In the United States, policing has been an evolving concept given the desire to strike a balance between keeping law and order and the need to safeguard citizen’s rights granted by the constitution. There are three eras of policing history recognized in the US with the first termed the Political Era, which occurred between 1840 and 1930 (Edwards, 2011). During this period, the role of the police was to offer a range of social services to the community. The police force was organized in a decentralized structure, and there was a close relationship between the police and the community. Moreover, they conducted patrols on foot and bicycles. With the strategy, police officers established and built close relationships with business owners and citizens who lived, worked and played in the neighborhood. Overall, officers were effective in serving the local community and meeting the needs of the political leaders. This was followed by the Reform Era (1930-1980) (Edwards, 2011). The police institution adopted a crime control model, which led to the centralization of the police departments. Professionalism was enhanced between the police and the public. The officers distanced themselves from the citizens giving an impression that they could not be approached and they did not value the establishment of close relationships with the local businesses and residents in their jurisdictions. Technology had changed policing, and officers patrolled in cars as a way of reducing response times for service calls. Further, the police introduced the 911 emergency systems which reduced the response time (Miller et al. 2011). The primary role of police was to control crime through visible police patrols cars, especially during peak hours.

The Community Era (1980 To-Date) (Edwards, 2011). This era is characterized by a crime control strategy that entails offering community services through collaborating with the local communities to ensure safer neighborhoods. The police structure went back to the decentralized organization and formed special units of community policing officers. They focused on demonstrating that they were approachable and in re-building relationships with the communities through encouraging the citizens to work with the local police officers and departments.

Examining Two Policing Eras

The Political Era (1840-1930).

Strengths

The first strength during this era is that police officers and departments were integrated...

Moreover, the police offered useful services to the neighborhoods because of this integration and public support (Miller et al. 2011). Overall, the strategy was useful in containing riots. Therefore, the public held the perception that the police solved crimes or prevented crimes when they occurred.
Weaknesses

The weaknesses in this policing era cannot be ignored. First, a decentralized organizational structure, closeness with the communities and closeness to political leaders led to political corruption. Often, the decentralized structure did not encourage the supervision of the officers. The officers’ closeness to the community made them vulnerable to bribery in exchange for lax or non-enforcement of laws. Moreover, the police were very close to local political bosses, which led to forms of political corruption like patronage and police meddling in elections.

The Community Era (1980 to Present)

Strengths

Direct contact is a key strength associated with this era. Police assigned to a particular neighborhood came into direct contact with local business owners and residents. With the enhanced relationship, trust in law enforcement grew resulting in increased public support. The outcome is that police were more effective in preventing and fighting crime by using information and tip-offs from citizens (Miller et al. 2011).

Weaknesses

Successful community policing relies on the concept of citizen participation. However, citizens will not get involved because of apathy and the fear of reprisal (Miller et al. 2011). Some community members will not participate because it does not affect them personally. Moreover, fear may prevent them from cooperating with police officers. Most people will opt to keep to themselves and avoid reporting any complaints because they want to remain invisible from the law enforcers.

The Relationship of Criminal Justice to Social Justice on Equity and Fairness

The concept of social justice concerns itself with what is wrong versus right or what is fair versus unfair (Barak et al. 2010). Social justice uses these notions of fairness and correctness with equity in the society. In essence, social justice seeks to ensure that citizens receive the same privileges, protection, and opportunities regardless of education, race, gender or ethnicity (Barak et al. 2010). Good examples of social…