Introduction to law enforcement

Law Enforcement Patrols and Gangs

When the Police Are Called

A call for police response by citizens is a service call, in which the public has an implicit assumption for immediate solutions. The motivations for citizens to call upon police intervention are cited falling into four classifications as; maintain social boundaries, relieve disrupting situations, counter-punching (the caller's own suspicious activities), or obtain emergency response services (Walker & Katz, 2008, p. 238). In addition to the four classifications, the ease of calling '911' can compel citizens to use the police emergency line to communicate disruptions of traffic or malfunctioning city services.

The assumed duty of the police, by the public, is that the cause of the situation precipitating the call will be negated. The public may desire for a resolution, however the police are typically limited to diffusing situations. Although an officer may lack the legal authority to compel a citizen to leave their residence, it is difficult to assert that asking the disputing parties to cooperate in restoring the police is preferable to a potential use of force. If a citizen were to refuse the request of an officer to leave and assist in facilitating the restoration of the peace, then it is unfortunate that it would necessitate a continued presence.

Police officers are sworn to uphold the law, but simultaneously must be adept at judging situations that do not rise to the level of breaching laws. An officer that is able to respond to domestic dispute call, and diffuse tensions before a law is broken or harm inflicted is serving the public spirit of law enforcement efficiently.

Domestic Assault

Situations of domestic assault are unlikely to be isolated instances of dispute. Random crimes or disruptions involving strangers are characterized as such, due to their unlikely probability of recurrence or interactions with each party. However, domestic dispute calls warrant particular attention by officers because the victims may or may not be under duress. The concern of police officers extends to other parties, children, that are even less likely to be control or able to escape a domestic dispute.

Determining what transpired in domestic disputes is frequently very difficult, due to the high degree of emotion of the parties. It would be foolish to assume that males perpetrate domestic assaults only, as females are also capable of initiating violence and injury. If an officer is unable to ascertain who is at fault, then arrest of both may be warranted, as well as a call to protective services for children. Many police departments have particular guideline policies to assist officers in dealing with domestic assault cases (Walker & Katz, 2008, p. 247).

Although it may be enticing to advocate mandatory arrests in cases of domestic assault, there is insufficient evidence to conclude that this approach would improve anything (Walker & Katz, 2008, pp. 247-249). In fact, some detractors to mandatory arrest argue that it may have the unintended consequence of dissuading calls for police intervention and help. Encouraging households experiencing domestic disputes or violence are best served by introducing counseling resources aimed at resolving the underlying issues in the home.

Do Law Enforcement Agencies control Crime?

While it might be perceived by the general public that the police control crime, the reality is that their role is reactive or affective at best. In the instances of responding to crime, the police are clearly reactive. However, in the role of law enforcement the police may dissuade immediate occurrences of crime, but it would be mistaken to assert a direct causal link. While statistical tabulations of crimes exist, these reports, Uniform Crime Reports and National Crime Victimization Surveys, are descriptive tools of communities. Police resources can be deployed to respond to particular trouble spots to diffuse hot spots, however it does not address underlying socioeconomic issues that may contribute to crimes.

Evaluating the effectiveness of police departments may be partly guided by crime reports, however this cannot be the only measure of success. Some criminal activities, vandalism or burglaries, may gauge the effectiveness of police patrols, however it is not effective in domestic assault. The best use of crime reports is the strategic deployment of resources and community outreach programs.

Crime Clearance Rate Trends

Referencing the FBI "Crime in the U.S." statistics, forcible rape clearance rates have declined from 41.2%, in 2009, to 40.3%, in 2010 (Dept. Of Justice, 2010). The decline in clearance rates for forcible rape may support using the statistics to criticize the police, however this does not address the particulars of individual cases. Judging the success of a department runs the risk of incentivizing massaging of statistics or altering the categorization of activities to secure promotions and protect jobs. The clearance rate statistics support an assessment of trends, and significant movement should compel interest, however it does not imply that police control crime.