Abstract
This paper is a discussion of the use of discretion in police work. It Includes its "mythical" aspects, considers its sources, and suggests how it might be controlled. The paper creates a list of ten police actions during which an officer might use discretion and why. It determines whether the use in each action is reasonable or an abuse of power.

From the Paper
"Peak has pointed to the fact that the law is simply unable to cover every situation a police officer faces and that given this fact there are numerous times when police must make choices about the ..."

Tags:police, discretion

Abstract
This paper discusses the concept of police discretion, including definitions, as well as its advantages and disadvantages and the factors that influence an officer's decision-making process.

From the Paper
"Police discretion has been defined by Hawkins as the space between legal rules in which legal actors may exercise choice and by Galligan as a sphere of autonomy within which one's decisions are in some degree a matter of personal judgment and assessment. Brooks points out that police discretion occurs in situations where officers have some leeway or choice in how to respond to a situation. Since police organizations differ, the level of police discretion can differ as well."

Tags:police, officer, discretion, advantages, disadvantages, decision-making

Abstract
The paper defines discretion and discusses the three variables that allow the police officer to use his discretion without hesitation and with professionalism; the offender variable, situation variable and system variable. The paper looks at the options the police have of arrest, mandatory leave of the aggressor, or mediation on scene, and notes that when discretion is used properly, the outcomes of these situations are usually positive.

Outline:
Abstract
Police Discretion
Defining Discretion
Causes of Discretion
Domestic Violence: Area of Discretion
Pro and Cons of Discretion
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Our society has in place a criminal justice system. This system has three major components; the police, courts and the correctional institutions. According to Peak (2007) the "police have the responsibility of maintaining order, preserving the safety of the public, and responding to health and safety issues of individuals". Through this responsibility there are four main functions; enforcing the laws, performing services, preventing crime and protection of the innocent (Peak, 2007). When performing these responsibility and functions they are often on their own with no supervision. Through training and policies they receive they perform their duties with a degree of discretion."

Tags:offender, situation, system, arrest, mandatory, leave, mediation

Abstract
This paper discusses whether the myth of the ability for police officers to use discretion when applying laws, does in fact exist or not. The paper begins by defining discretion. It then goes on to discusses certain situations when discretion is most commonly used by the police, such as domestic disturbances and dealing with juveniles or the mentally ill.

Table of Contents:
Abstract
Introduction
What is Discretion?
The Myths Regarding Enforcing the Laws
Examples of Officer's Discretion
Discretion with Juveniles
Discretion with the Mentally Ill
Conclusion

From the Paper
"What is Discretion?
In order to understand how police officers use discretion, an individual first must know what it is. Discretion is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as, "the ability to make responsible decisions, individual choice or judgment, power of free decision or latitude of choice within certain legal bounds." (Merriam-Webster Online, unknown). An officer's ability to use discretion and have the ability to make good judgment calls sometimes in a split second is crucial. Otherwise, an officer most likely will not have an extensive career in law enforcement."

Tags:enforcement, juvenile, civil

Abstract
The paper discusses why the discretion of police to make autonomous decisions about whether to initiate enforcement action is integral to the realities of maintaining a police authority. The paper explores the benefits and problems with police discretion and explains how specific policing styles for different communities are conducive to effective administrative control of police discretion on patrol.

Outline:
Understanding Police Discretion
Benefits and Problems Associated with Police Discretion
Controlling Officer Discretion at the Operational Level through Policing Strategies
Conclusion

From the Paper
"Effective police operations requires sound decision making at every level, starting with field contacts between first-line officers on patrol and citizens all the way up the ranks of operational supervision and department administration and policy making. Some of the most important decisions made by every police officer, beginning with his first probationary tour of duty, are the decision to refrain from taking enforcement action where, technically, enforcement is justified. That makes perfect sense: if every minor violation of penal law that allowed enforcement or arrest necessarily required enforcement or arrest, police agencies would be perpetually busy processing enforcement of the types of violations that do not threaten the safety and welfare of citizens and society."

Tags:violations, policies, arrest, professional, courtesy, motive, intuition

Abstract
In this article, the writer points out that police officers must exercise professional discretion in performing their duties in many different respects. The writer discusses that without the ability to make decisions such as whether to take police action over every apparent violation of any rule, ordinance, or law, they would be virtually unable to respond to serious crimes altogether. On the other hand, police discretion can also be misused by officers to give preferential treatment to specific individuals instead of to make decisions for their objective strategic or tactical value. The writer maintains that the concept of police discretion is not intended to allow officers to enforce laws (or fail to) preferentially; it is intended to allow for practical decision making and reasonable prioritization of their many responsibilities and to allocate police resources and assets in the most beneficial way to the communities in which they serve.

