patrol district, and members of the municipal council (ward aldermen) have full control over who is recruited into the police force. In this case, the ward aldermen select...
Power over the police and control over policing activities thus lie with the ward aldermen, increasing the chances of corruption and political patronage in the force.
4. What were the advantages and disadvantages of police during the Political Era?
The main advantage of police during the Political Era was the fact that the level of technological advancement was low, and police officers relied heavily on community patrols to control crime and maintain order in the community. This increased the level of community-police interaction and allowed for the formation of an intimate relationship. Moreover, it increased the community's involvement in policing activities, and this facilitated the process of law-enforcement. On the negative end, however, the lack of effective technology made communication between officers and coordination of policing activities difficult. Further, owing to the fact that the police force had strong ties with the political wing, issues of corruption, manipulation, and misuse of power were rampant.
5. What did August Vollmer propose to professionalize the police?
August Vollmer proposed that a college education be taken as the minimum qualification for joining the police force. His proposition was based on the ideology that better-educated police officers were able to serve better and make better decisions. For this reason, he hired college students to work part-time at the Berkeley Police Department. His visionary thinking paid off in 1973, when the National Advisory Commission examining his proposal made the finding that police departments with higher education standards generally reported quicker response times and more coordinated operations.
6. What effect did the patrol car and education for officers have on community relations?
Education for officers and the patrol car were introduced during the Reform Era. Together, they had the effect of reducing the degree to which the community interacted with the police force (community-policing). Patrol cars, for instance, reduced the number of foot patrols, making it rather difficult for police officers to engage directly with the community. The higher education standard, on the other hand, made police officers college graduates, and…
