Police discretion

Police discretion

ABSTRACT

Police discretion is a professional judgment given to an officer to use by their administration in some cases. Officers are not allowed to abuse this power by using it where the law can take its course. This paper will focus on the reasons why officers arrest lawbreakers in some circumstances but not others. How the discretion is used positively. The author discusses the events that would lead to discretionary powers being abused. The author is in agreement that police officers should always exercise discretion in situations where it is complex to apply the law. Such cases leave the officers in a dilemma, and it is, therefore, better to use their judgment to exercise their work correctly where the law cannot apply. Discretion enables the community to be involved and is part of understanding residents’ concerns. Administrative agencies of police allowing its officers to use their judgment in line of duty where the law seems unfair to bring public understanding and support from the community. Although the use of discretion is different from the use of policy statements, the viewpoint of the officer will improve the quality of policy and create consensus among communities. There are areas where discretion may take a positive effect while others are contrary. Some of these cases include where people may break the law and get a warning instead of being arrested. The negative part is that officers act according to their beliefs and not the law, which might be unfair. Various police departments use discretion at different levels. However, these departments can exist without the use of preference, as there are laws to be used. Police discretion is not only used in the patrol section but also detective division.

Police discretion is freedom given by officers in the line of duty to exercise their judgment in their profession. However, there are lines where a police officer is not allowed to cross. If the officers cross this line, the officer ends up violating the law. This implies that the officers in their official duties are permitted to use discretion at some level. The use of choice enables a law enforcer to perform his task flexibly and fast. This flexibility in performance saves the economy as those who violate laws may get warnings instead of arrest. There will be few prisoners, and also few patrol officers will be required in the field since the arrest is reduced. If discretionary powers are abused, it will lead to reduced community support and more court cases. Court cases would be as a result of officers violating people’s rights and laws of the country. There exist different departments in administrative police agency which exercise discretion at different levels. Police departments can live without choice, and he is because there are policies.

Discretion is used positively. One of the positive use of the option is being warned instead of arrest. A patrol officer may spot a driver who pulls over without activating the indicator. The officer walks to the driver and demands a driving license and an Identification Card (I.D.). Upon verification and checking of the past data of the victim, the officer realizes that the driver has no past driving mistakes. The officer is, in this case, allowed by law to make discretion. He may decide to give the driver a warning instead of a citation due to the excellent record of driving.

Another positive use of discretion is a few jails and jail officers. The choice is most cases enables the lawbreaker to walk free without being jailed. This giving of warnings as a result of discretion will reduce the number of jails. The reduction of prisoners implies a low cut on the government spending to keep these culprits in prison and the cost of paying lawyers in court proceedings. Court proceedings may take long to prove the accused guilty, which translates to more spending by the government. Giving warning to those who are found violating the law makes them uphold the code in the future and improves community support. Besides, few police officers will be required in the field as the rate of arrests will be minimal. Since police officers will be using discretion in cases where the law may be unfair to use, few of them will be needed. Also, few jail officers will be required as the numbers of jails will be reduced.

Discretionary powers may be abused when an officer makes a discretionary ruling. Since society gives law enforcers capabilities over the citizens, this can lead to abuse of these powers. If the police officers’ professional judgment is based on the victim’s race or gender, then the officer is said to be abusing the power of discretion. For instance, police can make decisions to favor a specific group of people because they are of his race. Law enforcers may also help prominent citizens to walk free while found violating the law. These acts, which lead to abuse of discretionary powers, deprive people of their rights. It makes citizens of a country lose faith and trust in the police and government. These unfair practices also make those who are prominent continue to break the law. Citizens or a community will not offer support to police while carrying out their duty due to loss of trust.

Police departments can exist with discretion being banned. Discretion is unlawful and illegal. This is because police officers are allowed to act in their interests, which may sometimes favor one side or be unfair. How these officers are authorized to perform discretion is not stated anywhere in the law. In this case, officers can choose to commit prohibited acts and operate illegally in the context of discretion. Illegal decisions that are made cannot be termed as discretion but forbidden acts. Many officers use discretion often to take advantage of the situation and ask for bribes. Actions of discretion will not reduce the number of lawbreakers but would instead increase this number. Lawbreakers will continuously break the law knowing that discretion will set them free. The bill should be upheld and enforced by law enforcers. Those who are found violating the law should be arrested and sentenced. Police departments can, therefore, exist without discretion.

There are different departments in a police station. Discretion in these departments is given depending on the division. Some departments give officers less discretion power and request them to stick more on the laws. However, other divisions such as the patrol division give their law enforcers more discretion power. This is because this field is filled with many people who may not comply with the law. This field requires many rules which may fail to apply and, therefore, the need to use discretion as an alternative.

The detective division is another division found in the police department. It is one of the high ranking department and the largest of all departments. This division comprises of groups of detectives who only deal with high profile cases such as homicide and arson. The division is further sub-divided into private and public detectives, and All detectives have their areas of specialization. These areas include street work, forensics, and records investigations. This division is given more attention and therefore offered full use of discretion since the detectives are involved in the use of in-depth interviews. Their role is crucial in the case as it aims at making the victim give clues to the investigations.

In conclusion, police discretion is a vital tool for law enforcers, which does their work practices. Officers are allowed to practice their professional judgment, which trusts and provides support from the community. There are circumstances under which law enforcers are required to use discretion, which prevents them from misusing this power of choice. The use of the option is advantageous as it reduces the number of jails, thereby improving the economy. Discretion makes officers’ job flexible due to the availability of an alternative. When officers abuse their discretion power by favor or racism, this might lead to a violation of human rights and loss of trust in law enforcers. Departments can exist without discretion being used since here are norms that govern each department. Discretions are practiced in different levels in various divisions within the police force. Each division is given the power to exercise discretion, depending on the department.

References

Kelling, G. L. (1999). ” Broken Windows” and Police Discretion. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice.

Schulenberg, J. (2003). The social context of police discretion with young offenders: An ecological analysis. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 45(2), 127-158.

Kite, D., & Tyson, G. A. (2004). The impact of perpetrator gender on male and female police officers’ perceptions of child sexual abuse. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 11(2), 308-318.

Parchomiuk, J. (2018). Abuse of Discretionary Powers in Administrative Law. Evolution of the Judicial Review Models: from “Administrative Morality” to the Principle of Proportionality. Časopis pro právní vědu a praxi, 26(3), 453-478.

LaFave, W. R. (1990). Controlling Discretion by Administrative Regulations: The Use, Misuse, and Nonuse of Police Rules and Policies in Fourth Amendment Adjudication. Michigan Law Review, 89(3), 442-519.

Blaesser, B. W. (1994). The abuse of discretionary power. In Design review (pp. 42-50). Springer, Boston, MA.

Powell, D. D. (1981). Race, rank, and police discretion. Journal of Police Science & Administration.

Heinonen, A., & Ellonen, N. (2016). ‘Crime or not?’–police officers’ perceptions of disciplinary violence, its criminalization, and its investigation. Policing and Society, 26(5), 503-521.

Corsianos, M. (2003). Discretion in detectives’ decision making and’high profile’ cases. Police practice and research, 4(3), 301-314.