This paper traces the historical development of law enforcement in the United States from its English roots through contemporary practice to projected future directions. It examines how policing transitioned from informal community volunteers and isolated sheriffs to professionalized agencies with strict hiring standards and advanced training. The paper analyzes the impact of Prohibition-era corruption and organized crime, contrasts past and present crime challenges, and investigates emerging methodologies such as predictive policing and intelligence-led policing that law enforcement agencies expect to adopt. By understanding this trajectory, the paper argues that law enforcement can better prepare for evolving threats while maintaining community safety.
Policing in the United States has come a long way from a single sheriff responsible for upholding the law in a remote town. Law enforcement officers were often hired by the mayor or town council with little or no official training and provided their own equipment, usually just a handgun. This scenario was more common in small towns with just a sheriff or constable, while larger cities followed traditional English examples for law enforcement utilizing sheriffs, constables, and night watchmen (Law Enforcement Career Tips.com, 2015). Today the requirements are much more stringent. In New York, for example, applicants must be at least 21 years old and pass drug, medical, and psychological testing, as well as extensive background and character checks. Additionally, an applicant must have either 60 college credit hours or two years of active duty in the military with an honorable discharge. Most agencies also require candidates to pass a written exam and complete their own police academy (Criminal Justice Degree Schools, 2015). In the future, it is reasonable to expect that requirements will increase further in the areas of education and psychological testing. By examining where policing started and where it is now, it is possible to predict what the future could hold for law enforcement.
Policing in the United States has its roots in English methods. Often the constable or sheriff in an area would gather a group of residents to search for criminals or form a protective force against crime. These residents were not considered law enforcement but worked under the guidance of the appointed sheriff. In England, Sir Robert Peel was instrumental in developing community policing. He believed that police could enforce the law and keep communities safe without being intrusive to citizens (Larrabee, November 2007). He believed in preventative patrolling, maintaining that officers visible in the community would discourage criminals from committing crimes and thus make the community safer for all. These methods were brought to the United States and implemented in cities. In more rural areas, however, there was often not a large enough population to necessitate a police force. It was not uncommon for a region to have one sheriff who traveled between small towns or oversaw large areas with only the help of residents in times of crisis. Community policing in these areas often amounted to vigilante justice and self-appointed posses to locate, capture, and dispense justice.
The 1920s saw Prohibition and the rise of police corruption (Prohibition, 2008). Local patrol officers were paid by operators of speakeasies to turn a blind eye to the operation of these illegal clubs. When local officers were reluctant, bribes were given to higher ranking officials to ensure the clubs could continue operating. During this period, organized crime grew and was often behind the bribery of law enforcement officials. Organized crime quickly became a new challenge for officers as they had to deal with groups of criminals that worked together to run businesses and commit crimes without fear of retaliation due to bribes to police and government officials.
Organized crime groups in the past were a problem comparable to the terrorists seen today. Both threaten the way of life for average citizens; terrorists of course have a much broader reach and can cause much more damage, but at the time the threat was more serious than any previously experienced, due in large part to the number of members of the organizations and the high level to which corruption extended. Until the attack on Pearl Harbor, no enemy of the United States had carried out an attack on U.S. soil, so the focus of law enforcement was on local or regional criminals.
Crime in today's society is both similar to and different from crime 100 years ago. Crimes such as horse theft, which often carried a sentence of hanging, are rare today and sentences are much less severe. Crimes of identity theft, which are becoming increasingly common, were rarely heard of in the past. A person could move to another state and assume a new identity, even the identity of someone they knew, with little chance of being caught. Most advances in technology were probably not designed with the goal of helping criminals escape justice, but some of them do exactly that. However, advances are being made in technology specifically to catch criminals, and these advances are necessary to help keep law enforcement one step ahead of criminals.
There was a period when neighbors looked out for one another, but those times have changed as people spend much more time inside their homes and often do not even know the names of their neighbors. People have become much more isolated, and crimes that previously would have been reported or stopped by a neighbor are becoming more commonplace. Law enforcement must find new ways to connect with the social network community that exists today. They have to find new weapons to fight a new level of crime, and they have to do all of this while facing budget cuts.
Two hundred law enforcement agencies responded to a survey asking what measures they were actively using to combat crime and what measures they felt would be useful in the future (Police Executive Research Forum, 2014). Ninety-four percent of the agencies have adopted community policing as a method to deter crime. It was the most common method across the agencies, followed by directed patrol, targeting problem addresses, and crime prevention programs, all in the 90th percentile. The survey also suggested that predictive policing and intelligence-led policing are expected to show considerable growth in the future.
"Predictive and intelligence-led policing adoption rates"
Intelligence-led policing is similar to predictive policing in that both involve integrating multiple data sources. This method is a business model coupled with a managerial attitude that combines crime intelligence and data analysis in an objective, decision-oriented style that targets crime prevention and reduction in a methodical, organized manner. Fifty-four percent of surveyed agencies plan to either begin or increase their use of intelligence-led policing in the future.
As different methods of crime prevention and detection are established, the courts and correctional systems will face changes as well. There may be changes in the types of crimes being presented to prosecution and a different class of inmate being sent to prison. It will be necessary for changes to take place there as well. These changes will take place over time, but in order for all three groups to be ready, cooperation across all of them is vital.
Things have changed dramatically since the days of a lone sheriff on a horse with a six-shooter. Officers are educated and highly trained; computer skills are as valuable as physical strength, and the tools used to both detect and prevent crime are remarkable by historical standards. Criminals have become tech-savvy and find new and different ways to commit crimes that no one imagined 30 years ago. But the very technology that criminals use to commit crimes can be used against them as well. It is the task of tomorrow's law enforcement officers to fight these new threats, almost before they happen. It is only by learning from the past, living in the present, and planning for the future that law enforcement can stay one step ahead of criminals or at least not fall behind.
Criminal Justice Degree Schools. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.criminaljusticedegreeschools.com/criminal-justice-resources/police-departments-by-metro-area/new-york-city-police-department-officer-requirements/
Larrabee, A. K. (November 8, 2007). Law Enforcement: Sir Robert Peel's Concept of Community Policing in Today's Society. Retrieved from
Law Enforcement Career Tips.Com. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.lawenforcementcareerstips.com/history-of-law-enforcement-careers.html
Muraskin, R., & Roberts, A. R. (2009). Visions for Change. Crime and Justice in the Twenty-First Century (5th ed.). Retrieved from The University eBook Collection database.
Police Executive Research Forum. (2014). Future Trends in Policing. Washington, D.C.: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.
Prohibition. (2008). In Philip's Encyclopedia. London, United Kingdom: Philip's. Retrieved from
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