Outline:
Background and History of Police Discretion in the United States
Professional Courtesy in Modern American Policing
Distinguishing Appropriate and Impermissible Police Discretion
Bibliography

From the Paper
"Examples where police officers generally try to avoid taking official police action generally include routine traffic violations (and even some comparatively serious traffic violations) that do not result in property damage or injury to other persons. These are usually overlooked by police officers as soon as the violator identifies himself as a fellow law enforcement officer. Individual officers may differ in so far as the exact lines that they draw between the types of violations for which they will extend professional courtesy and those for which they perceive themselves as having no choice but to take police action against a fellow police officer.
"Even where the violation involves drunk driving, once the violator is identified as a police officer, the on-duty officers are much more likely to take unofficial action, such as contacting the off-duty officer's coworkers to respond to the scene to handle the situation or provide transportation home for both the violator and his vehicle. Naturally, police administrator rarely officially condone such practices and the vast majority of modern police academies actually provide specific training to the contrary as well as oral board ethics inquiries during the recruit selection and screening phase that raise those very issues."

Tags:violation, crimes, civil, rights, law, enforcement

Abstract
This paper examines the controversy that has arisen over the use of police discretion and discusses several of the myths that have come to be connected with it. The paper also explains that, since full enforcement of all the laws is not possible, and since not every scenario is covered by the law, police discretion continues to be a necessity. The author concludes that a more open agency policy will foster a trustworthy relationship with the public which will enable police officers to use discretion without fear of reprisal, civil liability or corruption.

From the Paper
"Police work encompasses what other professions do not, in that there are few uncontroversial areas within its realm. Professionalism, thus, comes at a cost to police officers because the public seems unwilling to trust them informally; instead, the public seems to want strict, formal accountability mechanisms in place. Simply put, society at times, desires loose enforcement, at other times, strict enforcement. "

Tags:license, complex, violation, crime, norms, policy

Abstract
This paper examines how discretion is a certificate of authority which gives police officers a vast amount of freedom and how it gives officers authorization to act freely and use that authority in carrying out the rights and responsibilities of policing. The paper further discusses how, in order for police officers to exercise good discretion, there must be guidelines and proper training to apply this discretion successfully. The paper concludes that, without using this unspoken practice, an officer's job would be burdened with another layer of complexity that they would have to overcome.

From the Paper
"There are a number of strategies that could be implemented for controlling discretion. First and most important is for law enforcement to hire officers who exhibit use of good police judgment and this comes from having good character. Law enforcement should take more time in hiring officers to be able to assess if they have common virtues of character as honesty, modesty, and empathy. After they determine these features, then the other police requirements for using discretion can be learned from on the job training. Another strategy for controlling discretion is for officers to be properly trained on how to use discretion. With the denial of this practice, discretion training is not part of the academy's program, but it should be incorporated into the procedures of when and where an officer can use discretion. "

Tags:authority, rights, law, enforcement

Abstract
This paper examines this article whose purpose is to look at the theory of representative bureaucracy in a slightly different way. Most studies dealing with representative bureaucracy have focused on active representation, but have not looked into the administrative discretion that is often tied to it. It explains how this study seeks not only to discuss the theory of representative bureaucracy, but then move on to administrative discretion and how it is often tied into the active representation of what one does. The main research question is whether administrative discretion and active representation are actually tied together and whether it affects how individuals who are making decisions based on minority status tend to make decisions in favor of those who are of the same race or ethnic background as they are.

From the Paper
"The research model that is used is an empirical analysis and is conducted based on a housing loans program and whether individuals who are of minority descent will have a better chance of getting a home loan if the individual who is helping them with the loan is also of their same background. There are several variables in this particular study, with the first one being administrative discretion (Sowa & Selden, 2003). The variables that were chosen were utilized because they were believed that they would affect the behavior of various administrators and this in turn would determine whether decisions that had to do with minority interest would be made by these individuals. The administrative discretion is used in this particular study to see what impact it has on the various policy outcomes that work in favor of minority interest (Sowa & Selden, 2003)."

Tags:race, ethnic

Abstract
This paper examines the subject of judicial discretion, specifically as it was applied by the United States Supreme Court in "Tome v. United States, 513 U.S. 150 (1995)". In that case, a majority of the court ruled that reports of prior consistent statements made by the victim of sexual assault were inadmissible unless they occurred prior to any incident drawing the victim's credibility into question. The paper contends that the dissent in Tome presented a more reasonable position, giving the trial judge more discretion in admitting evidence of this sort. To conclude, the paper notes that the states have not invariably followed Tome.

From the Paper
"In Tome v. United States, 513 U.S. 150 (1995), the Supreme Court considered a case which turned on an issue of judicial discretion. Matthew Tome was charged and convicted of felony sexual abuse of a child, his daughter who was four years old when the abuse occurred. Tome had primary custody of the child, A.T., during the 1989-90 school year; Tome's wife had custody during the summer of 1990. In August, the mother contacted police, alleging that A.T. had been sexually abused. The prosecution alleged that A.T. had been abused during the school year; the defense contended that the story was concocted to prevent Tome from retaining custody. (The matter was tried in federal rather than state court because the abuse allegedly occurred on a Navajo reservation.) (513 U.S. at 152)."

Tags:law, court, minor, child, testimony, reliability, credibility