The Inability of the Police to Prevent Crime

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the inner workings of police departments in America as well as the lack of resources available to effectively prevent and reduce criminal activity. This paper cites several major problems that impact on a police officer's ability to function effectively, including the practice of regularly asking officer to deal with social situations that are chaotic and confused. Police officers often find themselves in the middle of domestic disputes between spouses and partners, landlords and tenants, proprietors and customers and countless others. This paper also discusses the feasibility of hiring additional officers, while the author of this paper cites research studies that clearly conclude that increased police will not decrease crime and that other alternatives must be sought. This paper discusses the recent practice of local governments that hire private firms for a wide array of traditional police functions. This paper also examines the matter of private citizens who have taken it upon themselves to provide their own protection.

From the Paper:

"A major problem is that police officers are regularly asked to resolve social situations that are chaotic and confused. They find themselves in the middle of disputes between spouses and partners, landlords and tenants, proprietors and customers, and countless others, and are subjected to loud and complicated claims and counterclaims. When they are faced with these situations, police must act quickly, decisively, and, hopefully, fairly. In most cases, officers have other calls pending and cannot afford to attempt to understand the innards of the dispute, even if they were inclined or skilled enough to do so. If the parties' stories differ, as they often do, then officers must make instant decisions about whose character is more worthy of respect, and thus which version to treat most seriously. Thus, "(t)he mission of the police is limited to imposing provisional solutions to uncontexted emergencies."

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